A2P 10DLC registration: brands, campaigns, fees, timelines and filtering

What is A2P 10DLC?

A2P 10DLC is the system US mobile carriers use to verify business text messages sent from ordinary 10-digit phone numbers, so that traffic to US phones is identified and consented to.

A2P means application-to-person: texts sent from software, such as a CRM, rather than typed on a personal phone. 10DLC means 10-digit long code, the same kind of local number people use for calling. Toll-free numbers and short codes aren't part of 10DLC; they have their own approval processes.

Registration is run by The Campaign Registry (TCR), which verifies brands and the messaging providers (called campaign service providers, or CSPs) that submit them. A business can't register directly; it registers through its provider, such as Twilio, Telnyx, Bandwidth or SignalWire, or through software built on one of them.

• Who needs it: any business, nonprofit or individual sending texts from software over a 10DLC number to US phones.
• What it changes: registered traffic gets higher throughput and less filtering; unregistered traffic is blocked or charged extra carrier fees, depending on the provider.
• What it doesn't change: consent. Registration describes your opt-in process; it doesn't replace the consent the TCPA and state laws require.

How do brand and campaign registration work?

You register a brand once, with your legal business details, then register one or more campaigns under it, each describing a type of messaging, and attach the numbers that send it.

The brand is who you are: legal name, tax ID (a US EIN or a Canadian Business Number), address, website and business type. TCR checks it against official records, and providers can request extra vetting, which can raise your trust score and throughput.

The campaign is what you send. Reviewers compare what you describe with what you send, so write it carefully:

• Use case: the category, such as customer care, account notifications, marketing or mixed.
• Description: who you text and why, in plain words.
• Sample messages: at least two (Twilio accepts up to five), written the way you'll actually send them, with your business name and opt-out wording.
• Opt-in description: exactly how people agree to receive texts, such as a web form with an unchecked consent box, a keyword they text you or a signed form, with a link or screenshot if you can.
• Opt-out and help: the replies you honor (STOP and HELP at minimum) and what your responses say.
• A working website with a privacy policy that says you don't share or sell mobile numbers and opt-in data for marketing.
• Limits: under Twilio's rules, a tax ID can hold up to five standard brands, and a brand up to five campaigns unless you show a business reason for more.

Sole proprietor or standard brand: which do you need?

Register as a sole proprietor only if you have no business tax ID and send low volumes; if your business has a US EIN or a Canadian Business Number, register a standard or low-volume standard brand.

Sole proprietor registration is open to US and Canadian senders without a tax ID. It verifies a real person by sending a one-time code to a US or Canadian mobile number, which has to be answered within 24 hours, and that mobile number can't come from a messaging provider.

• Sole proprietor: one campaign per brand, one number on that campaign, and about 1,000 message segments a day to T-Mobile (about 3,000 across US carriers), per Twilio.
• Low-volume standard: a tax ID is required; up to 2,000 segments a day to T-Mobile (about 6,000 across carriers).
• Standard: a tax ID is required; from 2,000 segments a day to T-Mobile up to unlimited, depending on the brand's trust score. Companies in the Russell 3000 can reach 200,000.
• Low Volume Mixed campaigns, at Twilio, are for brands sending fewer than 2,000 segments a day on T-Mobile.
• A segment is up to 160 plain characters (fewer with emoji), and a longer message is billed and counted as several segments.

Which campaign use case should a sales team choose?

Choose the use case that matches every message the numbers will send: Mixed or Marketing for most sales teams, Low Volume Mixed for small senders, and a special use case only when one clearly applies.

Standard use cases include two-factor authentication, account notifications, customer care, delivery notifications, fraud alerts, higher education, marketing, mixed, polling and voting, public service announcements and security alerts. Special use cases cover agents and franchises, charities, political messaging, sweepstakes, social, proxy and K-12, and they cost more or need extra review.

• A team that texts leads and customers about appointments, quotes and offers: Mixed, which allows several kinds of messages under one campaign.
• A team sending only promotions: Marketing.
• A team under about 2,000 segments a day to T-Mobile: Low Volume Mixed, which costs less a month.
• A brand whose many independent agents text under its name: Agents and Franchises, listed at $30 a month at SignalWire.
• If the samples promise appointment reminders and the traffic is cold offers, expect filtering. Register for what you really send.

What does A2P 10DLC registration cost?

Registration costs a one-time brand fee, a one-time campaign vetting fee and a monthly fee for each campaign, plus a carrier fee on every message, and the amounts differ by provider because TCR doesn't sell to businesses directly and providers add their own charges.

These are the published amounts we found on November 7, 2026. Treat them as a snapshot, and use our 10DLC cost estimator to total your own numbers.

• SignalWire: $4.50 one-time per brand; $7.50 per campaign vetting, charged again for each resubmission; $10 a month for standard and most special use cases, $1.50 for Low Volume Mixed, $3 for charities, $5 for emergency and $30 for Agents and Franchises. It also lists a $250 T-Mobile pass-through fee each time a campaign reaches 60 days without traffic.
• HighLevel (LeadConnector phone system): $22.50 one-time for sole proprietor or low-volume registration and $64 for high volume, each including a non-refundable $3 'Fast Track' fee; monthly campaign fees of up to $2.10 (sole proprietor), $1.50 to $10.50 (low volume) and $10.50 (high volume). Fees start when a campaign is submitted, whatever the review outcome, and resubmissions have been free since February 1, 2026.
• Twilio: its sole proprietor guide says the one-time brand fee is shown on screen during registration and a campaign verification fee is charged at vetting.
• Carrier fees per outbound SMS segment: AT&T $0.0035 and T-Mobile $0.0045 (Twilio, Telnyx and Plivo agree); Verizon $0.005 (Twilio, Plivo) or $0.0045 (Telnyx); US Cellular $0.005. MMS: AT&T $0.009, T-Mobile $0.01, Verizon $0.007.
• Unregistered traffic, where a provider still carries it, pays higher carrier fees. Twilio's documentation says unregistered senders 'will receive additional carrier fees'.

