Google Voice now lets you set custom rules for phone calls

Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge

Google Voice now lets you create rules that dictate how the service responds to incoming calls from specific contacts. And yes, this includes having Google Voice automatically ignore certain contacts for you.

Even though Google Voice already has a call forwarding feature, the new rules let you customize it even further — you can set up a rule that forwards calls from a contact (or a group of contacts) to any of your linked numbers.

Image by Google
How to create a rule in Google Voice.

And if you don’t want to receive a forwarded call at all, you can create a rule that sends certain callers straight to voicemail. In line with this option, you can also assign contacts different voicemail greetings and screen calls from the contacts of your choice.

To create a rule, head to voice.google.com. (Keep in mind that you can’t create rules or manage them through the Google Voice mobile apps — you can only view them.) From the browser-based site, hit “Settings” in the top right corner of the screen (represented by a cog icon). From there, click “Calls” and choose “Create a rule.”

You can then pick which contacts you want to create a rule for, as well as choose whether you want to screen the call, send it to voicemail, set a custom voicemail greeting, or forward the call to a specific number. To see all the details on how to set up each separate rule, head to Google’s support page.