Long code
Definition
A standard full-length phone number, like a regular mobile or 10-digit number, used to send or receive texts.
Long code, explained
A long code is an ordinary full-length phone number, as opposed to a 5 or 6 digit short code. In the US and Canada that means a 10-digit number after +1; in the UK it is a normal number such as a mobile starting with 7 after +44. Personal phones use long codes, and so do many businesses that want customers to be able to text back. Long codes can usually send and receive both SMS and calls, but carriers expect lower message volumes from them than from short codes. In the US, businesses sending application-to-person messages from 10-digit long codes must register them under the 10DLC system, and unregistered traffic may be filtered. For you as a recipient, a verification code might arrive from a long code, a short code, a toll-free number or a brand name, depending on the service and country. All of these are legitimate routes, so the sender format alone does not tell you whether a message is genuine.
Related terms
Short code
A 5 or 6 digit number that businesses use to send high-volume texts such as verification codes and alerts.
10DLC
The US system for registering businesses that send automated texts from standard 10-digit local numbers.
Toll-free number
A number that callers can dial at no charge, such as 800 or 888 numbers in North America and 0800 in the UK.