Area Code for Houston

Houston, America’s fourth-largest city, runs on four overlapping area codes: 713 (original 1947), 281 (overlay 1996), 832 (overlay 1999), and 346 (overlay 2014).

Whether you’re verifying a Houston caller, choosing a local business number for the Energy Corridor market, or tracing the history of one of the NANP’s most complex overlay clusters, this guide covers every angle.

What’s the area code for Houston?

Houston sits within a four-code overlay complex under the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), serving eight counties in the greater metro area.

Code	Established	Coverage	Notes
713	1947	Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Brazoria, Galveston, Chambers, Liberty, Waller counties	Original NANP code; Houston’s cultural identity number
281	November 1996	Same eight-county metro (full overlay since 1999)	First overlay; originally served suburban ring outside Beltway 8
832	January 1999	Same eight-county metro (full overlay)	First true overlay; triggered mandatory 10-digit dialing
346	July 2014	Same eight-county metro (full overlay)	PUCT-ordered fourth overlay; announced May 2013

A fifth code, 621, launched January 23, 2025. All Houston-area calls require ten-digit dialing.

Houston sits in the Central Time Zone (CT) — UTC−6 in winter, UTC−5 during Daylight Saving Time.

For regional context: Galveston uses 409 (split from 713 in 1983). San Antonio uses 210. Austin uses 512/737.

Houston metro area codes by neighborhood

Because all four codes now overlay the same territory, any neighborhood can hold any code. The geographic breakdown below describes what communities fall within the Houston service area — and where certain codes remain historically dominant.

Inner Loop — 713 dominant

The urban core inside Beltway 8 was assigned 713 before overlays began. Many long-established businesses and residents in these neighborhoods still carry original 713 numbers.

• Downtown — financial district, energy company HQs, Minute Maid Park (Astros)
• Midtown and Montrose — restaurants, arts district, medical campuses
• Heights (Houston Heights) — one of Houston’s oldest neighborhoods; Victorian-era homes
• River Oaks — affluent residential; some of Houston’s highest-profile private numbers
• Museum District / Hermann Park — Texas Medical Center, Museum of Fine Arts, Rice University
• Greenway Plaza — mid-rise office corridor between downtown and Galleria

Energy Corridor and west side

The Energy Corridor along I-10 west of downtown houses dozens of oil and gas company offices. Numbers here are a mix of 713 (older leases) and 832/281 (newer provisioning).

• Energy Corridor — ConocoPhillips, Shell, BP America offices
• Westchase — secondary business district; logistics and tech
• Katy — far western suburb (Fort Bend and Waller counties); strong 281 presence
• Memorial — affluent residential west of downtown; original 713 territory

Northern suburbs — 281 and 832

• The Woodlands — planned community 30 miles north in Montgomery County; Exxon Mobil campus (Spring area, 281); major corporate hub
• Spring — unincorporated community north of Houston; ExxonMobil global campus at 22777 Springwoods Village Pkwy (281)
• Conroe — Montgomery County seat; 936 area code starts here

Southern and southwestern suburbs

• Sugar Land — Fort Bend County seat; historically strong 281 presence; Sysco HQ
• Pearland — Brazoria County; fastest-growing suburb; mixed 281/832/346
• Friendswood — Galveston/Harris county line; 281/832

Outside Houston metro (reference)

• Galveston — 409 (split from 713 in 1983; Galveston Island is outside the Houston overlay complex)
• Victoria / Corpus Christi direction — 361
• Austin — 512/737

History of Houston area codes

Houston’s area code story traces the city’s transformation from a regional port to one of America’s most economically diverse metros.

1947 — 713 assigned. When AT&T and the Bell System engineers designed the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), they divided the US and Canada into Numbering Plan Areas (NPAs). Texas received four original codes. Area code 713 covered southeastern Texas — from the Sabine River at the Louisiana border west to the Brazos Valley, and from the Gulf Coast north into the piney woods.

March 19, 1983 — 409 split. Population growth and fax machines consumed numbering capacity faster than planners expected. The northern, eastern, and western portions of old 713 territory split off as area code 409, covering Beaumont, Galveston, and southeast Texas. Area code 713 was reduced to the immediate Houston area — roughly what is now Harris County and its immediate neighbors.

