If voicemail is not working on your iPhone after iOS 17 update, follow the troubleshooting steps below to fix the issue.
Voicemail may be becoming a bit archaic due to the prevalence of other forms of messaging, such as email and SMS. But it is obviously still around, and many people still use it. One of the best features of iOS 17 is Live Voicemail. When someone leaves you a voicemail, you can see a live transcription as they’re leaving the message so you can decide whether to pick up or not. If your voicemail stopped working after iOS 17 update, are there solutions? Of course, yes. Here are some fixes you can try if voicemail is not working on iPhone after iOS 17 update.
QUICK FIX
If voicemail is not working on your iPhone after iOS 17 update, make sure voicemail is properly set up in the phone app. Check for updates and/or restart your phone. If minor fixes like these don’t work, it may be a deeper technical issue requiring investigation from your phone carrier or Apple.
Note: Voicemail, Visual Voicemail, and Voicemail transcription are available from select carriers in select countries or regions.
Make sure voicemail is set up on your iPhone
If voicemail is not working after iOS 17 update, make sure that the feature is set up properly on your iPhone. To check, follow the steps below:
- Go to Settings.
- Tap Phone.
- Scroll down. If you see the option Change Voicemail Password, then voicemail is on.
If you don’t see it, then voicemail is off, and you need to enable it. To do this, follow the steps below:
- Open the Phone app.
- Tap the Voicemail tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Tap Set Up.
- Follow the instructions to create a voicemail password and choose or record a greeting.
Force-close and re-open the Phone app
If voicemail is on but it’s not working, close the Phone app and then reopen it. I know it sounds like a cliche, but a software glitch is often solved just by restarting the program that’s misbehaving.
To force-close the Phone app, follow the steps below:
- Swipe up from the bottom of the screen, until you see floating windows of each open app.
- Swipe left or right until you find the Phone app.
- Swipe up the Phone app to close it.
4.Navigate to the main screen and tap on the Phone icon again to re-launch it.
Toggle your cellular service off and on again
If your iPhone voicemail is not working after iOS 17 update, one thing you should try without fail is to check if there is an error with your mobile data plan. You can do this by toggling the Cellular Data off and back on again. To do this, follow the steps below:
- Go to Settings.
- Select Cellular.
- Toggle off the Cellular Data option on the next screen.
- Wait about two minutes and then turn off Cellular Data by tapping the button a second time.
In the UK, it’s called Mobile Data instead of Cellular Data. It’s an American thing.
If the Cellular data comes back on without a hitch, then that isn’t the issue. If it doesn’t come back on, then maybe pay your phone bill?
Check for iOS software updates
Are you running the latest version of iOS 17? Sometimes, some device features are temporarily disabled until an iOS update is applied, especially if it’s beta features involved. To check, follow the steps below:
- Go to Settings.
- Select General.
- Tap Software Update.
- If an update is waiting, follow the onscreen instructions to install it.
Check for a carrier settings update
Cellular carriers sometimes update their settings. Usually, these updates are installed automatically and you don’t need to think about it.
If an update didn’t get installed, though, it’s possible — not likely, but possible — that it could be interfering with your voicemail. You can manually update the carrier settings by following the steps below:
- Go to Settings.
- Tap General.
- Tap About.
- If carrier settings update is available it will appear here.
Restart your iPhone
If voicemail is still not working, try restarting your iPhone. Yes, that old restarting cliche again, but better to try it and rule it out. Your voicemail could be misbehaving due to a software glitch, and quite often, an iPhone restart is all it takes to get rid of minor software bugs.
- Go to Settings.
- Tap General.
- Select Shut Down.
- Drag the power icon from left to light to turn off your iPhone.
- Press the power button to turn your iPhone back on.
Make sure you don’t have call forwarding turned on
One of the most common reasons why voicemail is not working after iOS 17 update is that call forwarding is enabled on your iPhone. If this is the case, calls are being redirected to another number and not getting a chance to make it to voicemail.
Here’s how to check your call forwarding status:
- Go to Settings.
- Scroll down and tap Phone.
- Under Calls section, tap Call Forwarding.
- On the Call Forwarding page, check your forwarding status. If call forwarding is enabled, turn it off by toggling the button to the off position —it will then appear greyed out.
Reset your network settings
If your voicemail service appears to be normal but it’s still not working on your iPhone, go ahead and reset your phone’s network settings. This is a last resort because it will reset all your network settings, including your Wi-Fi networks and their passwords.
If you want to try it, though, follow the steps below:
- Go to Settings.
- Select General.
- Tap Transfer or Reset iPhone.
- Choose Reset.
- Tap Reset Network Settings and confirm your action.
Contact your phone carrier
If nothing works, then the problem is obviously a bit more complicated and technical than a few minor fixes. Go ahead and contact your phone carrier to find out if the voicemail service is down and, if so, when you can expect it to be back up.
Obviously, we can’t go any further into this specific topic as there are countless phone carriers worldwide, and we can’t possibly cover every single one. But just go to your carrier’s website and find the customer support section. They usually have an online chat option, so you may not even have to actually talk on the phone to someone.
Voicemail still not working? Contact Apple Support
If all else fails, and even your phone carrier didn’t figure out the problem, the last thing to do is contact Apple Support. Maybe there is an issue with the voicemail software on your phone? Maybe the iOS 17 update has done a number on your voicemail (see what I did there?)
It can’t hurt to fire off a quick message to them and make sure the problem isn’t at the Apple end. You can even contact them through the Apple Support iOS app on your phone.
