***

title: Setting up voicemail
slug: /guides/voicemail
description: Set up voicemail on a number using SWML.
max-toc-depth: 3
----------------

A popular and important use case is recording a voicemail from your callers when you are unable to speak with them.
This guide will show how to do exactly that using SWML.

## Setting up voicemail with SignalWire

We are going to implement voicemail in a SWML script hosted on SignalWire.
To create a new SWML script, navigate to the **Resources** section from your sidebar.
From there, create a new script, and select the **SWML** option.

Create a new SWML script, and paste the following SWML in it:

```yaml
version: 1.0.0
sections:
  main:
    - play:
        url: 'say: Please leave a message with your name and number after the beep. Press pound when finished.'
    - record:
        beep: true
        terminators: '#'
        max_length: 15
    - play:
        url: 'say: Thank you for your message. A member of our team will contact you shortly. Goodbye!'
```

We use the [`play`](/docs/swml/reference/play) method to play the voicemail prompt, then the [`record`](/docs/swml/reference/record) method to record the caller's message.
The `record` method pauses SWML execution until the recording ends, so the final message plays immediately after.

The [`record`](/docs/swml/reference/record) method accepts parameters to configure the beep, terminators, max length, silence timeout, and more.
For additional information, see the `record` [technical documentation](/docs/swml/reference/record).

## How to assign the script to a SignalWire phone number

Click the **Phone Numbers** tab on your sidebar within your SignalWire Space,
and click the specific number you would like to set up voicemail on.
If you don't have a number yet, now is the time to [buy one](/docs/platform/phone-numbers)!

Edit the settings of your selected number, and assign the SWML script you created to
the Inbound Call Settings.

![Assign Resource to Phone number.](https://files.buildwithfern.com/signalwire.docs.buildwithfern.com/docs/f0b50511622e76d7be927bd442190e2e41a88745515f22bc727fa5b480e23409/assets/images/dashboard/phone-numbers/assign-resource-voice.webp)

## How to access the recordings

You can view, listen to, and download all your recordings in the Storage section of your SignalWire Space. From the sidebar, navigate to **Storage** > **Recordings**.

You can also [access recordings via our REST API](/docs/apis/relay-rest/recordings/list-recordings).

### Wrapping up

We have seen how to build a basic voicemail using SWML scripts.