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How do I stop contractors calling after a quote request?

Tell each company that calls that you want no more calls and write down the date, reply STOP to texts you no longer want, and register your number with the National Do Not Call Registry. The sources for each step are quoted below.

Source: FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026.
Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.
Source: National Do Not Call Registry home page, read 20 October 2026.

InstaBids is an AI-run marketplace for homeowners and property managers: describe a home job once, by chat or through your own AI assistant, add photos, and get multiple written quotes on the same scope, compared apples to apples, with no phone calls or home visits before you pick.

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By InstaBids editorial team with AI research agents. Sources read: 20 October 2026 Updated 2026-10-20

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  1. Describe it onceBy chat, or through your own AI assistant, and add photos.
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  4. You chooseContact details stay hidden until you pick and they confirm.

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Key facts

What do you say when a company calls you?

Say plainly that you want no more calls from that company, then write down its name, the number that called and the date. The FTC's National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026, say: "But if you ask them not to call you, they have to stop." They add: "Be sure to write down the date you asked them to stop."

Source: FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026.

The FCC's consumer guide to unwanted robocalls and texts, last updated or reviewed 27 February 2026 and read 20 October 2026, says: "Telemarketing calls to your home are prohibited before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m., and telemarketers must comply immediately with any do-not-call request you make during a call."

Source: FCC consumer guide, Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts, last updated or reviewed 27 February 2026, read 20 October 2026.

The federal rule is 47 CFR 64.1200. On the eCFR, shown up to date as of 16 October 2026 and read 20 October 2026, paragraph (d)(3) says: "Persons or entities making such calls (or on whose behalf such calls are made) must honor a residential subscriber's do-not-call request within a reasonable time from the date such request is made. This period may not exceed ten (10) business days from the receipt of such request." Paragraph (d)(6) says: "A person or entity making artificial or prerecorded-voice telephone calls pursuant to an exemption under paragraphs (a)(3)(ii) through (v) of this section or any call for telemarketing purposes must maintain a record of a consumer's request not to receive further calls. A do-not-call request must be honored for 5 years from the time the request is made." — 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(d)(6) (eCFR, current to 2026-10-15), ecfr.gov, read 2026-10-19

Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

The definitions in paragraph (f)(5)(i) add: "The subscriber's seller-specific do-not-call request, as set forth in paragraph (d)(3) of this section, terminates an established business relationship for purposes of telemarketing and telephone solicitation even if the subscriber continues to do business with the seller." — 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(f)(5)(i) (eCFR, current to 2026-10-15), ecfr.gov, read 2026-10-19

Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

Whether a particular call falls under these paragraphs is a legal question that this page does not answer. This is not legal advice.

How do you stop marketing texts?

Reply STOP to the text and keep a copy of your reply. Paragraph (a)(10) of the same rule, read 20 October 2026, says: "A called party may revoke prior express consent, including prior express written consent, to receive calls or text messages made pursuant to paragraphs (a)(1) through (3) and (c)(2) of this section by using any reasonable method to clearly express a desire not to receive further calls or text messages from the caller or sender. … All requests to revoke prior express consent or prior express written consent made in any reasonable manner must be honored within a reasonable time not to exceed ten business days from receipt of such request." — 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(10) (eCFR, current to 2026-10-15), ecfr.gov, read 2026-10-19

Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

Between those two sentences, the same paragraph says: "Any revocation request made using an automated, interactive voice or key press-activated opt-out mechanism on a call; using the words “stop,” “quit,” “end,” “revoke,” “opt out,” “cancel,” or “unsubscribe” sent in reply to an incoming text message; or pursuant to a website or telephone number designated by the caller to process opt-out requests constitutes a reasonable means per se to revoke consent."

Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

FCC Report and Order FCC 26-67, adopted 30 September 2026, released 1 October 2026 and read 20 October 2026, gives this new text for paragraph (a)(10): "Callers may designate any of the following methods as the exclusive means to revoke consent: (i) an automated, interactive voice or key press-activated opt-out mechanism on a call; (ii) replying to an incoming text message with any one of the following standardized words: “stop,” “quit,” “end,” “revoke,” “opt out,” “cancel,” or “unsubscribe”; and/or (iii) pursuant to a website or telephone number designated by the caller to process opt-out requests. The caller must clearly and conspicuously disclose the designated method to revoke consent on the call or in the text." The order also says: "But text senders still must honor revocation requests made using any of the standardized words as our rules recognize these as commonly used words to reflect a clear and unmistakable desire to revoke consent."

Source: FCC Report and Order FCC 26-67, released 1 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

On timing, the order says: "The revised rule amendments contained herein become effective 30 days after Federal Register publication." A Federal Register search for FCC 26-67, run 20 October 2026, returned: "No documents were found." The eCFR text quoted above is the version that page showed on 20 October 2026; read it again on the day you need it.

Source: FCC Report and Order FCC 26-67, released 1 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.
Source: Federal Register document search for FCC 26-67, run 20 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.
Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

Does the Do Not Call Registry stop these calls?

It is one step, and it takes time. DoNotCall.gov, read 20 October 2026, says: "You can register your home or mobile phone for free." The FTC's FAQs say: "Your phone number should show up on the Registry the next day, but it can take up to 31 days for sales calls to stop." They also say: "No, your registration will never expire."

Source: National Do Not Call Registry home page, read 20 October 2026.
Source: FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026.

The same FAQs say: "Companies can call you if you’ve recently done business with them, or if you’ve given them written permission to call." For a company whose quote form you filled in, ask it directly to stop, as in the first section.

Source: FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026.

The FCC's guide adds: "Many states now have statewide do-not-call lists for residents. Contact your state's public service commission or consumer protection office to find out if your state has such a list and how you can sign up."

Source: FCC consumer guide, Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts, last updated or reviewed 27 February 2026, read 20 October 2026.

The DoNotCall.gov report page, read 20 October 2026, says: "After your number is on the registry for 31 days, you can report unwanted sales calls." The FTC's FAQs say: "If you didn’t lose money and just want to report a call, use the streamlined reporting form at DoNotCall.gov."

Source: National Do Not Call Registry report page, read 20 October 2026.
Source: FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026.

What steps can you take, in order?

Work through these steps in order and keep one dated log. This is practical reasoning, not legal advice and not a finding from any agency.

  1. On the next call from a company you no longer want to hear from, say that you want no more calls from it.
  2. Write down the company name, the number that called, the date and the time.

    Source: FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs, read 20 October 2026.

  3. Reply STOP to each marketing text you no longer want, and keep a screenshot of your reply.

    Source: 47 CFR 64.1200, eCFR, up to date as of 16 October 2026, read 20 October 2026.

  4. If you think a call is an illegal robocall, the FTC's page How To Block Unwanted Calls, dated July 2023 and read 20 October 2026, says: "If you get an illegal robocall, hang up and don’t call back." It adds: "Don’t press a number, which could lead to more robocalls."

    Source: FTC, How To Block Unwanted Calls, July 2023, read 20 October 2026.

  5. Register your number at DoNotCall.gov, and ask your state's public service commission or consumer protection office whether your state keeps its own list.

    Source: National Do Not Call Registry home page, read 20 October 2026.
    Source: FCC consumer guide, Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts, last updated or reviewed 27 February 2026, read 20 October 2026.

  6. If the same company calls again after you asked it to stop, add the call to your log, and report it at DoNotCall.gov once your number has been on the Registry for 31 days.

    Source: National Do Not Call Registry report page, read 20 October 2026.

  7. Before your next quote request, read the consent text next to the submit button and count how many companies it names.

When does a contractor get your contact details on InstaBids?

Contact details stay hidden until the homeowner picks a contractor and they confirm the connection.

Source: InstaBids process and privacy, live-page excerpts, read 20 October 2026.

Post your job on InstaBids, and contractors can bid in writing on one written scope.

Homeowners anywhere in the US can post a job; once you send it, InstaBids finds contractors to bid on it.

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