Is it legal to use AI to call leads?

The short answer

Yes, you can use AI to call leads in the U.S. But you need the right consent first, you have to call inside allowed hours, and the call has to identify your business and give people a way to stop future calls. The FCC treats an AI voice the same way it treats a robocall voice, so the same strict rules apply.

That's not a reason to avoid AI. Speed matters a lot with web leads (see our speed to lead guide). It's a reason to set things up properly before the first call goes out.

What the FCC decided in February 2024

On February 2, 2024, the FCC adopted a declaratory ruling, FCC 24-17, confirming that the TCPA's limits on "artificial or prerecorded voice" calls cover current AI technologies that generate human voices. It doesn't matter whether the voice is fully synthetic or cloned from a real person. If an AI voice is speaking on an outbound call you placed, the call is treated as an artificial-voice call.

The ruling spells out what follows from that:

• Consent: callers need the called party's prior express consent, unless the call is for an emergency or falls under an exemption.
• Identification: every artificial-voice message must identify the business responsible for the call.
• Opt-out: if the call includes an advertisement or counts as telemarketing, it must offer a way to ask you to stop calling.

The FCC says these requirements apply to any AI technology that initiates an outbound call to consumers. Keep the word "outbound" in mind. It matters later.

Prior express consent vs prior express written consent

The TCPA bars calls to a home phone line using an artificial or prerecorded voice to deliver a message without the prior express consent of the called party. There are two levels of consent to know.

• Prior express consent: the person agreed to be called at that number. For purely informational calls, such as confirming an appointment the customer already booked, this is generally the bar.
• Prior express written consent: required under 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(2) and (a)(3) for artificial or prerecorded voice calls that include an advertisement or count as telemarketing. The rule defines it as a written agreement, signed by the person called, that clearly authorizes the seller to make those calls, includes the phone number, and discloses that the person doesn't have to agree as a condition of buying anything.

Is a call to someone who just asked you for a roofing quote "telemarketing"? Don't assume it isn't. You're calling to book an estimate and sell a job. The safer path is to collect prior express written consent on your form before any AI call goes out, then ask your attorney where your calls fall.

That's per violation, which in practice often means per call. Fifty unconsented calls adds up quickly.

What written consent on your form should include

• A checkbox the customer ticks themselves, not one that comes pre-checked.
• Plain words saying your business, by name, may call them at the number they entered about their request, including with automated technology and artificial or AI-generated voices.
• A sentence saying they don't have to agree as a condition of buying anything.
• The phone number captured in the same submission.
• A record you keep for each lead: the exact wording shown, the date and time, and the page or form it came from.

Calling hours

Under 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1), telephone solicitations to a residential subscriber can't be made before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m., local time at the called party's location. That's the customer's time, not yours. Area codes don't always tell you where someone lives, so the service address on the form is usually the better guide.

Some states set tighter windows (see below). The simple approach is to use the strictest window that applies to anyone you call, and use it for everyone.

Do-not-call lists, identification and opt-out

• National Do Not Call Registry: the rules bar telephone solicitations to residential numbers on the registry. One exception is when the customer gave a signed, written agreement saying they agree to be contacted by your business, with the number included. A form with proper written consent is built to cover this. Check that yours does.
• Your own do-not-call list: when someone asks you to stop, you must honor it within a reasonable time, no more than 10 business days, and keep the request on file for 5 years.
• Identification: an artificial-voice message must state clearly, at the beginning, who is responsible for the call, using the name your business is registered under with the state. Telemarketing calls must also give the name of the business and a phone number or address where you can be reached.
• Opt-out: artificial-voice telemarketing calls must offer an automated voice or key-press opt-out, within two seconds of the identification. If a customer says "stop calling me," stop.

Inbound callbacks vs outbound calls

The artificial-voice rules are about calls you initiate. The FCC ruling says its requirements apply to AI technology that initiates an outbound call. When a homeowner calls your number and an AI answers, you didn't place that call. An AI answering inbound calls is a different situation from an AI calling a lead off a form.