November 2, 1996 — 281 overlay. Houston’s continued growth and the explosion of pagers and early mobile phones required relief. Rather than a straight geographic split, Texas regulators created area code 281 for most of Houston’s suburbs outside Beltway 8. The Inner Loop kept 713; the outer ring became 281. This was intended as “a long-term solution” — but the growth of pager networks overwhelmed the plan within two years.

January 16, 1999 — 832 overlay + 10-digit dialing. The 713/281 geographic boundary was erased. Area code 832 was added to the entire region as the first true overlay — meaning new numbers could carry any of 713, 281, or 832 regardless of location. This change required mandatory ten-digit dialing for all local calls within the Houston metro, a requirement that remains today.

The PUCT (Public Utility Commission of Texas) administers numbering changes in the state, working in coordination with NANPA, the North American Numbering Plan Administrator.

July 1, 2014 — 346 overlay. The PUCT announced a fourth overlay on May 9, 2013, effective July 1, 2014. Area code 346 joined the complex, providing additional numbering capacity for Houston’s ongoing growth. No geographic changes; 10-digit dialing already in effect.

January 23, 2025 — 621 overlay. A fifth overlay, 621, launched to serve the metro. Projections suggest the Houston cluster may need a sixth code within nine years.

713 as Houston’s identity

No Houston area code carries more cultural weight than 713 — and few area codes in the US are as embedded in a city’s identity as this one is in Houston’s.

Origin in the NANP. When the Bell System engineers assigned 713 in 1947, Houston had roughly 385,000 residents. The code has outlasted every major reorganization of the numbering plan — surviving the 409 split, the 281/832/346 overlays — and remains the number Houstonians point to when they say “the 713.”

Energy industry. The Texas Gulf Coast’s oil and gas sector built its commercial communications infrastructure around 713. ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66, Waste Management, and NRG Energy maintain downtown headquarters with 713 numbers. The Energy Corridor west along I-10 carries the heaviest concentration of Fortune 500 energy tenants in any US metro.

NASA Johnson Space Center. JSC — located in Clear Lake, southeast Houston — operates under 281 (post-1996 overlay) but is culturally indistinguishable from the 713 identity. “Houston, we have a problem” — technically a misquote from Apollo 13, but the phrase that made Houston synonymous with space exploration — was routed through JSC communications.

Texas Medical Center. TMC is the largest medical complex in the world: 60 institutions, 10 nursing schools, 8 specialty hospitals, over 106,000 employees. It sits in the Medical Center district inside the Inner Loop — original 713 territory.

Sports and culture. The Houston Astros (Minute Maid Park, downtown), Houston Rockets (Toyota Center), and Houston Texans (NRG Stadium, south of downtown) all call 713 home. Beyoncé Knowles-Carter was born in Houston and has cited the 713 identity in her work. The area code appears in Houston hip-hop, country, and R&B as shorthand for the city itself.

Houston area code spam and scams

Houston’s 713, 281, 832, and 346 area codes are among the most spoofed in Texas. Scammers fake local Houston caller IDs to exploit the likelihood that residents will answer what looks like a local call.

CenterPoint Energy impersonation. CenterPoint Energy is the dominant Houston-area electric and gas utility. Scammers spoof CenterPoint’s published phone numbers and call residents threatening immediate service disconnection unless payment is made by gift card, prepaid debit card, or cryptocurrency.

CenterPoint has issued repeated warnings: they will never request payment over the phone to avoid a shutoff, and will never ask for gift cards or crypto. If you receive such a call, hang up and call the number on your utility bill.

Post-hurricane disaster fraud. After major storms — Hurricane Harvey (2017), Hurricane Beryl (2024) — scam calls spike dramatically. Fraudsters pose as insurance adjusters, FEMA representatives, or contractor referral services, requesting upfront deposits or personal information.

After Harvey, the US Department of Justice, FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and FTC formed a Houston-specific working group to combat disaster fraud. Report to the National Center for Disaster Fraud.

