Free Guide to Finding FTC Regional Offices for Complaints

What the FTC Is and Why Its Regional Offices Matter

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is a government agency that watches over how businesses treat consumers. It enforces laws about unfair business practices, false advertising, data privacy, and fraud. When a company breaks these rules—whether by scamming people, stealing personal information, or making false claims—the FTC investigates and takes action.

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But here's something many people don't realize: the FTC isn't just one office in Washington, D.C. It has regional offices spread across the country. These regional offices handle complaints and investigations for their specific areas. If you've had a problem with a business and want to report it to the FTC, knowing which regional office covers your location matters. It can mean your complaint reaches the right people faster and gets handled by someone familiar with your state's laws and local business practices.

The FTC received more than 2.8 million consumer complaints in 2023 alone, according to its official reports. That's a lot of complaints flowing into the system. Many of these complaints come through the FTC's online platform, but they get routed to the appropriate regional office based on where the consumer lives or where the business operates. Understanding this system helps you know where your complaint actually goes and who will be looking at it.

Each regional office has its own focus areas and staff who specialize in different types of violations. Some offices might have stronger fraud divisions, while others focus heavily on data privacy issues. Knowing which office serves your area also gives you insight into what kinds of cases they typically handle and how they approach investigations. This information shapes how you describe your complaint and what evidence matters most.

Takeaway: The FTC's regional office system means complaints get investigated by people who know your local market. Learning which office serves your area helps you understand the pathway your complaint will take through the system.

The Six FTC Regional Offices and Their Coverage Areas

The FTC divides the United States into six regions, each with its own regional office. Knowing which one covers your state is your starting point. Here's how they break down:

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• Northeast Regional Office (New York): Covers Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and West Virginia. This office handles some of the FTC's highest-volume complaint areas, partly because the region includes major financial centers and dense populations.
• Southeast Regional Office (Atlanta): Covers Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. The Southeast office manages a significant portion of complaints related to real estate fraud and predatory lending, reflecting common issues in the region.
• Midwest Regional Office (Chicago): Covers Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. This region sees substantial complaints about telemarketing fraud and robocalls.
• Southwest Regional Office (Dallas): Covers Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. This office frequently handles cases involving border-related fraud and identity theft issues.
• Western Regional Office (Los Angeles): Covers California, Hawaii, and Nevada. Given California's size and technology industry concentration, this office manages massive complaint volumes and specializes in tech-related complaints, including data breaches and privacy violations.
• Pacific Regional Office (Seattle): Covers Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. This smaller office handles region-specific issues like environmental fraud and online marketplace complaints.

Your location determines which office receives your complaint, but here's an important detail: if the business you're complaining about is located in a different state or region, your complaint might still go to their regional office. The FTC coordinates across regions to make sure investigations happen where they're most effective.

Takeaway: Locate your state in the regional office list above. That's where your complaint will be directed, regardless of where you submit it online. Knowing this helps you understand who will investigate your case.

How to Find Contact Information for Your Regional Office

The FTC maintains a public directory of its regional offices, and finding the specific contact details for yours takes just a few minutes. The main path is through the FTC's official website at ftc.gov. On their website, they have a dedicated page listing all regional offices with phone numbers, mailing addresses, and office locations.

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When you visit ftc.gov and navigate to the "Contact Us" section, you'll see options to reach different parts of the FTC. Look specifically for the regional office directory. From there, you can find:

• Street addresses for in-person visits (though many people handle this by mail or phone)
• Phone numbers for your specific region, usually staffed during business hours
• Fax numbers for submitting documents
• Email addresses for specific departments within regional offices
• Information about what types of complaints each office prioritizes

The Northeast Regional Office in New York, for example, is located at 33 Whitehall Street. If you're in Pennsylvania and want to call about a complaint, you'd call the Northeast office number. The office is open Monday through Friday, typically from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., though hours vary slightly by office.

Another reliable way to find this information is through your state attorney general's office website. Many state AGs have links to the FTC regional office that serves their state, along with contact details. This can be helpful if you want a backup source for the information or if you're deciding whether to file with your state AG or the FTC (or both, which is often possible).

When you call a regional office, don't expect to speak to an investigator immediately. You'll typically reach an information line or administrative staff who can answer questions about how to file a complaint, what information you'll need, and whether your issue falls under FTC jurisdiction. These staff members can also tell you if your complaint might be better handled by a different agency.

Takeaway: Start at ftc.gov's regional office directory. Have your state name ready, and you'll find the phone number, address, and email for the office that covers your area within minutes.

What Information You'll Need Before Contacting a Regional Office

When you reach out to an FTC regional office about a complaint, having your information organized makes the conversation clearer and faster. The FTC's system—both when you contact them and when you file online—asks for specific details. Having these ready before you call or write shows the office you're serious about the complaint and gives them what they need to determine if they can investigate.

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Start with details about the business:

• The company's full name and any "doing business as" names it uses
• The website address, if the business operates online
• The physical address, phone number, or mailing address where you dealt with the business
• The names of any employees or representatives you interacted with

Next, gather details about your transaction and complaint:

• The date or date range when the problem occurred
• How much money was involved (if any)
• A clear description of what happened—what the business promised versus what actually occurred
• Copies of receipts, contracts, emails, text messages, or any written communication with the business
• Evidence of the false claim, whether that's a screenshot of an advertisement, a recording of a sales pitch, or a print-out of a website page

Then, prepare your personal information:

• Your full name and contact information
• How the problem affected you specifically
• Whether other people had similar problems (if you know of others)

The FTC takes complaints more seriously when they include documentation. If a company made a false claim in writing—whether online or on paper—that's more powerful than just describing what happened. Screenshots have value, as do emails or messages that show what the company promised. If you have