Facetime Not Working for Certain Contacts? Best Fixes

If your FaceTime is not working for certain contacts, one of the most common reasons is that you may have accidentally added these users to your block list or it could be vice versa. You can fix this by checking if you have them on the blocked list.

There are other possible reasons for FaceTime not working for certain contacts, and in this article, I’ll narrow down some most common causes and then share some solutions.

Why Is Facetime Not Working for Certain Contacts?

Let’s look at some reasons for FaceTime not working for certain contacts on your Apple device:

1.    You are saving the contact’s number wrongly

A couple of users have reported that they could only FaceTime certain contacts with their email addresses and not their saved phone numbers. However, they fixed it by resaving that number using the international format, i.e., starting with a +1 for US contacts while excluding the first number 0. This solution also works if you have similar issues with your iMessage.

2.    You ticked only your phone number or email address as the means of connectivity

I’ve seen many users say they can connect via phone number and not via email address. This happens because they ticked the phone number or email as their only means of being reached or connecting. Go to Settings >> FaceTime and tick the phone number to see if it will work this time.

3.    Contact is on a call

If you can’t reach a certain contact, they may be on a call. Of course, you know this occurs during normal calls. It could also be that the contact’s iPhone is on ‘Do not Disturb’ mode. Wait for some time and dial again.

4.    FaceTime may not be available in the region the contact is in

If FaceTime works for all your other contacts except for one or a few, then the problem may be at the other end. Perhaps the contact is in a country where FaceTime isn’t available. FaceTime service isn’t available in all countries. If you observe that FaceTime is not working in your region, you can visit the Apple Support page to confirm the information.

5.    Apple services are down in the contact’s region

A contact may not be reachable on FaceTime if Apple services are experiencing some downtime in their region. However, you can ask them to confirm the status of all Apple proprietary services by going to https://www.apple.com/support/systemstatus.

6.    The other contact doesn’t Use FaceTime

If the other contact doesn’t use FaceTime, then you may not be able to connect with them. The problem could also be a software issue.

7.    Bad Internet service

Sometimes Internet connectivity can be slow for some reason, and this can affect the FaceTime app. You can consider fixing this problem by changing your ISP.

8.    FaceTime is not updated

If you can FaceTime others but just one contact, it could be that FaceTime is not up to date at the other end. If you are experiencing issues with FaceTime, try to update to see if this will resolve it. Ask them to update their iPhone OS and the FaceTime app by going to Settings >> General and then Software Update

9.    Date and time setting

If the date and time settings are not in sync with the contact’s region or are set at manual, this may be why their FaceTime is not working since it’s not in sync with the software time.

Ensure the date and time settings are up to date and in sync. Ask them to go to Settings, look for date and time and then check if it’s not on Automatic. If not, they should set it to automatic.

Is FaceTime Not Working for Certain Contacts? Working Fixes

Is FaceTime not working for certain contacts on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac? Here is a list of things you can try out to fix it.

1.    Restart Your Device

This is one of the best tips for troubleshooting your FaceTime app. Before you do this, you should close all the apps so that you can save progress and start fresh after restarting.

2.    Test the Internet connection in your area or device

FaceTime makes use of the Internet to connect to contacts on your phone. If it fails to connect, open a new webpage on your device to test the Internet connection.

A Wi-Fi network is preferable, although you can use mobile data from an iPhone or iPad. To use mobile data for FaceTime, head to Settings >> Cellular, toggle the button to turn ON the FaceTime slider, and access FaceTime with mobile data.

3.    Find out if the problem is from FaceTime

Apple services may sometimes be down, implying Facetime won’t work for anybody or in certain regions. All you can do here is wait for Apple to find a solution to the issue.

You can review the current status of Apple service on the Apple System Status website.

4.    Ensure you are using the right contact details

You can confirm if your FaceTime contact details are correct by going to Settings >> FaceTime >> You Can Be Reached By FaceTime At. You should also confirm that the number is in international format.

Also, ask the person you want to call to do the same. To confirm these details on Mac, go to the FaceTime >> Preference from the menu bar. You can find your contact details in the middle of the Preferences window.

