Is the phone call dying? What 4,067 people said about calls

Alastair Greener FPSA Generational communication expert, author and President of the PSA UK and Ireland 2026 Published 5 September 2026 · 6 min read

The phone call is not dying, but voicemail is. In our 2024 UK survey of 4,067 people, 39% like speaking on the phone and do it a lot, while only 26% would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered, falling to 12% of Gen Z. Voice notes are rising in their place, used by 85% of Gen Z. This article sets out the numbers, the anxiety behind them and what to do about it.

The phone call is not dying. Voicemail is. That is the fairest summary of what 4,067 people in the UK told our Communication Habits and Preferences 2024 survey when we asked how they feel about speaking on the phone, what they do when nobody answers, and what they use instead.

39% of respondents like speaking to other people on the phone and do it a lot. A further 32% will take a call although it is not their preference. 25% only phone if they have to, and 4% hate it. Put another way, seven in ten people are at least willing, and the phone remains the most common way to get hold of a work colleague, chosen by 50% of workers.

Is the phone call dying? What the survey says by generation

The phone is still the first choice for one generation. 47% of the Silent Generation, aged over 78, would phone friends and family before anything else, and 62% like phone calls and do it a lot. Among Baby Boomers, 33% would phone first and 49% like calls a lot. For every younger generation, WhatsApp comes first. Only 19% of Generation Z and 22% of Millennials would phone first, and 25% of the whole sample would.

Generation	Like phone calls and do it a lot	Only if I have to	Hate it	Would phone friends and family first
Generation Alpha (up to 12)	38%	29%	1%	19%
Generation Z (13 to 27)	32%	26%	5%	19%
Millennials (28 to 43)	35%	25%	6%	22%
Generation X (44 to 59)	35%	32%	4%	21%
Baby Boomers (60 to 78)	49%	21%	2%	33%
Silent Generation (over 78)	62%	14%	not labelled	47%

Source: Communication Habits and Preferences 2024. Base: all respondents.

Two things stand out. The generation most likely to say "only if I have to" is not Gen Z but Gen X, at 32%. And the "hate it" score peaks with Millennials at 6%, not with the youngest. The phone-phobic teenager is, at best, a partial truth.

39%of people like speaking on the phone and do it a lot; 4% hate itCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

26%would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered, falling to 12% of Gen ZCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

85%of Gen Z leave voice notes, against 40% of the Silent GenerationCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

Voicemail is dying

If you phone someone and get no answer, what do you do? Across the sample, 38% hang up and try again later, 36% send a text, message, voice note or email instead, and 26% leave a voicemail. The "try again later" figure barely moves by generation, sitting between 36% and 40% for every group. The voicemail figure collapses.

49% of the Silent Generation and 46% of Baby Boomers would leave a voicemail. Among Gen X it is 28%, among Millennials 16% and among Gen Z 12%. Generation Alpha, aged up to 12, come in at 14%. In the other direction, 53% of Gen Z and 46% of Millennials would send a message instead, against 15% of Baby Boomers and 11% of the Silent Generation.

The practical consequence is simple. A voicemail left for anyone under 45 may well go unheard. A short message saying who you are and why you called will be read.

Voice notes are rising

The voice note is the voicemail's replacement, and it has arrived quickly. 64% of all respondents have ever left a voice note and 10% do so more than once a day. Among Gen Z the figure is 85%, with 20% sending more than one a day and 49% at least every couple of days. 75% of Millennials and 72% of Generation Alpha leave voice notes.

The older generations have not followed. 44% of Gen X, 55% of Baby Boomers and 60% of the Silent Generation have never sent one. A voice note is, in effect, a phone call you can listen to when you choose and reply to when you are ready. That difference in control turns out to matter.

The anxiety behind the numbers

When we invited comments on how we get in touch with each other, fear and anxiety around phone calls emerged as a distinct theme: people feeling anxious about making or receiving calls and preferring text or other less direct means, because of the immediacy and pressure of real-time conversation.

One respondent aged 22 to 27 put it plainly: "I much prefer being able to message - give me time to process my response before replying. I find phone calls quite stressful." A respondent aged 70 to 78 saw the same shift from the other side: "Everything is becoming so impersonal. Actually speaking to other people can express your feelings better and you can feel warmth (or otherwise) in their voice."

Both are right. The younger respondent wants time to think; the older one wants tone. A message gives you one and a call gives you the other. A respondent aged 60 to 69 offered the bridge: "People have busy lifestyles and family caring duties they can't always answer a phone so to leave a message in other ways will be more helpful."

The landline and the unknown number

Two smaller findings complete the picture. 73% of the Silent Generation and 52% of Baby Boomers still use a landline to communicate, against 27% of Gen X, 16% of Millennials and 11% of Gen Z. We looked at what that means for families in Can I call you on a landline?.

And when it comes to answering a number you do not recognise, 31% of people aged 16 and over say they generally would. Gen Z are the most willing at 36%, Millennials next at 34%, and Gen X the most wary at 24%. The generation least likely to pick up is not the youngest.

What to do about it

Anthony Stears, "The Telephone Assassin", joined the podcast to talk about how phone communication has evolved and practical techniques for overcoming barriers to it, in Generational communication in a changing world. The call is a skill, not a relic, and it is worth teaching.

For everyone else, three habits help. Ask people how they prefer to be reached, and believe the answer. If a call goes unanswered, follow up with a message rather than a voicemail. And if you are the one who finds calls stressful, try a voice note first: it builds the habit of speaking without the pressure of the live line. Our earlier post Don't phone, I won't answer and our generational communication styles guide go further.

Frequently asked questions

Is the phone call dying out?

No. 39% of 4,067 UK respondents in our 2024 survey like speaking on the phone and do it a lot, 32% will take a call although it is not their preference and only 4% hate it. The phone is also the most common way workers get hold of colleagues (50%). What is dying is voicemail (26%).

Why do young people not answer the phone?

The data says most do. 36% of Gen Z would accept a call from an unknown number, the highest of any generation, and 32% like calls and do it a lot. What Gen Z avoid is voicemail: 12% would leave one and 53% would send a message instead. Some respondents described phone calls as stressful because they allow no time to think.

Which generation still uses voicemail?

The Silent Generation (49%) and Baby Boomers (46%) would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered. That falls to 28% of Gen X, 16% of Millennials, 14% of Generation Alpha and 12% of Gen Z. Across all 4,067 respondents, 26% would leave a voicemail, 36% would send a message and 38% would try again later.

Are voice notes replacing phone calls?

They are replacing voicemail rather than calls. 85% of Gen Z, 75% of Millennials and 72% of Generation Alpha leave voice notes, and 20% of Gen Z send more than one a day. Among older generations they remain a minority habit: 44% of Gen X, 55% of Baby Boomers and 60% of the Silent Generation never send one.

Book Alastair to speak about how every generation really communicates, from the landline to the voice note.

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