Recording law · United States
Can I record a call in Washington State?
Not without everyone agreeing. Washington requires the consent of all parties to record a private communication, and treats consent as given when the recording is announced to everyone and the announcement is recorded.
All-party consent
General information, not legal advice. Last reviewed October 2026. Laws change and facts differ; check before you rely on any line here, and ask a lawyer licensed where you record for anything that matters.
Is Washington a one-party or all-party consent state?
All-party consent. Everyone has to consent, and consent counts as given when the recording is announced to everyone and the announcement is itself recorded.
- The announcement has to be made in a reasonably effective way to all parties, and it has to be part of the recording.
- In practice: start recording, then say that the call is being recorded. That sentence on the recording is your record of consent.
- Information obtained in breach of the statute is generally inadmissible in court.
Federal law (18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(d)) allows a participant to record unless the recording is made to commit a crime or a tort. State law can ask for more.
The law
- RCW 9.73.030 (intercepting or recording private communication)
- RCW 9.73.060 (civil action)
- RCW 9.73.080 (penalties)
A violation is a gross misdemeanour, and the person recorded can bring a civil claim.
When the others are somewhere else
The announce-and-record method also satisfies most other all-party places, which makes it a sensible default for any call. Video meetings are treated like phone calls, and the strictest rule that applies to anyone on the call is the one to follow.
Do I have to tell people I'm recording a call in Washington State?
Yes. Start recording, then say before anything else that the call is being recorded, so the announcement is on the recording. Say it again when someone joins late.
“Quick note before we start: I’m recording and transcribing this meeting on my own machine for my notes. It isn’t shared with anyone unless I send it to you. Let me know if you’d rather I didn’t.”
How Recordist fits
- One-party consent covers only conversations you take part in. Recordist records whatever your microphone picks up and whatever plays through your computer's sound output, so it can also record a call or a room you aren't part of, and that needs the consent the law sets for it. No bot joins the call.
- By default it asks before it records a call. A detected call is recorded only after you click Record, unless you add that app to Record without asking for in Settings → Detection or allow agents to start recordings in Settings → Integrations; both are off by default. The confirm card shows a one-line reminder that consent is your responsibility, so keep the sentence above to hand.
- The notice is still yours to give. Software cannot give consent for the other people. In Washington State, tell them and get their agreement first.