How do I turn off Messenger calls without blocking?

When Facebook Messenger first launched, the ability to direct message friends and family for free was a great novelty.

As time has gone on, the app has developed and you are now able to voice and video call your Facebook friends providing you have a stable internet connection.

While most users enjoy this feature, others don’t. This could simply be because they aren’t a fan of talking on the phone, or it could also be because persistent calls quickly turn into online harassment.

As a result, many people elect to disable calls on the Messenger. The good thing is that you can easily turn off Facebook Messenger calls within your phone settings.

There are a couple of ways in which you can go about doing this on Messenger and today, we are going to be looking at the best options available to you.

How do I turn off Messenger calls – The easiest way

If you want to stop receiving calls on Facebook Messenger without blocking the person, there are several ways you can achieve this:

Mute Conversation

1. Open the Messenger App
2. Go to the chat with the person you want to mute.
3. Tap on the person’s name at the top.
4. Tap on “Mute”.
5. Choose “Mute Call Notifications” to mute calls from this person.

Note that muting will only stop you from being notified. They can still call you, and you’ll see missed calls afterward.

Disable Calls from Non-Contacts

You can also disable calls from people who are not on your Facebook friend list.

1. Go to your Messenger settings.
2. Scroll to find “Privacy.”
3. Click on “Who can reach your chats?”
4. Then click on “Who can call and video chat with you?” and set it to “Friends” or “Friends of Friends” as per your preference.

Do Not Disturb

This will disable all calls and notifications but it will be for all contacts.

1. Open Messenger settings.
2. Look for “Do Not Disturb” or similar (it may vary by device).
3. Activate “Do Not Disturb”.

Account-Level Settings

1. Log in to your Facebook account from a web browser.
2. Go to settings.
3. Click on the “Blocking” tab on the left sidebar.
4. Look for the section that says “Block messages.”
5. Click on “Block” beside the name of the person from whom you don’t want to receive messages and calls.

This last option is close to blocking but still allows you to be friends on Facebook and see each other’s posts.

Please note that these instructions may vary slightly due to updates in the Messenger app or depending on the device you’re using.

What’s the best way to turn off Messenger calls on iPhone/Android?

The best way to turn off Messenger calls is to take a blanket approach by going into your phone’s settings.

This is because Facebook are yet to give user’s the simple option of being able to turn the option on and/or off on the app. This means that you can’t block video calls from within your chat settings.

Although this functionality could make an appearance in the future, for now your phone’s settings are your best option to easily disable calls.

In order to take this blanket approach, please take the following steps:

On iOS

1. Navigate to the settings app.
2. Scroll down to your list of applications.
3. Select ‘Messenger’.
4. Next to ‘Microphone’ and ‘Camera’ untick the toggle so that they are no longer displaying as green.
5. Click back off the settings and app and head to Messenger.
6. You should no longer be able to make or receive voice and video calls.

On Android

1. Navigate to your phone’s settings app.
2. Select ‘apps’ and then ‘apps’ again.
3. Scroll down until you find the Messenger app and then select it.
4. From here, select ‘permissions’.
5. Ensure that permissions to your Camera and microphone are disabled and save the changes.
6. Head back to Messenger where you should now no longer be able to make or receive voice and video calls.

There are a couple of other methods that you can employ, however please note that these aren’t as fool proof as the method stated above:

Disconnect your phone from the internet

This method should only really be used as a last resort but it is a method that will prevent video and voice calls coming through via Messenger.

The main downside of this method is the fact that you require the internet to use Facebook so not only will it stop video and voice calls from coming through but it will also stop you from using Facebook.

It will also mean that any method you’ve set up to forward Facebook messages to someone else won’t work either.

In theory, the best time to use this method would be if you weren’t on Facebook at the time and just wanted to ensure that no calls came through while you were relaxing.

To ensure that your phone isn’t connected to the internet, please follow these steps:

On iOS

1. Navigate to your phone’s settings app.
2. Select ‘Wi-fi’ and untick the toggle so that it is no longer displaying as green.
3. Head back to the main settings page and select ‘mobile data’ this time.
4. Untick the toggle on this screen so that it is no longer displaying as green.

On Android

1. Navigate to your phone’s settings.
2. Select ‘network and internet’ and untick the toggle beside ‘Wi-Fi’.
3. Head back to the main settings page and select ‘wireless network’.
4. Untick the box next to ‘data enabled’ so prevent your phone from connecting to the internet via mobile data.

Use Messenger’s blocking tool

Although you may not want to block calls from others by blocking people individually, it is one of the best ways to stop unwanted calls on your device.

This method is an ideal solution to your problems if you aren’t looking for a blanket approach and would rather just prevent certain user’s from being able to call you on Messenger.

When you block someone on Messenger they will no longer be able to a do a number of things, including being able to send you a voice or video call request.

To block someone on Messenger, please follow these steps:

1. Log on your Messenger account via the app.
2. Locate the user that you wish to block either by opening up an existing message thread with that user or by searching for their account in the search bar.
3. Once you have landed on the right account, tap their name and scroll down to ‘privacy and support’.
4. Select ‘block’ and then either select if you want to block them across the whole of Facebook or just block them from sending you messages and calling you on Messenger.
5. You can do this with an unlimited amount of Facebook users.

Conclusion

To conclude, there unfortunately isn’t a way on Facebook to turn video and voice calls off meaning you have to go around the houses to obtain the results you’re after.

The best method available to you is to go through your phone’s settings, regardless of whether you’re on an iOS and Android device, and to turn the permissions off on Messenger for your phone’s microphone and camera.

We hope that by following our advice above you will be able to prevent calls coming through on Messenger one way or the other.