For text message (SMS) forwarding to work nicely, phone numbers must be specified correctly. In this post, we are talking about the international phone number format and how to use it with AutoForward SMS for Android.
If you want to skip all the explanations and fast-forward to the examples, click here.
Table of Contents
What is the international phone number format?
Phone numbers do vary around the world. Some are shorter (only 4 digits) while others are longer (12 digits). Most countries break their phone numbers down into one or more groups (area codes) so they are easier to recognize and resemble some logic.
The only part of a phone number that is standardized, is the so-called country calling code. It starts with a + sign and allows you to make and receive phone calls from all around the world.
Why do I need the international phone number format?
For the app to unambiguously identify the sender’s phone number and apply the correct rules, you need to specify phone numbers with their international calling code.
What is my country calling code?
We have listed the more common calling prefixes here – for a complete list of codes, please visit Wikipedia.
Save all your contacts’ phone numbers in the international format so you can make/receive calls while being abroad.
PRO TIP
North America
- +1 United States/Canada
Africa
- +20 Egypt
- +27 South Africa
- +2313 Algeria
- +216 Tunisia
Europe
- +31 Netherlands
- +32 Belgium
- +33 France
- +43 Austria
- +44 United Kingdom
- +48 Poland
- +49 Germany
- +380 Ukraine
Middle & South America
- +52 Mexico
- +54 Argentina
- +55 Brazil
- +56 Chile
- +507 Panama
Asia
- +81 Japan
- +86 China
- +886 Taiwan
Southeast Asia & Oceania
- +61 Australia
- +64 New Zealand
- +66 Thailand
Middle East
- +91 India
Examples
When configuring distinct rules for forwarding, the phone number goes into the From Number field. In the example below, all messages coming from +12345678901 (a fictional number for Jane Doe) will be forwarded to his private email (john@doe.com)
Please note, that the phone number starts with +1 (country calling code for the US)
