You’re probably curious about what a canceled call is on an iPhone Call log.
In this easy to understand guide you will find out:
- What a canceled call means.
- The difference between a canceled call and a missed call.
- Did a call ring before it was canceled.
- Was the call declined or did it fail?
- And much more…
After reading this article you will have a much clearer idea about how the iPhone handles calls that are not answered or connected.
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Table of Contents
What does it mean if it says canceled call on iPhone?
If you make a call to someone else and hang up before they answer, or hang up before goes to voice mail then it is a canceled call.
A canceled call does not indicate a problem with the connection or that the recipient didn’t get the call.
There are many reasons for canceling a call you made, such as:
- Calling the wrong person.
- Changing your mind.
- Accidentally calling when looking at contact details.
- The call was taking too long to be answered.
Apple has a few different types of call statuses for iPhone:
- Canceled call
- Incoming call
- Outgoing call
- Missed call
Each one means something different with most confusion being between a missed and canceled call.
How to see the call status on iPhone
You can see the status of a call by doing the following:
- On your iPhone, tap the phone icon
- On the bottom menu, tap Recent
- On the list of calls, tap the i opposite the caller you are interested in
- Details of the call made including date, time, and the call status are displayed.
Do canceled iPhone calls ever appear as missed calls?
If you call someone but hang up before they answer the recipient will see it listed as a missed call on their iPhone. On your iPhone, it will appear as a canceled call.
This means that every canceled call generated a missed call for the person who has been called.
Find out more: iPhone Symbols And Icons On The Status Bar.
Can you ever cancel a call without the recipient knowing?
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If you withhold your number, then the recipient will see a missed call but not see who the actual caller was.
Also, if you make the call and hang up before you hear any ringing on the line, no missed call will be logged. This is because the call hasn’t been connected.
If you make a call and you hear a ring tone it is too late, and your caller ID will be sent to the recipient.
Does a canceled call mean it was declined by the recipient?
If your call only rings a couple of times before going to voicemail then it is likely that the recipient canceled the call. This means they tapped the Decline button on their handset transferring the call to voicemail.
Here are some ways to tell if your calls are being declined:
- The number of rings. If the call is redirected quickly, say in less than 5 rings, then it is likely the call has been manually declined and sent to voicemail. Most carriers switch to voicemail after about 25-30 seconds.
- If you have called several times and all of the calls go to voicemail each time, the recipient is likely to be declining your calls.
The reason for the call not being answered could be because the recipient:
- Is busy.
- Is away from their phone.
- Has run out of battery.
- Has their phone on silent and they can’t hear it ring.
- Is ignoring you.
- Is unable to take calls due to their location, for example, the cinema.
- Has the iPhone switched off.
- Put the phone in airplane mode.
- Does not recognize your number.
You can’t be certain what the reason is, so don’t assume you are being ignored. Try to be pleasant when you eventually manage to talk to them.
Remember, a canceled call is something you would see on your call log for a call you initiated.
What happens if the recipient rejects your call?
Normally, the call will go to voicemail if it is rejected or declined. This would happen after a couple of rings.
If the recipient doesn’t have voicemail it will ring until you give in and decide to hang up. You won’t be able to leave a message but the recipient will see the missed call on their call log.
If the call immediately goes to voicemail before any rings, the iPhone is switched off and the call has not been manually declined.
If you have an issue with the Activation Lock and you want to remove it find out about a free iCloud unlock service.
Why are some of my calls listed as canceled on my iPhone call log?
Both incoming, and outgoing calls can be listed as canceled in your iPhone call log.
Outgoing calls
If you made a call but hung up before it was answered, or it went to voicemail it will appear as canceled in your call log.
If there was a network or coverage issue when you made the call, it may fail resulting in a canceled call.
Incoming calls
If someone called you, and you didn’t pick up, or you sent the call manually to voicemail then it will be listed as a missed call, not a canceled call.
However, if the caller ended the call before you had a chance to react, it may be listed as a canceled call.
Does a canceled call mean I am blocked?
If you have a canceled call on your handset, it does not mean that the person you called has definitely blocked you.
Remember, a canceled call is when you hang up before the recipient answers.
Being blocked is one possible reason, but there are other reasons the call was canceled:
- They are busy and couldn’t answer.
- Their phone is turned off.
- They don’t have a decent signal.
- Their phone is on airplane mode.
Don’t jump to conclusions and assume you are blocked.
What does a canceled call mean on FaceTime?
If your call log shows a canceled FaceTime call it means that you hung up before the person you called had a chance to answer.
The next question is, why didn’t the person you call answer?
Well, there are a number of reasons most of which are not suspicious or weird. It could be they are ignoring or blocking you, but that isn’t the most likely reason. It could be they are busy, are out of range of a good WiFi or cellular signal, or there iPhone is turned off.
To find out more, see FaceTime canceled call explained.
What does a canceled call mean on WhatsApp?
If you get a cancelled call notification on WhatsApp it means you ended the voice or video call before the recipient could answer.
The recipient may be unable because they are on another call, and WhatsApp doesn’t offer call waiting. Or they may not have a good phone signal, or their handset may be switched off.
To find out more, see WhatsApp canceled call explained.
FAQs
How do I know someone blocked me on iPhone?
If you call someone repeatedly at different times of day but the calls go unanswered it is likely you have been blocked.
If you send a text message and you get a notification saying “message not delivered” it’s a sign you may have been blocked.
If you have been blocked then your calls and text messages will not be seen by the recipient. They won’t even know you have attempted to contact them.
Blocked calls are different from declined calls because when your calls are blocked, they can never get through to the recipient. The blocking feature is built-in in iPhones that can be enabled by tapping on the “block this caller” option in their contact info.
If any of the following is true, it may appear that you have been blocked but haven’t:
- They have put their phone on airplane mode, disconnecting it from the network services.
- Their phone has Do Not Disturb switched on. The Do Not Disturb mode allows one to enable communications for only selected contacts.
- Their phone is powered off.
Try calling them from a different phone number and if your call goes through, your number has been blocked.
Can you call someone you blocked?
When you block a number, it is only blocked for them calling or texting your iPhone. You can still call them.
What happens when you call someone that has no service?
Normally, a network error will result in a failed call. The caller would either get no dial tone, go straight to voicemail, or get a message saying “the person you have called is unavailable right now”.
For more information, see How to fix iPhone call failed error.
Does a phone ring when you are blocked?
The recipient would not hear the phone ring or get any other kind of indication that you called if they blocked you.
If you call someone that has blocked you then you would only get a single ring before being sent to voicemail.