Area code 973

Area code 973 at a glance

Area code 973 is a geographic area code in New Jersey, in service since June 1, 1997, according to the North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA). It is an overlay: 973 and 862 cover the same territory, so neighbors on the same street can have different area codes. It is in the Eastern time zone. The places with the most assigned exchanges include Newark, Morristown, Passaic, Caldwell, and Paterson. By population, its largest named places are Newark, Paterson, Passaic, Bloomfield, and Belleville.

Cities and towns in area code 973

973 holds 14% of the 5,628 central office codes assigned in New Jersey, the 4th most of the state's 10 codes. 31 Census places could be matched to rate centers with 973 exchanges; the most populous are Newark (317,000), Paterson (160,000), Passaic (70,722), and Bloomfield (55,416). Each place page lists the exact prefixes and carriers for that town.

How calls are dialed in 973

According to NANPA's dialing-plan data, local calls within 973 are dialed as ten digits (area code plus number) and toll calls as ten digits (area code plus number). Because local calls need the area code, business cards, signage and website copy should always show the full ten-digit number. NANPA's dialing-plan note for this code reads: "Calls between the 973 and 862 NPAs can be dialed as 10D. 1+10 digit permissible at service provider discretion."

Carriers with 973 numbers

33 carriers hold the 779 central office codes assigned in 973. Verizon New Jersey, INC. has the most, with 335 (43%). 449 of the codes (58%) are pooled, meaning the code holder shares blocks of 1,000 numbers with other carriers instead of using all 10,000 itself. The code holder is not necessarily the carrier serving a given number today, since numbers can be ported between providers.

Where 973 numbers are rated

NANPA assigns each central office code to a rate center, the local calling area that decides whether a call is local or toll. 973 has codes in 42 rate centers. Rate center names in the file are abbreviations; where one matches a Census place, the table links to that city's local-number page.

How full is area code 973?

An area code has 800 possible central office codes that start with 2 through 9, a few of which are reserved (such as N11 service codes and 555). 779 are assigned in 973, 97% of 800. 12 were assigned in 2020 or later.

Getting a 973 number for your business

For $99 a month, Callata puts a team of up to 5 on one plan ($20 for each person after that): up to 3 local numbers, unlimited inbound calls, a pooled allowance of 1,500 outbound US and Canada minutes per user, browser and cell calling, voicemail transcription with urgency triage, recorded calls with AI summaries and business-hours routing, with E911 on every number.

Porting a number you already use in area code 973 is free, and business texting is available once the carrier registration (10DLC) is approved; the registration carries a one-time $49 fee. Which specific numbers are open in a given area code depends on carrier inventory at the time you sign up.

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