How to Hide Number on MTN: #31#, *31# and ₦0 Extra Per Call

Hiding your number on MTN adds ₦0 to a call. You pay your normal call rate and nothing more. Type #31# before the number to hide it for one call. To hide every call, dial *31# once, then dial #31# when you want your number to show again. Codes as at 26 October 2026.

Below: how to hide number on MTN for one call or all of them, the Android and iPhone settings, how to get your number back when your calls show "private", and a trader's 600-minute month worked out in naira.

How to hide number on MTN for one call: #31# first

This is the quickest method, and it only touches the call you're making now.

1. Open your phone's dialler.
2. Type #31# and then the full number, with no space. It should look like #31#0803XXXXXXX.
3. Press call.

Depending on their handset, the person you're calling sees "Private number", "Unknown" or "No caller ID". All three mean the same thing. You don't need to switch anything off afterwards, because your next ordinary call goes out with your number showing on the other person's screen the way it always has.

Hide every call at once: *31# or your phone's Caller ID setting

Typing a prefix before every customer, neighbour or agent you ring gets tiring by the third call of the morning, especially when you're also holding a pen and a receipt book. A permanent switch saves you that.

The *31# switch

Dial *31# and press call. That switches on hiding for all your outgoing calls. To switch it off, dial #31# by itself and press call. Other sites list *131*1#, but it is not one of MTN's published codes, so stick to *31# and #31#. If either code returns an error, use the phone settings below; they do the same job.

On an Android phone

1. Open the Phone app.
2. Tap the three dots and choose Settings.
3. Tap Calls, Supplementary services or Additional settings.
4. Tap Caller ID.
5. Choose Hide number.

Your handset may word these menus a little differently. Look for "Caller ID", because that's the option you want on Tecno, Infinix and Samsung alike.

On an iPhone

Open Settings, tap Apps, then Phone, and turn off Show My Caller ID. Older iOS versions put Phone straight into the main Settings list, so skip the Apps step on those. When the switch is dimmed or missing altogether, the network is controlling it, and your fix is to message @MTN180 and ask them to sort out caller ID on your line.

How to remove private number on MTN and show your number again

Sometimes the problem runs the other way. Customers keep ignoring you because their screen says "Private number", even though you never set anything, and a phone reset or a SIM swap is often what quietly flipped the setting.

First, dial #31# on its own to cancel the all-calls switch. On Android, open Caller ID and pick Show number or Network default. iPhone users just switch Show My Caller ID back on. Network default hands the choice back to MTN, and on a normal line that means your number shows.

Then test it.

Ring a friend and ask what came up on their screen. Still private? Message @MTN180.

A trader's 600-minute month: ₦0 to hide, ₦8,280 for the calls

Say you sell fabric from home and ring ten customers every day. Each call runs about two minutes. Over thirty days that adds up to 600 minutes of talking, and every figure below starts from there.

MTN Pulse is the per-second tariff many prepaid lines use, and it charges ₦13.80 a minute. Across the whole month, your calls come to ₦8,280. Putting #31# in front of each one adds nothing to that bill.

You may pay a different rate on another tariff plan or a call bundle, so open the MyMTN app, find your own per-minute figure and use that when you plan the month.

Some traders skip hiding altogether. They buy a second MTN SIM just for customers, pay the SIM price at an MTN outlet, link it to their NIN and top it up separately. It's more to manage. Plenty of people ignore private calls, though, and a second number that shows on screen looks like any other caller, so it tends to get picked up when a withheld one rings out.

The same month, side by side. Prices as at 26 October 2026.

Whether you top up your own line or a second SIM, you can buy MTN airtime with 1.8% cashback and get part of every recharge back.

What a hidden number doesn't hide: texts, 112 and MTN's records

Texts still show your number. Hiding caller ID only covers voice calls, so every SMS you send carries your number to the person who gets it, even on a day when all your calls go out as private. Calls to 112, the emergency line, still pass your number on as well.

MTN also keeps your number on its records for every call. If someone reports harassment, MTN can trace the line. Complaints MTN doesn't resolve can go to the NCC on its toll-free line, 622. So a hidden number buys you privacy from customers or a nosy landlord, but it won't make you anonymous to the network that carries the call.

Before your next customer call, try #31# on a friend's phone and ask what showed up. For balance checks and the rest, keep a list of other MTN USSD codes handy.

Frequently asked questions

Published 26 October 2026. Prices and codes change - if you spot one that has moved, tell us and we will fix it.