How to Find the Number of Recent Phone Calls

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Easily finding a number that you have dialed recently, without having to consult the phone book or a personal address book, saves time and frustration. Being able to find the numbers of people who have called you recently is also useful, especially if the caller did not leave a voice message or if that message is garbled. Whether it is for business or personal purposes, on a cell phone or landline telephone, modern technology usually makes it simple to access this information.

Find Recent Calls Received on a Landline

Dial 69 if you live in the United States to find the number, as USA Today suggests. You may need to dial 1169 if you have a pulse or rotary phone. Some networks require you to call 66, or 1166, respectively.

Dial 1471 from a British Telecom (BT) landline, and most other British networks, if you live in the United Kingdom.

Follow the recorded instructions to return the call if you are on an American network. Return the call by pressing 3 if you are with BT, or most other British networks.

Check the phone records on your own phone if you have a digital handset with the Caller ID function. It keeps a record of at least the last five numbers that have called you recently.

Find the Number Last Called from a Landline

Consult your telephone's caller ID records, if you have the facility, to see which numbers you have recently dialed.

Press the call-making button (which is usually labelled "Call", "Talk", "Send" or, if unlabeled, is normally green in color) to automatically dial the very last number you called. Scroll down the list to dial older numbers.

Use the redial button to call the last number you dialed again. If you don't have a digital phone, this is probably the only option you have to redial numbers without looking them up again. This will not give you the number you called, but will save you rechecking your phone book if you simply want to call the same person again. Older phones often have this function.

Identify Recent Calls From Numbers on a Cell Phone

Select "Missed calls" from among the menu options. This option may appear either in the main menu or in a sub-menu such as "Recent calls." The number or name (if you have the number stored against a name in the phone's phone book) of the person who tried to call you will be shown.

Use the call-making button to try to bring up a list of all numbers or names dialed and received recently. This will work with many networks – and often a small icon on the screen will indicate whether it was an incoming or outgoing call.

Scroll down the list and highlight a number you want to call. Press the call-making button.

Check Numbers Dialed from a Cell Phone

Press the call-making button to see the number or name of the last person you called. If the last call on the phone was your outgoing call, this will be the number at the top of the list.

Scroll down the list for older numbers dialed and received.

Activate the call by pressing the call-making button again. If you want to dial a number which is not the last one, press the button only when you have scrolled down to the number you want to call.