Phone Numbers
To have your voice agent answer real phone calls, you need to connect phone numbers. This section covers everything about acquiring, configuring, and managing phone numbers on the Hanc.AI platform.
Overview
Getting Phone Numbers
You can get phone numbers directly through the Hanc.AI platform:
- Phone numbers available in 100+ countries
- Reliable call routing
- Local, mobile, national, and toll-free numbers — plus WhatsApp calling numbers
- Instant, no-paperwork numbers in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the US, and Canada
- A guided self-serve flow for every other country, using your own regulatory documents
- No external accounts needed
Phone Number Properties
Each phone number has the following properties:
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| phone_number | The number in E.164 format (e.g., +4312345678) |
| formatted_number | Human-readable format (e.g., +43 1 234 5678) |
| name | Custom label for the number |
| country | Country code (e.g., AT, DE, US) |
| area_code | Area code portion of the number |
| provider | Phone number provider |
| inbound_agent_id | Agent assigned to handle incoming calls |
| outbound_agent_id | Agent assigned for outbound calls |
Phone Number Statuses
| Status | Description |
|---|---|
| ACTIVE | Number is live and can receive/make calls |
| INACTIVE | Number is paused, not handling calls |
| DELETED | Number has been removed |
Import Statuses
When importing numbers:
| Status | Description |
|---|---|
| IMPORTED | Number successfully imported and ready to use |
| PENDING | Import is in progress |
Getting Started with Phone Numbers
Option A: Buy Numbers Through Hanc.AI
- Go to Phone Numbers in the sidebar
- Click "Buy Number"
- Select a country and number type
- Complete purchase
- Number is automatically configured
The buy screen shows every number type for the country you pick — local, mobile, national, and toll-free — with any option that isn't available for that country clearly marked as disabled rather than hidden, so you always know what's possible. Advanced numbers are available for an extra €2/month.
How much paperwork you do depends on the country:
Instant, no paperwork
In Austria, Germany, and Switzerland, Hanc.AI provides the number under its own regulatory coverage, so there are no documents to submit. The US and Canada require no documents either. Pick a number, complete the purchase, and it's live.
Guided self-serve for every other country
For any other country, most carriers require regulatory documents (such as proof of a local address or business registration). Hanc.AI walks you through it:
- Choose the number and start the guided flow.
- Submit your own regulatory documents for that country.
- Save your progress as a draft at any point and resume later — you don't have to finish in one sitting.
- If something is missing or incorrect, you get a plain-language explanation of exactly what to fix, so you're never left guessing.
Once your documents are accepted, the number is provisioned and configured automatically.
You can also get a WhatsApp number so your agent answers calls right inside WhatsApp. The number type and its monthly price are shown up front on the buy screen before you commit. See WhatsApp Calling Numbers below.
Option B: Connect Your Own SIP Carrier
Bring your own SIP provider — HANC speaks SIP natively and routes the calls into your voice agent.
Supported carriers
| Provider | Notes |
|---|---|
| sipgate | EU SIP trunking. API auto-import for numbers (Personal Access Token with numbers:read). |
| Placetel | German VoIP carrier. Manual setup. |
| TENIOS | European SIP trunks. Manual setup. |
| easybell | German SIP carrier. Credentials from the Kundencenter. |
| Zadarma | Global numbers. Optional API key for auto-import. |
| Twilio (BYO) | Bring your own Twilio account. Account SID + Auth Token. |
| Telnyx | API-driven SIP and DIDs worldwide. |
| Custom SIP trunk | Any other provider — supply host, port, transport, username, password manually. |
How to connect
- Go to Phone Numbers in the sidebar.
- Click "Connect SIP".
- Pick your carrier from the provider list.
- Enter the credentials your provider gave you (SIP username/password; for some carriers, an optional API key/secret to auto-import numbers).
- Click Connect. The platform registers SIP and, where supported, syncs the list of numbers you can import.
- Pick which discovered numbers to import, or add a number manually by E.164 (e.g.
+15054079172). - Assign an inbound and/or outbound agent to each imported number.
SIP carrier connections share the same compliance/consent flow as outbound campaigns — carrier KYC and end-customer consent. Until your account is approved, the Connect SIP button opens a showcase listing supported carriers and a request-access CTA. Contact support@hanc.ai from the showcase modal to enable it; approval is usually same-business-day.
For carriers without API auto-configuration, after import the wizard shows you the exact steps to set up call forwarding inside your provider's portal. Follow those steps once per number — the agent picks up everything else.
Phone Number Types
The buy screen lists every type below for the country you choose. Types that aren't offered for that country appear disabled (greyed out) rather than hidden, so you can see the full picture at a glance.
