How to Make a Conference Call on Your Android Phone

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No matter if your teams work on-site or remotely, conference calls are the staple of any team. They’re quick and convenient for everyone taking part, especially when there isn’t any screen sharing involved (and you don’t have the time to set up an elaborate video meeting). 

There are loads of ways to set up a conference call, including using dial-ins from a landline, so it’s likely that you already have at least one suitable device that can meet your conference-call needs. 

It’s likely that you already know about the dozens of conference-call services out there or already use the in-built conference-calling feature in your uber-versatile mobile device.

But that method has its limitations—we’ll explore that later in the article, and you’ll soon see why the RingCentral app could be a better option for you.

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In this article, we’ll cover a few options for conference calling on  Android. Skip ahead if you’re interested in a certain section:

1. Another option for making conference calls on Android
2. How to make a conference call on Android using the RingCentral app
3. How to make a conference call with your Android phone

A better way to make conference calls on Android

Before we get into the steps to make a conference call on an Android device using its built-in features,  it’s important to point out that there’s an even better solution if you’re running a business. A mobile app—or more specifically, the RingCentral app.

The RingCentral app is built for making life easier at work, and the conference-calling tool comes packed with team-collaboration features that are designed to make your conference calls and phone calls more productive. All you need is a RingCentral subscription, which starts at $20 per user, per month.

Once you have that, you’re good to go—there’s no need for team members to dial in. Just download the desktop and mobile app to make a phone call, send a message, host an online meeting, or set up video conferencing in real time.

Plus:

1. You can make free conference calls. You don’t have to pay your mobile service provider’s charges for local or international calls since your RingCentral subscription covers all your conference-calling charges. (Being able to make a free conference call is a biggie if you have remote teammates or clients in other countries.)
2. Other than just audio or teleconferencing, the RingCentral app also lets you do video conferencing, team messaging, screen sharing, and more—all from the same app.
3. Instead of having to dial in participants one by one, you can provide a single conference bridge phone number or send out a link and an access code through email or text using your dialpad. This saves tons of time.
4. You can enable teleconferencing for up to 1,000 attendees using their IP desk phones (and speakerphones) while in the office, the RingCentral desktop app on their computer, or even the RingCentral mobile app while on the go. Yep, you’ve got options.

And more… 

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Conference call on Android benefits

Being able to conference call on Android is vital to modern businesses. It means colleagues and teams can work when and where they want, but still catch up and collaborate effectively.

In short, the benefits of conference calling on Android are that:

• It lets team members who are traveling or out of office still take part in important discussions
• It helps support remote and hybrid working arrangements, which are popular with employees and businesses
• It allows employees to use their favored device for work meetings and calls.

Conference call on Android disadvantages

Most, if not all, Android devices have a built-in capacity for conferencing calling. We’ll get into how that works a bit later. However, there are two notable disadvantages to conference calling on Android this way:

• • It’s time-consuming – Natively conference calling on Android involves a multi-step process, many steps of which have to be repeated to add each new participant. 

• • It can be costly – Unlike conferencing with a business-first app like RingCentral, doing it natively can see your phone bill quickly rack up.

Those disadvantages mean businesses need a different way to conference call on Android. And with RingCentral it couldn’t be easier.

How to conference call on Android using the RingCentral app

Let’s take a look at how conference calls work on Android with RingCentral by exploring these steps to follow:

1. Download the RingCentral app
2. Choose your contacts
3. Start the call

Step 1: Download the RingCentral app from the Google Play Store.

Here’s the link to download the RingCentral app. Once it’s downloaded, create a new account or sign in if you already have an account.

Step 2: Choose a few contacts from your directory to start a conference call with.

Method 1: Choose a few contacts from your directory to start a conference call with.

3. Start the call

Just tap the “+” icon and you should see a “New Conference” option. That’s it! You can add contacts to a conference call from there.

Method 2: You can also turn a regular call into a conference call by tapping “Add” to include more contacts.

There are other useful features, too, if you tap “More”—you can put someone on hold, transfer them, switch to using your carrier’s network instead of using Wi-Fi, even record your call:

That’s it! Just choose someone to add to your conference call

Send the conference invitation to your participants via text or email. RingCentral integrates with Google Calendar to create meeting links automatically in the invites:

How to conference call on Android natively

Most (if not all) Android phones have a built-in conference-calling feature that you can set up from your call screen—so you don’t necessarily need specialist conference call software for Android. 

You call up the first person, and then merge calls one by one using the other conference attendees’ phone numbers.

Here’s a step-by-step tutorial to show you how you can go about doing this:

1. Call the first person for your conference
2. Tap the “add call” button
3. Add more guests
4. Tap the “merge” button
5. Repeat the above steps to add more callers

Step 1: Call up the first person you want to include in your conference

Step 2: Once the call connects, tap the “Add call” button

The screen will open up to your contacts list. Any member of the two-way call can use the “Add call” button to do this:

Step 3: Find the next person you wish to add to your call and select their contact number

Once the call connects, you’ll be able to speak with them without the first caller hearing you:

Step 4: Tap the “Merge” button

Once you’ve enabled this feature, all three of you will be able to hear and speak with one another:

Step 5: To add more people, repeat the preceding steps

Again, any one of the three callers can do this.

End call and hang up by pressing the red phone icon as you normally would.

Phew, that can be a lot of steps!

Conference calling from your Android phone has never been easier

Regardless of the device or operating system you’re working with, whether it be Android, Samsung, iPhone, or any other iOS mobile device, staying in touch with your team is a crucial  element of remote working. 

The quality of your communications has a massive impact on the quality of your team and the work they do. 

So, when the tedious parts of setting up online meetings, video calls, and conference calls (for example, tiresome dial-ins from landlines) are out of the picture and your team follows proper meeting etiquette, what you’re left with is butter-smooth collaboration. And that’s what RingCentral was made for. 😉

We’re already trusted by over 400k users. And you could get started with us for free.

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FAQs

What are the main advantages of using Android for conference calls?

First, it’s a terrific way of keeping all your team members in the loop, whether they’re away on business or simply working remotely. In addition, it’s convenient for anyone who already uses an Android device. And if you use a dedicated app like RingCentral, you can add multiple participants to the call at once rather than dialing them in one at a time.

With a conference call on Android, do all participants need to join with an Android device?

No, not at all. In that respect, it’s the same situation as when you make a simple voice call with an Android smartphone. Just as you can use an Android smartphone to call any phone number, so you can host a conference call using Android and invite anyone to participate.

Originally published Jun 12, 2024, updated Jul 23, 2024