Mississippi business phone guide

Businesses in Mississippi

Mississippi had 2.9 million residents in the Census Bureau's July 2024 estimate, down 0.6% from April 2020. The U.S. population grew 2.6% over the same period. County Business Patterns counted 60,465 business establishments in the state in 2023 with 956,079 mid-March employees and $45.5 billion in annual payroll. The average establishment has 15.8 employees. 50.4% of establishments with employees had fewer than five people. The three largest sectors by establishments are retail trade (11,303), health care and social assistance (7,038), and other services (except public administration) (6,523).

Business density and team size in Mississippi

Mississippi has 20.5 business establishments per 1,000 residents, 16.4% below the U.S. figure of 24.6. Establishments average 15.8 employees against 16.7 nationally, and payroll per employee is $47,550 (30.4% below the U.S. $68,342). 50.4% of establishments with employees have fewer than five people (U.S.: 55.5%), while 5.3% have 50 or more. Most establishments are far smaller than the average suggests, so it pays to price a phone plan at the headcount you actually have rather than the average.

Area codes in Mississippi

NANPA lists 5 geographic area codes in service in Mississippi, with 2,067 central office codes assigned across 240 rate centers and held by 71 carriers. 601 has the most assigned codes (783). 4 of them are part of overlays. The newest in service is 471, since January 30, 2026.

Small-business industries in Mississippi

Among the 141 phone-heavy small-business industries these guides cover, the largest in Mississippi by establishment count are limited-service restaurants (2,498), full-service restaurants (1,752), and physician practices (1,459). Follow an industry for its metro-level counts and what a phone system costs a typical team.

Metro and micropolitan areas

21 Census metro or micropolitan areas include part of Mississippi. The largest is Memphis, TN-MS-AR with 1.3 million residents.

Which Mississippi area code to pick

4 of Mississippi's 5 area codes require ten-digit dialing for local calls; in the others NANPA still lists seven-digit local dialing. In overlays (601/769 and 471/662), the codes share one territory, so a new number may come from any code in the overlay. The city pages show which codes dominate each place, which is the best guide to the number your customers will recognize.

Largest Mississippi cities for local numbers

125 Mississippi cities and towns have their own local-number page. The most populous are Jackson (601/769), Gulfport (228), Hattiesburg (601/769), and Biloxi (228).

What phone service costs a Mississippi business

Per-seat phone plans multiply by headcount. For the rounded average establishment size in Mississippi, 16 users on RingCentral RingEX Core come to $480.00 a month and on Ooma Office Pro $399.20, at month-to-month list prices checked September 28, 2026. Callata comes to $319.00 a month for 16 users ($99 a month with 5 users included, then $20 per additional user), below both.

Callata in Mississippi

Callata is a business phone system priced at $99 a month with 5 users included, then $20 per additional user. Callata Office includes up to 3 local business numbers, unlimited inbound calling, 1,500 pooled outbound US and Canada minutes per user each month, a browser softphone that can also ring your cell, voicemail with transcription, call recording with AI summaries, business-hours routing and E911 on every number.

Porting a number you already use in Mississippi 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.