Mobile, landline or VoIP: what line type means on a skip trace

Line type is the kind of service a phone number runs on: mobile, landline or VoIP. A skip trace usually labels each number it returns with one, and the label shapes what you do next: texts go to mobiles, because a landline usually cannot receive one, and a common practice is to call mobiles before landlines.

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Key facts

Price: a flat $0.03 a record at any list size from 50 to 100,000 records.
Unit: Priced per matched record.
Minimum order: 50 records
Minimum charge: Minimum charge $0.50 when any record matches.
Single search: Single search: $0.10, charged only on a match, paid from prepaid credit ($10 minimum top-up).
Prepaid credit: Prepaid credit expires 12 months after your last credit purchase, single search or credit-paid list, and unused credit is refundable on request within 90 days of purchase.
Free tool: Check your list free at /tools/skip-trace-csv-checker. Check columns, split addresses and download a fixed CSV in your browser before tracing at $0.03 a record. No account needed.
Subscription: None. A list order is paid for on its own by card or prepaid credit.
Max per order: 100,000 rows or 50 MB per file
Output: Up to 10 phones per owner, each with its line type (mobile, landline or VoIP), plus emails where found
Sources: 3 core providers: idiCORE, Enformion and Delvepoint
Not for: FCRA uses: credit, insurance, employment or tenant screening
Prices last changed: 2026-10-02
Last updated: 2026-10-02

Short answer

Mobile is a cell phone, usually carried by one person, and it can receive texts. Landline is a fixed line at an address, often shared by a household, and it usually cannot. VoIP runs over the internet and can go either way, depending on the service behind it. Use line type to split a skip-traced list into a texting list and a calling list, and to choose which of an owner's numbers to try first.

A line type describes the number as of the data behind the result. Numbers can move between carriers, so a label is a strong hint, not a guarantee.

The three line types

What each type is, what happens when you text it, and the label it carries in a Skipmatch result file.

Phone line types in a skip trace result
Line type	What it is	Texting note	Label in the result file
Mobile	A cell phone number on a wireless carrier. It is usually carried by one person rather than shared by a household.	Receives texts. The number to use for a texting campaign.	`Mobile`
Landline	A fixed phone line at an address, from a traditional phone company. It often rings a whole household.	Usually cannot receive texts. Depending on the carrier, a text to a landline is dropped or read out as a voice message.	`Landline`
VoIP	A number that carries calls over the internet: a cable or internet provider's home phone, a business phone system or an app-based number.	Depends on the service. Many app-based VoIP numbers receive texts; many home and business VoIP lines do not.	`VOIP`

Texting notes describe how each kind of line usually behaves. No delivery or connect rate is stated or implied for any line type.

Fixed vs non-fixed VoIP

VoIP numbers come in two kinds, and they behave differently.

Fixed VoIP is registered to a street address: the home phone a cable or internet provider sells, or a business phone system. It works much like a landline. It often rings a household or an office, and many fixed VoIP lines cannot receive texts.
Non-fixed VoIP is not tied to an address. App-based numbers are the common example: anyone can set one up online and use it from a phone or a computer anywhere. Many receive texts, and many people keep one as a second number alongside their mobile.

A Skipmatch result marks both kinds VOIP, as in the sample file, and does not say which one a number is. If the difference matters for a campaign, look the VoIP numbers up with a carrier lookup service before you text them, or treat them as numbers to call.

Where line type appears in your results

A Skipmatch result file keeps your own columns first, then adds Phone1 to Phone10, in the order they are listed, and a matching Phone1Type to Phone10Type column for each. Here is one owner from the sample result file; the names and numbers in it are invented, the layout is the real one.

Phones and line types for one owner in the sample result file (6 numbers)
Position	Column	Number	Line type
1	`Phone1`	(555) 555-0156	Landline
2	`Phone2`	(555) 555-0157	VOIP
3	`Phone3`	(555) 555-0158	Mobile
4	`Phone4`	(555) 555-0159	Landline
5	`Phone5`	(555) 555-0160	Mobile
6	`Phone6`	(555) 555-0161	VOIP

Sort a result file by line type in a spreadsheet

These steps work in Excel and Google Sheets. In the sample file, the phones sit in columns M to V and their types in columns W to AF; in your file they come after your own columns, so adjust the letters to match.

Open the result CSV and turn on filters for the header row. Filter HitFlag (column AJ in the sample) to HIT to set aside rows that came back with no phone and no email.
Filter Phone1Type (column W in the sample) to Mobile to see the owners whose first listed number is a mobile.
For a texting list, add a column headed First mobile and put this formula in row 2, then fill it down: =IFERROR(INDEX(M2:V2, 1, MATCH("Mobile", W2:AF2, 0)), ""). It returns each owner's first-listed mobile number, or leaves the cell blank when there is none.
For a calling list, add a First landline column with the same formula and "Landline" in place of "Mobile", and a First VoIP column with "VOIP".
Copy the new columns, with the owner name and address, into the file your texting or calling tool imports.

