Getting a Google verification code on a US number

Google’s phone rules at a glance

From Google Account Help, read on 13 November 2026.

What Google says about the number you use

Google calls a phone number at sign-up optional but “highly recommended”, and says that to stop spammers it sometimes requires phone verification before you create an account or sign in. It also limits how many times any one number can be used for verification. It doesn’t say what the limit is.

Its only rule about a kind of number is about Google’s own: “Do not use a Google Voice number as a recovery phone number.” Google warns that doing so could lock you out. For a recovery phone it asks for a mobile that gets texts, belongs only to you, and that you use regularly. We found nothing in its help about VoIP numbers in general, or about numbers from other countries.

A number from us is a non-VoIP US number. Google still decides which numbers it accepts, and any number can run into its per-number limit; if no code arrives, cancel within 24 hours.

Receiving Google’s code on a number from us

1. Get a number

   For a sign-up check you won’t keep on the account, 1 day is enough. Copy the number from its page.

2. Give it to Google and choose a text

   When Google asks for a phone number, set the country to United States, type the ten digits and ask for the code by text. Leave the call option alone: a number from us can’t take calls, so the code would never reach you.

3. Enter the newest code

   The text appears on the number’s page with the code picked out. If you asked more than once, use the latest: Google says only the most recently sent code is valid.

How long to keep the number

That depends on whether the number stays on your Google Account once you’re in, and Google can keep it in more than one place.

• A day ($3.99) if the number only gets you past the check. Afterwards open your Google Account, go to Personal info, then Phone, and remove the number if it was saved there; then check Security, then Recovery phone. Google notes that deleting a recovery phone doesn’t necessarily remove the number from its other services, so look in both.
• A week ($7.99) if you saved it as your recovery phone and then took it off. Google says that after you change recovery info, it may send codes to the old details for 7 days.
• A year ($34.99) if you keep it as your recovery phone or a 2-Step Verification phone. Google can take up to 7 days to trust a new 2-Step number, and a recovery phone is what gets you back in when you forget your password. When a rental ends, the number can be given to someone else, who would then receive any code Google sends it.

For 2-Step Verification itself, Google recommends Google prompts over text codes, and also offers authenticator apps, passkeys, security keys and 8-digit backup codes. Any of those leaves the account less tied to one phone number.

If Google’s code doesn’t arrive

• Give it a few minutes. Google says texts can be delayed, for example in crowded areas or when a carrier has problems. Its other suggestion, a phone call, won’t reach a number from us.
• Don’t keep asking. Google caps how many recovery codes you can request in a day. At the cap, wait 24 hours before trying again.
• Read the error. “This phone number cannot be used for verification” and “This phone number has been used too many times for verification” both mean Google refused the number itself. Google’s advice for both is the same: use a different number. More in this phone number cannot be used for verification.
• Try again later. Google lists its own service being temporarily unavailable among the reasons a text doesn’t come.

If nothing has arrived on the number, cancel it from its page within 24 hours of buying. How refunds work.

Questions people ask

Can I make a Gmail account without a phone number?

Often, yes. Google’s help calls the number optional but highly recommended, and says it sometimes requires phone verification before you create an account, to stop spammers. Whether it asks is decided by Google at the time.

Why does Google say this phone number has been used too many times?

Google limits how many times one phone number can be used for verification, and it doesn’t publish the limit. Its only advice for that message is to use a different number.

Can I use a Google Voice number for my Google Account?

Not as a recovery phone. Google’s help says not to, and warns that it could lock you out of your account.

Can I get Google’s code by phone call instead of text?

Google offers a call during verification and says you can use a home phone for it. A call needs a line that can answer, so on a receive-only number choose the text.

What if I lose the phone I use for 2-Step Verification?

Google’s routes back in are another phone number you added in the 2-Step Verification section, one of your backup codes, or asking your carrier to move the number to a new SIM. Set up a second method before you need one.