Area code 202 – District of Columbia
202 is one of the original area codes, in service across District of Columbia since 1947. All but a handful of its 786 number blocks are allocated (784 of 786), so it is effectively exhausted. Verizon is the largest holder with 57.1% of blocks, ahead of AT&T at 8.7%. It shares its geography with overlay codes 771, so local calls take all ten digits. It is also among the most imitated codes in spam calls: 1,377 FTC complaints named a 202 caller ID in the 33 days to 30 October 2026, ranking 10th of 422 ranked codes. All of its numbers sit in a single telephone rate center covering the whole area.
- State
- District of Columbia
- In service since
- 1947
- Time zone
- Eastern
- Shares area with
- 771
Who holds 202 number blocks
Share of the 784 assigned NXX blocks (99.7% of the 786 possible), across 37 carriers. This is share of number blocks, not of subscribers.
- Verizon57.1%
- T-Mobile12.4%
- AT&T8.7%
- Onvoy4.3%
- Lumen4%
- Bandwidth3.7%
- Other CLEC / VoIP3.2%
- Windstream2.4%
- Spok1.8%
- Charter0.5%
- Peerless0.5%
- Vonage0.4%
- Telnyx0.4%
- American Messaging0.3%
- Comcast0.1%
- 8x80.1%
- VoIP Innovations0.1%
Spam complaints naming 202
FTC Do Not Call complaints where the caller ID was a 202 number, 28 Sep – 30 Oct 2026 (33 days). Caller IDs on spam calls are frequently spoofed, so these are complaints about the code, not calls proven to originate in it.
Rate centers in 202
NANPA allocates number blocks to rate centers and records their names abbreviated to ten characters, so these are NANPA's codes rather than place names – CHAMPAURBN is Champaign-Urbana, NWYRCYZN01 is a New York City zone. We show them unchanged instead of guessing at the full names. This code has a single rate center covering its whole area.
Timeline
- 1947 202 assigned in the original North American Numbering Plan.
More about 202
Separate pages for the questions that need their own answer: what time it is there, what the complaint data says, who holds the number blocks, and how the code compares with the one it shares its area with.
Frequently asked about 202
What state is area code 202?
District of Columbia. It covers the same area as 202/771.
Can I still get a 202 number?
Only from recycled stock. 784 of the 786 available blocks are already allocated, so new numbers in the area normally come from the overlay codes (202/771).
Is a call from 202 a scam?
202 is one of the most complained-about codes in the country – 1,377 FTC complaints in the 33 days to 30 October 2026, 10th of 422 ranked codes. Most of those calls are spoofed: the caller fakes a local-looking number because it gets answered more often. Look up the specific number rather than judging by the code.
Which carrier owns 202 numbers?
Verizon holds the largest share of assigned number blocks at 57.1%. The rest is spread across 3 other carriers. This is share of number blocks, not of subscribers – people keep their numbers when they switch carriers.
Do I need to dial 10 digits in 202?
Yes – ten digits for local calls in 202, because it shares its area with another code.
Sources and verification
- NANPA – NPA Database (npa_report.csv), file date 11/01/2026, retrieved Nov 1, 2026
- NANPA – CO Code Assignment Records, All States (utilized), file updated 11/01/2026, retrieved Nov 1, 2026
- FTC – Do Not Call Reported Calls Data, 25 daily files 28 Sep – 30 Oct 2026, retrieved Nov 1, 2026
NANPA dialing note for this code: “10D”. Reviewed by the data desk. Spotted an error? Request a correction.