# Is cold texting legal? US and Canada rules for B2B teams

> Cold texting carries real legal risk in the US and Canada and goes against carrier guidance. What the TCPA, state laws, CTIA and CASL say, and safer routes.

Updated 2026-10-14. https://usetextually.com/guides/is-cold-texting-legal

Cold texting, a first text to someone who never agreed to hear from you, carries real legal risk in both countries. In the US, autodialed marketing texts need written consent, sales texts can't go to numbers on the Do Not Call list, and some states add rules. Carriers expect an opt-in for every text, and Canada's CASL requires consent.

This guide explains each rule in plain words, what changed after the Supreme Court's 2021 autodialer ruling, what B2B teams can and can't do, and the safer ways to start a text conversation. It summarizes [public rules](/guides/business-texting-rules-us-canada) as of October 2026. It is not legal advice; ask a lawyer before texting anyone who hasn't opted in.

## What counts as cold texting?

Cold texting is sending a sales or marketing text to a person who hasn't given you permission to text them. Common examples:

- Numbers from a bought, rented or shared list
- Mobile numbers found with a contact-data tool or scraped from the web
- Numbers on a business card or an event badge scan, with no text opt-in
- Customers or leads who agreed to email but never to texts

Texting someone who texted you first, or a customer who opted in to your texts, is a different situation, covered later in this guide.

## What does US federal law say about texts?

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the FCC's rules under it treat texts as calls. The Supreme Court noted in 2021: "Neither party disputes that the TCPA's prohibition also extends to sending unsolicited text messages" ([Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, 2021](https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/19-511_p86b.pdf), footnote 2), and the FCC's rules speak of "calls or text messages" ([47 CFR 64.1200](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-64/subpart-L/section-64.1200)).

Two separate parts of the law reach cold texts:

| Rule | What it covers | Does it depend on an autodialer? |
|---|---|---|
| Autodialer rule (64.1200(a)) | Calls and texts to mobile numbers made with an autodialer; marketing ones need "prior express written consent" | Yes |
| Do Not Call and calling hours (64.1200(c), applied to texts by (e)) | Telephone solicitations to residential numbers on the national Do Not Call registry, and any sent before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. local time | No |

The stakes are set in the statute. People can sue for "$500 in damages for each such violation", and a court may triple that for willful or knowing violations ([47 U.S.C. 227(b)(3)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/47/227)). Under the Do Not Call part, a person who received "more than one telephone call within any 12-month period" from the same entity in violation of the rules can sue for up to $500 each, also up to three times for willful violations (227(c)(5)).

## Did Facebook v. Duguid make cold texting legal?

No. The 2021 ruling narrowed one rule and left the rest standing. The Court held that to count as an autodialer, "a device must have the capacity either to store a telephone number using a random or sequential generator or to produce a telephone number using a random or sequential number generator" ([Facebook v. Duguid, 2021](https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/19-511_p86b.pdf)). Many systems that text a list of saved numbers may fall outside that definition, and whether yours does is a question for counsel.

Cold texts still face four other limits:

1. **The Do Not Call rules don't depend on how the text was sent.** A sales text to a residential number on the registry breaks the rule whether it was typed by hand or sent from software.
2. **Some states define autodialers more broadly.** Florida's law covers "an automated system for the selection and dialing of telephone numbers", and Oklahoma's covers "selection or dialing" (details below).
3. **Carriers apply their own consent rules**, whatever the autodialer question.
4. **Courts now read the TCPA for themselves.** In 2025 the Supreme Court held that district courts "must independently determine the law's meaning" and aren't bound by the FCC's reading, while "affording appropriate respect" to it ([McLaughlin Chiropractic Associates v. McKesson, 2025](https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/606us1r55_3d9g.pdf)). Long-settled readings can be argued again, which makes outcomes harder to predict in both directions.

## How do the Do Not Call rules and calling hours apply to texts?

A "telephone solicitation" is a call or message "for the purpose of encouraging the purchase or rental of, or investment in, property, goods, or services" (64.1200(f)(15)). The rules bar them to residential subscribers on the national registry and outside 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the recipient's time zone (64.1200(c)), and apply that to "text messages to wireless telephone numbers" (64.1200(e)).

