865 Area Code: Knoxville, Tennessee
Area code 865 serves Knoxville, Maryville and Oak Ridge, Tennessee in the Eastern time zone, in service since 1999. Consumers have filed 3,965 unwanted-call complaints against 3,640 different 865 numbers, 623 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 865 at a glance
- State
- Tennessee
- Main cities
- Knoxville, Maryville, Oak Ridge, Sevierville, Lenoir City, Kingston + 25 more
- Counties
- Knox County, Blount County, Anderson County, Roane County + 5 more
- Local time
- —Eastern
- In service since
- November 1, 1999
- Split from
- 423
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 33 rate centers, 506 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 865 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 865 numbers are about
1,869 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 865 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is medical & prescriptions, at 23% of complaints (53% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 64% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified75240%
- Medical & prescriptions43223%
- Impostor (government, business, family)22912%
- No subject given1679%
- Dropped call / no message945%
- Debt reduction895%
- Computer & tech support302%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Prerecorded Voice18651%
- Live Voice13537%
- Text Message4111%
11% of recent FCC complaints about 865 numbers are about text messages, not calls.
When 865 spam calls come in
30% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 10am and 1pm. 96% 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?
621 FTC complaints about 865 numbers in the last four weeks; leaving out the concentrated source below, complaints are down 7% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 865 numbers peaked in 2017 (306); the FTC's daily Do Not Call data has carried most of the volume since mid-2026.
Data note: 149 of the last four weeks' 865 complaints (24%) came from one place, Maryville, TN (callers' own phones in area code 865), up from 38 in the comparison period. 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
82% of the FTC complaints about 865 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 865, and 85% from Tennessee. 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.
These shares include Maryville, TN, flagged under “Is it getting worse?” as an unusually concentrated source.
Where complainants live
- Tennessee1,59585%
- Florida402%
- California281%
- North Carolina251%
- Illinois231%
What people with 865 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 865 filed 3,832 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 40% were about calls showing another 865 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 865 (same code)1,52540%
- 833 (toll-free)1594%
- 888 (toll-free)1013%
- 855 (toll-free)852%
- 877 (toll-free)792%
Busiest 865 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (865) 252-xxxx | 21 | 16 | Onvoy (Sinch) | Knoxville |
| (865) 218-xxxx | 16 | 16 | Concord Tel. Exch., INC. | Concord |
| (865) 215-xxxx | 16 | 14 | BellSouth (AT&T) | Knoxville |
| (865) 315-xxxx | 12 | 3 | Powertel Nashville Licenses, INC. | Knoxville |
| (865) 319-xxxx | 11 | 9 | Bandwidth.com | Knoxville |
Carriers operating in 865
NANPA has assigned 506 865 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 33 rate centers: 32% to wireless carriers, 66% to landline and VoIP operators; 74% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 8 prefixes were assigned in the last 12 months (newest 2026-08-24). 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) | 122(24%) | 25 | 2013-03-29 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 50(10%) | 4 | 2026-03-10 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 48(9%) | 3 | 2024-06-20 |
| PAETEC (Windstream) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 44(9%) | 19 | 2022-02-07 |
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 35(7%) | 21 | 2026-08-24 |
| Powertel Nashville Licenses, INC. | Wireless | 29(6%) | 1 | 2021-08-24 |
| Teleport Communications America, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 29(6%) | 7 | 2026-07-20 |
| UScellular | Wireless | 19(4%) | 2 | 2004-06-03 |
| Level 3 (Lumen) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 16(3%) | 11 | 2017-11-30 |
| Ton80 Communications, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 16(3%) | 16 | 2022-02-01 |
| Bandwidth.com | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 8(2%) | 7 | 2026-05-08 |
| Frontier Communications | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 8(2%) | 5 | 2004-08-30 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Knoxville (276), Maryville (41), Oak Ridge (21), Sevierville (14), Kingston (11), Lenoir City (11), Concord (10), Clinton (8), Mascot (8), Gatlinburg (7). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 865 numbers
Before you call back
- Medical & prescriptions is the top named complaint here. Don't confirm your Medicare or insurance number to a caller. Medicare won't cold-call you to sell braces, test kits or plans. Read about Medicare scam calls.
- Look up the full number above. A missed call from 865 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 Tennessee
- 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: Tennessee Attorney General.
- Tennessee is one of the states that maintains its own Do Not Call registry alongside the federal National Do Not Call Registry, so telemarketers calling Tennessee numbers are expected to check both lists. Registering on the federal list at donotcall.gov is free and never expires; the state list is administered separately and may have its own registration process and renewal period.
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 865: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 865?
Area code 865 serves Knoxville, Maryville and Oak Ridge, Tennessee, covering Knox County, Blount County and Anderson County and 6 more counties. It has been in service since November 1, 1999. It was split from area code 423.
What time zone is area code 865 in?
Area code 865 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 865 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 1,869 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 865 numbers. The most common named subject was medical & prescriptions: 23% of complaints, 53% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 64% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 865 spam calls happen?
30% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 10am and 1pm, and 96% came on weekdays, most often on Tuesday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 865 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. 82% of the FTC complaints about 865 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 865, and 85% from Tennessee. 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 865 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 20, consumers filed 621 FTC complaints about 865 numbers. Leaving out one town that filed an unusual share of them, that is 7% fewer than the four weeks before.
How do I report an 865 scam call in Tennessee?
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 Tennessee, the Tennessee Attorney General also handles consumer complaints about scam calls. Reports feed the public data this page is built from.
Other Tennessee 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.