Short code

Canada

Canadian short codes are called Canadian Common Short Codes. Short code-based messages vary between zero-rated (paid for by the campaign), standard rate (user pays standard carrier charges), and premium rate (varies, between C$1-10).

In February 2020, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) announced that Rogers Wireless will no longer participate in general use mobile codes. A common short code is a code that is shared by more than one brand for multiple or general uses.[21]

Czech Republic

Messages sent to or from short codes in the Czech Republic are known as Premium Rate SMS. The three leading digits are make up a "purpose type" prefix (e.g.: "908" for micro payments, "909" for adult content and "900" for everything else), while digits four and five determine the service provider (registered by a network operator). There are also other four digit short codes that are used by network operators for service-only purposes and are operator dependent.

Ethiopia

Although the telecom sector in Ethiopia is controlled by the government, short code services are outsourced to the private sector.

India

Many companies in the Indian market rent keywords on a monthly basis. The numbers on a typical telephone keypad corresponding to the letters in the keyword represent a short code. These codes are five digits long and have to start with the digit "5", but the code can be extended by three additional digits to represent three additional characters. Texts sent to these codes are commonly referred to as Premium Rate SMS Messages and cost around Rs 1 to Rs 3 per text, depending on the operator as well as the service. Messages up to 100 to 500 characters long can be sent, depending on the provider.

Malaysia

Codes have premium pricing ranging from RM0.30 up to 10.00. Codes are MT billed so subscription services are allowed. Upon service description approval by mobile operators, dedicated codes are generally live in 4 weeks, and shared codes after 1 week.

Pakistan

Users are charged PKR 5 to PKR 25 per SMS sent on short codes. Mobile operators charge a setup fee, monthly fee and fee per keyword for short codes. Short codes usage must abide by the rules set by Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA).

Poland

Commercial codes are reachable from mobile and fixed networks. Calls from any type of network to short codes are routed based on the location of the number originating the call. Thus, the subscriber might need to prefix the code with an appropriate area code depending on the area they are trying to reach.

The Philippines

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) is a regulatory agency for information and communications technology in the Philippines.[22] Although the NTC is ultimately responsible for the governance of premium and non-premium short codes, the NTC's regulatory guidelines are not comprehensive when applied to short codes. Instead the NTC's guidelines focus more on the carriers and the carriers' technical infrastructure. While the NTC's website does have documentation for bulk SMS and spam control (the "AMENDMENT TO THE RULES AND REGULATIONS ON BROADCAST MESSAGING SERVICES"), it does not contain any specific information with regard to premium SMS or standard rate SMS.

United Kingdom

Short codes are often owned by holding companies[23] who then lease them out to service providers and advertisers to promote SMS services, charitable fundraising and marketing promotions such as news alerts, voting and quizzes.

Codes that start with "70" are used by charities,[18] while codes that start with "72" are used by Society Lotteries.[18] Adult-related mobile services are required to use codes starting with "69" or "89". Mobile operators sometimes use proprietary codes (that either have a different leading digit, or are shorter in length) for operator-specific functions. Depending on the service offered, users may interact with service providers by calling or texting the number.

Calls to mobile short codes may be free, or charged at a rate per call or per minute. Where the number can be called from any mobile network, the same charge will apply regardless of which network is used. Messages mobile short codes may be charged at a "standard rate" or with an additional premium charge. Where messages incur a "standard rate" charge, this is set by the sender's mobile provider and varies by provider. Messages short codes may be free or may incur a premium charge. Messages can be used to deliver additional content, or a link that opens up the user's web browser to a specific web page. For subscription services, the charges may recur on a daily, weekly, monthly or other basis. These subscriptions can be stopped by texting the word "STOP" to the short code number.

The service provider must state all applicable charges alongside the number. Calls and messages to mobile short codes do not count towards inclusive allowances or bundles.

Where the benefit passed on to the service provider is more than 10p per call, per minute or per message, Ofcom's Premium Rate Services Condition[24][25] defines it as being a Controlled Premium Rate Service (CPRS) and is subject to the additional regulations detailed in The Regulation of Premium Rate Services Order 2024.[26]

Until 31 January 2025, these services were regulated by the Phone-paid Services Authority.[27] As of 1 February 2025, Ofcom has regulated these services directly.[28][29] A number of key PSA staff had already been embedded within Ofcom for some time in preparation for this move.[30]

United States

Codes are leased by the short code program's registry service provider GCH Technologies, under a deal with the Common Short Code Administration[31] and Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA).[32] It costs twice as much to choose a specific code as it does to get one that is randomly assigned.[32] Some carriers assign a subset of their carrier-specific codes to third parties.[33]

"The Short Code Registry maintains a single database of available, reserved and registered short codes. CTIA administers the Common Short Code program, and GCH Technologies became the official U.S. Short Code Registry service provider in January 2016.[34]"

Texting "HELP" to a short code causes the short code service to return a message with terms and conditions, support information – consisting of either a toll-free phone number or email address at minimum – and other information from the leaseholder of the short code.[35][36] Texting "STOP", "END", "QUIT", "CANCEL", or "UNSUBSCRIBE" to the short code opts the user out of receiving any further messages. After doing so, one final message is sent to confirm the opt-out.[37][38]