“Is call recording included?” is one of the first questions Indian sales owners ask about any CRM. The honest answer in 2026 is: on most Android phones, a normal Play Store app cannot record calls reliably anymore. Here is why, what still works, and what to track instead.
Why did call recording stop working in CRM apps?
Two changes did it.
- Android itself. Starting with Android 9 and tightening after, Google stopped letting regular apps capture the audio of a phone call.
- Play Store policy, May 2022. Many recorders had worked around this using Android’s Accessibility API. Google Play’s policy from 11 May 2022 stopped apps using that API for call recording.
So a CRM app that promised “auto call recording” in 2020 may silently record nothing, or only one side, on a new phone today.
Which call recording options still work?
| Option | How it works | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phone maker’s built-in recorder | Some handsets (depending on brand and region) have a recorder in the default dialer | Small teams on supported phones | Varies by model; may announce recording to the other side; files sit on the phone |
| CRM that imports built-in recordings | App picks up the file saved by the phone’s recorder and attaches it to the lead | Teams who want recordings next to call logs | Works only on handsets with a built-in recorder; setup per phone |
| Cloud telephony | Calls route through a provider and are recorded on their servers | Large floors, compliance-heavy teams | Virtual numbers, per-minute costs, customers see an unfamiliar number |
| No recording, structured notes | Outcome, note and follow-up logged after each call | Small and mid-size teams following up enquiries | No audio for training or disputes |
For a deeper comparison of the cloud option, see call management CRM vs cloud telephony.
Do you actually need recordings?
Ask what you will do with them.
- Training new callers? Recordings help. So does sitting next to the caller for one morning.
- Settling customer disputes? Recordings help, especially in finance and insurance.
- Checking callers are working? You do not need audio for this. Call count, talk time and outcomes per caller answer it.
- Checking leads are followed up? Audio does not help here at all. Follow-up dates and overdue lists do.
Most owners asking for recording actually want the third and fourth. Those need structured call data, not audio files nobody has time to listen to.
What should you track when calls are not recorded?
- Outcome on every call. Picked from a fixed list, so it can be counted.
- A one-line note. “Wants 3 BHK, budget 80L, call after Diwali.”
- Next follow-up date. No call closes without one.
- Talk time per caller. Very short average talk time suggests calls are not real conversations.
- Missed calls returned. The fastest win most teams are not measuring.
Where does Dialmio fit?
Dialmio supports call recording on supported Android phones and puts each recording on the lead record. It also logs every incoming, outgoing and missed call on the caller’s own SIM, opens a two-tap sheet for outcome and follow-up after each one, and shows the owner per-caller numbers live, so you only need to listen when the numbers raise a question. See Dialmio call recording. The RMDialer comparison sets two SIM-based apps that both record side by side.
See how the Dialmio telecaller app works.