Two groups fall outside the definition: people who gave "prior express invitation or permission", and people with whom you have an "established business relationship", which means a purchase or transaction in the last 18 months or an inquiry in the last 3 months (64.1200(f)(5)). Whether a mobile number used partly for work counts as residential is a question for a lawyer.

Related: [texting quiet hours](/guides/texting-quiet-hours).

## Which states add their own texting rules?

Several states go further than federal law. These are the ones we read on the statute itself; other states have rules we haven't checked.

| State | What the statute says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | A "telephonic sales call" includes a "text message"; one that uses "an automated system for the selection and dialing of telephone numbers" needs prior express written consent. Solicitation calls only 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., at most three in 24 hours on the same subject | [Fla. Stat. 501.059](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0500-0599/0501/Sections/0501.059.html); [501.616](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0500-0599/0501/Sections/0501.616.html) |
| Oklahoma | Written consent for sales calls by "telephone call, text message, or voicemail" using "an automated system for the selection or dialing of telephone numbers"; 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; at most three in 24 hours on one subject | [HB 3168, 2022](https://oklegislature.gov/cf_pdf/2021-22%20ENR/hB/HB3168%20ENR.PDF) |
| Maryland | Written consent for automated telephone solicitations, including by text; 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; at most three in 24 hours on one subject | [Md. Code, Com. Law 14-4502](https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=gcl&section=14-4502) |
| Washington | No commercial text to a Washington resident's mobile unless they "clearly and affirmatively consented in advance" | [RCW 19.190.060](https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=19.190.060), [19.190.070](https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=19.190.070) |

Florida's law covers sales of "consumer goods or services", meaning those normally used for personal, family or household purposes, and Maryland's written-consent rule exempts some business-to-business sales by companies operating under the same name for at least 3 years. Washington's texting sections contain no business-to-business exception. Florida also gives people a right to sue for $500 per violation; for texts, they must first reply STOP, and can sue only if the texts continue 15 days later (501.059(10)).

## What do carriers expect?

Carriers expect an opt-in before the first text, whatever the law allows. Their industry guidance says "messages should be sent only after the Consumer has opted-in to receive them" and "Message Senders should not use opt-in lists that have been rented, sold, or shared to send messages" ([CTIA Messaging Principles and Best Practices, 2023](https://api.ctia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/230523-CTIA-Messaging-Principles-and-Best-Practices-FINAL.pdf)). It also notes that service providers may add "Unwanted Message filtering practices".

In practice this shows up three ways:

- **Registration.** To text from a 10-digit number, your brand and campaign are registered, and the campaign describes how people opted in. "We bought a list" doesn't describe an opt-in. Our [10DLC registration guide](/guides/how-to-register-10dlc) covers what reviewers check.
- **Filtering.** Texts that draw complaints get filtered or blocked, which hurts the texts you send to people who did agree.
- **Spreading texts across many numbers.** CTIA calls this "Snowshoe Messaging" and asks senders not to do it.

## Is B2B cold texting treated differently?

Mostly no in the US, and only in narrow cases in Canada.

| Question | United States | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Does a work mobile change the autodialer rule? | No. It covers any number assigned to a "cellular telephone service" (47 U.S.C. 227(b)(1)(A)(iii)) | CASL covers any "telephone account" (s. 1(1)) |
| Is there a general B2B exemption? | Not in the federal autodialer rule; Maryland has a narrow one, Washington none | No |
| Can you text a number published on a company website? | The federal rules have no published-number exception | Implied consent if the person "conspicuously published" it, with no statement refusing unsolicited messages, and the text "is relevant to the person's business, role, functions or duties" (s. 10(9)(b)) |
| Can you text someone who handed you their card? | Get text consent first for marketing texts | Implied consent if they "disclosed" the number to you without saying no, with the same relevance test (s. 10(9)(c)) |
| Between two companies already working together? | Depends on consent and the rules above | Exempt when "the organizations have a relationship" and the text concerns the receiving organization's activities ([Electronic Commerce Protection Regulations, s. 3(a)(ii)](https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2013-221/FullText.html)) |
| After a referral? | No special rule | One first message is exempt if it names the person who referred you and says it follows the referral (regulations, s. 4) |

Carriers' guidance draws no line between B2B and consumer texts, so the opt-in expectation stays the same for a work mobile.

