---
title: "Area code 281: Texas, United States"
url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/281.md"
canonical_url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/281"
last_updated: "2026-10-23"
type: "reference"
summary: "Area code 281 serves Texas, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in Texas."
---

# Area code 281: Texas, United States

Area code 281 serves Texas, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in Texas.

NANPA lists 786 central office codes (prefixes) in use in area code 281, held by 27 holders across 45 rate centers.
Southwestern Bell holds the most prefixes, 283 (36%). 58% of the prefixes are pooled, which means their thousands-blocks can belong to different companies.
The FCC unwanted-call data has 5,104 complaints on file for 3,551 numbers in 281, most often filed as "Unwanted Calls". These are consumer reports, not findings.

## Facts

- In service since: 1996-11-02
- Time zone: Central (C)
- Assigned overlays: 713 (1947-01-01), 832 (1999-01-16), 346 (2014-07-01), 621 (2025-01-23)
- Prefixes in use: 786
- Pooled prefixes: 453 (58%)
- Rate centers: 45
- Companies holding prefixes: 27
- Assignment dates on file: 2001-04-27 to 2026-02-06 (102 prefixes)
- ZIP codes in its places: 239

## Rate centers

| Rate center | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| HOUSTON | 148 | 19% |
| HSTNSUBURB | 131 | 17% |
| BAMMEL | 60 | 8% |
| SUGAR LAND | 44 | 6% |
| SPRING | 35 | 4% |
| APOLLO | 28 | 4% |
| HUMBLE | 24 | 3% |
| LANGHAMCRK | 24 | 3% |
| 37 other rate centers | 292 | 37% |

## Carriers

| Holder | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Southwestern Bell | 283 | 36% |
| Verizon Wireless | 66 | 8% |
| Frontier Comm Of Texas | 57 | 7% |
| New Cingular Wireless PCS | 50 | 6% |
| Windstream Sugar Land | 38 | 5% |
| Mcimetro Access Transmission Services | 33 | 4% |
| 21 other carriers | 259 | 33% |

A prefix holder is the company a code was assigned to, not necessarily a number's current carrier, because numbers can be ported to another company.

## History

- 1947-01-01: Area code 713, named as the parent of 281 in the NANPA report, was in service.
- 1996-11-02: Area code 281 went into service.

## Nearest area codes

The area codes closest to 281, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 979 (about 53 miles), 936 (about 73 miles), 409 (about 78 miles), 512 (about 144 miles) and 737 (about 144 miles).

## ZIP codes

239 ZIP codes fall in places that have a rate center in this area code. The places with the most are Houston, TX (178 ZIP codes), Spring, TX (12 ZIP codes) and Katy, TX (6 ZIP codes). A ZIP code and an area code are unrelated systems, so a ZIP code can sit in more than one area code and an area code spans many ZIP codes.

## Complaints on file

5,104 complaints for 3,551 numbers. Numbers whose latest complaint falls in each year:

- 2023: 107
- 2024: 184
- 2025: 151

## Questions

### Where is area code 281?

NANPA assigns area code 281 to Texas, United States.

### In which state does area code 281 sit?

Texas. 281 is one of 29 area codes the NANPA table assigns to the state.

### Which places does area code 281 cover?

The places with the most ZIP codes among the rate centers in 281 are Houston, TX, Spring, TX and Katy, TX. The rate center list on this page shows all of them.

### Who owns area code 281?

NANPA assigns area codes. Within 281, Southwestern Bell holds the most prefixes, 283 prefixes or 36%.

### Which time zone does 281 use?

The NANPA NPA report lists the time zone for 281 as Central (C).

### What year did 281 enter service?

The NANPA NPA report gives an in-service date of 1996-11-02, so 281 has been in use since 1996.

### Does area code 281 have an overlay?

Yes. 713 (in service 1947-01-01), 832 (in service 1999-01-16), 346 (in service 2014-07-01) and 621 (in service 2025-01-23) share the same area with 281, so numbers from all of them are local to each other.

### Which area codes are nearest to 281?

The area codes closest to 281, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 979 (about 53 miles), 936 (about 73 miles), 409 (about 78 miles), 512 (about 144 miles) and 737 (about 144 miles).

### How many prefixes does area code 281 have?

NANPA's report dated 2026-10-17 lists 786 prefixes in service in 281, spread over 45 rate centers and 27 holders.

### Are there complaints about 281 numbers?

The FCC data on file has 5,104 complaints for 3,551 numbers in 281. They are unverified consumer reports. A number with no complaints on file is not proven safe.

Sources: NANPA central office code report dated 2026-10-17; NANPA NPA report dated 2026-10-18; FCC unwanted-call complaints, data fetched 2026-10-17; ZIP code places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).