# Wi-Fi Calling in Australia: Turn It On and Check It Works > Wi-Fi calling carries a call over your internet connection when the mobile signal cannot. How to switch it on for iPhone and Android, what Telstra and Optus each charge, how they differ on overseas use, and what both say about Triple Zero. - Canonical URL: https://techxtelco.com/mobile-plans/mobile-insights/wifi-calling/ - Published: 2026-06-30 - Updated: 2026-09-13 - Topics: Mobile, Guides - Author: David Everson - Image: https://anrkjmgqmwfosbvyzrzc.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/article-images/wifi-calling/hero-v3.webp - Publisher: Tech X Telco (https://techxtelco.com) Wi-Fi calling lets your phone carry an ordinary call over a Wi-Fi network when the mobile signal is too weak to manage it. It is useful in a back bedroom, a brick garage or an office with thick walls. The catch is that it is a carrier feature rather than a phone feature, so compatibility, charges and overseas availability depend on both your handset and your provider. Telstra and Optus answer those questions differently. **Quick answer** On iPhone, go to Settings, Mobile, then Wi-Fi Calling and turn it on. On Android, open the Phone app settings or Settings, Network and internet, SIMs, then Wi-Fi calling. Telstra says the feature is on by default on compatible phones; Optus says it is off by default and needs VoLTE applied to your service first. Neither Telstra nor Optus charges extra for it on their own networks. The important differences are overseas use and emergency calls, covered below. ## What It Actually Does Your phone routes the call over the internet connection it is already using, instead of over the mobile network. Telstra says Wi-Fi calling "only kicks in when you can’t make calls because there’s no network coverage", so it is a fallback rather than a preference. Optus describes the same order for emergency calls: the Optus network first, then other carriers’ networks, then Wi-Fi. It is not a heavy user of bandwidth. Telstra puts a call at roughly 100 to 120Kbps, and Optus quotes about 3.8MB for a five minute call. Both say the modem needs IPsec pass-through and certificate fragmentation support, which most home routers have, and both say Wi-Fi calling over a VPN is unsupported. ## Turning It On The iPhone path is named slightly differently by each source. Apple calls it Settings, Cellular; Telstra says Settings, Mobile; Vodafone’s device guide says Settings, Phone. They all reach the same toggle, and the wording follows your iOS version and region. If one path is missing, try the others before assuming the feature is unavailable. **Step by step** 1. iPhone: open Settings, tap Mobile or Cellular, choose the line you want if the phone has more than one, then tap Wi-Fi Calling and turn it on. Apple notes you may need to enter or confirm your address for the emergency services at this point. 2. Android: open the Phone app, tap the three dots, then Settings, and turn Wi-Fi calling on. Alternatively open Settings, Network and internet, SIMs, then your carrier SIM, then Wi-Fi calling. Google says that if the option is not there, your carrier does not support the feature. Some of these steps need Android 6.0 or later. 3. On Optus, apply VoLTE to the service first. Optus says activating VoLTE also applies Wi-Fi calling, and that compatible handsets ship with the setting off, so you must turn it on yourself. 4. Check the indicator once you are connected to Wi-Fi. Apple says you will see "Wi-Fi" in the status bar in Control Centre. Google says Android shows "Internet call" or "Wi-Fi calling" on the notification screen. ## What It Costs Telstra says there is no additional charge on a Telstra mobile, and that the Wi-Fi data is unmetered when you are on a Telstra fixed broadband connection. On another provider’s broadband, the data is metered by that provider. Calls appear on the bill as a Wi-Fi Call. Optus also says there are no additional charges, and that calls, SMS and MMS over Wi-Fi calling are charged exactly as they are today under your voice plan. Optus zero-rates the data on an Optus fixed line connection and says normal data charges apply on someone else’s. No extra Wi-Fi calling fee does not mean every call is free. Your usual plan rates and exclusions still matter, as do any charges for the Wi-Fi connection. Google advises checking with your provider. ## Where the Carriers Disagree ### Telstra and Optus, on Their Own Published Pages Vodafone is missing from this table on purpose. Its support site was returning a maintenance page when we checked, so we have no verified Vodafone answers to give. - Turned on by default? Telstra: yes, on all compatible devices, and enabling it also turns on Wi-Fi SMS. Optus: no. VoLTE must be applied to the service and the handset setting starts off. - Prepaid? Telstra: yes, the page says calls work even on a Pre-Paid plan. Optus: unclear. The page lists prepaid as eligible in two places, then says prepaid services cannot be provided with VoLTE or Wi-Fi calling and recommends prepaid customers switch it off. Ask Optus about your own service. - Using it overseas? Telstra: calls back to Australia over Wi-Fi at no additional charge; calls to other countries must use the mobile network. Optus: not available when roaming. The phone reverts to the international carrier and standard roaming rates apply. - SMS and