Unlock hidden features with these secret Android codes

On Dec 26, 2018

Your Android device holds a large amount of information about its hardware and system that an average user might find difficult to access. But if you know Android’s secret codes, you can factory reset your device, find out its hidden camera information, instantly back up your precious data and much more.

Secret Android system codes

Some ‘secret’ codes are Android system codes, and usually begin with an asterisk or a pound symbol/hashtag. These don’t require you to be connected to a network to use them, since they’re just for the Android system on your device. These codes are updated regularly as new versions of Android software are released, and some manufacturers have their own additional special codes.

The code entry procedure is very simple and only requires you to bring up your dialer keypad and enter the appropriate number sequence. It’s important to note that some codes are carrier-specific, so they won’t work on all devices. So if your phone doesn’t respond to a code, don’t dwell on it, just move on and find another one.

Warning! These codes should be used with caution. They can make your phone lose data, or render it unusable. There’s a lot of incomprehensible tech jargon which pops up in the menus after entering some of these codes, which means that if you aren’t 100 percent sure what you’re doing, don’t do it.

Prosyscom Tech News secret codes ussd 9209 — All it takes to use these codes is typing them into the dialer. / © Prosyscom Tech News by Irina Efremova

List of secret codes for Android

These codes are mostly universal, and should work on Android devices, no matter the manufacturer. There might still be carrier restrictions on certain codes though, so they’re not all guaranteed to work.

Info codes

Code	Function
*#06#	Show phone’s IMEI
#0#	Info menu (doesn’t work for all phones)
##4636##	Info menu
##34971539##	Camera info
##1111##	FTA software version
##1234##	PDA software version
#12580369#	Software and hardware info
*#7465625#	Device lock status
##232338##	MAC address
##2663##	Touchscreen version
##3264##	RAM version
##232337#*#	Bluetooth address
##2222##	Hardware version
##44336##	Software version and update info

Backup codes

Code	Function
##273282255663282##*	Backup all media

Testing codes

Code	Function
##197328640##	Test mode
##232339##	Wi-Fi test
##0842##	Brightness and vibration test
##2664##	Touchscreen test
##232331##	Bluetooth test
##7262626##	Field test
##1472365##	GPS quick test
##1575##	Full GPS test
##0283##	Packet loopback test
##0##*	LCD display test
##0289##	Audio test
##0588##	Proximity sensor test

Configuration codes

Code	Function
*#9090#	Diagnostics settings
*#301279#	HSDPA/HSUPA settings
*#872564#	USB logging settings

Developer codes

Code	Function
*#9900#	System dump mode
##778 (+green/call button)	EPST menu

Manufacturer-specific codes

Motorola

Code	Function
##7764726	Hidden Motorola Droid menu

HTC

Code	Function
##3424##	HTC test program
##786#	(Caution!) Phone reset menu
##3282#	EPST menu
##3424#	Diagnostic mode
##33284#	Field test
##8626337#	Launch Vocoder
##4636##	HTC info menu

Other codes

Code	Function
*#7780#	(Caution!) Factory reset
27673855#	(Caution!) Full factory reset
##7594##	Power off the phone
##8351##	Activate dialer log mode
##8350##*	Disactivate dialer log mode

Stay away from these codes!

Code	Function
~~##7780##~~	(Caution! Risk of data loss and rendering phone useless) Factory data partition reset
27673855#	(Caution! Risk of data loss and rendering phone useless) Format device

USSD codes

These aren’t the secret ones, but they’re not so well known. USSD, or Unstructured Supplementary Service Data, codes connect to the phone’s network once dialed to perform certain functions, like finding out how much credit you have left on your prepaid phone or how much data you’ve used this month. They change often, and the codes vary from carrier to carrier. Here are a few you can try for some of the major US carriers, along with links to more carrier-specific codes:

Check your data and SMS usage: *3282#

Verizon

Check your data and SMS usage: #3282

T-Mobile

Check your data usage: #932#

Sprint

Check minutes, messages and other usage stats: *4

There’s a good chance you’ll never need to use most of these codes, but if you do, then now you know where to find them. Are there any secret codes that you find yourself using all the time? Or are there any we haven’t listed here that are really interesting? Let us know in the comments!