Google Voice is Google’s phone service. It gives you a phone number that isn’t tied to a SIM card, which you can use from the Android app, the iPhone app or the voice.google.com website.
What Google Voice is for
With that number you can make calls, send one-to-one and group texts and pick up voicemail, which is transcribed in the app and can also be sent to your inbox. Everything syncs across devices and is backed up, so old calls and messages are easy to search. Spam is filtered automatically, unwanted numbers can be blocked and forwarding rules decide where calls ring. International calls are billed at Google’s own rates. On Android, some calls go through a Google Voice access number, in which case they use your regular mobile minutes.
Who is it for?
Availability is the main catch. The free version for personal Google accounts only works in the United States. For businesses, Google Voice is a paid Google Workspace add-on offered in a list of countries that includes Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, among others. Texting isn’t supported everywhere.
Download Google Voice safely
Google Voice is on Google Play and the App Store, published by Google LLC, and also runs in the browser at voice.google.com. You don’t need anything else: APK files claiming to unlock the service outside supported countries are not official.
