How a DWTS vote works on Dancing with the Stars
A DWTS vote is cast on the official voting website or in ABC's app, or by text message, during the live broadcast. Online voters must be 18 or older and physically in the United States or Canada, and each fan can submit up to 10 votes online and 10 by text for each couple. Voting opens at 8 p.m. ET and closes shortly after the final competitive dance. Season 35 premiered on September 15 and 16, 2026.
Compiled by BuyContestVotesNow editorial desk / Checked
The 8 p.m. ET window and what closes it
Voting on Dancing with the Stars runs to a clock the show sets itself: it begins each weekly episode at 8 p.m. ET (8/7c in the network's own notation) and closes shortly after the final competitive dance. That is the whole window. The dancing with the stars voting deadline is set by the show itself and lands wherever the last dance ends.
Both voting methods sit inside that window. Online and text votes are open only during the initial simulcast on ABC and Disney+ in the Eastern and Central time zones, and neither is available during later broadcasts or streaming. After the last dance, dancing with the stars voting closed is the status until the next weekly episode; the material checked describes no reopening for a replay.
Dates beyond that are thin. Season 35 premiered on September 15 and 16, 2026, and the sources checked give no later date: no elimination night, no finale date, no schedule for the weeks ahead. ABC's website and app run the vote, so they are the place to confirm any date before it matters, whether today, tonight or later.
On an episode day, the open time is 8 p.m. ET and the close time is the last dance; no source checked prints a clock time for that moment.
Online voting: the ABC site and app, and eligibility in Canada
Dancing with the Stars voting online starts at the official DWTS voting website or in ABC's app. Where sign-in is required, it uses a free ABC account or existing TV-provider credentials. A voter creates an account or logs in, selects the celebrity or couple to support and clicks Save Votes.
The dancing with the stars voting app is ABC's own app, which ABC names beside the website as the official voting option. The sources checked call the ABC account free and say nothing about charges for the app itself, so a dancing with the stars voting app free claim goes no further than the account.
Eligibility for online votes has two parts: the voter is 18 or older, and physically in the United States (including its territories) or in Canada. Dancing with the Stars voting Canada is therefore open online. Text voting adds its own condition, a participating US wireless carrier, and the sources checked name no Canadian carrier.
No list of unofficial voting sites turns up in the sources checked. They name two online places, ABC's website and ABC's app, and a third site sits outside what they state.
Text voting: the keyword, the number and the carrier rule
A text vote is an SMS keyword for one couple, sent to 21523 during the live voting window. The dancing with the stars voting number for texts is that single destination, and every vote goes there. Every dancing with the stars voting text carries one couple's keyword, and the keywords are listed with the official voting instructions rather than reproduced here.
Two conditions apply to text voting. It works only during the live broadcast, the same window as online voting, and it requires a participating US wireless carrier. The material checked does not list the participating carriers, so this page cannot say which phones qualify.
Vote allowance per couple: 10 online, 10 by text
How many times a fan can vote is answered in the organiser's own words: up to 10 votes online and up to 10 votes by text, for a total of 20 votes per couple. The cap is written per couple, and the rules let a fan vote for their favorite couple or couples, so each couple a fan backs carries its own allowance.
Two things stay unstated. The sources checked give no total cap across couples, and they do not say whether the cap resets at each weekly episode, even though the vote window opens fresh each week. Neither gap is filled here.
Disney Plus, replays and later broadcasts
Disney+ carries the initial simulcast, and voting is open during that simulcast in the Eastern and Central time zones. The vote is not available during later broadcasts or streaming. Watching last night's episode on a replay gives no chance to vote, because the window closed with the live show.
The methods do not change with the screen. The sources checked name ABC's website, ABC's app and text as the official ways to vote, and they describe no voting screen inside Disney+. A viewer streaming the simulcast still votes on ABC's site or app, or by text.
Dancing with the Stars in Ireland: RTÉ's call and text lines
The Irish version of Dancing with the Stars, shown on RTÉ One, has its own rules. RTÉ says fans can vote for a favourite contestant by call or text. A text vote goes to 53125 in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, with the celebrity's name as the message.
Call votes use a line tied to each celebrity, with a separate line for Northern Ireland. RTÉ says the voting lines open after all celebrity contestants have performed their first dance and close later the same night, during the same show. RTÉ also states a per-vote charge for text votes, which this page does not reproduce. The notice checked was written for an earlier series. Text numbers differ by country: 21523 in the United States and 53125 in Ireland.
What the ABC vote checks and what the rules leave unsaid
Few checks are described in the sources checked. Online, a voter signs in where required, is 18 or older and is physically in the United States or Canada. By text, the phone is on a participating US wireless carrier. Either way, the vote has to land inside the live window.
How ABC detects a fake vote, and what it does with one, is not described in the sources checked. They state no penalty, no removal of votes and no disqualification procedure, so none is described here. What they do state are the platform rules listed below, and each is a condition a vote either meets or misses.
The sources checked also say nothing about how fan votes feed into a result, so this page describes no scoring and no elimination rules.
- Voters 18 or older, physically in the US or Canada
- Sign-in through ABC's website or app, where required
- Up to 10 online votes and 10 text votes per couple
- Text votes only from a participating US wireless carrier
- Voting only during the live broadcast window
| Point | Online | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Where the vote goes | Official DWTS voting website or ABC's app | SMS keyword sent to 21523 |
| Who can vote | 18 or older, physically in the US or Canada | Phone on a participating US wireless carrier |
| Sign-in | ABC account or TV-provider credentials, where required | Not described in the sources checked |
| Allowance per couple | Up to 10 votes | Up to 10 votes |
| When it is open | Live broadcast window only | Live broadcast window only |
| When it closes | Shortly after the final competitive dance | Shortly after the final competitive dance |
Do this in order
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Enter through the ABC website or app
Open the official DWTS voting website or ABC's app. Online voters must be 18 or older and physically in the United States or Canada, and sign-in, where required, uses a free ABC account or TV-provider credentials.
