Do You Need a Landline To Fax? It Depends. Here's How.

This post answers these questions:

Does a fax machine require a landline? (Yes)
Do I need a landline or phone line to fax? (It depends.)
Can you fax without a telephone line? (Yes)

Faxing is still a method of communication that a few industries like healthcare, education, law, and government commonly use. So, with wireless devices becoming more common, and wired landlines less so, do you need to have a phone in order to fax something?

No, you don’t need a phone to make a fax. However, you do need a landline to use a physical fax machine.

This article will answer your questions about using a fax machine with a phone line and whether you require a landline to send a fax. We’ll explain a bit about fax machines, why they need landlines, and the popular alternative to setting up a fax machine in your home.

Do you need a landline to fax?

No, but you do need a landline to use a fax machine. Let us explain.

Fax machines transmit data about scanned documents over a phone line by converting the document into audio frequency tones that can be “deciphered” by another fax machine on the receiving end. You can learn more about what a fax is here. Fax machines require a landline connection that’s actively being serviced by a provider. Twenty or more years ago, this wasn’t a problem. Today, many people have forgone landlines in favor of smartphones.

Instead of using a fax machine, you can use an e-fax service to fax information over the Internet.

Electronic fax services use internet-connected computers to transmit facsimiles to physical fax machines. The main difference is that you don’t need a phone line or landline connection to use these services. E-fax services like Fax.Live enable you to fax documents entirely through your web browser. You can send and receive faxes with a Fax.Live account.

Our online fax service translates the documents you upload, which then transmits the document to wherever you need it to go. No landline, phone line, or telephone line is required; just access to the internet on any device.

Can You Fax Without a Phone Line?

Yes, this involves faxing without an actual fax machine. It may seem contradictory to say you can fax without a fax machine, but digital fax services let you easily transmit documents through the web to a fax machine that will then fax out your document.

Likewise, if someone needs to send you a fax, and you don’t have access to a fax machine, the online fax service will receive your faxes, which you can then access online.

Think of a fax service as the “middleman” that brings your document from a digital space to a fax machine so that it can be sent out via fax.

Can You Fax From Your Phone?

Yes. If you’re using a smartphone that has an internet connection either through a data plan or Wi-Fi, you can use Fax.Live’s web browser-based service to fax a document from just your phone.

You’ll need to first download your document on your phone in PDF format. You can either airdrop the document to yourself if you’re using an Apple device, or store your document on a cloud-based storage service like Dropbox or Google Drive. Access the app for the cloud-based storage of your choice, and then download the document you want to fax.

Download the document on your phone in PDF format.
Head to Fax.Live.
Login or create a free Fax.Live account.
Select Send New Fax and upload your document.

For a more in-depth guide on how to fax from your smartphone, check out this guide.

Although it’s easy to fax from your smartphone, you can’t fax directly from an analog phone. A working phone line is the first step toward sending faxes without a digital fax service. You will still need a fax machine, though.

How Do You Get a Fax Line From Home?

If you have a fax machine + printer, you can fax from home using a landline or phone line. You may want to get a separate phone line that isn’t shared by your home or office telephone. This is because, while the fax is in use, it ties up the line. If you intend to send and receive a high number of faxes regularly, it’s best to get a dedicated number that’s separate from your landline telephone number.

This second phone line will have a port somewhere in your house, preferably in an office space, that you can then plug your fax machine into. The fax machine will use this dedicated landline to send and receive faxes.

This can sometimes be costly, as your phone company may charge an installation fee to set up a second phone line. Additionally, you’ll need to pay for the new line monthly. It can be much cheaper to use a digital fax service, especially if you’re regularly sending faxes daily.

You can try out Fax.Live today for free with our free trial. Fax digitally, without a phone line today for free to see if Fax.Live is right for you. If you need to receive regular faxes, our affordable monthly plans let you set up a phone line that you can use to receive new faxes at any time. Learn more about receiving a fax for free here.

Photo by Wesley Hilario on Unsplash