Honest Google Voice Review for Living Abroad (After 6 Years)
Using Google Voice for international travel and living abroad since 2020 has become essential for me. If you’re ready or want to give up your paid US phone number for good, here’s how using Google Voice worked out for me.
As someone who has been abroad for so long, here’s my true Google Voice review for living abroad and what you need to know first.
Because when you leave the US, what happens if you need to receive passcodes or call your bank back home?
Or even calling older family members who aren’t up to date on things like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger.
Luckily, Google Voice helps out here. And it’s completely free.
It’s an online service (and app) that provides you with a US landline phone number so you can call and text US numbers for free!
I’ll also share real phone number paid alternatives to Google Voice later in this article.
While I recommend a local phone service for internet and local texts and calls, using Google Voice for international travel is essential for managing life (and staying in contact) back home.
Here are a couple of reasons why you should get a Google Voice number, especially if you’ll be abroad for an indefinite amount of time.
And of course, I’ll share the pros and cons: I have been using this for a long time, and while it works in most cases, it sometimes fails me.
What is Google Voice?
Google Voice is a VoIP service that provides a virtual phone number. This is why it doesn’t work for every case (as I’ll explain later), but overall, it is still very useful.
Making or receiving calls and texts is absolutely free.
I’ve been able to call my bank, the IRS, student loan provider, and my Grandpa, who is only reachable via phone.
Why Get a Google Voice Phone Number For Living Abroad?
Let’s start off this Google Voice review for living abroad as an American with the main reasons to start an account.
Pro tip: If you want to join Google Voice, you need to do it while you still have an active US number.
Maintain Contacts Back Home
If there’s any reason to get a Google Voice phone number as an American living abroad, it’s to stay in contact with people back home. Especially when it comes to older family members or people who are simply used to staying in touch via text.
Stop Paying For US Phone Service
If you’re planning to be abroad long-term (like years!), why continue paying for a US phone service? Especially when they charge fees for making calls or texts from abroad.
There are special services that do provide real phone numbers for cheap, though. Especially if you still need to keep a real number but don’t want to stay with an expensive provider. More on that later.
Maintain Important Accounts
Imagine someone steals (or you lose) your debit card while abroad, and you only have a local phone number or an extremely pricey international service from home. What a (possibly expensive) headache it could be to communicate with your bank.
With calls being free, there’s no stress in waiting to contact a representative. I’ve called my bank (Capital One) so many times with Google Voice. Plus, they even send me alerts to my Google Voice texts.
How to know if 2-factor authentication will work? This is super important because not all banks can send texts to Google Voice numbers. Test this by adding Google Voice as a secondary number and see if the text confirmation can be sent to you.
2-Factor Authentication: Does it Work?
I’ve been using Google Voice for international travel and living abroad for 6 years now. Safe to say it’s been working well enough, and I haven’t had to move to a paid service.
With that said, here are some specific examples of when Google Voice has succeeded and when it has failed me as a phone number for living abroad.
Pro tip: For accounts you can’t lose access to, add a secondary phone number of a friend or family in case you lose Google Voice access.
Code Retrieval Successes:
One thing I’m happiest to report in my Google Voice review for living abroad is that I’ve been able to receive codes the majority of the time.
This is a list of just some of the types of businesses I receive codes from on Google Voice that are successful for me:
- Capital One Bank
- Charles Schwab Bank
- Revolut
- Wise
- GetYourGuide
- FreeTaxUSA
- TaxAct
- NelNet
Going through my past messages, I can see many more businesses I’ve received texts from, so it’s safe to say it works more often than not.
Code Retrieval Fails
Since 2020, there have been just a handful of times I haven’t been able to receive a code. So if you use (or plan to use) any of these services, exercise caution. I had to ask my Mom in the US to help me receive the codes.
- Fiverr (accepted Google Voice number first time, then was not allowed second time)
To be honest, I can’t think of many times it didn’t work, except with Fiverr.
Paid Real Phone Number Alternatives
If this Google Voice review for living abroad isn’t convincing you, that’s alright, cause Google Voice isn’t one-size-fits-all.
If you run a business or simply don’t want to risk being locked out of your accounts, there are paid alternatives to keep your US number legitimate.
Tello
I haven’t tried Tello, but after browsing their website, I see they have a great offer for unlimited calls and texts.
If I ever need to transfer out of my Google Voice number for living abroad, I will likely check them out.
They offer a real phone number so you can securely use 2-factor authentication.
The Biggest Problem With Google Voice For Living Abroad
Don’t get me wrong, I am super happy with the free service for living abroad as an American. I have a phone number, haven’t been locked out of my accounts, and so on.
With that said, there are some considerations to take with this Google Voice review for living abroad.
Because what could go wrong?
Well, Google Voice requires you to be logged into Google to use it. Which is fine, but if you get logged out of Google for some reason, you will lose access to your number.
While Google Voice has been great and I do recommend it overall, remember there is a risk in being locked out if you lose Google access.
Ready to use Google Voice for international travel?
Using Google Voice for international travel and while living abroad as an American has been great overall for me.
Here’s how I’ll finish off my Google Voice review for living abroad: if you’re okay with the potential risks and don’t rely heavily on having a US number, then it’s worth trying out for a time.
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