## Is cold texting legal in Canada?

Only within CASL's consent rules. Commercial texts to Canadians need express or implied consent ([CASL s. 6(1)](https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/E-1.6/FullText.html)), each one must identify you and include an unsubscribe mechanism (s. 6(2)), and unsubscribes must take effect within 10 business days (s. 11). Asking for consent by text doesn't get around this: a message that "contains a request for consent" is itself a commercial electronic message (s. 1(3)). The person claiming consent "has the onus of proving it" (s. 13), and the maximum penalty is $10,000,000 per violation for a business (s. 20(4)).

Related: [CASL text messages in Canada](/guides/casl-text-messages-canada).

## What are the safer ways to start a text conversation?

Each of these starts the thread with permission you can show:

1. **Ask for text consent where you already meet people.** Add an unticked checkbox to demo, quote and contact forms, a line on event sign-up sheets, or a question at the end of a call. Our [opt-in language examples](/guides/sms-consent-opt-in-examples) give wording for each.
2. **Invite people to text you first.** A number on your site, email signature or event booth with "Text us at..." puts the first message in their hands. CTIA treats replies that only answer the person's message as conversational.
3. **Text your existing customers** with consent that covers the text. See [how to text existing customers](/guides/texting-existing-customers).
4. **Make first contact on another channel**, such as email, and ask there whether you can text. Each channel has its own rules, so check them too.
5. **Record every opt-in** with its source, date and wording, so "How did you get my number?" has a one-line answer.

## Where does Textually fit?

Textually is built for texting people who agreed to hear from you. A text step won't send without a consent record (source and date) for the lead or a campaign-wide confirmation that everyone on the list agreed, and you tick a consent statement at list import, at Push to campaign and at launch. Every text carries the carrier-registered opt-out line until the person replies, STOP ends texts at once, and Textually registers your numbers for 10DLC in the US and verifies toll-free numbers for Canada. For the full follow-up playbook, read our [guide to SMS for sales and customer follow-up](/guides/sms-sales-and-customer-follow-up), see [how the rules are built in](/texting-rules), or [apply for access](/apply).

## Questions

### Can I text a number from a purchased list?

Carrier guidance says no: senders "should not use opt-in lists that have been rented, sold, or shared". A purchased list also gives you no consent record of your own, which US rules for autodialed marketing texts and CASL both rely on.

### Can I text business cell numbers without consent?

The federal autodialer rule covers any mobile number, with no business exception, and carriers expect an opt-in either way. In Canada, a number someone published or gave you can carry implied consent for texts relevant to their role. Ask a lawyer before relying on either.

### Is sending one text by hand to a lead legal?

A single text typed by hand may fall outside the federal autodialer rule after Facebook v. Duguid. The Do Not Call rules, state laws, carrier rules and CASL still apply to it, and business texts go out from a registered 10DLC campaign or verified toll-free number, which describe how people opted in.

### Does 10DLC registration make cold texting allowed?

No. Registration lets carriers see who is texting and why. Consent, opt-outs and sending hours come from the law and carrier guidance, and the campaign you register must describe how people opted in.

### What are the penalties for texting without consent?

In the US, $500 per violation under the TCPA (or the actual loss, if higher), up to three times that for willful violations, plus state claims such as Florida's $500 per violation. In Canada, CASL penalties reach $10,000,000 per violation for a business. Carriers can also filter or block your numbers.

### Can I text someone who gave me their number at an event?

If they agreed to texts, yes, so ask at the booth and record it. A badge scan or a business card alone is weak ground for marketing texts in the US. In Canada, a number handed to you without a "no" can carry implied consent for texts relevant to the person's role.