A VoIP number is a regular-looking phone number that runs over the internet instead of a SIM card. It can take calls and texts in an app or a browser, and it costs less than a mobile line. The catch: many sign-up checks can tell it apart from a mobile number, and some refuse it.
What is a VoIP number?
A VoIP number (Voice over Internet Protocol) is a phone number assigned by an internet calling provider rather than a mobile carrier. It has the usual format, like +1 315 555 0123 in the US or +44 for the UK, and anyone can call or text it. The difference is where it lands: in an app, a desk phone or a web dashboard, not on a SIM.
Most numbers you can buy online are VoIP numbers. Google Voice, TextNow, business phone systems and the private numbers on gettempnumber.com all work this way. “Virtual number” and “VoIP number” usually mean the same thing in practice. “Virtual” describes the missing SIM; “VoIP” describes the technology that carries the call.
How does a VoIP number work?
A VoIP number works by turning calls and texts into data. When someone dials the number, the phone network hands the call to the VoIP provider, and the provider sends it over the internet to whatever device you signed in on. Texts follow the same route and show up in the provider’s app or inbox.
In daily use, a VoIP number means:
- You need a data or Wi-Fi connection, not mobile signal.
- One number can ring on a laptop, a tablet and a phone at once.
- The number doesn’t care where you are. A US number works the same from Lisbon or Bangkok.
- You can have several numbers on one device without a second SIM.
The provider, not a carrier, owns the line. That one detail explains most of what follows: lower prices, no ID checks at most providers, and suspicion from apps that want to know a real person sits behind the number.
What is the difference between fixed and non-fixed VoIP numbers?
A fixed VoIP number is tied to a physical address and device, like a cable company home phone. A non-fixed VoIP number is created online and works anywhere, like Google Voice. Verification systems care about this split because a non-fixed number takes minutes to get and costs a few dollars, so it is the type most often rejected.
Phone lookup services sort every number into a line type. The table uses the labels from Twilio’s Lookup documentation, one of the services sign-up forms query in the background.
| Line type | What it is (Twilio’s description) | Example | Can it receive SMS? | What a strict sign-up check usually does |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| mobile | A number on a carrier’s mobile network | Your SIM or eSIM number | Generally yes | Accepts |
| landline | A traditional wired line | Office phone | Generally no | Rejects SMS, may offer a voice call |
| fixedVoip | Virtual number tied to a physical device | Comcast or Vonage home phone | Often | Accepts or asks for another number |
| nonFixedVoip | Virtual number obtained online, no device needed | Google Voice, app and dashboard numbers | Yes, from most senders | Most likely to reject |
Note the last row. The private numbers on gettempnumber.com, like nearly every online number, fall into the non-fixed group. We say so up front because it decides where they will and won’t work.
Can a VoIP number receive SMS and verification codes?
Yes, a VoIP number can receive SMS and verification codes from most senders. Banks, shops, delivery services and most websites send codes to any number that accepts texts. The exception is a sender that runs a line-type check first: if it sees a VoIP number, it never sends the code at all.
So when a code doesn’t arrive, there are two possible causes, and they need different fixes. Either the message was delayed or filtered on the way, or the service refused the number before sending anything. If the sign-up form showed an error like “this number is not supported”, it’s the second case, and waiting won’t help.
Our advice: test a number with the service you care about before you tie anything important to it. On gettempnumber.com, an incoming text usually appears in the dashboard right away. If one specific sender never gets through, support can swap the number, and a number that was never used can be refunded.
Why do some apps say VoIP numbers are not accepted?
Apps reject VoIP numbers to fight fake accounts. A non-fixed VoIP number costs a few dollars and takes minutes to get, so one person can create hundreds of accounts with them. A mobile number usually involves a SIM, a carrier contract and often an ID check, which makes it a better proof that a real, single person is signing up.
The check runs in the background while you wait on the form. The sign-up form sends your number to a lookup service, gets back a line type from the table above, and applies its own rule. Many messaging apps, banks and payment apps block non-fixed VoIP. Ring4, a VoIP provider itself, tells its users plainly that its numbers can’t verify WhatsApp, which wants “a traditional mobile number from a cellular carrier”.
The rules are also changing. In 2017, NIST guideline SP 800-63-3 said VoIP numbers “SHALL NOT be used” for one-time codes in US federal systems, and many private companies copied that rule. The 2025 revision, SP 800-63-4, removed the VoIP ban. Plenty of services still block VoIP numbers, but the government standard behind many of those blocks no longer requires it.
Google draws its own line too. Its Account Help says not to use a Google Voice number as your Google recovery phone, because a locked-out account can’t receive the code it needs to unlock itself.
How can you tell if a phone number is VoIP?
