How-To

How to Hide Your Phone Number on Telegram

By Brian Burgess

Updated November 16, 2023

A phone number is required to start on Telegram, but you don’t need to share it with everyone. So, you can hide your phone number on Telegram.

When you sign up for the Telegram messaging app, your phone number is required to authenticate you. But if you use usernames to connect with others, you can hide your phone number on Telegram.

Once your Telegram account is established, you can hide your number and use unique usernames like on X (formerly Twitter) or Instagram. The usernames let you connect with users, join groups, and subscribe to channels.

Since you can use the username system to message others on Telegram, why not hide your phone number? Here’s how on mobile and desktop.

Hide Your Phone Number on Telegram on Your iPhone

The steps to hide your phone number via the Telegram mobile app vary between Android and iPhone. But hiding your number is a straightforward process through Settings.

To hide your number on an iPhone:

1. Open the Telegram app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap Settings (gear icon) in the bottom right corner of the screen.
3. Scroll down the menu and select Privacy and Security from the menu.
4. Under the Privacy section, tap Phone Number.
5. You can choose who sees your number under the Who Can See My Phone Number section. So, set it to Nobody to hide it from everyone.
6. In the Who Can Find Me By Number section, select My Contacts.

Once you follow the steps, only users in your contacts list can see your number. Your phone number will be hidden on Telegram from everyone else.

To hide phone number in Telegram on Android:

On Android, hiding your phone number from everyone on Telegram is the same idea, but getting to the setting varies.

1. Launch the Telegram app on your Android device.
2. Click the menu button (three horizontal lines) in the top left corner of the app.
3. Select the Settings option from the menu that appears.
4. Scroll to the Settings section and tap Privacy and Security.
5. Swipe to the Privacy section and tap Phone Number.
6. Under the Who can see my phone number section, change the default of Everybody to the Nobody setting.
7. Once you change the setting, a new section labeled Who can find me by my number will open — select the My Contacts option.

Once you follow the steps, only users in your contacts list can look you up on the service, and no one else can find you with your number – they won’t even see it.

Hide Phone Number on Telegram in Windows Desktop App

It’s also important to note that a desktop Telegram app is available for Windows, Linux, and macOS. You can hide your phone number from the desktop version, too. In this instance, we’re showing how to do it on Windows 10 or 11.

To hide your phone number in Telegram on Windows:

1. Press the Windows key and launch Telegram from the Start menu.
2. When Telegram opens, click the menu button in the top left corner of the window.
3. Select Settings from the menu that appears.
4. Click the Privacy and Security option from the menu.
5. Under the Privacy section, click Phone number from the list.
6. Select Nobody under the Who can see my phone number section and tick My contacts under the Who can find me by my number section.

Like the mobile versions, your number will be hidden except for the users in your contacts list.

Hiding Your Phone Number on Telegram

When it comes to keeping your individual and individual group chats private, there are other options out there than Facebook Messenger or group texting. Telegram is a secure alternative messaging app that uses client-to-server encryption for group chats. It also provides end-to-end encryption via the Secret Chat feature used for one-on-one chats.

Being able to hide your phone number from others is an added privacy bonus that can prevent other users from misusing your number.