Turn Your Mac into a Speakerphone

It’s probably happened to you before: You hear your iPhone’s muffled ringing, but whether it’s buried deep in a coat pocket or purse, you won’t find it in time to answer the call. Your Mac offers a simple fix for this daily aggravation: answer the call on your Mac ①. Need to make a call? You can do that from your Mac, too.

**①** Make and receive calls on the Mac via your iPhone.
① Make and receive calls on the Mac via your iPhone.

Set Up Calling

To use Sierra’s iPhone cellular call features, you must also have an iPhone running iOS 8.1 or newer.

Take these steps:

  1. Double-check that your Mac and iPhone are signed in to FaceTime with the same Apple ID.

    On your Mac, go to FaceTime > Preferences and on your iPhone, tap Settings > FaceTime.

  2. Make sure the Mac and iPhone are on the same Wi-Fi network.

    On your Mac, go to System Preferences > Network, click Wi-Fi, and check the network name. On your phone, tap Settings > Wi-Fi to see the name of the network.

  3. On your iPhone, tap Settings > FaceTime and check that the FaceTime switch is on. This lets you make and receive calls on devices (your Mac or iPad) that are signed in to the same iCloud account and on the same Wi-Fi network.
  4. On your Mac, go to FaceTime > Preferences and select Calls from iPhone ②. (If this checkbox doesn’t appear initially, try restarting your Mac).
    **②** Make sure the Calls From iPhone box is checked in your Mac’s FaceTime preferences.
    ② Make sure the Calls From iPhone box is checked in your Mac’s FaceTime preferences.

Receive a Call on Your Mac

When a call comes in for your iPhone, your Mac will chime. A notification shows the caller’s name (if they are listed in Contacts) or number.

You can:

  • Take the call: Click Accept. When you’re connected, the notification becomes a small window with phone controls ③. Click Video to start a FaceTime session. Click Mute to mute audio during the call—for instance, to discreetly ask someone else in the room a question. Click End to hang up.
**③** When you answer a call, the notification becomes a small window with phone controls.
③ When you answer a call, the notification becomes a small window with phone controls.
  • Decline the call: Either click Decline or click the arrow next to Decline to choose an option, including Remind Me in 5 Minutes ④.
**④** Click the arrow next to Decline to see options for dealing with calls you don’t answer.
④ Click the arrow next to Decline to see options for dealing with calls you don’t answer.
  • Ignore the call: If you miss a call, a notification lingers on your screen to let you know when you return.

Make a Call from Your Mac

To “dial” a number:

  • In an app: Click a phone number in an app like Contacts, Maps, Spotlight, or FaceTime. You can also select a number on a Web page or in an email message, click the triangle that appears to its right, and then choose “Call phone number Using iPhone.”
  • From a recent call: Open FaceTime, click the Audio button, and then click the phone button in the call’s listing ⑤. Or, click and hold FaceTime’s Dock icon to see a list of recent calls. Choose one to call back.
**⑤** FaceTime keeps track of your recent calls. (Missed calls appear in red.)
⑤ FaceTime keeps track of your recent calls. (Missed calls appear in red.)
  • Enter a number: Open FaceTime and type the number directly into the field under the Video and Audio buttons.

FaceTime places your call. There’s no video involved—unless your recipient is running FaceTime as well, and you initiate it.

If you hear the fateful words “Press 2 for…” during a call, you don’t need to scramble madly for your iPhone. Click the phone call notification and then use your Mac’s keyboard to navigate automated phone systems by pressing the numbers required.

Hold All Your Calls

Big meeting, tight deadline—sometimes you don’t want to be disturbed: Option-click the Notification Center icon in the menu bar to turn off all notifications, including incoming calls. (Your iPhone will still ring, just not your Mac.)

When you finish, Option-click the icon again. Or, click it to reveal Notification Center and turn off the Do Not Disturb switch ⑥.

**⑥** Option-click the Notification Center menu bar icon to send calls directly to voicemail. If you feel sociable again, Option-click the menu bar icon, or open Notification Center and toggle the Do Not Disturb switch to Off.
⑥ Option-click the Notification Center menu bar icon to send calls directly to voicemail. If you feel sociable again, Option-click the menu bar icon, or open Notification Center and toggle the Do Not Disturb switch to Off.

Adjust Where Calls Go

When you turn on iPhone cellular calls, all devices that share your Apple ID will ring when calls come in, as long as they’re on the same network. This might not be ideal if your iPad, for instance, is shared by all the family and usually in the hands of the kids.

In that case, on the iOS device where you don’t want to receive calls, tap Settings > FaceTime and then turn off the Calls from iPhone switch ⑦.

**⑦** If you’d rather one of your iOS devices not receive calls (the family iPad, for instance) tap Settings > FaceTime and then turn the Calls from iPhone switch off.
⑦ If you’d rather one of your iOS devices not receive calls (the family iPad, for instance) tap Settings > FaceTime and then turn the Calls from iPhone switch off.

Turn Phone Features Off

Whether you’ve decided that you don’t like your Mac ringing at all or you just want to turn off phone calls for a bit, but not other notifications, you can turn off phone calls on your Mac.

Open FaceTime and go to FaceTime > Preferences. Click Settings and deselect the Calls from iPhone checkbox.

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