You can tell if a phone number is VoIP only with a carrier lookup. The area code and digits don’t reveal it, because number porting lets any number move between mobile, landline and VoIP providers. A lookup service checks the current carrier database and returns the line type and carrier name.
Three ways to check a number:
- Use a free phone validator or “VoIP lookup” site. Type the number and read the “line type” field.
- Read the error. A message like “VoIP numbers are not supported” means the service already ran the lookup for you.
- Ask the provider. Any honest seller of online numbers will confirm they are VoIP.
Lookups get it wrong sometimes. Users on Apple and Discord forums report mobile numbers flagged as VoIP after a port from a VoIP provider or with some low-cost carriers. If your real mobile number gets rejected, the fix is with the service’s support, not with your phone.
What is a non-VoIP number, and do you need one?
A non-VoIP number is a number that lookup services classify as mobile, meaning it lives on a mobile carrier’s network with a SIM or eSIM behind it. Sellers advertise “non-VoIP numbers” for one reason: they pass the line-type checks that block VoIP. They cost more because each one needs real carrier infrastructure.
You need a non-VoIP number only for the services that block VoIP and that you plan to keep. For those accounts we’d go a step further, because a rented or shared number can expire and end up with a stranger.
Number recycling is common. About 35 million US numbers are disconnected every year and handed to new owners, according to a 2021 Princeton study, and 215 of the 259 available numbers the researchers sampled were recycled and open to at least one attack, including account takeover through password recovery.
For a bank, your main email or a messaging app you’ll use for years, use a mobile number in your own name: your current SIM, or a second SIM or eSIM line from a carrier.
Which number should you use for which account?
The right number depends on how long you need the account and what’s at stake if you lose it. A free public number is fine for a one-off code. A private VoIP number suits accounts you return to. A mobile number in your name belongs on anything tied to money or account recovery.
| Situation | Free public number | Private VoIP number | Mobile number in your name |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-time code for a forum, shop or Wi-Fi login | Good fit | Works | Overkill |
| Account you’ll log back into for months | Risky: anyone can read the inbox | Good fit, while you keep renewing it | Works |
| Marketplace, dating or business profile | No | Good fit if the service accepts VoIP | Works |
| Bank, payment app, main email recovery | Never | No | Use this |
| WhatsApp, Telegram or other apps with strict checks | Usually rejected | Test first; may be rejected | Use this |
Free public numbers on gettempnumber.com show every incoming text on an open web page, and they rotate without warning. That’s fine for a code you’ll never need again, and a bad idea for anything else.
How do you get a VoIP number for SMS?
You can get a VoIP number for SMS in a few minutes from any online provider. On gettempnumber.com, a private virtual number for the USA, Canada or the UK starts at $7.90 and an Australian number at $12.90, as of October 2026. You can pay by card or in crypto (USDT or Bitcoin).
The steps:
- Pick a country and a number from the list on the private virtual number page.
- Sign up or log in, then choose how long you need it.
- Pay. The number activates automatically after payment.
- Read incoming texts in your private dashboard, from any browser.
Renew the number for as long as accounts depend on it: message history in the private inbox is deleted after the number expires, and a lapsed number can’t receive the next login code.
If you only need one code today, try the free temporary numbers first: they cost nothing and need no account. Our guide to getting a free virtual number to receive SMS covers that route step by step.
FAQ
Is a VoIP number the same as a virtual number?
In most cases, yes. A virtual number is any number without a SIM behind it, and nearly all of them run on VoIP technology. Sellers use the two terms for the same product. The useful distinction is fixed vs non-fixed VoIP, because that’s what sign-up checks look at.
Is Google Voice a VoIP number?
Yes. Twilio’s Lookup documentation uses Google Voice as its example of a non-fixed VoIP number. That’s why some apps reject Google Voice at sign-up, and why Google itself advises against using a Google Voice number as your account recovery phone.
Can you text a VoIP number?
Yes. You text it exactly like any other number, and the message arrives in the owner’s app or dashboard. Person-to-person texts almost always get through. Problems come from automated senders that check the line type first and skip VoIP numbers.
Does 911 work on a VoIP number?
911 on a VoIP number depends on the service. US rules (47 CFR §9.11) require interconnected VoIP providers, the ones that make and receive regular calls, to support E911 and to collect your address before service starts. Numbers sold for receiving SMS, like the private numbers on gettempnumber.com, are not built for emergency calls, so keep a mobile phone for that.
Can a VoIP number be traced?
Yes. Every number like this belongs to a provider, and a lookup shows which one. Providers keep account and payment records and answer lawful requests like any carrier. It hides your personal number from the apps you sign up for; it doesn’t make you anonymous to the provider or to the law.