Call Ireland From the United States

Calling Ireland from the United States can be confusing and pricey. It is important to know the correct codes for making international calls on your phone. Codes vary between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is still part of the UK. There are also special codes for mobile phones versus landline area codes. On the other hand, you can avoid codes and costs altogether by using VoIP, or Voice Over Internet Protocol, apps.

Steps

Calling Ireland Using Your Phone

1. Dial 011 from your cell phone or land line to make an international call. This is the exit code used to leave the United States calling region and signals that you are going to make an international call.
2. Enter the country code to reach the area in Ireland you will be calling. Dial 353 if you're calling the Republic of Ireland. Northern Ireland is still part of the UK and has a different country code. To call Northern Ireland, enter their country code, which is 44.
3. Include the mobile code when you are calling someone in Ireland on their cell phone. There are several mobile network providers in Ireland and you will need to know the mobile code of the cell phone you are calling. All mobile codes begin with the number 8, followed by another number. The following is a list of providers and mobile codes for Ireland.
   • Three: 83
   • Meteor: 85
   • O2: 86
   • Vodafone: 87
   • Tesco, also known as MVNO: 89
4. Dial the area code, or national destination code, for the city you wish to call. Area codes for cities within the Irish Republic are one to three digits long. If you're calling Northern Ireland, the area code may be two to five digits long. The area code should be provided along with the phone number.
   • Drop any leading zeros from the area code.
5. Enter the remaining digits of the telephone number you're calling. Most Republic of Ireland phone numbers will have seven more digits. A Northern Ireland mobile number will have a total of ten digits, and a landline will have a total of nine or ten digits.
   • The local phone number cannot begin with zero.
6. Set up an international calling plan with your carrier. In order to call Ireland, you will likely need to add an international calling plan to your current phone service in order to make calling more affordable. Check with your carrier about your specific options and rates for your cell phone or land line.
   • As an example, Verizon offers 1000 minutes of international calling for $20/month.
   • With a $5 monthly access fee, they offer reduced rates for international calls at $0.07/minute on land lines and $0.19/minute on cell phones.
   • If you choose to call Ireland without enrolling in one of these plans, the current standard rate is $1.49/minute on land lines and $1.69/minute for cell phones.
7. Place the call using an international calling card. You can use calling cards on land lines and cell phones. By calling the number provided on the card, you will make the international call through the card service provider rather than you phone provider. Using an international calling card can save you money. There are some things you should be aware of when using an international calling card with your cell phone. These tips will prevent you from accidentally incurring extra charges:
   • Do not dial the number using your contact list. If you select the number from you contact list, you will disconnect from the calling card service and make the call through your cell phone service provider. You must dial out the numbers once you are connected to the calling card service.
   • Do not press "Send," "OK" or "Dial" after dialing the number you are calling in Ireland. The calling card service will connect you automatically. Pressing any of these buttons will disconnect you from the calling card service and make the call directly from your cell phone using your service provider.

Communicating Via Skype

1. Download the Skype application to your device. Skype is available for use on a variety of devices, including computers, cell phones, tablets, Xbox, smart watches and televisions. Choose which device you would like to use and download Skype from your app store.
   • Skype is available for Mac computers with an operating system of OS X 10.6 or above.
   • Windows 10 comes with a preview of the Skype app, which allows you to test its features without downloading the app. If you have an earlier version of Windows, you will need to download the app.
   • Skype is available for iPhone, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, and Amazon Fire Phone.
   • Tablets which support Skype include: iPad, Kindle Fire HD, Android and Windows tablets.
2. Decide how you would like to pay for your calls to Ireland. Calling another Skype user from your computer to theirs is free, but calling cell phones and land lines incurs a fee. Skype offers options of paying for Skype credit for calls or joining in a monthly plan. Depending on how much you intend to call Ireland, you may want to pay as you go or sign up monthly.
   • With Skype credit, the rate for calling mobile phones in Ireland is 10 cents/minute. Calling land lines will cost you 2.3 cents/minute.
   • You have two options for monthly Skype plans. For $6.99/month, you will receive 400 minutes allowing you to call both mobile phones and land lines in Ireland. The 13.99/month plan gives you unlimited calling around the world, allowing you to call other countries as well. Be aware, though, that this plan only allows for land line calls to Ireland.
3. Register for a Skype account. Open the application and register for an account. You will need to input some basic information, including your name, email address, country, state and city. Create a Skype name and password for the purpose of personal conversations.
   • You can skip entering your birthday if you are concerned about security.
   • Once you set up your account, you will be given the option to add a minimum of $10 credit or skip that step and just get started.
4. Log in to your Skype account. From the log in screen, enter your user name and password to access your Skype account. You can check the box beneath this text box to save your user name and password to your personal device for future use. Click “Sign In” to log into your account.
   • Do not save your user name and password to a public computer.
5. Find the contact information for the person you would like to call. Type the name of the person in the search bar at the top right of the screen. This will search your address book. If Skype does not find the person in your contact list, it will give you the option to search Skype. Enter the name in the Skype search engine to find everyone by that name who is registered with Skype.
   • If you know the Skype user name of the the person you are trying to contact, you can find them by that name, which is in bold at the top of each listing.
6. Add the person you are calling to your friend list. Press the green circle next to your contact’s name. It has the image of a person’s head and shoulders with a plus sign. This will open the screen inviting you to add the person as your friend.
   • A default message will appear, asking to add the contact as your friend. You can write a personal message instead by typing over the default message.
   • Press send to send the invitation to your contact in Ireland.
7. Connect a phone call to your contact in Ireland. Once the person you are calling has accepted your friend request, they will appear in your contact list. A green check will appear at the top of their profile picture to alert you that they are online and available for calls. The default option is a video call, but you can choose a voice call if you prefer.
   • To make a video call, click the option on their profile picture for a video call.
   • If you would prefer to make a voice call, you can select the arrow on the right of the video call command to reveal a drop down menu. Select the voice call option from this menu.