MMS over Wi-Fi? Telstra: SMS only. The page says only SMS is supported, not MMS. Optus: both. The page says the capability includes sending and receiving SMS and MMS. ## Emergency Calls Need Care This is the part worth reading properly. Telstra says emergency calls within Australia still work on Wi-Fi calling, whether you are on Telstra broadband or another provider’s connection, but that emergency calls made over Wi-Fi calling outside Australia are not supported, and that you should use the mobile network for them. Optus says Triple Zero calls are supported over Wi-Fi calling when no mobile network is available to carry the call. Both flag the same limitation: location. Optus says your location information may not be automatically passed to emergency services and that the operator will ask where you are, and its terms recommend using your normal phone service in an emergency because it gives a more accurate location. Optus also says the Wi-Fi calling service cannot receive National Emergency Warning System messages. Telstra warns that your DNS choice affects how well it can locate your phone, and that your location may default to a regional one, so you may need to include the area code when calling. Apple’s own wording is that when mobile service is available the iPhone uses it for emergency calls, and Wi-Fi calling may carry them only when mobile service is not available. None of the carrier pages we read requires a registered service address; Apple says you may need to enter or confirm an address for the emergency services when you switch the feature on. ## If the Option Is Missing or Calls Fail **If something goes wrong** - There is no Wi-Fi Calling option in Settings Check: whether your phone is on the carrier’s compatible list. Telstra lists iPhone 6 onwards, Samsung Galaxy S7 onwards, Google Pixel 2 onwards and LG G6 onwards. Next: Google says a missing option means the carrier does not support it on that device. On Optus, check the service provider settings version under Settings, About. - The toggle is there but calls still use the mobile network Check: Telstra says Wi-Fi calling only engages when the mobile network cannot carry the call, so good signal means it will not be used. Next: a call staying on mobile coverage is not by itself proof of a fault. Check the Wi-Fi calling indicator in a place with weak reception. - Calls drop when you walk out the door Check: Telstra says calls made over Wi-Fi while roaming drop out when you leave Wi-Fi coverage. Optus documents Wi-Fi-to-VoLTE handover; do not rely on an old 3G reference as current Australian coverage advice. Next: finish important calls before you move, or start them on the mobile network. - It worked and then stopped by itself Check: Google says Android turns Wi-Fi calling off when it detects problems, and notifies you if it disables the feature entirely. Next: restart the phone, then contact the carrier to have it reactivated. - You are on a VPN Check: both Telstra and Optus say VPNs are not supported. Next: turn the VPN off and test again. ## Sources and How This Was Checked Every carrier statement here comes from Telstra’s and Optus’s own support pages, read on 12 September 2026, with the device steps from Apple’s support article of 29 June 2026, Google’s Phone app help and Vodafone’s published device guides. We did not place a Wi-Fi call for this article and did not test any of the settings on a device, so treat every step as the provider’s documented instruction rather than a verified walkthrough. Vodafone Australia is deliberately incomplete here. Its support site returned a maintenance page from every method we tried, and no archived copy was reachable, so we have no verified Vodafone answers on cost, eligibility, overseas use or emergency calls. Only its device setup steps are quoted. We will fill that gap when the site is back. None of the carrier pages except Apple’s carried a visible published or updated date, which is worth knowing when you read them yourself. ### Official Pages Used - [Telstra: Wi-Fi Calling and Wi-Fi SMS](https://www.telstra.com.au/support/mobiles-devices/telstra-wifi-calling): cost, default-on behaviour, prepaid, device list, overseas use, emergency calls and the SMS-only limit. - [Optus: WiFi Calling support](https://www.optus.com.au/support/answer/wifi_calling_support_20033): VoLTE requirement, cost, the prepaid contradiction, roaming, Triple Zero handling and MMS support. - [Apple Support (AU): Make a call with Wi-Fi Calling](https://support.apple.com/en-au/108066): the iPhone settings path, the status indicator, the emergency address prompt and emergency call behaviour. - [Google Phone app Help (AU): Make calls over Wi-Fi](https://support.google.com/phoneapp/answer/2811843?hl=en-AU): the Android settings path, the carrier-support caveat and automatic disabling. - [Vodafone device guides: turn Wi-Fi calling on or off (iPhone)](https://devices.vodafone.com.au/apple/iphone-15-ios-17/calls-and-contacts/turn-wi-fi-calling-on-or-off/): Vodafone’s own iPhone setup wording, the only Vodafone content we could reach. Related on Tech X Telco: [Which providers use the Telstra mobile network](https://techxtelco.com/knowledge/which-providers-use-the-telstra-mobile-network/), if you are on a reseller. Confirm Wi-Fi calling with the reseller itself; sharing a network does not guarantee identical features or terms.