The full column list is on the sample file page, and how it works covers the upload and the download.

Why line type matters before you call or text

Texts only reach numbers that can take them. A text sent to a landline, or to a VoIP line that does not accept texts, usually does not arrive as a text. Sending texts to mobiles first keeps a campaign from spending messages on lines that cannot receive them.
Who answers differs by line type. A mobile usually reaches one person; a landline often rings a household, so the person who answers may not be the owner.
The rules can differ by line type. Federal and state rules on calls and texts, including the TCPA and the do-not-call registries, can treat mobile numbers differently from landlines, particularly for automated calls and texts. You are responsible for following them.

Every Skipmatch account accepts the permissible-use terms before its first order. This is general information, not legal advice.

Which number to call first

There is no fixed rule. A common practice, and the reasons behind it:

A mobile number. A cell phone is usually carried by one person, so it is the most direct line to the owner, and it can also take a text.
Then landlines. A landline at the owner's address may be answered by someone in the household who can pass a message on.
VoIP numbers last. Without knowing whether a VoIP number is fixed or non-fixed, it is harder to say who will answer.

Within each type, working through the numbers in the order they are listed is a simple default; Phone1 is the first number listed, whatever its type. This order is a working habit, not a claim about how often any kind of number connects.

What other services publish about line type and phone lookups

Here is what two other services publish about line type and phone lookups, in their own terms, next to Skipmatch. Skipmatch is one of the services compared.

Line type and phone lookups, as each service publishes them
Service	What is published	Price	Source
Tracerfy	Lists a product called Phone Intelligence separately from its skip trace, priced per hit. Whether its standard skip trace includes line type is not recorded here; see its pricing page.	Phone Intelligence: 5 credits per hit (published). Worked out from its published credit prices, that is $0.10 a hit at the $0.02 pay-as-you-go credit price, or $0.05-$0.07 a hit at its monthly plans' $0.01-$0.014 a credit.	tracerfy.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 2026-09-25
Bulk Skip Trace	Its phone append returns line type (mobile or landline).	No separate price for the phone append is recorded here. Skip tracing is $0.08 to $0.14 per credit by volume, charged per match.	bulkskiptrace.com (opens in a new tab) and bulkskiptrace.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 2026-09-25
Skipmatch	Each phone it returns, up to 10 per owner, has a matching Phone1Type to Phone10Type column, which reads Mobile, Landline or VOIP in the sample file. A type cell can be blank when the data has no type for that number.	No add-on for line type: the price is per matched record, $0.03.	Skipmatch pricing

Figures are the companies' own published terms, read on the dates shown; dollar amounts per hit that are worked out from a published credit price say so. No hit rate, match rate, accuracy or data-quality claim is made for any service. Prices change; check each linked page before you buy. Skipmatch charges $0.03 a record at any list size. Minimum charge $0.50 when any record matches.

Questions

What does line type mean in skip tracing?

Line type is the kind of service a phone number runs on: mobile (a cell phone), landline (a fixed line at an address) or VoIP (a number carried over the internet). A skip trace usually labels each phone it returns with one, so you can decide which numbers to text, which to call and in what order.

Can you text a landline number?

Usually not. A standard landline cannot receive text messages; depending on the carrier, a text sent to one is dropped or read out as a voice message. Some businesses text-enable a landline through a separate service, but treat a skip-traced landline as a number to call, not to text.

What is a VoIP number and can you text it?

A VoIP number carries calls over the internet. Fixed VoIP is registered to a street address, like a cable company's home phone; non-fixed VoIP, like an app-based number, can be set up online from anywhere. Many non-fixed numbers receive texts and many fixed ones do not. A Skipmatch result marks both kinds VOIP without saying which one a number is.

How do I know if a number is a cell or landline?

Read the line type next to it. In a Skipmatch result, each number in Phone1 to Phone10 has a matching Phone1Type to Phone10Type column, which reads Mobile, Landline or VOIP in the sample file; a type cell can be blank when the data has no type for that number. The area code and prefix will not tell you, because a number can be moved between landline, mobile and VoIP carriers.

Which number should I call first?

A common practice is to start with a mobile number, because a cell phone is usually carried by one person, then try landlines, which often ring a household, then VoIP. Within each type, working through the numbers in the order they are listed is a simple default; Phone1 is the first number listed, whatever its type. This is a working habit, not a promise that any number connects.

Does Skipmatch charge extra for line type?

No. Each phone in a Skipmatch result has a matching line-type column, and there is no add-on for it. The price is per matched record: a flat $0.03 a record at any list size from 50 to 100,000 records. Minimum charge $0.50 when any record matches.

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