GoHighLevel DND Settings: Unsubscribes & Opt-Outs (2026)

By Dr Priya Jaganathan, GoHighLevel Certified Admin · HL Growth Partner, Australia · Updated 5 October 2026 · 9 min read

Getting your GoHighLevel DND settings right is the quiet difference between a clean, trusted database and a sub-account that keeps messaging people who have already said no. Most agencies set up DND once, then forget it until a client forwards an angry reply.

This guide walks through how HighLevel Do Not Disturb actually works in 2026, how to wire it into unsubscribes and opt-outs, and the audit habits I use with Australian clients so every channel respects a contact's choice.

What GoHighLevel DND settings actually control

DND is a per-contact switch, not a global account setting. It lives on the contact record and tells HighLevel which channels must stay silent for that one person.

You can turn on "DND all channels" to silence everything, or toggle individual channels. The current channel list is:

• Email
• SMS
• Calls
• Facebook Messenger
• Google Business Profile (GMB) messaging
• WhatsApp

Because each channel is separate, a contact can unsubscribe from your emails and still be reachable by SMS for appointment reminders. That flexibility is useful, but it also means you need a clear rule for which opt-out maps to which channel.

Per-channel vs all-channel DND

Per-channel DND should be your default response to a channel-specific opt-out. If someone clicks unsubscribe in an email, they have told you about email, not about the SMS reminder for tomorrow's appointment.

All-channel DND is for the clear "stop contacting me" situations: a formal complaint, an explicit request across every channel, or a contact you never had consent to message. When in doubt about intent, err towards honouring the broader request.

HighLevel Do Not Disturb: inbound vs outbound direction

The "DND Contact" workflow action lets you set DND for inbound or outbound direction, which most builders overlook. Direction matters because an opt-out from marketing is rarely a request to be ignored.

A common pattern is to block outbound marketing while keeping inbound replies open. The contact stops receiving your campaigns, but if they text back next month asking to rebook, the message still lands in the Conversations inbox and your team can respond.

Blocking inbound as well is a heavier move. Reserve it for abusive contacts or genuine spam sources, and document why in a contact note so nobody reverses it by accident.

The official walkthrough of the action and its options is in the HighLevel help centre article on the DND Contact workflow action, which is worth bookmarking for your team.

Unsubscribes, opt-outs and the Spam Act

For Australian operators, DND is how you put the Spam Act 2003 into practice inside HighLevel. ACMA's guidance on avoiding sending spam sets out the unsubscribe rules every commercial electronic message must follow.

• Every commercial message needs a functional unsubscribe option.
• Unsubscribe requests must be honoured within 5 working days.
• The unsubscribe must keep working for at least 30 days after the message is sent.
• Unsubscribing must be free of charge.
• People cannot be required to log in, create an account or hand over extra personal information to unsubscribe.

This article explains how to configure HighLevel; it is not legal advice, so confirm your specific obligations with ACMA guidance or a qualified adviser.

Email unsubscribe links

Make sure every marketing email template carries an unsubscribe link in the footer, and test it from a real inbox before the campaign goes out. Click it, then open the test contact and confirm Email DND is now on.

Unsubscribe handling also feeds deliverability. Mailbox providers watch complaint rates, so an easy, working unsubscribe protects your sending reputation; my email deliverability checklist covers the rest of that picture.

SMS opt-outs

A STOP-style reply to SMS is treated as an opt-out. Test what your number's carrier or LC Phone does in your own sub-account before relying on it, and confirm that SMS DND appears on the contact afterwards.

For the wider Australian picture on sender IDs, consent and message content, read my guide to SMS compliance in Australia alongside this one.

Automate GoHighLevel DND settings with workflows

Manual DND toggles do not scale across dozens of sub-accounts. The fix is two building blocks: the "DND Contact" action to set status, and the "Contact DND" trigger to react when it changes.

Use the Contact DND trigger to react fast

The "Contact DND" trigger fires whenever a contact's DND status changes, whether the change came from an unsubscribe click, a staff member, the mobile app or another workflow. That makes it the single place to hang your opt-out follow-up.

A practical opt-out workflow I build for clients looks like this:

• Trigger: Contact DND, filtered to the channel you care about.
• Remove the contact from active nurture and marketing workflows.
• Add a tag such as dnd-email or dnd-sms with the date in a custom field.
• Send an internal notification to the account owner so a human knows.
• Add a contact note recording the source of the opt-out.

Use trigger filters carefully so a DND change on one channel does not fire the wrong branch. My write-up on workflow trigger filters shows how to keep these conditions tight.

Sync DND to tags and smart lists for reporting

DND status on its own is hard to report on. Mirroring it into tags gives you a visible, filterable record and lets you build a saved DND smart list per channel for weekly review.

