# TextNow

> TextNow is a Waterloo-born wireless company that gives people phone service for free by letting advertisers, not subscribers, foot the bill. Started in 2009 as a way to dodge texting fees, it has grown into the largest provider of free mobile phone service in the United States, offering unlimited talk, text, and free essential data over a nationwide 5G network through its app-based MVNO. With roughly 10 million monthly active users and revenue north of $100 million, TextNow built a real telecom business on a simple bet: communication should be a right, paid for by ads rather than by the people who can least afford a phone bill.

- **Founded:** 2009
- **Headquarters:** Waterloo, Ontario, Canada (with offices in San Francisco, California)
- **Founders:** Derek Ting (Co-founder & CEO), Jon Lerner (Co-founder)
- **Team size:** Approximately 250-280 employees
- **Products:** TextNow App, Free Nationwide Wireless, Paid Data Plans & Data Passes, Second Phone Number, International Calling
- **Notable:** Largest provider of free mobile phone service in the United States., Reached 1 million users by 2010 and 15 million users by 2011., Crossed $100M annual revenue run-rate in 2021, ahead of projections.

## Products & services

- **TextNow App** — Free calling and texting app with a real phone number, available on iOS, Android, Windows and macOS.
- **Free Nationwide Wireless** — Free unlimited talk and text plus Free Essential Data (maps, email, rideshare) on the nation's largest 5G network, supported by ads.
- **Paid Data Plans & Data Passes** — Flexible, no-contract prepaid data plans and add-on data passes for users who want more than the free tier.
- **Second Phone Number** — An additional phone number that runs inside the app, popular for separating work, dating, and selling online from a personal line.
- **International Calling** — Low-cost calling to 100+ countries from within the app.
- **Elastic Calling** — Patented technology that seamlessly switches calls between Wi-Fi and cellular networks to keep them connected.
- **eSIM & Bring Your Own Phone** — eSIM activation and BYOP support so users can get service without buying new hardware.

## Achievements

- Largest provider of free mobile phone service in the United States.
- Reached 1 million users by 2010 and 15 million users by 2011.
- Crossed $100M annual revenue run-rate in 2021, ahead of projections.
- Patented Elastic Calling technology (2014) for seamless Wi-Fi/cellular handoff.
- First wireless provider to offer free essential mobile data (2024).
- Profitable and bootstrapped on only ~$1.5M of seed funding.

## Latest updates

- **2026-02** — Partnered with Mavenir to integrate cloud-native mobile BSS and core to evolve its app-based 5G MVNO service.
- **2024-11** — Reported crossing roughly $100M in annual revenue.
- **2024-05** — Launched first-of-its-kind Free Essential Data offering for maps, email, and rideshare apps.

## Links

- Website: https://www.textnow.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/textnow
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/textnowapp
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/TextNowApp
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/textnow
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/TextNow
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@textnow

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/textnow
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-20