Switching texting providers: keeping your number, 10DLC and opt-outs

Yes, you can usually keep your phone number when you switch texting software: US rules let you move (port) a number to a new provider in the same area, and your old provider can't refuse because you owe them money. Your 10DLC registration doesn't move with it. The new provider registers your brand and a new campaign, so start that first, bring your opt-out list and consent records, and keep the old account open until the move is done.

This guide covers what moves and what is redone, the order that avoids a gap in sending, and whether a new provider will fix filtered texts. It is one part of our business texting rules for the US and Canada, and it uses the FCC's rules and the guides published by The Campaign Registry, the registry the US carriers use, as read in October 2026. It is not legal advice; ask a lawyer about your own program.

What moves when you change texting providers?

Item	Does it move?	How
Phone numbers	Usually	The new provider requests a port; the old one releases the number
10DLC brand and campaign	No	The new provider registers them again
Vetting score	Sometimes	A reusable vetting ID can be imported into the new brand registration
Toll-free verification	Plan for no	Expect the new provider to verify a moved toll-free number again
Opt-out list	Only if you export it	Download it before you leave and load it before the first send
Consent records	Only if you export them	Source, date and wording for each person, as a file
Contacts and message history	Only if you export them	CSV files from the old provider

Anything held by the carriers or the registry stays with the provider that filed it. Your business's records are yours to take, if you download them before the old account closes.

Can I keep my phone number when I switch texting software?

Usually, yes. The FCC's consumer guide says that "if you're switching service providers and remaining in the same geographic area, you can keep your existing phone number", and that porting "can be done between wireline, IP and wireless providers" (FCC, Porting: Keeping Your Phone Number When You Change Providers, reviewed December 2025).

Three points from the same guide matter for a business:

1. Start with the new provider. "Contact the new company to start the process of porting your number." The new provider files the request; you give them the details of your current account.
2. Don't cancel first. "Do not terminate your service with your existing company before initiating new service with another company." A number released by a cancelled account can be lost for good.
3. A balance doesn't block it. "Once you request service from a new company, your old company cannot refuse to port your number, even if you owe money for an outstanding balance or termination fee." Companies "may charge you to port your number", so ask about fees.

On timing, FCC rules require carriers to complete a simple port "within one business day unless a longer period is requested by the new provider or by the customer", and a non-simple port within four business days (47 CFR 52.35). The number can move in a day; texting from it at the new provider can take longer, because of registration.

Two limits: a number usually can't follow you to a different area, and not every texting provider accepts numbers moved in from elsewhere, so ask before you sign up.

What details does the new provider ask for?

Usually the account holder's name, the service address, an account number and, for many US numbers, a port PIN. Texting platforms often hold numbers through their own carrier accounts, so ask your current provider for these details in writing before you start.

What about toll-free numbers for Canada?

Toll-free numbers can often be moved as well, so ask whether the new provider accepts them, and plan for them to verify the number again before it texts. Until the new verification clears, keep texting Canadians from the old provider. Our guide to toll-free vs 10DLC covers which number each country needs.

Do I have to re-register 10DLC when I change SMS provider?

Yes, in practice. The Campaign Registry tells a business that "you are considered a Brand, and registration directly with TCR is not the correct path for you", and that "you should talk to your messaging service provider". For updates on a registration, it says to "speak to your CSP that you registered through" (The Campaign Registry, August 2025). A CSP, or campaign service provider, is the texting provider that files your brand and campaign.

The registry's guide for providers describes two kinds of move, and neither hands your campaign to a new texting provider:

• Campaign migration between connectivity partners, the networks behind a provider: "TCR supports the migration of campaigns from one CNP to another CNP", done by "any CSP/CNP in the connectivity chain" (The Campaign Registry CSP User Guide, August 2025). Providers use it among themselves.
• Registering again via another provider. The guide's example is a brand "registered and vetted by one CSP" that "then goes to register via another CSP". That is the normal path when you switch.

So expect a new brand registration and a new campaign, with a new review, which the registry says "can range from 1-4 weeks". Our guide on how to register for 10DLC lists what to prepare.

What carries over to the new registration?

Your business does. The registration is tied to your EIN, and the same EIN can be registered by more than one provider. Three things follow from the registry's guide:

1. Vetting can sometimes be reused. "Standard vetting tokens/IDs issued by Aegis Mobile can be used multiple times for the same brand", so a brand that moves "can use their previous standard vetting token and import it into their new brand registration". The guide adds that "all other vetting partners are for single use". Ask your old provider for your vetting ID.
2. T-Mobile's daily allowance follows your EIN. "If the Brand is registered multiple times (by the same CSP or different CSPs) using the same EIN, throughput is shared across all registered campaigns for that Brand." Running the old and new provider side by side doesn't add capacity.
3. Suspensions follow your EIN. An EIN suspension "suspends all brand IDs that are registered using a specific EIN. This includes brand IDs registered via different CSPs."

What happens to the old campaign?

Ask the old provider to deactivate it only after the new campaign is approved and texting, since the registry warns that "Campaign Deactivation is final and cannot be reversed". Moved numbers also have to be linked to the new campaign: after registration, the provider links each number to the campaign itself or gives the numbers to its connectivity partner "so that they can complete the number association". A number that has moved but isn't linked to your new campaign isn't ready to text.

What should I take with me before I switch?

Three files, downloaded while the old account is open.

