309 Area Code: Peoria, Illinois
Area code 309 serves Peoria, Bloomington and Rock Island, Illinois in the Central time zone, in service since 1957. Consumers have filed 2,850 unwanted-call complaints against 2,073 different 309 numbers, 244 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 309 at a glance
- State
- Illinois
- Main cities
- Peoria, Bloomington, Rock Island, Macomb, Galesburg, Pekin + 164 more
- Counties
- Peoria County, McLean County, Rock Island County, Tazewell County + 16 more
- Local time
- —Central
- In service since
- 1957
- Overlay code
- 861 (2023)
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 171 rate centers, 786 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 309 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 309 numbers are about
1,220 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 309 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is debt-relief pitches, at 32% of complaints (94% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 78% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified50141%
- Debt reduction39032%
- Impostor (government, business, family)1059%
- Dropped call / no message696%
- No subject given585%
- Medical & prescriptions413%
- Warranties & protection plans171%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Live Voice7346%
- Prerecorded Voice6642%
- Text Message1811%
11% of recent FCC complaints about 309 numbers are about text messages, not calls.
When 309 spam calls come in
28% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 2pm and 5pm. 93% came Monday to Friday, most on Fridays, 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?
286 FTC complaints about 309 numbers in the last four weeks; leaving out the concentrated source below, complaints are down 43% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 309 numbers peaked in 2017 (284); the FTC's daily Do Not Call data has carried most of the volume since mid-2026.
Data note: 57 of the last four weeks' 309 complaints (20%) came from one place, Port Byron, IL (callers' own phones in area code 309), about 45× the state's per-resident rate. That pattern usually means one or a few very active filers, so trend figures here leave it out.
FTC complaints per week
FCC complaints per year
Years shown as '15 to '26; the current year is partial.
Who gets these calls
Only 43% of the FTC complaints about 309 numbers came from Illinois residents; the most came from California, Florida and Virginia. 309 numbers are being used for nationwide campaigns, so the area code says little about where the caller is.
These shares include Port Byron, IL, flagged under “Is it getting worse?” as an unusually concentrated source.
Where complainants live
- Illinois51943%
- California736%
- Florida655%
- Virginia464%
- Georgia373%
What people with 309 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 309 filed 1,216 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 26% were about calls showing another 309 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 309 (same code)31526%
- 866 (toll-free)585%
- 833 (toll-free)575%
- 888 (toll-free)494%
- 855 (toll-free)474%
Busiest 309 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (309) 301-xxxx | 15 | 13 | Onvoy (Sinch) | Toulon |
| (309) 288-xxxx | 11 | 11 | Frontier Communications | Mineral |
| (309) 312-xxxx | 11 | 5 | Onvoy (Sinch) | Kewanee |
| (309) 306-xxxx | 9 | 6 | Peerless Network | Peoria |
| (309) 226-xxxx | 9 | 2 | Level 3 (Lumen) | Canton |
Carriers operating in 309
NANPA has assigned 786 309 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 171 rate centers: 19% to wireless carriers, 81% to landline and VoIP operators; 73% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 8 prefixes were assigned in the last 12 months (newest 2026-09-09). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frontier Communications | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 99(13%) | 58 | 2004-10-14 |
| Ameritech (AT&T) | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 83(11%) | 16 | 2011-07-19 |
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 74(9%) | 62 | 2026-08-26 |
| Level 3 (Lumen) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 66(8%) | 22 | 2020-03-12 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 46(6%) | 14 | 2021-04-12 |
| Mediacom Telephony of Illinois, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 39(5%) | 39 | 2019-05-10 |
| Frontier Communications | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 35(4%) | 32 | 2016-10-28 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 34(4%) | 16 | 2026-07-23 |
| T-Mobile USA | Wireless | 34(4%) | 10 | 2025-01-07 |
| Brightspeed of Illinois, LLC | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 24(3%) | 15 | 2005-05-31 |
| UScellular | Wireless | 23(3%) | 7 | 2021-09-20 |
| Stratus Networks | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 21(3%) | 21 | 2021-03-18 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Peoria (155), Bloomington (76), Rock Island (41), Macomb (23), Galesburg (20), Moline (17), Pekin (17), East Moline (16), Canton (13), Kewanee (13). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 309 numbers
Before you call back
- Debt reduction is the top named complaint here. Don't pay upfront fees for debt relief; the FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rule bans them. Talk to your lender or a nonprofit credit counselor instead. Read about debt-relief robocalls.
- Look up the full number above. A missed call from 309 with no voicemail is usually a robocall; anyone who needs you will leave a message.
- Block repeat callers: iPhone, Android, or your carrier's free filter (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile).
Report it in Illinois
- 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: Illinois Attorney General.
- Illinois 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 309: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 309?
Area code 309 serves Peoria, Bloomington and Rock Island, Illinois, covering Peoria County, McLean County and Rock Island County and 17 more counties. It has been in service since 1957.
What time zone is area code 309 in?
Area code 309 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 309?
861 (in service 2023) serves the same area as 309. 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 309 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 1,220 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 309 numbers. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches: 32% of complaints, 94% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 78% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 309 spam calls happen?
28% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 2pm and 5pm, and 93% came on weekdays, most often on Friday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 309 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. Only 43% of the FTC complaints about 309 numbers came from Illinois residents; the most came from California, Florida and Virginia. 309 numbers are being used for nationwide campaigns, so the area code says little about where the caller is.
Are 309 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 15, consumers filed 286 FTC complaints about 309 numbers. Leaving out one town that filed an unusual share of them, that is 43% fewer than the four weeks before.
How do I report a 309 scam call in Illinois?
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 Illinois, the Illinois Attorney General also handles consumer complaints about scam calls. Reports feed the public data this page is built from.
Other Illinois 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.