---
title: "Area code 970: Colorado, United States"
url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/970.md"
canonical_url: "https://lookvalid.com/area-code/970"
last_updated: "2026-10-23"
type: "reference"
summary: "Area code 970 serves Colorado, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in Colorado."
---

# Area code 970: Colorado, United States

Area code 970 serves Colorado, United States. Number formats, numbering rules, a live phone validator and the other codes in Colorado.

NANPA lists 771 central office codes (prefixes) in use in area code 970, held by 58 holders across 120 rate centers.
Qwest holds the most prefixes, 189 (25%). 68% of the prefixes are pooled, which means their thousands-blocks can belong to different companies.
The FCC unwanted-call data has 5,146 complaints on file for 3,997 numbers in 970, most often filed as "Unwanted Calls". These are consumer reports, not findings.

## Facts

- In service since: 1995-04-02
- Time zone: Mountain (M)
- Assigned overlays: 748 (2025-07-07)
- Prefixes in use: 771
- Pooled prefixes: 522 (68%)
- Rate centers: 120
- Companies holding prefixes: 58
- Assignment dates on file: 2001-01-16 to 2026-06-01 (369 prefixes)
- ZIP codes in its places: 125

## Rate centers

| Rate center | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| FT COLLINS | 95 | 12% |
| GREELEY | 62 | 8% |
| GRAND JCT | 57 | 7% |
| LOVELAND | 35 | 5% |
| DURANGO | 29 | 4% |
| VAIL | 24 | 3% |
| GLENWD SPG | 21 | 3% |
| MONTROSE | 19 | 2% |
| 112 other rate centers | 429 | 56% |

## Carriers

| Holder | Prefixes | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Qwest | 189 | 25% |
| Onvoy | 87 | 11% |
| Verizon Wireless | 76 | 10% |
| T-Mobile USA | 70 | 9% |
| New Cingular Wireless PCS | 54 | 7% |
| Level 3 Communications | 47 | 6% |
| 52 other carriers | 248 | 32% |

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 303, named as the parent of 970 in the NANPA report, was in service.
- 1995-04-02: Area code 970 went into service.
- 2025-07-07: Area code 748 went into service as an overlay in the same area as 970.

## Nearest area codes

The area codes closest to 970, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 983 (about 60 miles), 303 (about 61 miles), 720 (about 61 miles), 719 (about 127 miles) and 307 (about 227 miles).

## ZIP codes

125 ZIP codes fall in places that have a rate center in this area code. The places with the most are Fort Collins, CO (9 ZIP codes), Greeley, CO (6 ZIP codes) and Durango, CO (3 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

5,146 complaints for 3,997 numbers. Numbers whose latest complaint falls in each year:

- 2023: 256
- 2024: 191
- 2025: 260

## Questions

### Where is area code 970?

NANPA assigns area code 970 to Colorado, United States.

### In which state does area code 970 sit?

Colorado. 970 is one of 6 area codes the NANPA table assigns to the state.

### Which places does area code 970 cover?

The places with the most ZIP codes among the rate centers in 970 are Fort Collins, CO, Greeley, CO and Durango, CO. The rate center list on this page shows all of them.

### Who owns area code 970?

NANPA assigns area codes. Within 970, Qwest holds the most prefixes, 189 prefixes or 25%.

### Which time zone does 970 use?

The NANPA NPA report lists the time zone for 970 as Mountain (M).

### What year did 970 enter service?

The NANPA NPA report gives an in-service date of 1995-04-02, so 970 has been in use since 1995.

### Does area code 970 have an overlay?

Yes. 748 (in service 2025-07-07) shares the same area with 970, so numbers from all of them are local to each other.

### Which area codes are nearest to 970?

The area codes closest to 970, measured between the centers of the ZIP code places they serve, are 983 (about 60 miles), 303 (about 61 miles), 720 (about 61 miles), 719 (about 127 miles) and 307 (about 227 miles).

### How many prefixes does area code 970 have?

NANPA's report dated 2026-10-17 lists 771 prefixes in service in 970, spread over 120 rate centers and 58 holders.

### Are there complaints about 970 numbers?

The FCC data on file has 5,146 complaints for 3,997 numbers in 970. 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).