How long does 10DLC registration take?

Expect minutes to a day for the brand and about a week for the campaign: Twilio says sole proprietor brands are usually approved within a few minutes and standard campaign reviews take up to 5 business days, with support worth contacting after 10.

SignalWire quotes about 3 to 5 business days for campaign registration, 24 to 48 hours for its vetting step, and up to 24 hours to attach numbers to a new campaign. Rejections restart the clock, so the fastest route is a complete first submission.

• Have your EIN or Business Number, legal name and address exactly as the tax authority has them.
• Publish the privacy policy and opt-in form before you submit, and link them.
• Write sample messages that include your business name and 'Reply STOP to opt out'.
• Plan the overlap: don't cancel an old provider's campaign until the new one is approved and numbers are attached.

Why do registered texts still get filtered?

Carriers filter on what a message looks like and how people react to it, not just on registration, so registered traffic can still be blocked when it drifts from the campaign or draws complaints.

On Twilio, a message blocked by a carrier's filter usually fails with error 30007, carrier filtering. The common causes are fixable:

• Content that doesn't match the campaign: promotions sent under a customer care campaign, or a different business's offers.
• No clear opt-in: texting purchased or shared lists, or numbers that never agreed to texts from you.
• Shared public link shorteners: use your own domain for links.
• Restricted content: categories carriers forbid or limit (Twilio publishes a forbidden message categories list for the US and Canada).
• High opt-out and complaint rates: a sign the list or message isn't wanted.
• Volume beyond your limits: bursts over the brand's daily T-Mobile cap or the campaign's throughput.
• Numbers not attached to the campaign, or a new number sending before it's attached.
• First messages without your business name or opt-out instructions.

10DLC vs toll-free vs short code: which should you use?

Use 10DLC for conversational texting from local numbers that also call, toll-free for national customer service texting, and a short code only for high-volume programs that can justify the cost.

• 10DLC: a local number people recognize, the same number for calls and texts, two-way conversation, registration through TCR. Throughput depends on the brand's trust score.
• Toll-free: an 8XX number that can text after toll-free verification, its own review outside TCR. Good for national brands and customer service; it doesn't look local.
• Short code: a 5- or 6-digit number for high-volume alerts and promotions, with a separate carrier approval. Twilio listed $1,000 a month for a random code and $1,500 for a vanity code, billed quarterly, plus setup; Plivo listed $500 and $1,000 a month plus a $1,500 one-time fee.
• Carrier fees per message apply to all three.
• For a sales team that calls and texts the same people, 10DLC is usually the fit.

Do Canadian teams need 10DLC registration?

Only for texts to US phones: 10DLC is a US carrier system, and providers say traffic sent only outside the US doesn't need TCR registration.

A Canadian business that texts US customers registers like a US one, and a Canadian Business Number counts as the tax ID for a standard brand. Canadian senders without one can use sole proprietor registration, which is open to the US and Canada.

Inside Canada, CASL sets the rules for commercial texts: consent (express, or implied in limited cases such as a purchase in the past 2 years or an inquiry in the past 6 months), identification of the sender and a working unsubscribe that takes effect within 10 business days.

Leaving GoHighLevel or LeadConnector: what happens to your 10DLC registration?

Your brand and campaign are registered through the provider you submitted them with, so plan for registration on the new provider's side before you cancel, and stop paying for the old campaign once the new one is live.

HighLevel's phone system (LeadConnector) charges A2P registration and monthly campaign fees through its wallet, and its billing guide says monthly campaign charges continue until the campaign is deleted. If your agency rebills you, a markup may apply on top.

• Export your contacts with their opt-in source and date, and your opt-out and do-not-call lists. Consent records travel with the contact, not with the registration.
• Note your brand details and campaign wording, so the new registration matches what you actually send.
• Decide which numbers to keep. Port numbers you want to keep to the new provider, and buy new local numbers for the rest.
• Run both until the new setup is approved and texting works, then delete the old campaign to stop its monthly fee.
• Tell your team the new numbers, and expect replies to old numbers to stop once they're released.

How does texting registration work in TopReach?

TopReach handles carrier registration (A2P 10DLC) for texting from your TopReach numbers, so there's nothing to file before you start. Planning high-volume marketing texts? Talk to us first.

Numbers are local US and Canadian numbers you buy in TopReach, at $10 a month each; TopReach doesn't offer toll-free numbers or short codes. The same number calls and texts, so a lead who gets a call and a follow-up text sees one number.

Opt-outs are handled for you: a reply of STOP, STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, QUIT, REVOKE, OPT OUT or OPTOUT (case, spaces and punctuation don't matter, as long as the reply is just that word) stops every number in your workspace from texting that person, including rep texts, scheduled texts and automated follow-ups. Every thread with them shows Opted out, and they get one confirmation text from the number they replied to. They can opt back in when they text START, UNSTOP or YES back. The list includes REVOKE and OPT OUT, which the FCC's revocation rule recognizes. Automatic follow-up texts also skip anyone on your team's do-not-call list. Consent is still yours to collect and keep: TopReach doesn't store opt-in forms.