IRS impersonation. Callers spoofing IRS or Texas Comptroller numbers claim an unpaid tax matter with a fake case number, threatening arrest without immediate payment. The IRS never initiates contact via unsolicited phone call.

City official impersonation. In 2025, Houston’s city controller’s office warned of calls impersonating city government officials, demanding payment or personal information on 713 and 281 spoofed numbers.

STIR/SHAKEN and call authentication. The FCC-mandated STIR/SHAKEN framework requires carriers to authenticate outbound calls and assign an attestation level: A (fully verified), B (partial), or C (gateway/unknown). Spoofed scam calls receive C-attestation or none, triggering “Spam Likely” labels on smartphones.

When you get a Houston number through DialPhone, outbound calls carry A-attestation — the highest trust level. Your 713, 281, 832, or 346 number reaches customers as verified, not screened.

See the FCC’s guidance: fcc.gov/consumers/guides/spoofing-and-caller-id.

How to get a Houston business phone number

Getting a 713, 281, 832, or 346 number for your business takes under 10 minutes through a cloud VoIP provider. No Texas office required.

Step 1: Choose your area code. For Inner Loop credibility and legacy recognition, 713 is the prestige choice — but inventory is limited. For suburban or Energy Corridor presence, 281 signals established Houston roots. For neutral availability, 832 and 346 are easiest to source.

Step 2: Sign up with a VoIP provider. DialPhone lets you search available Houston numbers by area code during signup. All four codes — 713, 281, 832, and 346 — are available.

Step 3: Assign the number to users or a team. Route your Houston number to a mobile, desktop app, or team queue. Set up a voicemail greeting, call routing menu, or AI receptionist for after-hours coverage.

Step 4: Configure outbound caller ID. Set your Houston number as the outbound caller ID so calls display the local area code — not an 800 number or personal cell.

Step 5: Port existing numbers if needed. If you already have a Houston number with another carrier, bring it to DialPhone via number porting (typically 2–5 business days for US local numbers).

See DialPhone pricing for plan details, or start a free trial to claim your Houston number today.

For the full porting walkthrough, see our number porting guide.

Famous companies in Houston area codes

Houston’s 713/281/832/346 territory houses a concentration of energy, healthcare, and logistics companies unmatched by any other US metro.

ExxonMobil — global HQ at its Spring campus (22777 Springwoods Village Pkwy); 281 area code. Largest publicly traded oil company in the world.

ConocoPhillips — HQ at 925 N Eldridge Pkwy, Houston; 713 area code. Third-largest US oil company.

Chevron — major Houston office in the Westchase district; 713 numbers. Gulf of Mexico deepwater operations hub.

Phillips 66 — HQ at 2331 CityWest Blvd, Houston; 713 area code. Midstream and refining operations across the Gulf Coast.

Halliburton — corporate HQ at 3000 N Sam Houston Pkwy E; 281 area code. World’s second-largest oilfield services company.

Schlumberger (SLB) — significant Houston presence alongside Paris HQ; 713 territory. The world’s largest oilfield services company.

Sysco Corporation — HQ at 1390 Enclave Pkwy, Houston; 281 area code. World’s largest food distribution company.

Waste Management — HQ in downtown Houston; 713 area code. Largest environmental services company in North America.

NRG Energy — HQ at 910 Louisiana St, Houston; 713. Major power generation and retail energy company.

EOG Resources — HQ in Houston; 713. One of the largest independent oil and natural gas companies in the US.

Memorial Hermann — Texas Medical Center; 713 territory. Houston’s largest not-for-profit health system.

Houston Methodist — Texas Medical Center; 713 territory. Ranked among America’s top 20 hospitals.

Group 1 Automotive — HQ in Houston; 713. One of the largest automotive retail companies in the US.

Texas’s industry mix — Energy, Healthcare, Logistics — means a Houston number carries B2B credibility across multiple sectors. DialPhone’s STIR/SHAKEN A-attestation ensures your Houston number reaches these businesses as verified, not screened.

