Call Recording

Record entire calls or specific segments for quality assurance, compliance, and transcription. Recordings can be enabled at call creation or triggered mid-call with an NCCO record action.

🎚️ Two Ways to Record

Method	When	How
Whole call	At call start	Set record: true in POST /v1/voice/call
Segment	Mid-call	Add a record action to the NCCO

📞 Record at Call Start

curl -X POST https://api.afriroute.ai/api/v1/voice/call \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $AFRIROUTE_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "from": "+251116000000",
    "to": "+251911234567",
    "answer_url": "https://yourapp.com/voice/answer",
    "record": true
  }'

🎙️ Record a Segment (NCCO)

[
  { "action": "talk", "text": "Please leave a message after the beep." },
  {
    "action": "record",
    "eventUrl": ["https://yourapp.com/voice/recording"],
    "endOnSilence": 3,
    "endOnKey": "#",
    "beepStart": true,
    "format": "mp3"
  }
]

Record Action Parameters

Field	Type	Description
eventUrl	array	Where the recording-ready event is posted
endOnSilence	number	Stop after N seconds of silence
endOnKey	string	DTMF key that ends recording (e.g. #)
beepStart	boolean	Play a beep before recording
format	string	mp3 or wav
channels	number	1 (mixed) or 2 (split per leg)

🔔 Recording Webhook

When the recording is ready, AfriRoute posts its location:

app.post('/voice/recording', async (req, res) => {
  const { call_id, recording_id, recording_url, duration } = req.body;
  console.log(`Recording ${recording_id} (${duration}s): ${recording_url}`);
  await saveRecording(call_id, recording_url);
  res.sendStatus(200);
});

{
  "call_id": "call_abc123",
  "recording_id": "rec_xyz789",
  "recording_url": "https://api.afriroute.ai/api/v1/voice/recordings/rec_xyz789",
  "format": "mp3",
  "duration": 38,
  "size": 304128,
  "timestamp": "2026-05-28T10:30:42Z"
}

⬇️ Download a Recording

GET /v1/voice/recordings/:recording_id

curl https://api.afriroute.ai/api/v1/voice/recordings/rec_xyz789 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $AFRIROUTE_API_KEY" \
  --output call.mp3

import requests

audio = requests.get(
    'https://api.afriroute.ai/api/v1/voice/recordings/rec_xyz789',
    headers={'Authorization': 'Bearer $AFRIROUTE_API_KEY'}
)
with open('call.mp3', 'wb') as f:
    f.write(audio.content)

🗑️ Retention & Deletion

Recordings are retained for 90 days by default, then auto-deleted. Delete earlier for compliance:

DELETE /v1/voice/recordings/:recording_id

💡 Best Practices

• Announce recording at the start of the call where law requires consent.
• Use 2-channel recording when you need to separate agent and caller audio.
• Prefer MP3 for storage efficiency, WAV for transcription accuracy.
• Download promptly or store the URL — recordings expire after retention.
• Encrypt recordings at rest if they contain personal or payment data.

⚠️ Error Handling

Code	Description	Solution
RECORDING_NOT_FOUND	Expired or invalid ID	Check retention window
RECORDING_NOT_READY	Still processing	Wait for the webhook
CONSENT_REQUIRED	Jurisdiction needs consent	Announce before recording

📚 Related Resources

• Make a Call
• IVR
• Conferencing
• Voice Overview

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Need help? Contact Support → | Last Updated: May 2026