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Area code 281

Area code 281 serves Texas, including Houston, Houston Suburban and Bammel (Central time). It has been in service since November 2, 1996 and shares its area with 346, 621, 713 and 832.

Numbers starting with 281 drew 2,752 reports to the FTC from Aug 14, 2026 to Nov 11, 2026 and 884 complaints to the FCC since November 2023. The number on your screen can be faked, so a 281 number proves nothing about where a call came from.

Location
TexasHouston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area
Time zone
Central
In service since
November 2, 1996Created from 713
Overlay
Same area as 346, 621, 713, 832
Local calls
Dial 10 digitsArea code needed, even next door
Exchanges in use
786 of 792held by 28 carriers
Projected to run out
2Q 2041NANPA forecast 2026.2

Complaints about 281 numbers

Reports where the number on the consumer's caller ID (or, for the FCC, the number the caller asked them to call back) starts with 281. These are counts of what people reported; the agencies do not verify them.

FTC reports, Aug 14, 2026 to Nov 11, 2026

2,752

FCC complaints since November 2023

884

Different 281 numbers reported

3,342

FCC complaints naming a 281 number, by month

November 2023 to October 2026. Source: FCC Consumer Complaints Data.

Show as a table
MonthComplaints
November 202328
December 202320
January 202421
February 202416
March 202427
April 202429
May 202435
June 202430
July 202418
August 202426
September 202422
October 202435
November 202428
December 202418
January 202525
February 202512
March 202524
April 202520
May 202518
June 202526
July 202528
August 202522
September 202515
October 20251
November 202521
December 202519
January 202617
February 202625
March 202618
April 202635
May 202629
June 202625
July 202617
August 202624
September 202647
October 202646

What people said 281 calls were about

Subjects picked in FTC reports, August 14, 2026 to November 11, 2026. 1,472 of 2,752 reports were robocalls.

Show as a table
SubjectReports
Other1,329
Medical and prescriptions358
Calls pretending to be government, businesses, or family and friends343
Dropped call or no message323
Reducing your debt (credit cards, mortgage, student loans)127
Warranties and protection plans47

Most reported 281 numbers

Numbers with at least five reports from three or more places in the last twelve months. Many of them are likely spoofed.

Places served by 281

NANPA lists 45 rate centers for 281. A rate center is the town or district a block of numbers is tied to for billing; sorted here by how many exchanges each holds.
  • Houston148
  • Houston Suburban131
  • Bammel60
  • Sugar Land44
  • Spring35
  • Apollo28
  • Humble24
  • Langham Creek24
  • Baytown21
  • Barker20
  • Tomball19
  • Kemah18
  • Satsuma18
  • Katy16
  • Westfield14
  • Deer Park12
  • Friendswood11
  • Richmond-Rosenberg11
  • Dickinson10
  • League City9
  • Alvin8
  • Channelview8
  • Cleveland8
  • La Porte8
Show all 45 rate centers

Cypress, Pinehurst, Stafford, Arcola, Beach City, Manvel, Seabrook, Sheldon, Crosby, Highlands, Porter, Rosharon, Mont Belvieu, Porter Heights, Smithers Lake, Splendora, Brookshire, Huffman, Liverpool, Valley Lodge, Missouri City.

Phone companies holding 281 exchanges

Each exchange (the three digits after the area code) is assigned to one carrier. 58% of these exchanges are pooled: their numbers are handed out in blocks of 1,000 to other carriers, so the holder below is not always the company serving a given number.

Exchanges held, top 8 of 28 carriers

NANPA central office code assignments, file of November 11, 2026.

Show as a table
Carrier (legal name)Exchanges
Southwestern Bell283
Cellco Partnership dba Verizon Wireless - TX66
Frontier Southwest Inc dba Frontier Comm of Texas57
New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC - IL50
Windstream Sugar Land, LLC38
Onvoy, LLC - TX32
Mcimetro Access Transmission Services LLC - TX31
Level 3 Communications, LLC - TX30

When today's 281 exchanges were assigned

Exchanges still assigned, by year of assignment. Exchanges returned since are not counted.

Show as a table
YearExchanges
200110
20028
20032
20042
20055
200627
200714
20081
20091
20101
20114
20123
20132
20143
20151
20173
20193
20204
20211
20222
20232
20241
20251
20261

Check a 281 number

A check shows the carrier and rate center of the number's exchange and every FTC and FCC report about that exact number. Why the number on screen can be fake.

Other area codes in Texas

NANPA area code database and central office code file of November 11, 2026; FCC complaints November 1, 2023 to November 11, 2026; FTC reports August 14, 2026 to November 11, 2026. How the data is used.

Official sources (7)Show