How to Record Calls on IPhone Without a Third-Party App
If you use an iPhone and want to record your phone conversations, there’s finally an official way to do it. With the release of iOS 18.1 comes a new call recording feature. Until now, your iPhone couldn’t record calls without third-party apps or hacking methods like putting the phone on speakerphone and using a second device to record, but those days are gone. Here’s how to start recording and even transcribing calls using Apple’s built-in method.
How to Record Calls on iPhone
First of all, you will have to update to iOS 18.1 , the version that enables call recording on iPhone. You can run this update from Settings -> General -> Software Update . Once the update is complete, you don’t need to enable call recording separately—this feature will appear whenever you receive a call. However, note that call recording is marketed as an Apple Intelligence feature , meaning Apple has only publicly discussed its availability for the iPhone 15 Pro and later. However, most of its features started working on iPhone XS and above starting with iOS 18.1 beta 4, so it’s worth keeping an eye on them regardless of your model.
Next time you get a call, make sure the call is in full screen mode. If the call appears as a small floating window at the top of the screen, simply tap it to expand it to full screen. In full screen mode, you will see a call recording button in the top left corner.
Press this button and your iPhone will first tell everyone involved that the call is being recorded and then begin recording it.
How to End a Call Recording on Your iPhone
Once you start recording a conversation, there are two ways to end it. The easiest way is to simply end the call, after which the recording will automatically stop. Alternatively, you can press the stop button on the screen to end the recording.
Where are iPhone call recordings saved (and how to view a transcript of your call)
Immediately after you finish recording a conversation, you will see a notification that the recording has been saved. You can tap this notification to view the recording, or open the Notes app on your iPhone to view the recordings at any time.
All recordings of your conversations are saved in a separate folder. You can view them by clicking the Folders button in the top left corner of the Notes app and selecting the Call Recordings button. Here you can view all your recorded conversations and select any of them to play back the recording. You’ll even see a transcript of the call along with the recording, although only phones with Apple Intelligence will be able to see the AI-generated call summary.
How to Share a Recorded Call from Your iPhone
You can easily share calls recorded on your iPhone. To do this, go to the post you want to share in the Notes app. Then tap and hold the audio file at the top and select Share Audio . Select any app from the sharing page to share it with others. You can also use this method to send the recording to your devices. Calls are saved in m4a format, which is great for saving space without sacrificing too much quality.
Check if recording your call is legal
Although Apple’s call recording feature automatically announces to all parties that recording has begun, it’s best to exercise extreme caution while recording to ensure you’re complying with the law. Before you start recording, find out if everyone present needs to consent to the recording in your region . Also, always make sure you are involved in a conversation before recording it to avoid charges of wiretapping or illegal eavesdropping.