Truecaller: Phone Call Blocker

What Truecaller is for on an Android phone

Truecaller is a caller ID and call screening app. Its main job is to tell you who is calling before you answer, and to stop calls and texts from numbers you do not want.

The listing describes it as covering caller ID, call screening, call recording and spam or scam blocking in one app. Those four areas are the parts a regular user would notice, and they share one contact and number database.

It suits people who get a lot of unknown calls, sales calls or scam texts, and anyone who wants call recordings kept with written notes. Some of the extras sit behind a Premium upgrade, covered below.

Identifying incoming calls and unknown numbers

Caller ID shows a name for incoming calls even when the number is not in your contacts. The listing says it works this way for any incoming call that the app can match.

You can make Truecaller your default calling app. The listing says it then handles all incoming and outgoing calls and shows Caller ID whether or not the caller is saved.

Reverse number lookup works in the other direction. If a text or a missed call comes from an unfamiliar number, you can search it to see the identity or Caller ID attached to it. The listing says this search draws on a community-based spam database.

Call Announce, which says who is calling without you looking at the screen, is listed as a Premium feature. Incognito Mode, which lets you view other callers' profiles privately, is also Premium.

Blocking spam, scam and robocalls

The spam detector blocks numbers on a shared list. The listing says that list is updated daily by users worldwide, and that numbers on it are blocked in real time.

The scam shield can block calls automatically by rule. The listing gives these options: calls from specific countries, calls from number sequences, robocalls, calls with unknown or no Caller ID, and telemarketers.

Spam calls are also identified and blocked alongside unwanted SMS, so the same list covers calls and texts. Advanced options for blocking and filtering calls are listed as a Premium feature.

Recording calls and searching their transcripts

Truecaller can record incoming and outgoing calls. Each recording gets an auto-generated call subject, so recordings are easier to find later.

The Instant Call Summary gives you the caller's contact details along with a recap of the recording. The AI-powered transcription produces written, searchable text for each call.

Together, these turn a recording into something you can search by word rather than listen back to in full. The listing does not describe a limit on how many recordings you can keep.

Filtering text messages

Unknown senders are identified in the SMS inbox. Texts from spam and telemarketing senders are blocked automatically.

Messages are sorted into three folders: Personal, Other and Spam. You can also blacklist individual senders so their texts stop arriving.

The listing says foreign-language texts are detected automatically and can be translated with one tap.

Video Caller ID, voice calls and backups

Video Caller ID plays a short video on your screen when you ring a contact who has set one up. You can record a selfie video or pick one of the built-in templates.

Voice Calling lets you call other Truecaller users for free, according to the listing.

You can back up call history, call logs, contacts, messages, your block list and settings to Google Drive, and restore them from there.

The listing also says Truecaller does not upload your phonebook and does not make it public or searchable.

What the Premium upgrade adds

The listing offers a Premium upgrade. It removes ads, shows you who has searched for and viewed your profile, and adds Call Announce, Incognito Mode and advanced blocking and filtering options.

Premium also adds a Premium badge on your profile and 30 contact requests per month. Those are the only numbers the listing gives for the upgrade.