Why Do Some iPhone Contacts Not Have FaceTime?

Before anyone can use FaceTime, some criteria need to be met.

1. The user must have an Apple device.
2. It must have iOS installed on the device.
3. The device must be FaceTime-enabled either through the phone number or Apple ID.

If any of these criteria are not met, then the contact cannot FaceTime on their device.

How Do I Enable FaceTime for a Contact?

From your iPhone home screen, go to Settings >> FaceTime. Then, simply toggle the FaceTime switch from OFF to ON.

Note, however, that before you can place a FaceTime call on your iOS device, you will need the email and phone number of the contact. In addition, the contact should also have an Apple device with FaceTime enabled.

You can use any of the options below to FaceTime a contact:

1.    Use Siri

You can use Siri to FaceTime a contact by using the voice command:

“Hey, Siri, FaceTime [person’s name].”

2.    Use the FaceTime app

1. Open the FaceTime app
2. Touch the plus symbol and type in the person’s phone number or email.
3. Select either an audio call or video call, which is the video icon.
4. If the person’s phone number or email is saved on your phone, when you begin typing the name. Tap it.

Source: Apple

• Then tap the audio button for an audio call or the FaceTime button for a video call

3.    Start a FaceTime video call during a regular phone call

You can begin a FaceTime call while on a call by tapping on the FaceTime icon in the phone app to switch to FaceTime. You can send an iMessage if the video call is unanswered or declined.

Tip

You can also switch from an audio call to a video call or vice versa during an ongoing call. Simply tap the FaceTime icon or the audio icon to make a switch.

Read also: If I Unblock Someone On iMessage, What Happens?

How Do I Turn OFF FaceTime Restrictions on iPhones?

Perhaps for some reason, you turned ON FaceTime restrictions on your iPhone, or someone else did, and you don’t know how to turn it back ON.

Turn OFF FaceTime Restrictions in iOS 12 and later

There are no more Restriction Settings in the new iOS 12. This is now called Screen Time and it works the same way. Follow the steps below to turn off restrictions

1. Head to Settings, then tap on Screen Time.
2. Tap on ‘turn on Screen Time
3. Then tap Continue
4. Tap on ‘This is My iPhone‘ to turn on Screen Time.
5. Select Content & Privacy Restrictions.
6.  The Content & Privacy Restrictions toggle switch should be green which implies it is enabled
7. Tap on Allowed Apps
8. Tap on the FaceTime toggle button to enable the app. The color should change from white to green.

Turn off Restrictions for FaceTime in iOS 11 and lower

1. Open Settings
2. Go to General and tap on it
3. Tap on Restrictions to view Settings
4. To enable restriction if disabled, set up a 4-digit passcode in the ‘Set Passcode’ screen.
5. Below the Disable Restriction section, search for and tap the FaceTime slider to the left to disable restrictions. The slider color should change from green to white.

Read also: How Long Does Migration Assistant Take?

How Do You Reset FaceTime on iPhone?

There are different ways you can reset FaceTime on your iPhone to help you solve the issues.

1.    Turn FaceTime OFF and ON

You can fix many problems by switching the app off and on again. Once you notice a problem with the software, turn it off and on again. This is how you do it.

1. Open Settings on your Apple device.
2. Look for and tap on FaceTime.
3. Tap the switch beside FaceTime off (white).
4. Wait for about 30 seconds
5. Tap the switch again, so it turns on (green)

2.    Reset Network Settings

FaceTime may encounter problems due to network settings on your iPhone. Here’s how to resolve it:

1. Go to your Apple device’s Settings
2. Tap on General
3. Scroll down the page and tap on Reset
4. Then tap Reset Network Settings. You may be asked to enter a passcode to confirm the reset.

Note: Once you reset network settings, this will remove your WiFi networks, VPN Settings, and device name. You may want to try rebooting your iPhone before trying this reset.

3.    Hard reset your iPhone

If you tried the previous method and it failed, you can perform a hard Reboot on your iPhone. Below is a step-by-step guide and tips on how you can successfully pull this off:

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