SMS Marketing Laws: What You Can and Cannot Send

Federal Law: The TCPA

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act is the primary federal law governing text message marketing. Passed in 1991 and updated multiple times since, the TCPA applies to any text message sent to a mobile phone using automated technology, which includes virtually all bulk SMS platforms.

What the TCPA Requires

• Express written consent for marketing messages. The recipient must affirmatively agree to receive marketing texts through a written or electronic signature. See consent requirements for details.
• Express consent (not necessarily written) for informational or transactional messages like appointment reminders, order confirmations, and account alerts.
• Immediate opt-out compliance. When someone replies STOP, you must stop sending within a reasonable time (interpreted as immediately by most courts).
• Identification. Messages must identify the sender (your business name).

TCPA Penalties

TCPA violations carry statutory damages of $500 per unsolicited message, and up to $1,500 per message if the violation is willful. These damages apply per message, not per lawsuit. A campaign of 10,000 messages sent without proper consent could theoretically result in $5 million to $15 million in liability. Class action lawsuits under the TCPA are common and have resulted in settlements in the hundreds of millions. See the full TCPA compliance guide for details.

Quiet Hours

While the TCPA does not specify exact quiet hours for text messages (it does for phone calls), the industry standard enforced by carriers and the CTIA is:

• No marketing texts before 8:00 AM in the recipient's local time zone
• No marketing texts after 9:00 PM in the recipient's local time zone

Some states have stricter quiet hours. Oklahoma, for example, prohibits commercial texts before 8 AM and after 8 PM. When in doubt, use the more restrictive window. The platform's scheduling tools can enforce quiet hours automatically based on recipient time zones.

What You Cannot Send

Beyond the consent and timing requirements, certain content is prohibited or restricted:

• Messages to numbers on the Do Not Call registry without prior express written consent
• Cannabis or CBD marketing is blocked by most carriers regardless of state legality
• Firearms and ammunition marketing is restricted by carrier content policies
• Loan and debt collection texts have additional regulations under the FDCPA
• Healthcare information must comply with HIPAA in addition to TCPA
• Deceptive or misleading content is prohibited under the FTC Act
• Messages to reassigned numbers where the current owner did not consent

Required Message Elements

Every marketing text message should include:

• Your business name (so the recipient knows who is texting)
• Opt-out instructions on the first message and periodically after (typically "Reply STOP to opt out")
• If it is the first message to a new subscriber, include: business name, message frequency, "Msg & data rates may apply," and opt-out instructions

State-Level SMS Laws

Several states have their own laws that add requirements beyond the federal TCPA:

• California (CCPA/CPRA) gives consumers the right to know what data you collect and to request deletion, which affects how you manage SMS subscriber data
• Florida enacted its own telemarketing law in 2021 with provisions specific to text messages and stricter penalties
• Washington has a state-level telephone solicitation act that applies to text messages
• Connecticut, Illinois, and Maryland have additional consent requirements for automated messages

If you send to recipients nationwide, you need to comply with the strictest combination of federal and state laws.