515 Area Code: Des Moines, Iowa
Area code 515 serves Des Moines, Ames and Winterset, Iowa in the Central time zone, in service since 1947. Consumers have filed 5,095 unwanted-call complaints against 4,134 different 515 numbers, 747 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 515 at a glance
- State
- Iowa
- Main cities
- Des Moines, Ames, Winterset, Fort Dodge, Boone + 92 more
- Counties
- Boone County, Story County, Webster County, Dallas County + 15 more
- Local time
- —Central
- In service since
- 1947
- Codes split off
- 641 (2000)
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 98 rate centers, 578 prefixes
Sources: NANPA area code and central office code records (refreshed weekly); cities and counties matched from US Census Bureau and USGS place names.
Reported 515 numbers
No single 515 number has enough complaints yet for a full report page, so none are listed. Look up the exact number that called you: the lookup works on every US number, whether or not it has complaint history.
What calls from 515 numbers are about
2,577 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 515 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is debt-relief pitches, at 11% of complaints (90% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 85% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified1,02740%
- Dropped call / no message66926%
- Debt reduction29111%
- Impostor (government, business, family)1666%
- Medical & prescriptions1536%
- Warranties & protection plans1024%
- No subject given873%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Prerecorded Voice12455%
- Live Voice6629%
- Text Message3716%
16% of recent FCC complaints about 515 numbers are about text messages, not calls.
When 515 spam calls come in
31% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 3pm and 6pm. 94% 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?
862 FTC complaints about 515 numbers in the last four weeks, down 16% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 515 numbers peaked in 2015 (433); 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
73% of the FTC complaints about 515 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 515, and 76% from Iowa. 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
- Iowa1,96576%
- Florida512%
- New York502%
- California502%
- Texas381%
What people with 515 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 515 filed 3,265 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 57% were about calls showing another 515 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 515 (same code)1,87557%
- 833 (toll-free)1154%
- 877 (toll-free)873%
- 855 (toll-free)823%
- 319772%
Busiest 515 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (515) 513-xxxx | 43 | 28 | Csc Wireless, LLC | Des Moines |
| (515) 666-xxxx | 21 | 18 | Fractel, LLC | Des Moines |
| (515) 435-xxxx | 20 | 18 | Onvoy (Sinch) | Roland |
| (515) 529-xxxx | 19 | 19 | Fractel, LLC | Colfax |
| (515) 600-xxxx | 19 | 17 | Fractel, LLC | Lu Verne |
Carriers operating in 515
NANPA has assigned 578 515 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 98 rate centers: 30% to wireless carriers, 69% to landline and VoIP operators; 74% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 3 prefixes were assigned in the last 12 months (newest 2026-09-17). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qwest (CenturyLink / Lumen) | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 146(25%) | 31 | 2016-09-01 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 54(9%) | 14 | 2024-08-15 |
| T-Mobile USA | Wireless | 47(8%) | 11 | 2025-12-05 |
| UScellular | Wireless | 44(8%) | 15 | 2025-03-21 |
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 27(5%) | 15 | 2026-09-17 |
| Mcc Telephony of Iowa, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 23(4%) | 14 | 2023-05-09 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 22(4%) | 10 | 2025-09-19 |
| Bandwidth.com | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 21(4%) | 14 | 2022-08-04 |
| Windstream | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 20(3%) | 16 | 2018-01-31 |
| Webster-Calhoun Coop. Tel. Assn. | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 16(3%) | 16 | — |
| Fractel, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 13(2%) | 13 | 2021-01-21 |
| Windstream | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 13(2%) | 4 | — |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Des Moines (257), Ames (39), Winterset (17), Fort Dodge (14), Boone (13), Pleasantville (11), Indianola (9), Algona (8), Adel (7), Webster City (7). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 515 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 515 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 Iowa
- 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: Iowa Attorney General.
- Iowa does not run its own Do Not Call registry and has not formally adopted the federal list as a state list. The federal National Do Not Call Registry at donotcall.gov still applies to you — register there, free, and it never expires.
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 515: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 515?
Area code 515 serves Des Moines, Ames and Winterset, Iowa, covering Boone County, Story County and Webster County and 16 more counties. It has been in service since 1947.
What time zone is area code 515 in?
Area code 515 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.
What are calls from 515 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 2,577 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 515 numbers. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches: 11% of complaints, 90% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 85% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 515 spam calls happen?
31% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 3pm and 6pm, and 94% came on weekdays, most often on Thursday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 515 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. 73% of the FTC complaints about 515 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 515, and 76% from Iowa. 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 515 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 15, consumers filed 862 FTC complaints about 515 numbers, 16% fewer than the four weeks before.
How do I report a 515 scam call in Iowa?
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 Iowa, the Iowa Attorney General also handles consumer complaints about scam calls. Reports feed the public data this page is built from.
Other Iowa 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.