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Sign in and choose your couples
Create an account or log in, select the celebrity or couple to support and click Save Votes. The allowance is up to 10 online votes for each couple.
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Text the couple's keyword to 21523
For a text vote, send the couple's SMS keyword to 21523 from a phone on a participating US wireless carrier. The allowance is up to 10 text votes for each couple.
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Vote inside the live window
Voting begins each weekly episode at 8 p.m. ET and closes shortly after the final competitive dance. It runs only during the initial simulcast on ABC and Disney+ in the Eastern and Central time zones.
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Check later dates with ABC
The sources checked give no date after the September 15 and 16, 2026 premiere. Confirm the schedule, the finale and any change to the rules on ABC's website or app.
Fast answers
How to vote for Dancing with the Stars?
Vote on the official DWTS voting website or in ABC's app, or text a couple's SMS keyword to 21523, during the live broadcast. Online voters sign in where required, must be 18 or older and must be physically in the United States or Canada. Text voting requires a participating US wireless carrier.
How many times can you vote for Dancing with the Stars?
Each fan can submit up to 10 votes online and 10 votes by text for each couple, a total of 20 votes per couple. The cap is written per couple in the organiser's own wording. The sources checked do not say whether it resets at each weekly episode.
Dancing with the Stars voting: how does it work?
Voting opens with the live broadcast at 8 p.m. ET and closes shortly after the final competitive dance of each episode. Fans vote online through ABC's website or app, or by text to 21523, and neither method works during later broadcasts or streaming. Each method has its own cap of 10 votes per couple.
When does voting end for DWTS?
Voting ends shortly after the final competitive dance of each weekly episode, so the closing moment depends on when that dance ends. The sources checked give no fixed clock time for it. Later dates, including the finale, can be confirmed on ABC's website and app.
How to vote for DWTS on Disney Plus?
Voting is open during the initial simulcast on ABC and Disney+ in the Eastern and Central time zones, and the official methods are ABC's website, ABC's app and text. The sources checked describe no voting screen inside Disney+, and voting is not available during later broadcasts or streaming.
How to vote for DWTS in Canada online?
Canadian viewers vote online through the official DWTS voting website or ABC's app, because online voting is open to voters physically in the United States, its territories or Canada. Voters must be 18 or older. Text voting requires a participating US wireless carrier, and the sources checked name no Canadian carrier.
What number do you text to vote for Dancing with the Stars?
Text votes go to 21523, sent as the couple's SMS keyword during the live voting window. The keyword is specific to each couple, and the keywords are listed with the official voting instructions. Text voting requires a participating US wireless carrier.
How to vote for Dancing with the Stars in Ireland?
RTÉ says fans can vote for a favourite contestant by call or text. A text vote goes to 53125 in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, with the celebrity's name as the message. Call votes use a line tied to each celebrity, and RTÉ also states a per-vote charge, which this page does not reproduce.
References
- supportabc.zendesk.com. supportabc.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53645776425236-Dancing-with-the-Stars-on-ABC-and-Disney.
- supportabc.zendesk.com. supportabc.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53645776425236-Dancing-with-the-Stars-on-ABC-and-Disney.
- people.com. people.com/how-to-vote-dancing-with-the-stars-11810108.
- hindustantimes.com. hindustantimes.com/entertainment/tv/dancing-with-the-stars-35-text-voting-number-how-many-times-can-you-vote-online-and-by-sms-101789519427499.html.
- supportabc.zendesk.com. supportabc.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53645776425236-Dancing-with-the-Stars-on-ABC-and-Disney.
The organiser sets each voting window, counts the votes and rules on any vote it finds invalid, and this page cannot change a count, a ranking or a result. A purchase of votes for any contest or poll, Dancing with the Stars included, does not alter the sign-in, the age and location rules or the per-couple allowance, and no method beyond the stated ones is accepted.
Each organiser's own terms decide which votes are valid, and an organiser can void votes or disqualify an entry. ITV's Love Island terms limit each registered mobile number to one vote per voting event and rule out any method the terms do not state. America's Got Talent asks voters to register and accept its official voting rules, with a cap of ten votes per act, per voting method, per voting window. The American Music Awards decided each winner by the total of valid votes in the category.
Organisers write an ordinary voter down in numbers. The American Music Awards allowed up to 30 votes per award per day on each voting platform, the NASCAR All-Star Race fan vote allowed five a day per unique email address, and the iHeartRadio Music Awards allowed 50 a day per category. A crowd of separate voters stays inside limits like these and arrives day by day, with busier days when an organiser opens a boost. This describes how organisers count; it is not a way around a check.
We give no legal advice and cite no statute: the terms that bind a fan vote are the organiser's own, and they fix who may vote. Dancing with the Stars online voters must be at least 18 and in the United States, its territories or Canada; Love Island USA voting is open to US residents aged 18 or older, or with parental permission. We refuse member-only ballots such as the ACM Awards, categories an organiser decides itself, as MTV did with Best Video, and any vote for public office.
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The part of a request that is not delivered before the organiser's voting closes is refunded. A result, a disqualification and a voided vote are never refunded, because the organiser decides all three. Nor is a vote's worth inside the format covered: the MLB All-Star ballot did not carry Phase 1 totals into Phase 2, and at The Game Awards fan voting is one tenth of the vote that decides winners.