Houston area code FAQ

Houston area code FAQ

What is the area code for Houston, Texas? +

Houston uses four primary area codes: 713, 281, 832, and 346. All four cover the same geographic territory as a full overlay complex under the North American Numbering Plan (NANP).

Area code 713 is the original, assigned in 1947. Area codes 281 (1996), 832 (1999), and 346 (2014) were added as overlays to meet growing demand. A fifth code, 621, launched in January 2025. All Houston-area calls require ten-digit dialing.

What is Houston's most famous area code? +

Area code 713 is Houston's most culturally significant code. It was one of the original four Texas area codes established in 1947 and is associated with the city's energy industry, NASA Johnson Space Center, and icons like Beyoncé.

The 713 identity appears in local branding, music (Drake's '6 God' has a Houston equivalent in '713'), and business culture. Original Inner Loop neighborhoods — Midtown, Montrose, River Oaks, the Heights — were assigned 713 before the overlays began.

Why does Houston have so many area codes? +

Houston's population and economic growth exhausted available phone numbers faster than planners anticipated. From a single area code (713) in 1947, Houston has reached five codes by 2025.

Key drivers: the energy sector's heavy use of pagers and mobile phones in the 1990s, Houston's port and logistics industry, the Texas Medical Center (largest in the world), and metro-area population growth from roughly 1 million in 1960 to over 7 million today.

What time zone is Houston? +

Houston is in the Central Time Zone (CT) — UTC−6 in winter (Central Standard Time) and UTC−5 during Daylight Saving Time (Central Daylight Time). Texas observes Daylight Saving Time.

Business hours: 9 AM–5 PM CT. If calling from New York (ET), Houston is 1 hour behind. From Los Angeles (PT), Houston is 2 hours ahead.

Are Houston area code calls spam? +

Not inherently — 713, 281, 832, and 346 are legitimate Houston codes. The risk is spoofing: scammers fake a local Houston caller ID to increase the chance you'll answer.

Common Houston-specific scams include fake CenterPoint Energy disconnection calls, post-hurricane disaster fraud (Harvey, Beryl), and IRS impersonation. STIR/SHAKEN is the FCC-mandated framework that fights spoofing. Legitimate providers like DialPhone assign A-attestation to outbound calls, ensuring they reach customers as verified rather than labeled 'Spam Likely.'

What is the difference between 713, 281, 832, and 346? +

Today the difference is historical, not geographic. All four codes cover the same eight-county Houston metro — Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Brazoria, Galveston, Chambers, Liberty, and Waller.

Originally (1996–1999), 713 was Inner Loop and 281 was the suburbs. That geographic split was erased in January 1999 when 832 launched as the first true overlay. Since then, new numbers can carry any of the four codes regardless of location.

Can I get a Houston phone number without a Texas office? +

Yes. Virtual (VoIP) phone numbers are not tied to a physical address. A business anywhere in the US or internationally can get a 713, 281, 832, or 346 number through a cloud phone provider and route calls to any device.

DialPhone assigns available Houston numbers in minutes. No Texas office, no hardware, no long-term contract. Outbound calls display your Houston caller ID, and DialPhone's STIR/SHAKEN A-attestation means those calls are verified, not screened.

What area code is The Woodlands, Sugar Land, or Pearland? +

All three communities are within the Houston overlay complex and can have 713, 281, 832, or 346 numbers. Historically, The Woodlands (Montgomery County) and Sugar Land (Fort Bend County) were assigned 281 when it covered suburban areas from 1996 to 1999.

Since the 1999 overlay merge, new numbers in these communities are assigned across all four codes. Pearland (Brazoria County) follows the same pattern.

Get a Houston business number

A verified Houston number — 713, 281, 832, or 346 — builds immediate local trust, whether you’re a national company entering the Houston market or a local business that needs its calls answered.

DialPhone provides Houston numbers with STIR/SHAKEN A-attestation, AI receptionist, call recording, and SMS — on a single plan with no hardware.

Start your free trial → | See all plans →

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Related resources:

• 713 area code
• 281 area code
• 832 area code
• 346 area code
• Texas area codes
• DialPhone business phone
• AI receptionist for your business
• Number porting guide