TCPA Case Value Calculator: Estimate What Your Robocalls Could Be Worth

Run your numbers

Enter your call counts below. The calculator applies the statutory amounts in 47 U.S.C. 227 and shows a base figure and a willful maximum. It is a starting point for a conversation, not a prediction.

The math behind the calculator

Robocall and autodialer violations: $500 each

For prerecorded or artificial voice calls, and autodialed calls or texts, made without the required consent, 47 U.S.C. 227(b)(3) lets you bring an action “to recover for actual monetary loss from such a violation, or to receive $500 in damages for each such violation, whichever is greater.” Actual loss is rarely higher, so the figure is almost always $500 per call.

Formula: qualifying calls x $500.

Do Not Call violations: up to $500 each, once the threshold is met

Section 227(c)(5) works differently in two ways. First, it applies only to a person who “received more than one telephone call within any 12-month period by or on behalf of the same entity.” So the first sales call to a registered number is not enough on its own; the second one in 12 months opens the claim. Second, the statute says “up to $500,” not a flat $500. A jury can award less. In Krakauer v. Dish Network, the jury chose $400 per call.

Once the threshold is met, each call in violation counts as a separate violation. Courts decide the details, including how calls outside a 12-month window are grouped.

Formula: Do Not Call calls (if at least two in 12 months from the same company) x up to $500.

Willful or knowing: up to three times

Both sections let the court “increase the amount of the award to an amount equal to not more than 3 times” the base if the company “willfully or knowingly” violated the law. That is where $1,500 per call comes from. The increase is discretionary. In Krakauer, the Fourth Circuit noted that “trebling is never to be done lightly” and upheld it because the evidence showed Dish knew about the violations and did not stop them.

Facts that tend to support willfulness: calls after you asked them to stop, calls after a prior lawsuit or regulator warning, and a company that ignored complaints about its vendors.

Formula: base damages x up to 3.

Worked examples

Whether a single call can count under both the robocall rule and the Do Not Call rule is a question to put to a lawyer; the answer can depend on the court. The calculator does not double-count.

Why real outcomes differ from the calculator

The statutory figure is the ceiling you negotiate against, not a check in the mail. Here is what pulls real results down, or sometimes up:

• Consent disputes. A company that produces a web form with your number on it can shrink or erase a claim, even if you never filled it out, until the dispute is resolved.
• Proof gaps. Calls you cannot document usually do not count. Discovery can also add calls you did not know about.
• Autodialer questions. After Facebook v. Duguid, a live-dialed call from a list may not qualify as autodialed. Prerecorded calls avoid that fight.
• Who can pay. A judgment against a shell call center may be worth little. A national brand can pay.
• Settlement discount. Both sides trade the risk of trial for certainty, so settlements usually land below the maximum.
• Fees and costs. The TCPA does not shift attorney fees to the company, so a contingency fee and case costs come out of the recovery.
• Class actions. If you take part in a class settlement instead, you get a share of a fund, not $500 per call. See typical TCPA settlement checks.
• State law. Some state telemarketing laws add separate damages. Others add nothing. Our state law guide lists them.

Texts, wrong numbers, and other special cases

• Texts. Marketing texts count like calls. The FCC treats autodialed texts to a cell phone as covered by the robocall rules, and commercial texts require written consent. Repeated marketing texts to a registered number can also support a Do Not Call claim; the Colony Ridge settlement class, for example, was defined by marketing texts to numbers on the Registry. Count each text as one.
• Wrong-number calls. If a company is calling your cell with a recorded message looking for someone else, the consent it may have had from that person does not cover you. The Concora Credit settlement class was built from people who were not the company’s customers. Count every recorded call.
• Junk faxes. Unsolicited fax ads fall under their own subsection of the TCPA and use the same $500 per violation figure for private suits.
• Several companies. If different companies are calling, run each one separately. The Do Not Call threshold is counted per company.

If you are not sure how to count

Enter only the calls you can back up with a log entry, screenshot, voicemail, or carrier record. If you remember “about 30” calls but can document 12, use 12. A lawyer can often find more in the company’s own records later. Starting with a figure you can prove keeps the estimate honest and keeps you credible.

Check the rule before you trust the number

The calculator assumes each call you enter actually breaks a rule. Two quick checks: for recorded calls, read our page on prerecorded and AI voice calls; for sales calls to a registered number, see the Do Not Call law explained. If your calls fit, your records are what turn the estimate into a claim, so review the evidence checklist too.

What your number means

If your base estimate is under about $1,500, a lawsuit may cost more effort than it returns, though small claims court can still work. If it runs into the thousands and you know the company, it is worth a free review. Send your call count and company name, and we will tell you which calls we think count and which do not.