7 Best Spam Call Blockers for iPhone and iOS in 2024

We know you bought your iPhone because you wanted a powerful device to let you do exciting things, like taking classy pictures and videos to share with your friends and family and significantly improving your overall digital experience. Calls from robots, spam, and potential scammers are not how you want to use your phone. It’s a waste of your time and resources, not to mention how annoying and inopportune it is every time it happens.

Thankfully, you don’t have to put up with that at all. This article lists the best seven free spam call blocker apps to eliminate spam calls on your iPhone.

Best spam calls blockers for iOS devices – Quick list

Here is a summary of the top robocall blocker apps for iPhone to deliver you a phone spam-free life. If you want to know more about these apps, read along.

What are spam calls?

A spam call is an unsolicited call often initiated with malicious intentions. The ultimate goal of the caller is to ensure damage to the recipient, more frequently – financial damage.

Spam calls come in all shapes and sizes and can be difficult to stop. Technological advancements, such as the introduction of voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) and caller ID spoofing, have worsened the situation.

Spam calls are commonly grouped into the following:

1. Telemarketing: They are calls originating from live individuals attempting to sell a product. These calls are often not fraudulent.
2. Legal robocalls: Unlike live calls, these are automated calls for billing or other services. They are usually not spam.
3. Illegal robocalls: These calls are usually pre-recorded and sent to you without authorization. Such calls include scam loans, auto-warranty calls, and other scams.
4. Scam calls: Entails live persons giving you a call to scam you. This category includes calls such as ransom calls.

Where do spam calls come from?

The first category of spam calls reported in the US by the Federal Trade Commission included IRS scams, Social Security Scams, and nanny scams. Further, the commission provided that medical scams, warranty, debt, and tech-support scams were the second most common category of scam calls. Another common scam was the auto-warranty renewal scam.

These frauds often have a logical structure. For instance, you may encounter more IRS frauds during tax filing than in other seasons. In 2020, the public saw increased scams related to COVID-19 testing. In 2020, during the California wildfires, households received scam calls from con artists posing as the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Aid scams are a common response to calamities around the US.

Scammers are systematic. They first hook you using a convincing pitch. The second step involves pretending to address the matter highlighted in the first step. They ensure they gather as much personal information as possible to win your trust. Next, they proceed to solicit funds from you. They trick you into sending money directly or gaining access to your banking login information and doing it themselves.

How to pick the best Apple spam call blocker

Apple invests a lot of resources in keeping the apps in its App Store as safe and reliable as possible. But you will still find several options for each category, so the question is always, which ones are worth trying?

We reviewed many available apps and selected the seven best ones according to the criteria below:

• App Store reviews and user rating: Aim for nothing short of four stars with at least 1000 posted reviews.
• Customer service: You should never need it, but it has to be quick and helpful when you do.
• Feature quality: Look for a service with exceptional feature quality.
• Price: If you’re getting charged for something, you better get value for your money.

No single app is perfect in every regard, of course. But it can have enough value for us to recommend it to you with pride in a job well done.

Top 7 spam call blockers for iPhones and iPads today – Detailed list

Since we’ve mentioned the notion of perfection already, remember that nothing will keep every spam call away from you. Many telemarketing agencies and scammers keep refreshing their number lists to avoid blockages. They are working hard to keep reaching you, which counts, too.

The best apps, however, will keep most calls away from you. And that’s as good as it gets: reducing the volume, time, and resources that spam calls cost you meaningfully.

So, with no further ado, here’s our detailed list of the best seven spam call blockers for iOS users!

1. Robo Shield

Robo Shield is a relative newcomer to spam-blocking applications for Apple devices. That makes it even more impressive how it’s acquired a good name for itself in such a short period.

Robo Shield is highly effective at blocking spam calls. It’s one element within a more extensive security tools and software package to improve security and privacy. Maybe you are already considering buying the whole package — or perhaps you should be considering it if not.

RoboShield gets a 95/100 from us! Here’s why:

Customer service and ratings

Robo Shield is increasingly appealing as an app in the Apple App Store, with positive user reviews and 3.1/5 stars. That is because Robo Shield met every essential requirement from the beginning.

