Job offer text message templates: what an offer text can say, and what has to stay in the letter
On this page
- What can an offer text carry, and what must stay in the letter?
- Templates for setting up and following the offer
- Text offers for hourly and high-volume roles
- Deadline and contingency templates
- After the answer
- "Can you just text me the number?"
- What should never be sent by text?
- Which texting rules apply to offer texts?
- Questions people ask
A job offer text should set up or follow the offer, not replace it. Use texts to book the offer call, confirm a verbal yes and point to the written offer, remind a candidate of the deadline, or, for hourly and high-volume roles, state the pay rate, shift and start date with a link to the full written offer. Keep the full compensation, contingencies, benefits and any legally required pay notice in the letter, and text only candidates who agreed to texts, with "STOP to opt out" in each message (rules as of October 2026).
For the emails around an offer, see the job offer email templates; for the call itself, the offer call script. This page covers the texts, and the line between what a text may carry and what belongs in writing.
Not legal advice. The pay notice and texting rules below come from the California Labor Commissioner, the New York State Department of Labor and the FCC, linked and checked as of October 2026. Other states have their own rules. Have counsel review your offer process.
What can an offer text carry, and what must stay in the letter?
| Fine in a text | Keep in the written offer |
|---|---|
| That you have news and want to call | Full compensation: base, bonus, commission plan, equity |
| Confirmation of a verbal yes: role and start date | Benefits and when they start |
| Where the offer letter is and when to sign | Exempt or non-exempt status and pay frequency |
| For hourly roles: rate, shift and start date, matching the letter | At-will wording or contract terms |
| A deadline reminder | Contingencies and what happens if one is not met |
| That pre-start checks are complete | Any pay notice your state requires at hire |
| First-day time, place and who to ask for | How to accept, and the signature |
Two states show why the written part matters. California's Labor Code section 2810.5 requires a written notice at hire, given no later than the start date, on its own form, with the pay rate and basis, the regular payday, the employer's legal name, address and phone number, and the workers' compensation carrier; the Labor Commissioner's notice FAQ says it may be electronic only if the worker can acknowledge receipt and print a copy, and that a staffing agency must indicate on the notice that it is acting as one. New York's Labor Law section 195(1) requires written notice of pay rates to each new hire, and the Department of Labor's pay notice page says it must be given in English and in the employee's primary language where the Department offers a translation. A text is none of these. The offer letter template and the state guides for California and New York cover the rest.
Templates for setting up and following the offer
1. Booking the offer call (in-house)
Hi [First name], [Your name] from [Company]. I have an update on the
[Role] job and would like to call. Is [4pm] or [5pm ET] today good?
STOP to opt out.Do not say "offer" until it is approved; if the approval stalls, a text promising an offer you cannot make is hard to take back. The offer approval form is the step before this text.
2. Booking the call (agency)
Hi [First name], [Your name] at [Agency]. I've heard back from
[Client] and want to talk it through. Can I call at [4pm ET]? STOP to
opt out.3. After the verbal yes
Great talking, [First name]. As agreed: [Role], start [Mon Nov 16].
Your offer letter is in your email from [[email protected]]. Please
sign by [Fri]. STOP to opt out.Name the sending address. Candidates who have been warned about fake job offers will look for it, and it helps the letter out of a spam folder.
4. The letter has been sent
Hi [First name], your [Role] offer letter was emailed from
[[email protected]] at [2:10pm]. Not in your inbox? Check spam or reply
here. STOP to opt out.Text offers for hourly and high-volume roles
5a. The offer, with a link to accept
[Company]: we'd like to offer you the [Role] job! [2nd shift,
3-11:30pm], [$19.50/hr], start [Mon 11/16]. Full offer + accept:
[link on your own domain]. Questions? Reply here. STOP to opt out5b. The offer, when the candidate has no email
[Company]: we'd like to offer you the [Role] job! [$19.50/hr],
[2nd shift], start [Mon 11/16]. Reply YES to hold the spot and I'll
call to go through it and send it to sign. STOP to opt outThese run to two text segments once a link is added, which is fine for an offer. State the rate, shift and start date exactly as they appear in the written offer, and say "full offer" so the text is not read as the whole agreement. If the role is subject to a check, say so in the written offer, and in the text if it would otherwise surprise the candidate. Never use a reply keyword that is also an opt-out word.
