How-to guides
How to use Second Phone, step by step
Step-by-step instructions for the things people do most in Second Phone. Each guide names the buttons as they appear in the app.
Getting started
Create your account and sign in
Install the app, accept the privacy notice, grant the permissions it needs and sign in with Apple, your phone number or Google.
Get your first number
Choose a country, a region and a number, then start the subscription that comes with your first (primary) number.
Add another number with coins
Extra numbers are bought with coins for 7 days, 30 days, 90 days or a year, up to 10 numbers on one account.
Add the address a country requires
Some countries need a registered address before a number can go live. You have 7 days to provide it.
Buy coins
Coins pay for extra numbers, calls and the messages you send. They come in packs of 200, 700, 1,000 and 3,000.
Calls
Make a call
Dial from the Keypad, or call from a contact, a recent call or a conversation. The call goes from the number you have selected.
Answer, decline or text back an incoming call
Incoming calls ring in the app like ordinary calls. You can pick up, decline, or decline and reply with a text.
Record a call
Turn call recording on for a number, then record any part of a call. Recordings are saved under Recents.
Set up voicemail and business hours
Send calls to voicemail when you do not want to be disturbed, or only take calls during the hours you choose.
Forward your calls to another phone
Send every call to one of your numbers on to any other phone number, and switch it off when you want the app to ring again.
Video call another Second Phone user
Video calls work between Second Phone users. Start one from a contact's profile or a chat; ordinary phone numbers can only be called with audio.
Messages
Start a conversation and send a message
Message any SMS- or MMS-capable number, or another Second Phone user, from the number you choose.
Send a photo, video, file or voice note
Attach media to a conversation, or hold the microphone to record a voice note.
Switch the number you are using
Each of your numbers has its own calls and conversations. The number switcher at the top of a tab chooses which one you are working with.
Your numbers
Rename a number, set auto-renew, switch it off or delete it
Everything about a number lives in its settings, opened by tapping its card on your Profile.
Renew an expired number
An expired number stays on your Profile for 30 days so you can renew it: the primary number through your subscription, an extra number with coins.
Replace your primary number
Swap your primary number for a new one from the number's settings. The first replacement is free; later ones are a paid in-app purchase.
Read your number card
Every number on your Profile is a card: the crown, the status, the days left, Auto-renew, and the voicemail, recording and forwarding icons each tell you something.
Recents
Account and settings
Check prices and track your spending
The Pricing calculator shows what a call or message costs between two countries; Expenses lists every coin added and spent.
Lock the app with a PIN or biometrics
Keep your numbers and messages private with a 4-digit PIN, Face ID, Touch ID or your phone's fingerprint or face unlock.
Create a private Second Phone contact
Second Phone contacts live only inside the app, separate from your phone's address book.
Restore, manage or cancel your subscription
Your subscription belongs to your Apple or Google account. Restore it on a new phone, or change and cancel it in the store.
Contact support from the app
Settings → Support sends a request to our team with your email, a description and an optional screenshot, and you get a reply by email.
Delete your account, or just log out
Logging out keeps everything for next time. Deleting the account removes it and your numbers for good, and does not cancel a store subscription.
Manage notifications
Second Phone notifies you about calls, messages, voicemails and your numbers and coins. Allow notifications in your phone's settings, and review past ones from the bell on your Profile.
Use the app in your language
Second Phone is available in 16 languages and follows the language your phone is set to, including right-to-left Arabic.
Troubleshooting
I can't make or receive calls
Calls fail for a handful of reasons: no active subscription or coins, a deactivated or expired number, a number without calling, or a missing microphone permission. Check them in this order.
Messages, Keypad or Recents is greyed out
A tab is disabled when none of your numbers can do what it needs: Messages needs SMS, Keypad and Recents need calling, and all of them need at least one active number.
My verification code never arrives
Check the number and country code, wait a minute, then tap Resend Code. Resends are limited, and on iPhone you can sign in with Apple instead.
Everyday uses
Set up a work line
Give one number a name, business hours, a voicemail greeting and call recording, so work calls arrive when you choose and nothing personal is mixed in.
Keep your personal number private
Use a Second Phone number for online marketplaces, deliveries, dating and sign-ups, keep those contacts in the app, and switch the number off or delete it when you are done.
Looking for a quick answer instead?
The Help and FAQ page answers 78 common questions in a sentence or two.