Pango is the company behind Robo Shield, and we were very impressed with how it manages critical reviews. The critical comments we found on the App Store met with an answer from the developing team. Each answer was helpful and cheerful. This degree of attention to customer service is almost unheard of in any industry, so that alone puts Pango and Robo Shield in a different league.

Also, there is a reason for users to rate this app so highly: it works! It’s effective at filtering unwanted calls.

The “less is better” approach in Robo Shield is a good thing, too. It’s not the app with the most features on our list. And it doesn’t matter. Its few protection features work better than any similar option from the competition. So, you don’t want to download it because of its versatility. Instead, you’ll download it to perform one single job with perfection!

Features

Robo Shield gives you the following:

• Caller ID.
• Number lookup tool.
• Automatic call filtering. The developers keep an hourly updated spam database for this purpose.
• Automatic number blocking.

Robo Shield is the only app with a blocking function that helps you block a particular type of spam call (say, political agencies or account management services). Those can go straight into your voicemail without you even noticing.

Pricing

The monthly fee you must pay for Robo Shield will probably be why you choose another option because it’s steep. But keep reading; the fee will give you value for your money!

So, Robo Shield will set you back by 2.99 USD monthly if you want to use it. But hold on. Before you move to the next blocker, let us tell you that that fee will also give you a Hotspot Shield VPN subscription (a good VPN option), 1Password Manager (another leader in its field), and Identity Guard, an identity theft protection tool.

So maybe those bucks seem like too much to pay for a blocker. But if you also need a VPN and a password manager and need to prevent data theft, this app saves you a lot of money.

That said, we would like to see Pango releasing Robo Shield as a stand-alone app because it’s a great option.

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2. Truecaller

This iPhone spam call blocker enjoys an excellent reputation globally among the spam blocking applications. Since it is 100% free of charge, it gives you the best value at no cost. That alone makes it almost unique among the other choices in this article.

Our score for Truecaller is also 95/100 points.

Customer service and ratings

The app has over 240k user reviews on the App Store. And it’s rated at 4.5 stars. Keeping such an accountable score with massive ratings tells us something about customer satisfaction with Truecaller.

The Truecaller staff responds to all reviews, including the positive ones. Also, the company keeps sharing valuable tips in the Apple App Store review section to keep its customers happy with the app experience.

Features

The Truecaller feature list includes the following:

• Caller ID.
• Spam call blocking.
• Profile creation.
• Extensive call history.
• Call recording (premium).
• Who’s viewed your profile (premium).
• Incognito mode (premium).

Truecaller is enriched with features. Unfortunately, that’s not necessarily great because some are superficial and do not add to the app’s purposes. For instance, the premium service includes something like social media for Truecaller users, so others can see your profile or get a special gold-colored caller ID symbol whenever another Truecaller user calls you. It’s hard to see how any of that is helpful in practical terms.

However, if we stick to the app’s core protection features (caller ID, call blocking), we have to say that they do an excellent job.

If you don’t like the advertising in the app, let us warn you: going premium won’t help. If you upgrade your app to the Premium version, you’ll get extra features, but the ads will stay in place.

Pricing

If you want to block phone spam with a budget, Truecaller is an excellent option. The app’s most important features are available for free, and if any of the Premium features catch your eye, they’re available for 2.99 USD monthly.

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3. Nomorobo Robocall Blocking

Nomorobo is not very popular, but it should be. It’s undoubtedly one of the best apps we tested, and we would recommend it to any iPhone user. In addition, it has a 14-day free trial, so you can get to know it intimately before paying for the license.

This one also has 95/100 points on our scoring board.

Customer service and ratings

Nomorobo app has garnered 12,000 reviews on the Apple App Store, with 4.5/5 stars. The app claims to serve more than 2.5 million users, which is doubtful given the number of reviews.

As an iOS user, this app will give you the best it can offer – especially compared to the Android version, which is not that good. The staff is also responsive, always answering quickly to the comments it gets on the App Store.

Features

• Spam call blocking.
• Adblocker.
• Spam text blocker.
• Phone number lookup.
• Anti-tracking for web browsing.

Nomorobo allows you to automatically block suspect calls and send them to your voice mail directly or to identify a suspect number as the call is ringing merely.

