> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.callers.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Scheduling and retries

> Set when an outbound agent may call, how often it retries unanswered contacts, and how many calls run at once.

An outbound agent calls contacts only inside the hours you allow, and retries contacts it couldn't reach until they answer or run out of attempts. These settings decide how fast your list is worked through, how often each person is called, and when the agent stops.

You'll find them in the agent's **Availability** settings. Open the agent, click **Edit**, and select the **Availability** node on the workflow canvas.

<ol />

How a contact moves through dialing

## Calling hours

### Days and time slots

Choose the days the agent can call and the hours for each day. The default is Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.

* Click a day's letter to turn it on or off.
* When every day has the same hours, one start and end time is shown. Expand it to set hours per day.
* Click **Add time slot** to add a second window in the same day, for example 9:00–12:00 and 14:00–18:00. Slots in a day can't overlap.
* Click **Copy time slots to all days** on a day's first slot to apply that day's slots to every other day. This overwrites the other days.

Times are set in 15-minute steps.

### Time zones

**Time zone** sets the zone your calling hours are measured in. It defaults to your browser's time zone.

Turn on **Use Contact's Time Zone** to call each contact during their own local hours instead. Callers estimates each contact's time zone from their phone number:

* **US and Canada:** from the area code.
* **Other countries:** from the country.
* **Set through the API:** the `timezone` you sent wins. See [Add contacts](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/using-callers/uploading-contacts.md#time-zones).

When this option is on, the time zone selector becomes **Fallback Time Zone**. It's used for contacts whose time zone can't be worked out.

> [!TIP]
>
> For lists that span several US time zones, turn on **Use Contact's Time Zone**. A 9:00–17:00 schedule then means 9:00–17:00 for each person, not 9:00–17:00 at your office.

> [!NOTE]
>
> If you don't see **Use Contact's Time Zone**, contact [support@callers.ai](mailto:support@callers.ai) to turn it on.

### Calling right after a pre-call chat

If the agent uses a [pre-call chat](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/build-your-agent/pre-call-chat.md), the **Agreed to receive a voice call** card has an **Allow calling outside working hours** option. When it's on and the contact agrees to a call over text, the call is placed immediately, even outside your calling hours. It's off by default.

### Inbound agents

Inbound agents have no schedule. They answer calls at any time, and the Availability node shows **Receive calls full time**.

Text agents have their own sending hours; see [Text agent settings](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/text-agents/text-agent-setup.md#availability).

## Retries

When a call doesn't reach the contact, the contact goes to **Pending Retry** and is dialed again later. These outcomes cause a retry:

* No answer, busy, or a failed call.
* Voicemail.
* A call with no real conversation, such as a silent pickup or an immediate hang-up. See [Statuses and outcomes](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/using-callers/call-statuses.md#3-short-and-silent-calls).

Any real conversation produces a final outcome (for example **Interested**, **Not interested**, or **Wrong number**), and the contact isn't called again. The exception is **Call later**, described below.

### Retry settings

| Setting | What it does | Default | Range |
| :- | :- | :- | :- |
| **Total Dial Attempts** | Maximum number of calls to one contact, counting the first. | 5 | 1 up to your account limit (10 unless raised) |
| **Min Wait Time Between Dial Attempts** | Minimum gap between two calls to the same contact. Switch between minutes and hours. | 90 minutes | 5 minutes to 145 hours |
| **Max Daily Dial Attempts** | Maximum calls to one contact in a single day. | 3 | 1–50 |

When a contact has [several phone numbers](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/using-callers/uploading-contacts.md#multiple-phone-numbers-per-contact), the attempt limit is multiplied by the number of valid numbers. Five attempts and two numbers allow up to ten calls.

When a contact uses up all its attempts without a conversation, its status becomes **Unreached** and it's no longer dialed.

> [!NOTE]
>
> Need more attempts than your account limit allows? Contact [support@callers.ai](mailto:support@callers.ai) to adjust this setting.