That doesn't make inbound a free-for-all. If you record calls, check your state's recording-consent rules. And any call you place back to that person later is outbound again. If a customer called while you were busy and you want an AI to call them back, treat it as an outbound call and ask your attorney whether their call to you counts as consent in your situation.

Shared marketplace leads: Angi, Thumbtack and Google LSA

Leads you buy come with consent language you didn't write. The homeowner agreed to the platform's terms and request form, and those documents decide what contact they agreed to, from whom, and how.

We looked for a single consent clause we could quote for each platform and couldn't pin one down. The wording sits across terms of use, privacy policies and request flows, and it changes over time. That alone is a reason to read the current version yourself instead of trusting a summary, including ours. Before an AI calls a marketplace lead, answer these:

• Does the consent name your business, or only "service professionals" or "partners" in general?
• Does it mention automated technology or artificial or prerecorded voice calls, or just "contact"?
• Is it consent to be contacted through the app, or to be called at the phone number?
• Can you get a copy of the consent record for a specific lead if you ever need it?

The FCC tried to tighten this area in 2023 with a "one-to-one consent" rule that would have required consent to one seller at a time for telemarketing robocalls. In January 2025, the Eleventh Circuit vacated that part of the order in Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC, finding the FCC had exceeded its authority. That doesn't make vague consent safe. It means the question goes back to what "prior express consent" means under the statute, which is exactly what your lawyer should check against your lead sources.

For the rest of the process with these leads, see how to follow up Angi, Thumbtack and Google LSA leads.

State "mini-TCPA" laws

Several states have their own telephone solicitation laws, and some are stricter than the federal rules. Here are two we checked against the statute text.

Florida

The Florida Telephone Solicitation Act (section 501.059) requires the called party's prior express written consent before a commercial sales call made with an automated system. A person can recover actual damages or $500 per violation, whichever is greater, and up to three times that for willful or knowing violations. A separate Florida statute, section 501.616, bars commercial telephone solicitation calls before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. in the called person's time zone, and more than three calls to a person in 24 hours on the same subject.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma's Telephone Solicitation Act of 2022, in effect since November 1, 2022, follows a similar pattern: prior express written consent for commercial sales calls that use automated dialing or a recorded message, no solicitation calls before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. in the called person's time zone, no more than three calls in 24 hours on the same subject, and actual damages or $500 per violation, up to three times that if willful.

This matters for follow-up schedules. Three call attempts on day one can already put you at the limit in these states, so spread attempts over several days. Other states have their own rules and this list isn't complete. Your attorney can tell you which ones apply to your service area.

A practical checklist for contractors

1. Put written consent on every form you control. Name your business, cover automated and AI-voice calls, and say consent isn't a condition of purchase.
2. Store proof of consent for each lead: the wording shown, the date and time, and the source page.
3. Read the current terms for each paid lead source. Don't let an AI call leads from a source whose consent doesn't clearly cover it.
4. Check numbers against the National Do Not Call Registry when you lack written consent, and keep your own do-not-call list.
5. Honor every stop request right away, on every channel.
6. Set calling hours by the customer's location and use the strictest window you face. 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. fits both the federal rule and the Florida and Oklahoma windows.
7. Cap attempts at three per lead per day, and spread the rest over several days.
8. Have the AI say your registered business name at the start of every call and give a callback number.
9. Offer a clear opt-out on every call, and test that it actually stops future calls.
10. Keep call logs and transcripts, and check your state rules before recording.
11. Review the whole setup with a TCPA attorney before launch, and again when you add a lead source.

What to ask any AI calling vendor

Whatever tool you use, the legal responsibility for the calls is yours. Ask each vendor how it records consent, how it handles opt-outs, how it enforces calling hours by time zone, and how many attempts it makes per day. For example, HelloSetter only calls leads whose consent is recorded on the form, honors opt-out requests, and calls only inside calling hours. If you're comparing options, our comparison pages cover several tools.