Pricing

Nomorobo Robocall Blocking’s price is 1.99 USD monthly. When you compare that price with the app’s performance, it appears to be one of the most cost-effective options on the list.

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4. YouMail Voicemail and Spam Blocker

YouMail is different from the other spam-blocking apps in the market, focusing on voicemail offerings.

As a new call arrives on your phone, the YouMail Voicemail and Spam Block app compares the incoming number with those in a database of undesirables. Then it will give the caller a message of “this phone number is not in service” in your stead.

We gave YouMail Voicemail and Spam Blocker 92/100 points.

Customer service and ratings

This iOS app has over 90K user reviews, and the rating is very impressive at 4.7/5 stars!

The company is excellent at answering comments. It answers most negative reviews and appreciates the positive reviews it gets. However, the answers to negative reviews are far from perfect. They can be a bit snarky or mean. Seeing such an excellent service get the wrong note for an easily avoided thing is a shame.

Features

• Different voicemail service.
• Voicemail inbox (limited to 100 entries).
• Robocall blocking from YouMail’s database of known spam numbers.
• Unlimited blocklisting.
• Ten voicemail-to-text transcripts.
• Unlimited custom voicemail greetings for user’s contacts.

All these protection features are available for free. However, if you pay for one of the bonus plans, you’ll get even more features, and you could find some of them helpful, especially if you are using your iPhone for your business activities. For instance, you can have a voicemail limit of 1000 entries on the Plus plan and 10,000 on the Professional plan.

Spam blocking is not at the core of YouMail’s service, so you should keep that in mind. But even in that context, its database is excellent, and the app’s method of dealing with unwanted calls is more robust than many other options in the market.

But it is not as effective as Truecaller or RoboKiller. That is because it has a smaller user base. That, in turn, means that its database is smaller, so it can’t catch as many spam calls as the other, more prominent apps.

Pricing

There is a free YouMail Voicemail and Spam Blocker, and they’re excellent! However, business-oriented users could understandably need a little more than what they can get from the free version, such as higher voicemail limits, ads dropping, and other business-friendly features.

The Plus Plan costs 5.99 USD monthly, the Professional Plan comes at 10.99 monthly, and the Small Business Plan costs 24.99 USD.

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5. RoboKiller

RoboKiller once had the honor of being declared “App of the Day” by a trustworthy publication, The Washington Post. It’s famous as a spam-blocking app for Apple devices.

It has good user ratings and reviews, so it must be good at the job it purports to do. However, it contrasts when you compare its reviews and ratings at the Android store, Google Play, which is nowhere near as favorable.

We rated 93/100 to Robokiller.

Customer service and ratings

RoboKiller started as an iPhone app, as many of the best applications in the industry have. It’s optimized for Apple users at an optimum level, and all that shows as a 4.5/5 stars rating on the App Store. Keeping that rate so high when you have more than 300K customer reviews can’t be easy, so it stands out in the market because it combines longevity and popularity.

Regarding its customer service, it doesn’t look impressive, mainly because of its arrogant responses to negative reviews. The answers we found at the Apple App Store are often useless as they point users to customer service instead of attempting to provide at least some helpful information. Both things are easy to improve.

Features

• Call blocking.
• Safelisting for trusted numbers.
• An up-to-date spam number list.
• Spam call recording.
• SMS spam blocking.
• Listen to a variety of spam calls (including other people’s).
• Create your answer bot.

The Robokiller blocking technique is utterly unique. First, Robokiller reroutes the call through its exchange service as a call arrives on your phone. Then, a series of conditional port forwarding options enables RoboKiler to use bots army to answer spam call and text messages and make the spam callers waste a good time (to get a lesson). And none of your time is wasted as that happens.

And if you’d like to get even with some of those nasty spam callers, the mischievous spirit behind RoboKiller’s service will be just the thing for you. As the incoming spam call is routed towards a bot, the call is recorded, and you can have a bit of fun by listening to those calls and enjoying how the bot gives the callers a taste of their own medicine. So you see, you’re not using a simple blocker. Instead, it’s a whole hobby!

Pricing

All the fun RoboKiller can afford you will be yours for only 39.99 USD yearly –it comes to 4.99 USD monthly.

