986 Area Code: Boise, Idaho
Area code 986 serves Boise, Coeur d'Alene and Idaho Falls, Idaho in the Pacific time zone, in service since 2017. Consumers have filed 663 unwanted-call complaints against 623 different 986 numbers, 177 of them with the FTC in the last 30 days. Look up the exact number that called you below.
Area code 986 at a glance
- State
- Idaho
- Main cities
- Boise, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Falls, Nampa, Caldwell + 100 more
- Counties
- Ada County, Kootenai County, Canyon County, Bonneville County + 35 more
- Local time
- —Pacific
- In service since
- September 5, 2017
- Overlay of
- 208
- Local dialing
- 10 digits (area code + number)
- Exchanges
- 110 rate centers, 189 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 986 numbers
No single 986 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 986 numbers are about
412 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 986 numbers since Jul 24. The most common named subject is impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family), at 22% of complaints (80% of those were recorded messages). Overall, 74% of callers who answered said the call was a robocall.
FTC complaint subjects
- Other / unspecified15638%
- Impostor (government, business, family)9022%
- Debt reduction8220%
- Dropped call / no message4511%
- No subject given184%
- Work-from-home / make money72%
- Warranties & protection plans41%
FCC complaints by call type, last 2 years
- Prerecorded Voice4262%
- Live Voice2232%
- Text Message46%
Live-voice calls are from a person; prerecorded calls are robocalls.
When 986 spam calls come in
29% of complaints that give a call time describe calls between 3pm and 6pm. 91% 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?
190 FTC complaints about 986 numbers in the last four weeks, up 64% on the four weeks before. FCC complaints about 986 numbers peaked in 2024 (53); 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 16% of the FTC complaints about 986 numbers came from Idaho residents; the most came from California, Louisiana and Florida. 986 numbers are being used for nationwide campaigns, so the area code says little about where the caller is.
Where complainants live
- Idaho6416%
- California4711%
- Louisiana307%
- Florida297%
- Texas246%
Busiest 986 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (986) 986-xxxx | 12 | 10 | Barr Tell Usa, INC. | Boise |
| (986) 910-xxxx | 8 | 8 | Onvoy (Sinch) | Boise |
| (986) 301-xxxx | 8 | 8 | T-Mobile USA | Boise |
| (986) 268-xxxx | 7 | 7 | T-Mobile USA | Boise |
| (986) 273-xxxx | 7 | 7 | T-Mobile USA | Boise |
Carriers operating in 986
NANPA has assigned 189 986 prefixes (NPA-NXX central-office codes) across 110 rate centers: 19% to wireless carriers, 78% to landline and VoIP operators; 100% are pooled blocks shared by several carriers. 12 prefixes were assigned in the last 12 months (newest 2026-10-13). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fractel, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 37(20%) | 37 | 2021-10-27 |
| Onvoy (Sinch) | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 34(18%) | 29 | 2026-08-19 |
| Ton80 Communications, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 26(14%) | 26 | 2022-02-28 |
| T-Mobile USA | Wireless | 14(7%) | 7 | 2026-04-28 |
| Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) | Wireless | 12(6%) | 9 | 2026-08-28 |
| Bandwidth.com | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 10(5%) | 9 | 2025-08-18 |
| AT&T Mobility (New Cingular Wireless PCS) | Wireless | 6(3%) | 6 | 2026-10-02 |
| Commio, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 5(3%) | 5 | 2024-01-16 |
| Nuso, LLC | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 4(2%) | 4 | 2023-02-09 |
| Boost Subscriberco L.L.C. | Wireless | 3(2%) | 3 | 2023-04-01 |
| At&T - Local | Competitive / VoIP (CLEC) | 2(1%) | 2 | 2023-12-20 |
| Barr Tell Usa, INC. | Unclassified | 2(1%) | 2 | 2024-08-07 |
Largest rate centers (exchanges) by prefixes: Boise (32), Coeur d'Alene (11), Idaho Falls (10), Nampa (7), Caldwell (5), Emmett (3), Moscow (3), Sandpoint (3), Bluebell (2), Bonners Ferry (2). Source: NANPA Central Office Code Utilized Assignments (public, refreshed weekly).
What to do about calls from 986 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 986 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 Idaho
- 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: Idaho Attorney General.
- Idaho 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 986: questions answered from the data
Where is area code 986?
Area code 986 serves Boise, Coeur d'Alene and Idaho Falls, Idaho, covering Ada County, Kootenai County and Canyon County and 36 more counties. It has been in service since September 5, 2017.
What time zone is area code 986 in?
Area code 986 is in the Pacific time zone (UTC−8, or UTC−7 during daylight saving time). The current local time is shown at the top of this page.
What are calls from 986 numbers usually about?
Since Jul 24, consumers filed 412 FTC Do Not Call complaints about 986 numbers. The most common named subject was impostor calls (people pretending to be a government agency, a business or family): 22% of complaints, 80% of them recorded messages. Across all subjects, 74% of callers who answered the question said the call was a robocall.
When do 986 spam calls happen?
29% of the complaints that give a call time describe calls between 3pm and 6pm, and 91% came on weekdays, most often on Wednesday. Times are as consumers reported them.
Are calls from 986 numbers really local?
Not necessarily. Only 16% of the FTC complaints about 986 numbers came from Idaho residents; the most came from California, Louisiana and Florida. 986 numbers are being used for nationwide campaigns, so the area code says little about where the caller is.
Are 986 robocalls increasing?
In the four weeks to Oct 15, consumers filed 190 FTC complaints about 986 numbers, 64% more than the four weeks before.
How do I report a 986 scam call in Idaho?
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 Idaho, the Idaho Attorney General 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.