---
title: "Area code 318: Louisiana, United States"
url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/318.md"
canonical_url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/318"
last_updated: "2026-10-23"
type: "reference"
summary: "Area code 318 serves Louisiana, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in Louisiana."
---

# Area code 318: Louisiana, United States

Area code 318 serves Louisiana, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in Louisiana.

NANPA lists 761 central office codes (prefixes) in use in area code 318, held by 51 holders across 119 rate centers.
South Central Bell Tel holds the most prefixes, 208 (27%). 78% of the prefixes are pooled, which means their thousands-blocks can belong to different companies.
The FCC unwanted-call data has 2,489 complaints on file for 2,192 numbers in 318, most often filed as "Unwanted Calls". These are consumer reports, not findings.

## Facts

- In service since: 1957-01-01
- Time zone: Central (C)
- Assigned overlays: 457 (2025-09-25)
- Prefixes in use: 761
- Pooled prefixes: 595 (78%)
- Rate centers: 119
- Companies holding prefixes: 51
- Assignment dates on file: 2001-01-09 to 2026-02-27 (387 prefixes)
- ZIP codes in its places: 148

## Rate centers

| Rate center | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SHREVEPORT | 172 | 23% |
| MONROE | 90 | 12% |
| ALEXANDRIA | 60 | 8% |
| RUSTON | 20 | 3% |
| NATCHITCHS | 19 | 2% |
| MINDEN | 13 | 2% |
| BASTROP | 12 | 2% |
| MARKSVILLE | 11 | 1% |
| 111 other rate centers | 364 | 48% |

## Carriers

| Holder | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| South Central Bell Tel | 208 | 27% |
| New Cingular Wireless PCS | 109 | 14% |
| Verizon Wireless | 78 | 10% |
| Onvoy | 55 | 7% |
| Eliska Wireless Ventures Subsidiary I | 41 | 5% |
| Level 3 Communications | 35 | 5% |
| 45 other carriers | 235 | 31% |

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

- 1957-01-01: Area code 318 went into service.
- 1999-10-11: Area code 337 went into service and names 318 as its parent.
- 2025-09-25: Area code 457 went into service as an overlay in the same area as 318.

## Nearest area codes

The area codes closest to 318, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 337 (about 135 miles), 903 (about 151 miles), 430 (about 152 miles), 225 (about 159 miles) and 409 (about 160 miles).

## ZIP codes

148 ZIP codes fall in places that have a rate center in this area code. The places with the most are Shreveport, LA (35 ZIP codes), Monroe, LA (10 ZIP codes) and Alexandria, LA (7 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

2,489 complaints for 2,192 numbers. Numbers whose latest complaint falls in each year:

- 2023: 61
- 2024: 62
- 2025: 1,003

## Questions

### Where is area code 318?

NANPA assigns area code 318 to Louisiana, United States.

### In which state does area code 318 sit?

Louisiana. 318 is one of 6 area codes the NANPA table assigns to the state.

### Which places does area code 318 cover?

The places with the most ZIP codes among the rate centers in 318 are Shreveport, LA, Monroe, LA and Alexandria, LA. The rate center list on this page shows all of them.

### Who owns area code 318?

NANPA assigns area codes. Within 318, South Central Bell Tel holds the most prefixes, 208 prefixes or 27%.

### Which time zone does 318 use?

The NANPA NPA report lists the time zone for 318 as Central (C).

### What year did 318 enter service?

The NANPA NPA report gives an in-service date of 1957-01-01, so 318 has been in use since 1957.

### Does area code 318 have an overlay?

Yes. 457 (in service 2025-09-25) shares the same area with 318, so numbers from all of them are local to each other.

### Which area codes are nearest to 318?

The area codes closest to 318, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 337 (about 135 miles), 903 (about 151 miles), 430 (about 152 miles), 225 (about 159 miles) and 409 (about 160 miles).

### How many prefixes does area code 318 have?

NANPA's report dated 2026-10-17 lists 761 prefixes in service in 318, spread over 119 rate centers and 51 holders.

### Are there complaints about 318 numbers?

The FCC data on file has 2,489 complaints for 2,192 numbers in 318. 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).