205 Area Code: Birmingham, Alabama
Area code 205 serves Birmingham, Tuscaloosa and Bessemer, Alabama in the Central time zone, in service since 1947. Consumers have filed 6,241 unwanted-call complaints against 5,072 different 205 numbers, 763 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 205 at a glance
- State
- Alabama
- Main cities
- Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Bessemer, Jasper, Alabaster + 64 more
- Counties
- Jefferson County, Tuscaloosa County, Walker County, Shelby County + 15 more
- Local time
- —Central
- In service since
- 1947
- Overlay code
- 659 (2019)
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 71 rate centers, 785 prefixes
Sources: NANPA area code and central office code records (refreshed weekly); cities and counties matched from US Census Bureau and USGS place names.
Most-reported 205 numbers
Ranked by FTC Do Not Call complaints this month, then all-time FTC and FCC complaints. Only numbers with enough complaints for a full report page are listed. Click one for what it was reported for and where.
What calls from 205 numbers are about
2,199 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 205 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family), at 13% of complaints (80% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 76% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified84238%
- Dropped call / no message46021%
- Impostor (government, business, family)28313%
- Debt reduction27713%
- Medical & prescriptions1788%
- No subject given743%
- Vacation & timeshares261%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Prerecorded Voice24153%
- Live Voice13529%
- Text Message8318%
18% of recent FCC complaints about 205 numbers are about text messages, not calls.
When 205 spam calls come in
35% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 9am and 12pm. 95% came Monday to Friday, most on Thursdays, the pattern of call-center robocall campaigns that run on business hours. Times are as consumers reported them to the FTC.
By hour of the day
By day of the week
Is it getting worse?
805 FTC complaints about 205 numbers in the last four weeks, down 1% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 205 numbers peaked in 2016 (588); the FTC's daily Do Not Call data has carried most of the volume since mid-2026.
FTC complaints per week
FCC complaints per year
Years shown as '15 to '26; the current year is partial.
Who gets these calls
61% of the FTC complaints about 205 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 205, and 65% from Alabama. Calls that look local to the person receiving them are the signature of neighbor spoofing: robocallers display a number from your own area code because you're more likely to answer.
Where complainants live
- Alabama1,44065%
- Florida995%
- California774%
- Texas633%
- Georgia392%
What people with 205 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 205 filed 2,742 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 49% were about calls showing another 205 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 205 (same code)1,33549%
- 833 (toll-free)1134%
- 888 (toll-free)823%
- 877 (toll-free)773%
- 855 (toll-free)693%
Likely campaigns using 205 numbers
Groups of numbers that drew the same FTC complaint in the same pattern over the last 60 days. The grouping is statistical and doesn't identify who is calling.
Busiest 205 prefixes this month
FTC complaints in the last 30 days, grouped by the first six digits. When one prefix collects complaints about many different numbers, a campaign is usually cycling through that block. The carrier is who NANPA assigned the prefix to, not who made the calls.
| Prefix | Complaints | Numbers | Carrier | Exchange |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (205) 201-xxxx | 29 | 26 | Bhn Ip Enabled Services, LLC | Birmingham |
| (205) 202-xxxx | 21 | 20 | Bhn Ip Enabled Services, LLC | Birmingham |
| (205) 537-xxxx | 16 | 13 | Level 3 (Lumen) | Trussville |
| (205) 794-xxxxcampaign | 15 | 15 | Hargray of Alabama, INC. | Lincoln |
| (205) 301-xxxx | 15 | 9 | Powertel Birmingham Licenses, INC. | Eutaw |
Carriers operating in 205
NANPA has assigned 785 205 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 71 rate centers: 35% to wireless carriers, 64% to landline and VoIP operators; 65% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. The newest assignment was 2025-06-27. The carrier holding a prefix is who the number was issued through. It says nothing about who is calling, since caller ID is routinely spoofed.