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6. Malwarebytes Mobile Security

The Malwarebytes antivirus software is pretty well known, and it includes a well-liked mobile security application that also provides spam and scam-blocking features. Unfortunately, in the case of Malwarebytes, blocking phone spam is more of a collateral advantage than the app’s primary task. Still, it’s workable, and it made our top seven options.

Malwarebytes Mobile Security gets 92.5/100 points.

Customer service and ratings

This app boasts a 4.6/5 star rating with over 41K customer reviews on the App Store. This brand is among the handful of dominant ones in the antivirus industry. And it’s now trying to extend that respected reputation into the call and web protection world.

We like Malwarebytes’ customer service because they take the time to answer user complaints on the App Store without any disrespect for the negative comments. As far as we saw, every user complaint gets an answer from the company. And that approach has seemingly worked for them because users often change their rating after getting help from the review section.

Features

• Adblocking.
• SMS fraud filter.
• Malicious site blocking.
• Caller ID (premium).
• Spam call blocking (premium).

There’s no way to automatically block calls or send them to voicemail, which is the most common strategy in all the other apps.

Pricing

Malware Mobile Security is a free service, in principle. But the free version doesn’t include blocking spam calls, so you need to upgrade to its Premium package if that’s your priority. That will cost you 3.75 USD monthly.

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7. Hiya

Hiya’s spam-blocking technology probably benefits you even if you haven’t chosen your preferred robocall-blocking app. That’s because both T-Mobile and AT&T use Hiya to implement built-in spam identification in their services. In addition, Samsung is Hiya’s partner in the Samsung Smart Call feature.

We give Hiya our score of 80/100.

Customer service and ratings

There’s plenty to like about Hiya. iPhone users seem to be particularly attracted to this app. It has over 220K reviews on the App Store with 4.5/5 stars, which is very high and consistent. Those numbers alone give it a status akin to Truecaller and RoboKiller.

Hiya is an excellent app for sure, but customer service is its greatest weakness. The troubleshooting options are minimal, and it rarely answers unfavorable feedback on the Apple Store.

Fortunately for Hiya, its users’ technical problems are sporadic, or it could not enjoy such a high rating.

Features

Hiya will get you the following features:

• Caller ID.
• Suspected spam alerts.
• Neighborhood spoof warnings (for 25 area codes and prefixes).
• An unlimited number of searches.
• Automatic call blocking (premium).
• Three daily database updates (premium).
• Two hundred monthly premium name searches (premium).
• Automatic blocking of 25 prefixes and area codes (premium).

The area code and prefix blocking approach to phone spam prevention is a strategy unique to Hiya. This technique pays more attention to a number’s initial six digits. Unfortunately, many, if not most, of the spam callers attempt to mimic those numbers so that their call slips under the recipient’s radar, and he picks it up. Hiya helps you to avoid more spam in this fashion.

Pricing

The app’s more essential features regarding phone spam are free of charge. However, the premium features are available for 2.99 USD monthly.

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Why should I use spam call blockers on iOS devices?

Apple is aware of the problem that spam calls nowadays. That’s why the iOS 13 updates included a new direct-to-voicemail feature for unwanted calls. (Scroll down to learn how to set it up.) That helps, but it’s not enough.

Every American is typically pestered with about 17 spam calls every month. Some of us even have to put up with multiple such calls daily.

Of course, you can always sign up for a “Do not call list.” But, while it can improve things slightly, it’s not a solution.

So, if you want unwanted calls to stop ruining your days, then, as an iOS user, you need to consider installing good spam call blockers for your iPhone or iPad.

It is not just about personal convenience – although it certainly helps. But installing one of these apps also makes you a part of the growing community of users advocating to stop phone spam.

What about the National Do Not Call Registry?

As a US citizen, you might know a bit about the National Do Not Call Registry. It is a government-run initiative to punish businesses that make unsolicited calls to any individual who has requested to be left alone by adding his number to the Registry.

The National Do Not Call Registry is an excellent idea for spam prevention! But only official businesses have to respect it. And even in that case, telemarketers won’t get blocked because punishment is only for reported companies. So if you’re placing unwanted calls and nobody has complained about you, you’re safe from the Registry.

Also, some more tech-savvy organizations have found ways to circumvent the Registry’s power. For instance, VoIP can spoof a caller ID.

