| State | Washington D.C. |
|---|---|
| Timezone | Eastern (EST) |
| Is Area Code 202 Toll Free? | No |
| Major Cities | District of Columbia |
Area code 202 is the only area code for the state of Washington, D.C. and is one of the original codes by the North American Numbering Plan or NANP. With recent news of exhaustion, a new area code was added as a counter measure. To learn more about area code 202, read below.
When did area code 202 come to be?
Area code 202 is one of the original area codes established in 1947 under the North American Numbering Plan with most of Washington dialing a local calling area known as Washington Metropolitan Exchange Area.
For four decades (1950-1990) it was only possible to call within WMEA area using only 7 digits.
202 is on the brink of exhaustion in late 2022 and on September 2020 it was announced that area code 771 would be an added overlay for the District of Columbia and would be approved over a 13th month period. Once active all calls to D.C. would require an area code when dialing as Washington was one of the places where seven digit dialing was still possible. It is also one of the areas that don't have an overlay.
What are the areas serviced by 202?
Area code 202 services the Washington D.C. area that has a population of 607, 723.
What time zone does area code 202 follow?
Area code 202 belongs to the state of Washington D.C. and follows the Eastern Timezone (EST) which encompasses 23 states on the Eastern part of the U.S. some parts of eastern Canada, Quinatana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and a small part of Brazil. During autumn and winter Eastern Standard Time where it is 5 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and during spring and summer, Eastern Daylight Time is being observed wherein the time is advanced by and hour due to daylight savings time.
How do I call or dial an area code 202 number?
Since being implemented, area code 202 has not had an overlay and still makes use of seven digit dialing. However, since 771 would be assigned, this would break the seven digit dialing code practice for local numbers.
Is area code 202 toll free?
No, area code 202 is not toll free.
Is area code 202 a scam?
With the ease of technology comes certain dangers. Nowadays since customizing your own number is possible and scammers have used this to their advantage. Many have customized their numbers to make their numbers seem local enforcing a sense of trust and security to its victims.
A recent scam that involves the 202 area code in particular is the IRS scam. The scam uses a caller ID spoof so that IRS appears on the victim’s phone. The modus is to call up a victim and claim that he or she owes the IRS money threatening with arrest if this is not undertaken immediately. The other area codes that are being used for this scam include: 512 (Austin, TX), 214 & 972 (Dallas, TX), 312 (Chicago), 410 (Baltimore), 210 (San Antonio, TX), 213 (Los Angeles, Ca), 405 (Oklahoma City), 212 & 917 (New York City), 305 (Miami).
If an unknown number calls you up, do not answer it. Should you however fall victim to a scammer, hang up and block the number immediately. The IRS doesn’t threaten or demand money over the phone so if you find yourself in a situation as this, it is definitely a scam.