| Carrier | Type | Prefixes | Rate centers | Newest assignment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BellSouth (AT&T) | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 223(28%) | 25 | 2017-10-30 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 92(12%) | 21 | 2024-11-20 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 84(11%) | 20 | 2023-05-26 |
| PAETEC (Windstream) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 53(7%) | 29 | 2011-10-13 |
| Powertel Birmingham Licenses, INC. | Wireless | 42(5%) | 8 | 2018-05-07 |
| Brightspeed of Alabama, LLC - Northern | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 35(4%) | 25 | 2008-01-18 |
| Metro by T-Mobile (MetroPCS) | Wireless | 33(4%) | 6 | 2020-03-09 |
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 31(4%) | 24 | 2020-05-11 |
| Bandwidth.com | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 28(4%) | 20 | 2020-05-12 |
| Spok, INC. | Wireless | 21(3%) | 2 | — |
| Level 3 (Lumen) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 19(2%) | 13 | 2022-11-09 |
| Teleport Communications America, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 19(2%) | 16 | 2019-04-26 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Birmingham (370), Tuscaloosa (69), Bessemer (31), Jasper (21), Alabaster (19), Clanton (13), Pell City (11), Eutaw (9), Gardendale (9), Leeds (9). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 205 numbers
Before you call back
- Impostor (government, business, family) is the top named complaint here. Hang up and call the agency, bank or relative back on a number you already know. Government agencies don't demand payment by gift card, wire transfer or crypto. Read about Social Security impostor calls and fake bank fraud calls.
- Look up the full number above. A missed call from 205 with no voicemail is usually a robocall; anyone who needs you will leave a message.
- If it looks like a neighbor's number, it may be spoofed. See calls from your own area code.
- Block repeat callers: iPhone, Android, or your carrier's free filter (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile).
Report it in Alabama
- Unwanted sales calls and robocalls: donotcall.gov (FTC). Scams and fraud: ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
- Spoofing, texts and call-blocking problems: FCC consumer complaints.
- State complaints: Alabama Attorney General.
- Alabama formally adopted the FTC's National Do Not Call Registry as its own state list rather than running a separate one, so a single free registration at donotcall.gov covers you. State authorities can still enforce against telemarketers who ignore it, in addition to any federal penalty.
Your FTC and FCC reports are published (without your name or number) in the datasets this page is built from. How to report unwanted calls.
Area code 205: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 205?
Area code 205 serves Birmingham, Tuscaloosa and Bessemer, Alabama, covering Jefferson County, Tuscaloosa County and Walker County and 16 more counties. It has been in service since 1947.
What time zone is area code 205 in?
Area code 205 is in the Central time zone (UTC−6, or UTC−5 during daylight saving time). The current local time is shown at the top of this page.
Which area codes overlay 205?
659 (in service 2019) serves the same area as 205. New numbers there can be issued with any of these codes, and local calls need all 10 digits. A spoofed call can display any of them.
What are calls from 205 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 2,199 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 205 numbers. The most common named subject was impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family): 13% of complaints, 80% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 76% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 205 spam calls happen?
35% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 9am and 12pm, and 95% came on weekdays, most often on Thursday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 205 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. 61% of the FTC complaints about 205 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 205, and 65% from Alabama. Calls that look local to the person receiving them are the signature of neighbor spoofing: robocallers display a number from your own area code because you're more likely to answer.
Are 205 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 8, consumers filed 805 FTC complaints about 205 numbers, 1% fewer than the four weeks before.
How do I report a 205 scam call in Alabama?
Report unwanted sales calls and robocalls to the FTC at donotcall.gov, and scams to ReportFraud.ftc.gov. The FCC takes complaints at consumercomplaints.fcc.gov. In Alabama, the Alabama Attorney General also handles consumer complaints about scam calls. Reports feed the public data this page is built from.
Overlay and nearby area codes
Sources: FTC Do Not Call complaints (unverified consumer reports), published every weekday and available here from Jul 24; FCC Consumer Complaint Data, public record, imported nightly; NANPA numbering records. A number appearing here means consumers reported calls that displayed it. Caller ID can be spoofed.