And the problem with that is quite simple: as long as most spam callers can hide their identities and locations, there’s no real hope to stop them.

The Do Not Call Registry’s limitations

Usually, spam callers are not working on an official business’s behalf. Instead, the bulk of this phone traffic comes courtesy of scam artists located overseas whose concern for legal consequences is nil because, being away from the US, they’re immune to the law of the land.

Moreover, please note that the National Do Not Call Registry is a public database. If you sign up, you could even end up having more-than-before spam calls to your iPhone.

That’s not to say there is no point in the National Do Not Call Registry. On the contrary, ethical businesses respect it because it avoids potential fines. Still, signing up implies a risk because not every company is honorable, and most spammers are notoriously indifferent to this kind of thing.

Other countries have initiatives similar to the Registry. For example, Singapore, India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Australia, the UK, and Canada have organizations working for these objectives.

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Other methods to minimize the amount of spam calls you receive

Phone scammers aim to reach as many people as possible. So, they invest significant resources to bypass spam-blocking filters and restrictions.

You need to take additional measures if you have a spam-blocking app on your phone and still get unwanted calls. 

Here are some tips you can apply to prevent spammers 

• Remove personally identifiable information from social media. Spammers can easily find your information on your social media profile, like your phone number. 
• Check your personal information on the dark web. Scammers and advertisers can use your information to contact you if it was included in a data breach. So, use a dark web scanner to check your phone number. 
• Eliminate your phone number from the data broker list. Data brokers sell your phone number to scammers and advertisers. Thankfully, there are services you can use to remove your personal information from the data broker list. 
• Be cautious with strangers or robocalls. Automated spam systems cannot differentiate between valid and invalid numbers. However, by responding, you confirm that the number is legitimate. Also, scammers can record your voice and use it to access sensitive information or accounts. 
• Report spam calls to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). Once you add your number to DoNotCall.gov, report unwanted calls to the FCC. 
• Change your phone number. If the above solutions don’t work, the painful option is to change your phone number. Also, remember to change your old phone number on multi or two-factor authentication (MFA or 2FA) services. However, beware that changing your phone number won’t stop scammers from targeting you. They use auto-dialer technology to target active phone numbers.

How to stop calls in iPhone without blocking

If your iPhone boasts the latest iOS as of January 2024, Apple’s built-in spam call blocker has got your back – for free! This feature will send every unrecognized call to your voicemail. So, an incoming call that is not in your contacts list, emails, or text messages won’t bother you.

Setting up Apple’s built-in spam call blocker

Apple’s blocker is more aggressive than most other spam call blockers for iOS devices. However, it’s optional, so you don’t have to activate it unless you wish to. If you’re going to try it, here’s how:

• Head to “Settings” on your Apple device.
• Now pick “Phone.”
• Tap on “Silence Unknown Callers.”
• That’s it; you’re done!

There’s no customization available. This option is very black and white. Every incoming call not on your contacts is “unwanted” and will get blocked. However, this is only the first time Apple has offered such an option, so future versions of this feature could be more nuanced. We’ll have to wait and see.

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What to do if you have been scammed?

Phone scams are becoming more common, affecting millions of people worldwide. However, spam-blocking services can block calls from spammers, robots, and fraudsters, devising clever ways to exploit phone numbers. 

If a scammer accesses your personal information, you can be at risk of financial fraud, hacking, and identity theft; even responding to a spam message can make you a target. 

Here is what to do if you become a victim of a phone scam 

1. Safeguard your online accounts: Fraudsters can use your information to access your email inbox, bank accounts, or other financial accounts. If you discover a phone scammer has your personal details, login codes, or passwords, enable MFA/2FA and update your passwords on your accounts. 
2. Freeze your credit: A scammer can use your Social Security Number (SSN) to impersonate you and take loans. However, you can prevent this by freezing your credit with major credit bureaus like Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. 
3. Report the fraud: If a scammer impersonates your bank or a renowned company, report the issue to the organization. However, they might require you to first report it to the FTC.
4. Subscribe to an identity theft protection service: It is essential to track your credit file to identify suspicious activities early. So, sign up for an identity theft protection service to safeguard yourself.

FAQs