---
title: "Area code 805: California, United States"
url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/805.md"
canonical_url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/805"
last_updated: "2026-10-23"
type: "reference"
summary: "Area code 805 serves California, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in California."
---

# Area code 805: California, United States

Area code 805 serves California, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in California.

NANPA lists 786 central office codes (prefixes) in use in area code 805, held by 43 holders across 41 rate centers.
Frontier California holds the most prefixes, 140 (18%). 69% of the prefixes are pooled, which means their thousands-blocks can belong to different companies.
The FCC unwanted-call data has 3,809 complaints on file for 2,737 numbers in 805, most often filed as "Unwanted Calls". These are consumer reports, not findings.

## Facts

- In service since: 1957-01-01
- Time zone: Pacific (P)
- Assigned overlays: 820 (2018-06-30)
- Prefixes in use: 786
- Pooled prefixes: 540 (69%)
- Rate centers: 41
- Companies holding prefixes: 43
- Assignment dates on file: 2001-01-26 to 2024-05-31 (233 prefixes)
- ZIP codes in its places: 50

## Rate centers

| Rate center | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SANBARBARA | 86 | 11% |
| OXNARD | 75 | 10% |
| SNLUSOBSPO | 71 | 9% |
| THOUSAOAKS | 64 | 8% |
| SANTAMARIA | 45 | 6% |
| SIMIVALLEY | 43 | 5% |
| CAMARILLO | 36 | 5% |
| VNTRA EAST | 36 | 5% |
| 33 other rate centers | 330 | 42% |

## Carriers

| Holder | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Frontier California | 140 | 18% |
| Pacific Bell | 115 | 15% |
| Verizon Wireless | 100 | 13% |
| New Cingular Wireless PCS | 84 | 11% |
| T-Mobile USA | 54 | 7% |
| Onvoy | 34 | 4% |
| 37 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 213, named as the parent of 805 in the NANPA report, was in service.
- 1957-01-01: Area code 805 went into service.
- 1999-02-13: Area code 661 went into service and names 805 as its parent.
- 2018-06-30: Area code 820 went into service as an overlay in the same area as 805.

## Nearest area codes

The area codes closest to 805, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 661 (about 69 miles), 747 (about 86 miles), 818 (about 86 miles), 424 (about 99 miles) and 310 (about 100 miles).

## ZIP codes

50 ZIP codes fall in places that have a rate center in this area code. The places with the most are Oxnard, CA (7 ZIP codes), Santa Maria, CA (5 ZIP codes) and Simi Valley, CA (5 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

3,809 complaints for 2,737 numbers. Numbers whose latest complaint falls in each year:

- 2023: 155
- 2024: 130
- 2025: 106

## Questions

### Where is area code 805?

NANPA assigns area code 805 to California, United States.

### In which state does area code 805 sit?

California. 805 is one of 41 area codes the NANPA table assigns to the state.

### Which places does area code 805 cover?

The places with the most ZIP codes among the rate centers in 805 are Oxnard, CA, Santa Maria, CA and Simi Valley, CA. The rate center list on this page shows all of them.

### Who owns area code 805?

NANPA assigns area codes. Within 805, Frontier California holds the most prefixes, 140 prefixes or 18%.

### Which time zone does 805 use?

The NANPA NPA report lists the time zone for 805 as Pacific (P).

### What year did 805 enter service?

The NANPA NPA report gives an in-service date of 1957-01-01, so 805 has been in use since 1957.

### Does area code 805 have an overlay?

Yes. 820 (in service 2018-06-30) shares the same area with 805, so numbers from all of them are local to each other.

### Which area codes are nearest to 805?

The area codes closest to 805, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 661 (about 69 miles), 747 (about 86 miles), 818 (about 86 miles), 424 (about 99 miles) and 310 (about 100 miles).

### How many prefixes does area code 805 have?

NANPA's report dated 2026-10-17 lists 786 prefixes in service in 805, spread over 41 rate centers and 43 holders.

### Are there complaints about 805 numbers?

The FCC data on file has 3,809 complaints for 2,737 numbers in 805. 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).