More Than 4.7 Million Phone Numbers Added to ‘Do Not Call’ Registry in 2025: FTC

There are currently nearly 260 million numbers active in the registry.

An man speaks on the phone at home, in this file photo.DimaBerlin/Shutterstock

More than 4.7 million new phone numbers were added to the national “Do Not Call Registry” for fiscal year (FY) 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said in a statement on Dec. 11.

The Do Not Call (DNC) Registry “lets consumers add their phone numbers and opt out of most legal telemarketing calls,” it said.

In 2025, there were a total of “about 258.5 million active registrations as of September 30, 2025—an increase of roughly 1.9 percent over FY 2024 and nearly 6 percent higher than FY 2021,” the FTC said.

“While DNC registrations grew modestly, complaints about robocalls, which involve a prerecorded message, continued to make up most DNC violation complaints,” it said.

The numbers were published as part of the FTC’s launch of the annual “Do Not Call” data book, which provided information on consumer complaints regarding telemarketing calls. Consumers in the registry who receive marketing calls can file complaints with the FTC.

The most recorded grievance was about calls to reduce debt, with more than 441,000 complaints, according to the data book.

This was followed by calls involving impostors; medical and prescriptions; energy, solar, and utilities; home improvement and cleaning; warranties and protection plans; and vacation and timeshares, it said. The majority of complaints were about robocalls.

In terms of total complaints filed, California topped the list with more than 300,000. This was followed by Texas and Florida with more than 200,000 complaints each, and Illinois, Ohio, and New York state with more than 100,000 complaints each.

As for complaints per 100,000 people, Arizona ranked first with 1,028 complaints. Tennessee was the only other state with a rate of more than 1,000 complaints.

Overall, more than 2.61 million complaints were filed by Americans in 2025, up from more than 2.08 million in the previous year, according to the data book.

“While overall complaints rose in FY 2025, unwanted calls remain about 48 percent lower than in FY 2021, when the FTC received approximately five million reports about unwanted calls,” the agency said in the statement.

According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Congress passed the Telephone Consumer Protection Act in 1991 amid consumer concerns about rising telemarketing calls.

Working with the FTC, the FCC developed the national Do Not Call registry, “which applies to all telemarketers and covers interstate and intrastate telemarketing call,” the FCC said.

“Commercial telemarketers are not allowed to call you if your number is on the registry, subject to certain exceptions,” it said.

People can add their number to the registry by visiting DoNotCall.gov or calling 1-888-382-1222, according to the FTC.

After registration is complete, it can take up to 31 days for sales calls to stop, the FTC said, adding that the Do Not Call registration never expires.

The agency clarified that joining the registry won’t stop all unwanted calls.

“The Do Not Call Registry stops unwanted sales calls—live calls or robocalls—from real companies that follow the law. The Registry is a list that tells registered telemarketers what numbers not to call—it doesn’t block calls. So being on the Registry won’t stop calls from scammers making illegal calls,” it said.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are taking action to strengthen protections for Americans against telemarketers.

In late October, the Pennsylvania Senate approved Senate Bill 992, which seeks to update state laws for “stronger protections” against deceptive and unwanted calls, the office of Pennsylvania state Sen. Lisa Baker said in a statement on Nov. 3.

The bill bans any telemarketing calls on Sundays and before 9 a.m. or after 7 p.m. on other days of the week, including robocalls. The legislation expands the law to cover voicemails, text messages, and “ringless” voicemails, typically used by telemarketers to evade restrictions.

“Pennsylvanians deserve peace of mind when it comes to their privacy, and this bill gives them stronger tools to fight back against deceptive telemarketers,” Baker said.

“By updating our laws to reflect modern technology, including texts, voicemails, and even AI-based scams, we’re protecting families from fraud and ensuring that their time and trust are respected.”