CallataGuidesGet a local business phone number in Chico, CA
Chico's area codes, prefixes and carriers from NANPA records, and how to put a Chico number in front of your customers.
- Area code
- 530 / 837 / 916
- Exchanges
- 66NANPA-assigned
- Carriers
- 28
- Population
- 102,911Census 2024 est.
Chico area codes
Chico city is a Census place in Butte County, California, with an estimated 102,911 residents in 2024. NANPA lists 66 exchanges for its rate center across 3 area codes; 530 has the most (64, 97%). 530 is part of an overlay with 837, so a new local number in Chico may carry any of those codes depending on which have numbers available. Chico is in the Pacific time zone.
According to NANPA's dialing-plan data, local calls within 530 are dialed as 1 plus ten digits and toll calls as 1 plus ten digits.
Chico exchanges by carrier
28 carriers hold the 66 exchanges assigned to Chico's rate center. Pacific Bell has the most, with 16. 46 of them are pooled codes, which the holder shares with other carriers in blocks of 1,000 numbers. A business number in Chico can come from any of these blocks; once it is yours, porting lets it move between providers.
| Carrier (NANPA operating company) | Exchanges | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pacific Bell | 16 | 24% |
| Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless - CA | 7 | 11% |
| New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC | 7 | 11% |
| Metropcs, INC. | 4 | 6.1% |
| U.s. Telepacific Corp. d/b/a TPX Communications | 4 | 6.1% |
| Bandwidth.com CLEC, LLC - CA | 3 | 4.5% |
| T-mobile USA, INC. | 3 | 4.5% |
| Ip Horizon LLC | 2 | 3.0% |
| Wavenation, LLC | 1 | 1.5% |
| Telnyx LLC | 1 | 1.5% |
| AT&T Enterprises, LLC | 1 | 1.5% |
| American Messaging Services, LLC | 1 | 1.5% |
Carrier names are the operating company (OCN) names on NANPA's utilized central office code file dated 10/01/2026. A carrier holding a code may port numbers to other carriers.
Exchanges (NPA-NXX) assigned in Chico
These are the central office codes NANPA records for Chico. A caller seeing one of them recognizes a local number. The earliest assignment date recorded in the file for these codes is 2001. 6 of the 66 were assigned in 2020 or later.
| Area code | Prefixes (NXX) |
|---|---|
| 530 | 228, 230, 267, 321, 332, 342, 343, 345, 354, 399, 433, 487, 513, 514, 516, 518, 519, 520, 521, 540, 566, 570, 571, 588, 591, 592, 624, 630, 636, 680, 715, 717, 720, 767, 774, 781, 800, 801, 809, 815, 826, 828, 829, 855, 856, 857, 864, 875, 879, 891, 892, 893, 894, 895, 896, 897, 898, 899, 901, 907, 924, 961, 965, 966 |
| 837 | 444 |
| 916 | 998 |
Source: NANPA utilized central office code file.
When Chico's exchanges were assigned
The table groups Chico's exchanges by the decade NANPA recorded them as assigned.
| Decade assigned | Exchanges | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 10 | 38% |
| 2010s | 10 | 38% |
| 2020s | 6 | 23% |
Assignment dates as recorded in NANPA's utilized code file; codes without a recorded date are excluded.
What makes a number local to Chico
Phone numbers are tied to a rate center, the local calling area used to decide whether a call is local or toll. Chico's numbers are rated to the CHICO rate center in NANPA's records. A business number from one of the prefixes above shows up on customers' phones as a Chico number.
If your business already has a Chico number, porting it to Callata is free and keeps it on your cards, listings and vehicles.
The local business market
Chico is part of the Chico, CA metro area, home to 208,000 people in 2024. County Business Patterns counted 4,677 business establishments in the Chico, CA metro area in 2023, employing 63,158 people. The largest sectors by establishment count are retail trade (682), health care and social assistance (639), and construction (575).
| Industry | Establishments | Employees | Employees per establishment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Limited-service restaurants | 162 | 2,995 | 18.5 |
| Full-service restaurants | 129 | 2,614 | 20.3 |
| Physician practices | 123 | 885 | 7.2 |
| Law offices | 96 | 302 | 3.1 |
| Residential remodelers | 93 | 563 | 6.1 |
| Landscaping services | 93 | 574 | 6.2 |
| Dental offices | 90 | 711 | 7.9 |
| Insurance agencies and brokerages | 78 | 352 | 4.5 |
Selected small-business industries (six-digit NAICS) covered by these guides. Source: Census County Business Patterns 2023.
Business phone service in Chico
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 Chico 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.
AI agents are optional: an AI receptionist or scheduler can pick up when the team is busy or closed, take a message, send a text or email, or transfer the call. They draw on prepaid AI minutes ($0.25/minute), disclose that they are AI, and outbound AI calls require prior consent and are limited to 8am–9pm.
Per-seat phone plans multiply by headcount. For the rounded average establishment size in the Chico, CA metro area, 14 users on RingCentral RingEX Core come to $420.00 a month and on Ooma Office Pro $349.30, at month-to-month list prices checked September 28, 2026. Callata comes to $279.00 a month for 14 users ($99 a month with 5 users included, then $20 per additional user), below both.
| Provider (plan) | Pricing basis | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Callata (Callata Office) | $99 incl. 5 users, $20 per extra user | $279.00 | $3,348.00 |
| Quo (Starter) | $19.00 per user | $266.00 | $3,192.00 |
| Nextiva (Core) | $23.00 per user | $322.00 | $3,864.00 |
| Ooma (Office Pro) | $24.95 per user | $349.30 | $4,191.60 |
| Dialpad (Standard) | $27.00 per user | $378.00 | $4,536.00 |
| RingCentral (RingEX Core) | $30.00 per user | $420.00 | $5,040.00 |
Competitor prices are each vendor's published month-to-month list price per user for its lowest plan that includes business calling and texting, checked September 28, 2026: Quo Starter $19, Nextiva Core $23, Ooma Office Pro $24.95 (Essentials excludes texting; one-time $29.95 activation not included), Dialpad Standard $27, RingCentral RingEX Core $30 ($20 billed annually). Prices exclude taxes and fees and may change; annual contracts lower some competitors' prices.
Frequently asked questions
What area code is Chico, CA?
Chico has exchanges in 530, 837, and 916; 530 has the most.
How many phone companies have exchanges in Chico?
28, holding 66 exchanges between them, according to NANPA's 10/01/2026 file.
Can I keep my existing Chico business number?
Yes. Porting an existing number to Callata is free. Texting from it starts after carrier registration (10DLC), a one-time $49 fee.
How much is a business phone line in Chico?
Callata is $99 a month with 5 users included, then $20 per additional user, with up to 3 local numbers; 14 users come to $279.00 a month. For comparison, 14 users on RingCentral RingEX Core list at $420.00 a month (checked September 28, 2026).