Your opt-out list. Every person who replied STOP or otherwise asked you to stop, with the date. In the US, the FCC rules for telemarketing texts expect a do-not-call request to be honored "for 5 years from the time the request is made", and they put the duty on your business even when a vendor holds the list: "If such requests are recorded or maintained by a party other than the person or entity on whose behalf the call is made, the person or entity on whose behalf the call is made will be liable for any failures to honor the do-not-call request" (47 CFR 64.1200(d)(3) and (6), applied to texts to mobiles by 64.1200(e)). Some providers and networks keep their own opt-out records for each sending number, and you can't count on those moving with you, so your own list is the one that counts. Our STOP and opt-out rules guide covers what counts as an opt-out.

Your consent records. For each person: where and when they agreed, and the wording they saw. CTIA's guidance lists the timestamp, the way consent was collected, the language used and the campaign it was for (CTIA Messaging Principles and Best Practices, 2023, section 5.1.2). In Canada, a sender who claims consent "has the onus of proving it" (CASL s. 13). Our opt-in language examples show what a complete record holds.

Your contacts and message history. Names, numbers, the fields your texts use, and every text sent and received.

In what order should I switch providers?

In an order that keeps you texting from registered numbers the whole time.

Step	What to do	Why this order
1	Export opt-outs, consent records, contacts and history	Nothing is lost if the old account closes early
2	Ask the new provider whether they accept your numbers, local and toll-free	Some providers only give new numbers
3	Register your brand and campaign at the new provider	The review takes the longest, so it starts first
4	Load the opt-out list and contacts with consent columns	Before any text can go out
5	Request the port once the new campaign is approved	So the numbers arrive at a provider ready to text them
6	Check the numbers are linked to the new campaign, and verify toll-free numbers again	A moved number isn't ready until then
7	Send a small batch and read the replies	Catch problems on 50 people
8	Cancel the old account and have the old campaign deactivated	Only after the new setup is live

While both providers run, keep each person on one of them, and copy any STOP from one to the other the same day.

What if I can't keep the number?

Start with new numbers at the new provider and tell your contacts. The first text from the new number should name your business and the person writing, so it doesn't read as a stranger. Our guide on team texting from a business number has wording for that change.

My texts keep getting filtered. Should I change providers?

Find the cause first, because most causes travel with you. Our checklist on why business texts get blocked goes through them in order.

Causes a new provider won't fix:

• Consent and list quality. People who don't remember agreeing opt out and report spam, whoever sends the text.
• Content. Public link shorteners, missing business names and restricted topics get filtered on any network.
• Limits tied to your EIN. T-Mobile's daily allowance and any EIN suspension apply at every provider.

Causes that can point to the provider:

• A registration that doesn't match what you send, with no way to register a second campaign for a new use case. Ask whether the current provider can file a new campaign first; that is often quicker than moving.
• Shared numbers or shared link domains used by other senders.
• No delivery reports or error codes, so you can't see which check is failing.
• No path for Canada, such as texting Canadians from local US numbers instead of a verified toll-free number.
• Opt-outs that don't hold across campaigns, so people who said stop keep getting texts and report them.

Fix causes from the first list before you move, or the filtering moves with you. For causes from the second, a switch can help.

Where does Textually fit?

If you move to Textually, we register your brand and campaign from the start through one setup form, verify toll-free numbers for Canadian recipients, and provide numbers registered to your business. Textually doesn't move numbers in from other providers today, so if keeping an existing number matters, write to hello@usetextually.com before you switch and we'll tell you what we can do for those numbers. Your contacts come in from a CSV, a Google Sheet, a connected CRM or the API, with consent source and date as columns, and a text step skips anyone without them. Leave anyone on your old opt-out list out of the lists you import. If you ever leave Textually, the If you leave Textually page under Billing shows the workspace owner the account number a new provider asks for, your registry brand and campaign IDs and any vetting ID, and downloads your leads with consent records, your opt-outs and your messages; our Terms let you move your numbers out while your account is open or within 30 days after it closes. See 10DLC registration, done for you, pricing, or apply for access. Contacts can come over straight from your CRM rather than a spreadsheet: see integrations.

Questions

Can I keep my phone number when I switch texting software?

Usually, if the new provider accepts numbers moved in and you stay in the same area. Ask the new provider to request the port, don't cancel the old account first, and expect a simple port to take about one business day under FCC rules. Texting from the number can take longer, because the registration is redone.

Do I have to re-register 10DLC when I change SMS provider?

Yes. Brands register through a provider, and The Campaign Registry describes a brand moving as registering "via another CSP". Your new provider files a new brand and campaign, which can take one to four weeks to review. A standard vetting ID from Aegis Mobile can be imported into the new registration.

Does my opt-out list transfer to a new texting provider?

Only if you take it. Download it before the old account closes and load it at the new provider before the first send. Under FCC rules, your business stays responsible for honoring do-not-call requests even when a vendor kept the list.

Will changing providers fix texts that keep getting filtered?

Only if the cause is the provider: shared numbers or links, no way to register the right campaign, no Canada path, or opt-outs that don't hold. Consent, content and limits tied to your EIN follow you to any provider, so check those first.

Do I need new consent from my contacts when I switch providers?

Consent is given to your business, so in general a valid record still applies when you text through a new provider, as long as the texts match what people agreed to. Bring the records with you, since you have to be able to show them.

Textually registers your business, provides your numbers and keeps one opt-out list across every campaign. Apply for access to start your registration.