### Different attempts per day

By default, the same daily maximum applies every day. To call more on the first day and less afterwards, click **Split Attempts per Day**. The total is spread across **Day 1**, **Day 2**, and **Day 3 – All Following Days**. You can then edit each row:

* Pick a range of days (**Day 1** to **Day 7**) and set its **Dial Attempts**.
* Click **Add Day** to add a row.
* The last row must end with **All Following Days**.

For example, 3 calls on day 1, 2 on day 2, and 1 a day after that works well for fresh inbound leads: you reach most people quickly without calling the rest too often.

### Call later requests

When a contact says they're busy or asks you to call back, the call is classified as **Call later**. What happens next depends on **Continue Dialing Attempts after "Call Later"**, under the agent's **Technical Settings**:

| Setting | What happens |
| :- | :- |
| On | The contact stays in the dialing pool with status **Call later** and is called again on the normal retry schedule, until it reaches **Total Dial Attempts**. |
| Off | **Call later** is a final outcome. The contact isn't called again, and **Call Later** appears as a [success criterion](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/results/success-criteria.md) you can edit. |

> [!NOTE]
>
> Retries follow your retry schedule. Callers doesn't schedule a call for the specific time a contact asks for, such as "call me at 4 pm tomorrow". To honor exact times, capture the time with a [key question](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/using-callers/key-questions.md) and book it with a meeting step or a post-call action.

## Concurrency

Concurrency limits how many calls the agent runs at the same time.

| Setting | What it does | Default | Range |
| :- | :- | :- | :- |
| **Limit Concurrent Calls** | Caps the number of parallel outbound calls. Turn it off to dial as fast as possible. | On | — |
| **Max Outgoing Calls in Parallel** | Number of outbound calls at once while the limit is on. | 10 | Up to 100 |
| **Max incoming calls in parallel** | Number of inbound calls the agent answers at once. Applies to calls received through Twilio. | 2 | 1–20 |

Your account also has an overall outbound limit shared by all agents. If several agents run at once, the account limit can hold calls back even when each agent is under its own limit. Agencies set these limits per subaccount; see [Managing subaccounts](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/agencies/managing-subaccounts.md#limits).

> [!TIP]
>
> Keep concurrency moderate when calls end in a [transfer](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/voice/call-transfers.md) to your team. Ten parallel calls can produce more transfers than your people can answer.

## When the agent stops dialing

An outbound agent keeps running while it has eligible contacts. A contact is eligible when:

* its status is **New** or **Pending Retry** (or **Call later**, if dialing continues after Call Later),
* it has attempts left, and
* the minimum wait time has passed since its last call.

When no contacts are eligible, the agent is marked complete and you get a notification that it **has no pending contacts**. Add new contacts and it starts dialing again on its own. You also get a notification when fewer than 20% of contacts are still pending. See [Notifications](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/account/notifications.md).

## Troubleshooting

> **The agent is running but isn't calling anyone**
>
> Check that the current time is inside the calling hours in the agent's time zone (or the contact's, if **Use Contact's Time Zone** is on). Then check that contacts are **New** or **Pending Retry** and that **Min Wait Time Between Dial Attempts** has passed since their last call.

> **Contacts are called at the wrong local time**
>
> Turn on **Use Contact's Time Zone**, and make sure phone numbers include the country code. For non-US numbers the time zone is per country, so countries with several zones use the first one. Send an exact `timezone` through the API when that matters.

> **A contact was called more times than Total Dial Attempts**
>
> The contact has several phone numbers. The limit applies per valid number.

> **Contacts who said “call me later” are never called back**
>
> Turn on **Continue Dialing Attempts after "Call Later"** under **Technical Settings**.

## Related

> **[Phone numbers and caller ID](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/contacts/phone-numbers-and-caller-id.md)**
>
> Choose which numbers the agent calls from.

> **[Statuses and outcomes](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/using-callers/call-statuses.md)**
>
> Which outcomes are final and which are retried.

> **[Agent settings](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/build-your-agent/agent-setup.md)**
>
> All other agent settings.

> **[Voicemail and screening](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/voice/voicemail-and-screening.md)**
>
> Leave messages on the right attempt.

> **[Improve answer rates](https://docs.callers.ai/documentation/best-practices/improve-answer-rates.md)**
>
> Calling windows, retry cadence, and time zones that get more pickups.


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