Plenty of businesses still have a landline: the number on the storefront sign, the one printed on years of invoices, or the line the old office came with. Forwarding it to a cell phone lets you keep that number working while you're away from the desk, without telling every customer a new one.
On most US landlines, forwarding is a code you dial from the line itself: *72 to turn it on and *73 to turn it off. This guide walks through the steps AT&T and Xfinity publish for their home phone services, how to forward only when you don't answer, how to forward only certain callers, and what happens to voicemail and your bill.
Before you start
- Know what kind of line you have: A traditional copper line, a cable or fiber home phone (like Xfinity Voice) and a wireless home phone box all forward differently. Your bill or the provider's app tells you which you have.
- Have the cell number ready: With area code. Some systems need a 1 in front for long-distance numbers.
- Have someone near the cell: AT&T's home phone system calls the forward-to number to confirm. If nobody answers, forwarding doesn't turn on.
- Check your plan: Some plans don’t include forwarding. Xfinity, for example, says call forwarding is not included with its Voice Unlimited Saver plan.
AT&T home phone: the steps
From AT&T's "Learn how to forward calls" page for AT&T local home phone service.
- 1. Dial the code: Pick up the landline and dial *72 (or 72# on rotary-style systems). Listen for the dial tone.
- 2. Enter the cell number: For a long-distance number, dial 1 plus the 10-digit number. For a local number that needs an area code, dial the 10 digits. For a local number without an area code, dial 7 digits.
- 3. Let the system confirm: After a confirmation tone, the system calls the cell. When someone answers, forwarding is on.
- 4. If it fails: If the cell is busy or doesn't answer, forwarding won't activate. Repeat the steps. You'll hear an error message if the number isn't valid.
To turn it off, pick up the landline and dial *73 (or 73#). While forwarding is on, you can still make outgoing calls from the landline. It may ring briefly when a call comes in, but you can't answer there until you turn forwarding off.
Xfinity Voice: the codes
Xfinity's Voice features quick reference guide lists *72 to turn call forwarding on and *73 to turn it off, and says every forwarding feature can also be managed in the Voice settings on xfinity.com. It lists two other features: selective call forwarding (*63 on, *83 off) and advanced call forwarding, which is set online only. None of the forwarding features are included with the Voice Unlimited Saver plan.
AT&T Wireless Home Phone
If your "landline" is a home phone plugged into an AT&T Wireless Home Phone box, the codes are different. AT&T's guide for the device says: lift the handset, dial *21*, the 10-digit number, then #, and wait at least three seconds for the confirmation tone. To turn it off, dial #21# and wait for the tone.
Forward only when you don’t answer
Often you want the desk phone to ring first and the cell to catch what you miss. On AT&T home phone service, "Call Forwarding – Don't Answer" and "Call Forwarding – Busy Line" are set up by an agent at 800.288.2020, not by code. Once it's on, you can change how many times the landline rings before forwarding: dial *47, then the code for the number of rings.
| Rings before forwarding | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Code after *47 | 12 | 18 | 24 | 30 | 36 | 42 | 48 | 54 | 60 |
For other providers, look for "no answer" or "busy" forwarding in the online voice settings, or ask support. More on how this works across phones in conditional call forwarding.
Forward only certain callers
AT&T's selective call forwarding sends calls from up to six numbers on a list to another number, and everyone else still rings the landline. Dial *63 to manage it. Within the menu, # adds a number, # 01 # adds the last caller, * removes a number, and 1 reviews the list; press 0 at any time to hear the options again. Xfinity's selective forwarding uses *63 to turn on and *83 to turn off.
What changes once the landline forwards
- Voicemail moves: AT&T says calls that would have gone to your landline voicemail go to the forward-to number instead, and if nobody answers there, to that phone's voicemail. Change your cell greeting to something a business caller should hear.
- Charges: AT&T notes additional local and long-distance charges may apply to forwarded calls. Check before you forward across area codes.
- Texts: Most landlines can't receive texts at all, so there's nothing to forward. If customers try to text your landline number, those messages don't arrive anywhere.
- Caller ID: What your cell shows for a forwarded call depends on the carriers. Make a test call from a phone you know.
Test it
- From a cell phone that is not the forward-to phone, call the landline number.
- The forward-to cell should ring. The landline may ring briefly but you should not be able to answer it.
- Let the call go unanswered once to hear which voicemail picks up, and update that greeting.
- When you are back, dial *73 (or your provider’s off code) and test again.
Forwarding vs moving the number
Forwarding is a good bridge. You keep paying for the landline, and the number still lives there. If you mostly answer on your cell now, the cleaner long-term fix is often to move the number to a mobile or internet service through porting, so the number itself goes with you. Our guide on how to port a business phone number covers the paperwork and timing, and how to get a business phone number compares the options.
What Chargezen does instead
Chargezen doesn't forward calls, and it doesn't sell phone lines, desk phones or forwarding. It takes a different approach to the problem forwarding usually solves. Concierge answers calls and texts on your business number, around the clock: a new US number from Chargezen, or the number your customers already know, brought over to Chargezen. It recognizes the caller, looks up their orders and handles the request on the call.
For a landline number specifically, that means bringing the number to Chargezen. You keep the number customers know, and it starts taking texts as well as calls once it's registered to text.
When a person should take over, Concierge alerts your team in the Finn app and the browser, and emails or texts the teammates you pick. A teammate listens in, taps Join the call, and Concierge tells the caller they're there, so nobody starts over. From the Finn app on iPhone or Mac, a teammate can also transfer the call to another teammate. The call, its transcript and every text and email with that customer stay in one conversation. See human handoff and how joining and transferring calls works.
To be plain about the limits: Chargezen has no call forwarding, simultaneous ring, ring groups, phone menu or business-hours routing, and it offers US (+1) numbers only. If you need calls to ring a list of phones by schedule, a VoIP phone system does that; our comparisons with Google Voice, Grasshopper and RingCentral say where each one fits.
Concierge Starter is $20 a month with 20,000 credits. Pro is $199 a month with 199,000 credits, or $1,990 a year. Phone and text charges are billed as used, with no per-user fees. See pricing.
Related terms: number porting, VoIP and AI receptionist. Related guides: how to forward calls, how to turn off call forwarding and how to port a phone number. See also warm transfers explained.
Frequently asked questions
Can I forward my landline from my cell phone?
Usually not by code; the codes are dialed from the landline. Some providers, like Xfinity, let you manage forwarding in their online voice settings.
Why did *72 not work on my landline?
On AT&T, the most common reason is that nobody answered the confirmation call to your cell. Other causes: the feature isn't on your plan, the number format was wrong, or your service uses different codes. See call forwarding not working.
Will the landline still ring?
AT&T says you may hear a brief ring, but you can't answer on the landline while forwarding is on.
How do I know forwarding is on?
Call the landline from another phone. If the forward-to phone rings, forwarding is on. A test call is the only check that shows what callers actually get.
Sources: AT&T: Learn how to forward calls (home phone), AT&T: Wireless Home Phone call forwarding, Xfinity Voice features quick reference guide. All checked October 19, 2026.
