551 Area Code: Jersey City, New Jersey
Area code 551 serves Jersey City, Hackensack and Bayonne, New Jersey in the Eastern time zone, in service since 2001. Consumers have filed 2,681 unwanted-call complaints against 2,202 different 551 numbers, 505 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 551 at a glance
- State
- New Jersey
- Main cities
- Jersey City, Hackensack, Bayonne, Union City, Ramsey, Fair Lawn + 16 more
- Counties
- Bergen County, Hudson County
- Local time
- —Eastern
- In service since
- December 29, 2001
- Overlay of
- 201
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 23 rate centers, 301 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 551 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 551 numbers are about
1,318 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 551 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is debt-relief pitches, at 33% of complaints (92% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 71% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified50738%
- Debt reduction42933%
- Dropped call / no message1128%
- Impostor (government, business, family)977%
- No subject given937%
- Warranties & protection plans272%
- Energy, solar & utilities191%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Prerecorded Voice9446%
- Live Voice7536%
- Text Message3718%
18% of recent FCC complaints about 551 numbers are about text messages, not calls.
When 551 spam calls come in
29% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 2pm and 5pm. 92% came Monday to Friday, most on Tuesdays, 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?
584 FTC complaints about 551 numbers in the last four weeks, up 49% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 551 numbers peaked in 2018 (258); 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
Only 33% of the FTC complaints about 551 numbers came from New Jersey residents; the most came from Florida, California and New York. 551 numbers are being used for nationwide campaigns, so the area code says little about where the caller is.
Where complainants live
- New Jersey42933%
- Florida856%
- California856%
- New York756%
- Texas695%
What people with 551 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 551 filed 380 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 22% were about calls showing another 551 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 551 (same code)8222%
- 833 (toll-free)369%
- 844 (toll-free)164%
- 866 (toll-free)164%
- 877 (toll-free)103%
Likely campaigns using 551 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 551 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.
Carriers operating in 551
NANPA has assigned 301 551 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 23 rate centers: 49% to wireless carriers, 50% to landline and VoIP operators; 98% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 8 prefixes were assigned in the last 12 months (newest 2026-09-03). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 71(24%) | 22 | 2026-08-12 |
| Omnipoint Communications, INC. | Wireless | 68(23%) | 13 | 2025-10-14 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 44(15%) | 4 | 2025-09-03 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 27(9%) | 7 | 2026-09-03 |
| Fractel, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 16(5%) | 10 | 2021-10-26 |
| Bandwidth.com | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 15(5%) | 10 | 2023-01-20 |
| Ton80 Communications, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 10(3%) | 10 | 2022-03-04 |
| Cablevision Lightpath, INC. | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 9(3%) | 7 | 2025-10-14 |
| Level 3 (Lumen) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 5(2%) | 3 | 2018-12-12 |
| Metro by T-Mobile (MetroPCS) | Wireless | 5(2%) | 4 | 2020-08-10 |
| MCImetro (Verizon Business) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 3(1%) | 2 | 2017-06-14 |
| Nuso, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 3(1%) | 2 | 2023-02-09 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Jersey City (53), Hackensack (47), Bayonne (32), Union City (24), Ramsey (20), Fair Lawn (17), Cliffside Park (14), Kearny (11), Ridgewood (10), Closter (8). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 551 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 551 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 New Jersey
- 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: New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs.
- New Jersey 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 551: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 551?
Area code 551 serves Jersey City, Hackensack and Bayonne, New Jersey, covering Bergen County and Hudson County. It has been in service since December 29, 2001.
What time zone is area code 551 in?
Area code 551 is in the Eastern time zone (UTC−5, or UTC−4 during daylight saving time). The current local time is shown at the top of this page.
What are calls from 551 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 1,318 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 551 numbers. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches: 33% of complaints, 92% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 71% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 551 spam calls happen?
29% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 2pm and 5pm, and 92% came on weekdays, most often on Tuesday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 551 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. Only 33% of the FTC complaints about 551 numbers came from New Jersey residents; the most came from Florida, California and New York. 551 numbers are being used for nationwide campaigns, so the area code says little about where the caller is.
Are 551 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 15, consumers filed 584 FTC complaints about 551 numbers, 49% more than the four weeks before.
How do I report a 551 scam call in New Jersey?
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 New Jersey, the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs 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.