Set up one list for all-channel DND and one for each channel you actively market on. If you are new to segmenting, my guide to smart lists and segments walks through the filters.

Transactional vs marketing messages

Not every message is marketing. Appointment confirmations, invoices and service updates the contact requested behave differently from promotional campaigns, and your build should treat them differently.

Keep marketing and transactional workflows clearly separated by name and folder. That way a per-channel opt-out from your newsletter does not leave you wondering whether the booking reminder should still send.

Be conservative here. If a so-called reminder includes an upsell or promotion, treat it as commercial content that must respect the opt-out, and check ACMA guidance if you are unsure where a message falls.

Handling re-opt-in with consent records

People do come back. A past client might fill in a new enquiry form or text asking to be added to your offers again.

Never flip DND off just because a contact reappears. Record the fresh consent first: the form submission, a checkbox with clear wording, or a written reply, plus the date and channel.

Then use the "DND Contact" action to disable DND only for the channels they consented to, and remove the matching opt-out tag. A contact note with the consent source gives you an audit trail if anyone asks later.

Map DND on CSV import

Imports are where opt-outs most often get lost. A client exports from an old CRM, the unsubscribe column gets ignored, and suddenly hundreds of people who opted out years ago are back on the list.

Before importing, ask for the previous system's opt-out and unsubscribe fields, and map DND during the CSV import rather than fixing it afterwards. My contact import mapping guide covers column matching in detail.

After the import, spot-check a handful of known opt-outs in the new sub-account and confirm the right channels show DND before any campaign is scheduled.

Audit habits that keep HighLevel Do Not Disturb honest

DND drifts over time as staff make manual changes and new workflows get added. A light routine catches most problems early.

• Weekly: review the DND smart lists for unexpected spikes or drops.
• Monthly: send a test campaign to an internal contact with DND on and confirm nothing arrives.
• Quarterly: test the unsubscribe link in every active email template and a STOP-style SMS reply on each sending number.
• On every new snapshot: check the opt-out workflow is present and published.

Train your team to use the mobile app's DND and block options when a caller or texter asks to stop. It takes one tap from call screens, logs and conversations, and the Contact DND trigger will handle the rest.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Applying all-channel DND for an email unsubscribe, then losing the ability to send legitimate service messages.
• Blocking inbound as well as outbound, so a contact who wants to rebook cannot reach you.
• Importing contacts without mapping the old system's opt-out fields.
• Turning DND off for a returning contact without recording fresh consent.
• Leaving opt-out workflows in draft after loading a new snapshot.
• Never testing the unsubscribe link or STOP-style reply in a live sub-account.

If you want a DND and opt-out workflow built and tested across your sub-accounts, book a strategy call with the HL Growth Partner team.

Book Your Strategy Call →

Frequently asked questions

What are GoHighLevel DND settings?

GoHighLevel DND settings are per-contact switches that stop communication on specific channels. You can enable DND on all channels at once or individually on Email, SMS, Calls, Facebook Messenger, Google Business Profile messaging and WhatsApp.

Can I stop marketing messages but still receive replies from a contact?

Yes. The DND Contact workflow action lets you set DND for the outbound direction only. Your campaigns stop, but the contact can still message you and the conversation will reach your team.

How do I trigger a workflow when someone unsubscribes?

Use the Contact DND workflow trigger, which fires when a contact's DND status changes. From there you can remove the contact from campaigns, add a tag and notify your team.

How quickly must I process an unsubscribe in Australia?

ACMA guidance under the Spam Act 2003 says unsubscribe requests must be honoured within 5 working days. The unsubscribe option must also keep working for at least 30 days after the message is sent.

Does a STOP reply to an SMS set DND automatically?

A STOP-style reply to SMS is treated as an opt-out. Test what your number's carrier or LC Phone does in your own sub-account and confirm SMS DND appears on the contact before relying on it.

How do I keep opt-outs when importing contacts from another CRM?

Ask for the old system's unsubscribe and opt-out fields and map them to DND during the CSV import. Then spot-check a few known opt-outs before scheduling any campaign.

Can I remove DND if a contact opts back in?

Yes, but record fresh consent first, including the source, date and channel. Then disable DND only for the channels the contact agreed to and add a note to the contact record.

Is this guide legal advice?

No. It explains how to configure HighLevel features, and you should confirm your obligations with ACMA guidance or a qualified adviser.

Related Articles on HL Growth Partner

Email and SMS deliverability

• Mailgun setup for GoHighLevel email deliverability
• Running two-way SMS conversations in GoHighLevel
• GoHighLevel WhatsApp integration guide

CRM hygiene and segmentation

• Tag strategy and naming conventions
• Merging and preventing duplicate contacts

Campaigns and team workflow

• Database reactivation campaign setup
• Managing the Conversations inbox as a team