Using the FaceTime Audio App to Make Free Calls to Another Apple Device

1. Find out if the person you are calling is using an Apple device. Apple has the built-in FaceTime application which allows for free international phone calls between their devices. FaceTime is pre-installed on all iOS7 devices as well as some earlier iOS versions, so there is no need to download an app.
   • iPhone 4 was the first to have FaceTime and all iPhones made after that also have the app. Other Apple devices with FaceTime are iPad 2 and later, all iPad minis, and iPod Touch 5th generation.
   • If you used or purchased your device in United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, or Pakistan, it may not have the FaceTime App pre-installed. You can purchase FaceTime from the App Store on your device.
   • You may need to update your FaceTime app to enable the voice call feature.
2. Sign in to FaceTime using your Apple ID. When you are using an iPhone, open the FaceTime app by selecting Settings > FaceTime > Use your Apple ID. Enter your Apple ID to sign in to FaceTime.
3. Add your email address to allow you to communicate using email instead of your phone number. If you are using an iPhone, it will already have registered your phone number and the email associated with your Apple ID should appear when you log in. To check the email address listed or add others, choose Settings > FaceTime > Add Another Email.
   • You can add several email addresses to your account, allowing you to contact people using various email addresses.
   • You can call someone in Ireland using their email address associated with FaceTime. You do not need to have their phone number.
4. Connect to wifi to avoid using your data. FaceTime calls are made using the internet instead of cellular service. This is why you are not charged like you would be for a regular phone call. On the other hand, that means that the call requires data. If you have limited data, this could eat through your plan rather quickly. When you are connected to wifi, you can use that service and save your data.
   • Connect to wifi by selecting Settings > wifi > On.
   • Once you have enabled wifi, select the wifi service you would like to join and enter any necessary passwords to gain access.
   • When your phone is connected to wifi, the wifi radar beacon symbol will replace the data carrier on your display.
5. Make a FaceTime call to your contact in Ireland. You can do this in a few ways. If you you have entered this person into your contact list, you can select their name. The screen will show their contact information you have entered. Under the phone number(s), you will find the FaceTime section. Two symbols are listed. One is the video camera for video calls. Select the phone symbol for voice calls.
   • If the person you are calling is not in your contact list, open the FaceTime app and enter their email or phone number in the box at the top of the screen.
   • You can also activate Siri and give the voice command “FaceTime audio…” and the name of the person you are calling from your contact list.
6. End your FaceTime call by touching the red button with the phone symbol at the bottom of the screen. If another call comes in while you are on your current call, you will have the option to decline the incoming call or end the current call and answer the new call. These two options will appear to replace the red “end” button.
   • iOS 8 models and later also have a call waiting feature, which allows you to place your current call on hold while answering the other call.

Placing a Free International Call Using WhatsApp

1. Download WhatsApp from the app store on your phone. WhatsApp is a free application which allows you to text and call internationally using data as opposed to expensive cellular voice minutes.
   • WhatsApp with the calling feature is available for iPhones, Androids, Windows Phone, and Blackberry 10.
2. Open a chat with the person you wish to call in Ireland. Within the app, begin a new chat by selecting the “Chats” icon on the bottom of the screen. On the top of the chat screen, you will see the message icon, which looks like a pencil and paper. Select this icon to move to your contact list. Touch the name of the person you wish to call from the contact list to open a chat page.
   • If you have already begun a chat with the person you are calling, select their name from your list of chats to open their chat screen.
   • Your contact list will show who is available to be contacted using WhatsApp by listing “Available” under their name.
   • If your contact does not use WhatsApp it will prompt you to send them a message which reads, “Hey there! I am using WhatsApp.”
3. Place a call from the chat screen. Once you have opened the chat screen, you will see the phone icon next to the profile picture at the top of the screen. Select this icon to make a free international call using WhatsApp.
   • The call is free because it uses internet data to place the call rather than cellular services. If you have limited data, it is best to place the call while you are connected to wifi in order to avoid using too much of the data on your cell phone plan.

Tips

• Both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are in the Western European Time Zone, which is synchronous with GMT or UTC (Greenwich Mean Time or Coordinated Universal Time). The continental United States spans four time zones, from EST (Eastern Standard Time) which is GMT -5 to PST (Pacific Standard Time) which is GMT -8. Alaska is GMT -9, and Hawaii is GMT -10.
• Almost everybody in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland speaks English, so your odds of having to worry about a language difference are extremely small.
• Both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland observe Summer Time, or Daylight Saving Time--but on a slightly different schedule from the United States. In Ireland, the clocks are set forward by one hour on the last Sunday in March, and set back to regular time on the last Sunday in October. In the United States, DST begins on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.
• As with any international call, dialing direct from the United States to Ireland can be very expensive. Several options to save money include: contacting your long-distance carrier about a reduced-rate international dialing plan, or whether you get cheaper rates on nights and weekends; using a calling card; or using a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service to make your call.

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