Beside lets you silence calls from numbers not saved in your contacts. Instead of ringing your phone or app, these calls are handed straight to your Receptionist - or to your voicemail if your Receptionist is off - so you stay focused without missing anything important.
How Silence Unknown Callers works
When enabled, calls from numbers you don't know won't ring your phone or app. Instead, they're sent straight to your Receptionist, which picks up, handles the call, and logs it - so you're never interrupted by an unknown caller.
A number is considered unknown if it's not saved in your contacts and you've never called it before.
What happens:
Your phone and app won't ring
The call goes straight to your Receptionist, with no ringing first
The Receptionist answers, takes a message, and handles the call as usual
The call is logged in your conversation list
If your Receptionist is off, the caller goes to your traditional voicemail instead
💡 How this works with your Receptionist:
Silence Unknown Callers controls the ringing - it stops unknown callers from ringing your phone or app. It does not switch your Receptionist off.
If your Receptionist is on and set to answer unsaved or unknown callers, it picks up these calls and handles them as usual.
If your Receptionist is off, or set to answer only your saved contacts, unknown callers go to your traditional voicemail instead.
Enable Silence Unknown Callers
From 📖 Beside on the web
Go to app.beside.com
Click Settings in the sidebar, then Phone Numbers under Workspace
Click the line you want to manage
On the General tab, scroll to Compliance & Privacy
Toggle Silence Unknown Callers on
From the mobile app
Open the Beside mobile app and go to Settings
If you have multiple lines, tap the line you want to manage under Phone Numbers
Under Calls, tap Call Flow
Under Who skips ringing?, toggle Silence Unknown Callers to On
💡 See it with your other call settings: Call Flow shows Silence Unknown Callers alongside Blocked Numbers, Forwarding, Ringing Mode, and your Receptionist fallback, so you can see how an incoming call is handled in one place.
📌 Note: If you're on a 👥 Business plan with a shared line, only the account owner can manage this setting. Invited members won't be able to turn it on or off.
Disable Silence Unknown Callers
From Beside on the web
Go to app.beside.com
Click Settings in the sidebar, then Phone Numbers under Workspace
Click the line you want to manage
On the General tab, scroll to Compliance & Privacy
Toggle Silence Unknown Callers off
From the mobile app
Open the Beside mobile app and go to Settings
If you have multiple lines, tap the line you want to manage under Phone Numbers
Under Calls, tap Call Flow
Under Who skips ringing?, toggle Silence Unknown Callers to Off
FAQ
Does this feature work with the Receptionist?
Does this feature work with the Receptionist?
Yes. Silence Unknown Callers doesn't switch your Receptionist off - it only stops unknown callers from ringing your phone or app. Those calls go straight to your Receptionist, which picks up and handles them as usual, as long as it's on and set to answer unsaved or unknown callers. If your Receptionist is off, or set to answer only your saved contacts, the caller goes to your traditional voicemail instead.
Will I still see missed calls from unknown numbers?
Will I still see missed calls from unknown numbers?
Yes. All silenced calls are still logged in your conversation list, labeled Silenced call so you can spot them at a glance. You can review who called, read the Receptionist's summary, and listen to any message or voicemail they left.
What if an important caller isn't in my contacts?
What if an important caller isn't in my contacts?
If you're expecting a call from someone not in your contacts, you can temporarily disable the feature, or add them to your contacts beforehand. Callers you've previously dialed from Beside are also treated as known and will ring normally.