859 Area Code: Lexington, Kentucky
Area code 859 serves Lexington, Covington and Boone, Kentucky in the Eastern time zone, in service since 2000. Consumers have filed 4,451 unwanted-call complaints against 3,284 different 859 numbers, 428 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 859 at a glance
- State
- Kentucky
- Main cities
- Lexington, Covington, Boone, Winchester, Richmond, Danville + 36 more
- Counties
- Fayette County, Kenton County, Madison County, Clark County + 17 more
- Local time
- —Eastern
- In service since
- April 1, 2000
- Split from
- 606
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 42 rate centers, 563 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 859 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 859 numbers are about
1,271 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 859 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family), at 27% of complaints (88% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 73% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified39631%
- Impostor (government, business, family)34027%
- Medical & prescriptions18815%
- Debt reduction15012%
- Dropped call / no message877%
- No subject given484%
- Warranties & protection plans181%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Live Voice7552%
- Prerecorded Voice5437%
- Text Message1611%
11% of recent FCC complaints about 859 numbers are about text messages, not calls.
When 859 spam calls come in
32% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 10am and 1pm. 96% came Monday to Friday, most on Wednesdays, 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?
481 FTC complaints about 859 numbers in the last four weeks, up 31% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 859 numbers peaked in 2018 (489); 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
63% of the FTC complaints about 859 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 859, and 69% from Kentucky. 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
- Kentucky88169%
- California353%
- Ohio302%
- Florida262%
- Texas252%
What people with 859 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 859 filed 2,626 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 31% were about calls showing another 859 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 859 (same code)80331%
- 833 (toll-free)1034%
- 866 (toll-free)974%
- 502833%
- 877 (toll-free)803%
Likely campaigns using 859 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 859 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (859) 997-xxxx | 12 | 12 | Onvoy (Sinch) | Williamstown |
| (859) 459-xxxx | 10 | 9 | Level 3 (Lumen) | Willisburg |
| (859) 599-xxxx | 8 | 8 | Ip Horizon LLC | Cornishville |
| (859) 465-xxxx | 7 | 7 | Fractel, LLC | Millersburg |
| (859) 357-xxxx | 7 | 7 | Windstream | Lexington |
Carriers operating in 859
NANPA has assigned 563 859 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 42 rate centers: 32% to wireless carriers, 68% to landline and VoIP operators; 69% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windstream | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 77(14%) | 9 | 2017-03-02 |
| Cincinnati Bell | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 57(10%) | 10 | 2005-02-15 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 54(10%) | 16 | 2023-09-28 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 53(9%) | 16 | 2024-04-04 |
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 51(9%) | 29 | 2026-09-03 |
| Level 3 (Lumen) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 49(9%) | 25 | 2006-10-25 |
| BellSouth (AT&T) | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 41(7%) | 23 | 2009-09-11 |
| PAETEC (Windstream) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 29(5%) | 21 | 2021-08-16 |
| Powertel Kentucky Licenses, INC. | Wireless | 26(5%) | 9 | 2026-01-05 |
| T-Mobile USA | Wireless | 16(3%) | 1 | 2014-08-26 |
| Metro by T-Mobile (MetroPCS) | Wireless | 13(2%) | 6 | 2017-08-15 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 13(2%) | 1 | 2011-09-30 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Lexington (164), Covington (95), Boone (32), Winchester (29), Richmond (24), Danville (16), Mount Sterling (13), Berea (11), Harrodsburg (11), Alexandria (10). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 859 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 859 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 Kentucky
- 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: Kentucky Attorney General.
- Kentucky 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 859: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 859?
Area code 859 serves Lexington, Covington and Boone, Kentucky, covering Fayette County, Kenton County and Madison County and 18 more counties. It has been in service since April 1, 2000. It was split from area code 606.
What time zone is area code 859 in?
Area code 859 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 859 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 1,271 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 859 numbers. The most common named subject was impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family): 27% of complaints, 88% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 73% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 859 spam calls happen?
32% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 10am and 1pm, and 96% came on weekdays, most often on Wednesday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 859 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. 63% of the FTC complaints about 859 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 859, and 69% from Kentucky. 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 859 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 15, consumers filed 481 FTC complaints about 859 numbers, 31% more than the four weeks before.
How do I report an 859 scam call in Kentucky?
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 Kentucky, the Kentucky Attorney General also handles consumer complaints about scam calls. Reports feed the public data this page is built from.
Other Kentucky 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.