Local Numbers
Phone numbers tied to a specific area:
| Example | Coverage |
|---|---|
| +43 1 xxx xxxx | Vienna, Austria |
| +49 30 xxx xxxx | Berlin, Germany |
| +41 44 xxx xxxx | Zurich, Switzerland |
Best for: Local businesses, regional presence
Mobile Numbers
Numbers that appear as mobile phones:
Best for: Personal service feel, SMS capability
National Numbers
Non-geographic numbers that represent your business across a whole country rather than one city or area:
Best for: Nationwide brands that don't want to signal a single region
Toll-Free Numbers
Numbers where caller doesn't pay:
| Example | Country |
|---|---|
| 0800 xxx xxx | Austria/Germany |
| 1-800-xxx-xxxx | USA |
Best for: Customer service, national reach
Advanced Numbers
Some numbers are flagged as advanced — for example, premium ranges or numbers with special capabilities. These are available for an extra €2/month on top of the standard monthly price and are labelled as such on the buy screen.
Best for: Businesses that need a specific premium or specialised range
WhatsApp Calling Numbers
Get a WhatsApp number and your voice agent answers calls directly inside WhatsApp — customers call you through the app they already use. The number type and monthly price are shown up front at purchase, so there are no surprises.
Best for: Businesses whose customers prefer to reach them on WhatsApp
Number Verification & Fraud Protection
To protect your account and keep call routing clean, Hanc.AI checks numbers before they can be used — both the number you register your account with and the target numbers you dial in outbound campaigns.
Risky numbers are rejected up front
Before any verification code is sent, Hanc.AI screens the number. If it can't safely be used, you're told immediately — "this number can't be used, try another" — instead of waiting on a code that will never work. Numbers rejected at this stage include:
- Premium-rate and shared-cost numbers (toll-fraud risk)
- Structurally invalid numbers that don't form a real, dialable number
- Landlines that number lookup flags as unreachable for verification
Landline verification by voice call
Where a normal SMS code can't be delivered — typically landlines — Hanc.AI falls back to a voice call that reads out a one-time code (OTP), so you can still verify a valid landline.
Codes in your language
Verification codes and voice calls arrive in your interface language, so the message you receive matches the language you use Hanc.AI in.
Assigning Agents to Numbers
Inbound Agent
The agent that answers incoming calls:
- Go to Phone Numbers
- Click on a number
- Under Inbound Agent, select your agent
- Save
Outbound Agent
The agent used for outbound calls from this number:
- Go to Phone Numbers
- Click on a number
- Under Outbound Agent, select your agent
- Save
Multiple Numbers, One Agent
You can assign the same agent to multiple numbers:
Multiple Agents, Multiple Numbers
Or different agents for different numbers:
Number Management
View All Numbers
Go to Phone Numbers to see:
- All your numbers
- Assigned agents
- Status
- Provider
Edit Number Settings
- Click on the number
- Modify settings (name, assigned agents, status)
- Save changes
Remove Number
- Click on the number
- Click Delete or Remove
- Confirm removal
Removing a number may result in losing that number permanently. It might be assigned to someone else if released.
Move a Number to Another Workspace
When you build a number inside your main workspace and want to hand it over to a client workspace (or vice-versa), you can transfer it without releasing it back to the provider.
- Go to Phone Numbers
- On the row you want to move, click the arrow icon (tooltip: Move to another workspace)
- In the modal "Move phone number to another workspace", pick the destination from the dropdown (or Home to move it out of any workspace)
- Confirm
After the move:
- The number disappears from the source workspace's list and appears in the destination
- Any agent assignments may be unlinked if the assigned agent doesn't live in the destination workspace — re-assign to an agent on the new side after the move (the modal warns you about this before you confirm)
- If both the agent and the number end up in the same workspace, the assignment is preserved
Tip: if you're moving both an agent and a number that work together, the simplest path is to move the agent first — phone numbers bound to the agent travel with it automatically.
Call Routing Scenarios
Simple: One Number, One Agent
Most common setup:
With Fallback
If agent can't handle:
Department Routing
Different numbers for different purposes:
Best Practices
Number Selection
- Choose local numbers for local businesses
- Use toll-free for customer service lines
- Consider mobile numbers for personal services
- Have a backup number for emergencies
Configuration
- Test numbers before going live
- Set fallback numbers for agent failures
- Label numbers clearly in your account
Operations
- Monitor call volumes per number
- Track success rates by number
- Review periodically — remove unused numbers
Troubleshooting
Calls not connecting
Check:
- Number status is ACTIVE
- Phone number integration is connected
- Agent is assigned to number
- Agent is active (not paused)
Poor audio quality
Possible causes:
- Network issues
- Provider region
- Customer's phone quality
Solutions:
- Check the platform status page
- Test with different phones
Calls going to wrong agent
Check:
- Number's inbound agent setting
- No conflicting webhooks
- Correct number displayed in dashboard
Costs
Hanc.AI Usage
Hanc.AI uses credit-based billing:
- All plans include unlimited agents
- Calls are billed per minute from your credit balance
- Phone numbers cost per month (charged from credits)
- Per-minute rates vary by plan (see Billing)
Related Topics
- Voice Agents — Creating agents for phone numbers
- Integrations — Phone number and integration setup
- Analytics — Call statistics by number