What is an SMS shortcode?

A shortcode is a 3 to 6 digit phone number used by businesses, charities and services to send and receive SMS. Examples are 3333 (TV voting), 4262 (charity donation), or 34567 (a WebSMS-owned shared shortcode).

Why did I get a text from a shortcode?

Shortcodes are used for OTP/2FA security codes, appointment reminders, delivery notifications, marketing messages, charity fundraising and TV/radio competitions. Use this directory to identify who sent the message.

How do I stop messages from a shortcode?

For most premium and marketing shortcodes, reply STOP to the same number. Under the NZ TCF Mobile Messaging Services Code, senders must honour STOP requests. OTP and one-off transactional messages don't usually require STOP.

Why does a shortcode cost money?

Most shortcodes are free to send to. Premium-rate codes cost 20c, 99c or $3.00 per message — the $3.00 tier is used almost exclusively for charity text-to-donate campaigns, where the full amount is passed to the charity.

Where does this data come from?

Every NZ mobile carrier publishes its own shortcode list as a PDF. This directory automatically downloads and consolidates the lists from Spark, One NZ, 2degrees and Skinny. Data is refreshed daily.

NZ SMS Shortcode Directory

Who is behind that shortcode? Look up any 3, 4 or 5-digit NZ SMS shortcode and see the brand, cost and carrier.

11,150

Total codes

Carriers covered

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About this directory

New Zealand has no central public registry of SMS shortcodes. Each mobile carrier publishes its own list — usually as a PDF buried in their help pages — which makes it hard to find out who is behind a number that just texted you.

This directory solves that. Every day we automatically download the latest published list from each NZ carrier (Spark, One NZ, 2degrees and Skinny), merge them into a single searchable index, and track changes over time so you can see which codes are new this month.

WebSMS has been a bulk SMS provider in New Zealand since 2004. We built this directory as a free public utility alongside our Number Portability Checker.

Want your own shortcode?

We handle carrier registration across Spark, One NZ and 2degrees. 2-4 week turnaround. Dedicated 3, 4 or 5-digit numbers.

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