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At a glance
Fact sheet
Quick facts you can quote.
| Name | Cat Facts Texts ("Cat Facts" on second reference) |
|---|---|
| What it does | Texts real cat facts to any phone number, from 1 to 15 a day |
| Website | catfactstexts.com |
| Sending since | 2015 |
| Origin of the prank | A 2012 Reddit post (the full history) |
| How it works | Enter a phone number, choose how many facts a day, and pay. The first fact arrives within seconds during the day; overnight signups start at 9 AM the recipient's time. |
| Price | $2.99 a month (1 fact a day) to $40.50 a month (15 a day). A free option sends 3 facts, then stops. All prices |
| Who pays | Only the sender. Recipients pay nothing beyond their normal message rates. |
| Stopping it | The recipient replies STOP at any time and the texts end. How to stop cat facts |
| Anonymity | Texts come from the Cat Facts number. The sender is never revealed. |
| Quiet hours | Texts arrive only between 9 AM and 9 PM in the recipient's local time |
| Busiest time of year | April, every year, thanks to April Fools' Day |
| Where to get it | catfactstexts.com and the Cat Facts Texts iPhone app |
| Press contact | support@catfactstexts.com |
Boilerplate
Use either version as written.
Cat Facts Texts (catfactstexts.com) texts real cat facts to any phone, one to fifteen a day. It is the automated version of the internet's favorite harmless prank, and recipients can reply STOP at any time.
Cat Facts Texts (catfactstexts.com) texts real cat facts to any phone number, from one to fifteen a day. Since 2015 it has turned the "Cat Facts" prank, first told on Reddit in 2012, into a service anyone can start in about 30 seconds: enter a friend's number, pick how many facts a day, and the first one arrives within seconds. The texts come from the Cat Facts number, so the sender stays anonymous. Recipients never pay, can reply STOP at any time, and only get texts between 9 AM and 9 PM in their own time zone. Cat Facts Texts is also available as an iPhone app.
Story angles
A few directions people find interesting.
The prank that outlived the meme
The Cat Facts joke started as one Reddit post in 2012. More than a decade later, the fake "automated service" from that story is a real one, and people still sign their friends up every day.
Prank or present?
Most people sign someone up as a joke. A surprising number of recipients reply that they love it, and plenty of buyers sign up a cat lover on purpose, as a gift.
A prank with an off switch
One word ends it: STOP. Texts never arrive overnight, and the sender, not the recipient, pays. What makes a prank harmless, and why this one has lasted.
Timely hooks
April Fools' Day is the busiest stretch of the year. National Cat Day (October 29), International Cat Day (August 8), and white elephant season are good pegs too.
What the texts look like
The first text and two facts, as a recipient sees them.
The first text tells the recipient what they've been signed up for and how to stop, for example:
Cat Facts here! Someone who knows you love cats signed you up for 3 fun facts a day. Not your thing? Reply stop. Help? Reply help. Msg&data rates may apply.
Then the facts arrive, spread through the day:
The Hermitage Museum in Russia has employed guard cats since 1745, by imperial decree.
Cats can't focus on anything closer than about 10 inches. Whiskers take over at short range.
Want to see it for yourself? The cat fact of the day page shows a new one daily, and our free cat facts API returns a random fact from the same rotation.
Logos and images
Free to use for coverage of Cat Facts Texts. Please don't recolor or stretch the logo.
Download everything (ZIP, 496 KB)
The ZIP also includes a plain-text fact sheet with the boilerplate.
Brand colors and type
The name is always three words: Cat Facts Texts.
Headings are set in Fredoka and body text in Hanken Grotesk, both free on Google Fonts.
Cat facts infographics
Full-size, free to embed with credit to Cat Facts Texts. See all of them.
Questions reporters ask
Short answers you can quote.
Is Cat Facts Texts a real service?
Yes. Cat Facts Texts is a paid text message service that has been sending cat facts since 2015. Someone enters a phone number on catfactstexts.com or in the iPhone app, picks a plan, and the texts start.
Where did the Cat Facts prank come from?
From a 2012 Reddit post. A user described texting cat trivia to a younger cousin who had posted his number online, pretending to be an automated service he could not unsubscribe from. Cat Facts Texts did not invent the joke; it made the automated service real.
Does the recipient find out who signed them up?
No. The texts come from the Cat Facts number, not the sender's phone, and Cat Facts Texts does not reveal who started a subscription.
How does a recipient make the texts stop?
By replying STOP. The texts end right away and it costs the recipient nothing. The person who paid cancels their billing separately.
Is it spam?
Every first text names the service, says how many facts will arrive, and explains how to stop, as US carrier messaging rules require. Texts are only sent between 9 AM and 9 PM in the recipient's local time, and STOP is honored on every message.
Are the cat facts true?
Each fact is checked before it joins the rotation. The rotation currently holds 131 facts, from the tabby's forehead "M" to the Hermitage Museum's guard cats.
How much does it cost?
Plans run from $2.99 a month for 1 fact a day to $40.50 a month for 15 facts a day. A free option sends 3 facts and then stops on its own. Recipients never pay.
Is Cat Facts Texts connected to other cat facts apps or websites?
No. Cat Facts Texts runs catfactstexts.com and the Cat Facts Texts iPhone app. It is not affiliated with other cat facts apps, websites, or social media accounts.
More background
Try it on yourself
The best way to understand Cat Facts is to get one. Use the free option and three facts arrive, then it stops.
Send a cat fact