973 Area Code: Newark, New Jersey
Area code 973 serves Newark, Morristown and Passaic, New Jersey in the Eastern time zone, in service since 1997. Consumers have filed 4,715 unwanted-call complaints against 3,760 different 973 numbers, 500 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 973 at a glance
- State
- New Jersey
- Main cities
- Newark, Morristown, Passaic, Caldwell, Paterson, Orange + 35 more
- Counties
- Essex County, Morris County, Passaic County, Sussex County + 1 more
- Local time
- —Eastern
- In service since
- June 1, 1997
- Split from
- 201
- Overlay code
- 862 (2001)
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 42 rate centers, 779 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 973 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 973 numbers are about
1,468 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 973 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family), at 8% of complaints (53% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 64% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified68647%
- No subject given17512%
- Dropped call / no message17412%
- Impostor (government, business, family)1178%
- Debt reduction1077%
- Medical & prescriptions775%
- Home improvement & cleaning352%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Live Voice8548%
- Prerecorded Voice7844%
- Text Message158%
Live-voice calls are from a person; prerecorded calls are robocalls.
When 973 spam calls come in
34% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 10am and 1pm. 93% came Monday to Friday, most on Mondays, 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?
496 FTC complaints about 973 numbers in the last four weeks; leaving out the concentrated source below, complaints are up 4% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 973 numbers peaked in 2017 (681); the FTC's daily Do Not Call data has carried most of the volume since mid-2026.
Data note: 70 of the last four weeks' 973 complaints (14%) came from one place, Stanhope, NJ (callers' own phones in area code 973), about 26× 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
63% of the FTC complaints about 973 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 973, and 73% from New Jersey. 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 Stanhope, NJ, flagged under “Is it getting worse?” as an unusually concentrated source.
Where complainants live
- New Jersey1,07873%
- Florida383%
- California383%
- New York322%
- Illinois242%
What people with 973 numbers report
People whose own number starts with 973 filed 3,509 FTC complaints since Jul 24. 26% were about calls showing another 973 number. The most common named subject was debt-relief pitches.
Area codes on the calls they reported
- 973 (same code)92026%
- 877 (toll-free)2036%
- 833 (toll-free)1905%
- 888 (toll-free)1845%
- 855 (toll-free)1574%
Busiest 973 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (973) 291-xxxx | 14 | 10 | Level 3 (Lumen) | Butler |
| (973) 250-xxxx | 12 | 12 | Cooperative Communications, INC. | Branchville |
| (973) 913-xxxx | 11 | 6 | Teleport Communications America, LLC | South Orange |
| (973) 200-xxxx | 9 | 9 | Level 3 (Lumen) | Little Falls |
| (973) 319-xxxx | 8 | 8 | Level 3 (Lumen) | Whippany |
Carriers operating in 973
NANPA has assigned 779 973 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 42 rate centers: 20% to wireless carriers, 79% to landline and VoIP operators; 58% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 3 prefixes were assigned in the last 12 months (newest 2026-08-25). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verizon (landline) | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 335(43%) | 33 | 2005-12-08 |
| Level 3 (Lumen) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 76(10%) | 33 | 2008-02-04 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 53(7%) | 8 | 2025-09-03 |
| Omnipoint Communications, INC. | Wireless | 48(6%) | 9 | 2025-07-10 |
| MCImetro (Verizon Business) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 44(6%) | 23 | 2001-02-02 |
| Teleport Communications America, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 31(4%) | 27 | 2006-03-23 |
| PAETEC (Windstream) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 30(4%) | 22 | 2010-01-04 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 26(3%) | 5 | 2002-12-12 |
| At&T - Local | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 17(2%) | 13 | 2001-01-18 |
| Metro by T-Mobile (MetroPCS) | Wireless | 16(2%) | 5 | 2011-02-16 |
| Brightspeed of New Jersey, INC. | Incumbent landline (ILEC) | 14(2%) | 7 | — |
| Cablevision Lightpath, INC. | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 13(2%) | 10 | 2017-05-12 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Newark (147), Morristown (90), Passaic (46), Caldwell (42), Paterson (40), Orange (33), Bloomfield (28), Whippany (28), Madison (25), Livingston (23). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 973 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 973 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 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 973: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 973?
Area code 973 serves Newark, Morristown and Passaic, New Jersey, covering Essex County, Morris County and Passaic County and 2 more counties. It has been in service since June 1, 1997. It was split from area code 201.
What time zone is area code 973 in?
Area code 973 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.
Which area codes overlay 973?
862 (in service 2001) serves the same area as 973. 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 973 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 1,468 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 973 numbers. The most common named subject was impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family): 8% 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 973 spam calls happen?
34% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 10am and 1pm, and 93% came on weekdays, most often on Monday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 973 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. 63% of the FTC complaints about 973 numbers came from people whose own phone number also starts with 973, and 73% from New Jersey. 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 973 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 20, consumers filed 496 FTC complaints about 973 numbers. Leaving out one town that filed an unusual share of them, that is 4% more than the four weeks before.
How do I report a 973 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.