Deadline and contingency templates
6. Deadline reminder (send about two days before)
Hi [First name], [Your name] from [Company]. Your [Role] offer is open
until [Fri 5pm ET]. Questions before you decide? Reply or call
[number]. STOP to opt out.A reminder is fine; pressure is not. "Answer by tonight or we move on" invites a rushed no.
7. Confirming an extended deadline
Hi [First name], confirming your new deadline for the [Role] offer:
[Tue Nov 10, 5pm ET]. Talk soon. [Your name], [Company]. STOP to opt
out.8. Contingencies cleared
Good news, [First name]: all pre-start checks for [Role] are complete.
You can give notice now. Start date stays [Mon Nov 16]. [Your name].
STOP to opt out.Say "pre-start checks", not "your background check", so nothing personal sits on a lock screen.
After the answer
9. Acceptance confirmed, first day
Welcome aboard, [First name]! Day 1: [Mon 11/16], [7am], [12 Elm St].
Ask for [Lee] at the front desk; bring [photo ID]. Details are in your
email. STOP to opt out.The welcome email carries everything else.
10. The candidate declined
Thanks for letting me know, [First name]. I'm sorry it didn't work out
this time, and I wish you well. Can I keep in touch about future roles?
[Your name]If you want to try once more, call rather than text.
"Can you just text me the number?"
Candidates ask this when they are busy, nervous or comparing offers. Three replies, by situation:
Salaried role, in-house
Happy to talk numbers. I'd rather walk you through the whole package so
nothing's missed. Free at [4pm ET]? The written offer follows by email
today.Hourly role, candidate cannot talk
Sure: [$19.50/hr] for [2nd shift], [overtime after 40 hrs/week]. The
full offer with benefits and start details is in your email now.
[Your name]Agency, client's offer
I'll call you in 10 min to go through it. [Client] asked us to share the
details by phone first, and the written offer follows by email.
[Your name]The reason to resist texting a salary is not secrecy. A number without the bonus, benefits and start terms gets compared with a competing offer's total, and a negotiation by text loses the tone that a call carries. If the candidate pushes back on the number, move to the call; the offer call script covers the common objections.
What should never be sent by text?
- Rescinding an offer. Call, then confirm in writing; see how to rescind a job offer.
- Background check problems. Adverse action based on a consumer report has its own written notice steps; see the FCRA background check process.
- Requests for bank details, Social Security numbers or payments. Collect those through your onboarding system after acceptance, never by text. The FTC's job scams guidance tells job seekers that honest employers will never ask them to pay to get a job and will never send a check to deposit and ask for part of the money back, and candidates who know this will distrust any offer text that looks like it. See recruitment scams impersonating your company for how to make your real messages easy to tell apart.
Which texting rules apply to offer texts?
- Consent. Text only candidates who agreed to receive texts about their application, and record when and how they agreed.
- Opt-out. Under the FCC's rule at 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(10), a reply of stop, quit, end, revoke, opt out, cancel or unsubscribe revokes consent, and requests must be honored within 10 business days. From November 25, 2026, under the FCC's order FCC 26-67, a sender may make one method, such as replying STOP, its only opt-out route, but must disclose it in every text. "STOP to opt out" at the end of each offer text covers both versions.
- Hours. Between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the candidate's time zone.
- Links. On your own domain, not a shared shortener.
The full rules, including the wireless industry's guidelines and consent wording for your application form, are in the recruiting text message templates.
Questions people ask
Can you make a job offer by text message?
You can tell a candidate about an offer by text, especially for hourly and high-volume roles, but the text should point to a written offer that carries the full terms and the way to accept. Pay details, contingencies, benefits and any pay notice your state requires belong in that written offer, and several states, including California and New York, require a written pay notice at hire.
Should a job offer text include the salary?
For hourly roles, a text can state the hourly rate, shift and start date, as long as the written offer matches it exactly. For salaried roles, call first: the full package is easier to explain and negotiate by voice, and a salary on a lock screen can be seen by others. Follow either with the written offer.
What do I say when a candidate asks me to just text them the number?
Offer a short call and promise the written offer by email the same day. If the candidate cannot talk and the role is hourly, it is reasonable to text the rate and shift with a line saying the full offer is in their email. Agency recruiters can explain that the client asked for the details to be shared by phone first.
Do I need consent to text a candidate about a job offer?
Yes, use texts only with candidates who agreed to receive them, and include a line such as "STOP to opt out". Under the FCC rule in effect as of October 2026, opt-out requests must be honored within 10 business days, and from November 25, 2026 a sender that makes replying STOP its only opt-out method must disclose that in every text.