202
Area code
DC
United States geographic area code, in service since 1947-01-01. Part of the 202/771 overlay complex — ten-digit dialing required.
Statusin service
Introduced1947-01-01
JurisdictionDC, US
Local dialing10D
Time zoneEastern
Last verified2026-09-17
Utilization 101% of assignable prefixes assigned
As of 09/17/2026
0%800 of ~792 assignable NXX values (200–999 excl. N11)100%
Prefix-level assignment does not equal number-level exhaustion; thousands-block pooling extends capacity. First assignment on record 2001-01-23, most recent 2026-06-26.
Area codes serve rate-center geographies, not municipal boundaries. “DC” identifies the jurisdiction, not an exact city footprint.
Top assignees
Ranked by assigned prefixes · initial assignee ≠ current carrier| Rank | Assignee | Prefixes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | VERIZON WASHINGTON DC, INC. | 329 | 41.1% |
| 02 | CELLCO PARTNERSHIP DBA VERIZON WIRELESS - DC | 88 | 11% |
| 03 | OMNIPOINT COMMUNICATIONS CAP OPERATIONS, LLC | 55 | 6.9% |
| 04 | NEW CINGULAR WIRELESS PCS, LLC - DC | 53 | 6.6% |
| 05 | METROPCS, INC. | 42 | 5.3% |
| 06 | ONVOY, LLC - DC | 34 | 4.3% |
| 07 | MCIMETRO ACCESS TRANSMISSION SERVICES LLC | 33 | 4.1% |
| 08 | BANDWIDTH.COM CLEC, LLC - DC | 29 | 3.6% |
| 09 | LEVEL 3 COMMUNICATIONS, LLC - DC | 22 | 2.8% |
| 10 | PAETEC ITEL, LLC | 19 | 2.4% |
Important: these are initial assignees from NANPA CO-code records — the carrier a prefix was originally assigned to. Because of number portability, the current serving carrier of any individual number may differ.
Change history
Recorded events for this NPA- 2020-10-22 NPA 202 and 771 All-Services Ovelray (District of Columbia) other
- 1947-01-01Area code 202 entered service.
Planning letters & orders
Primary documents| Date | Document | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| 2020-10-22 | PL-547 ↗ | NPA 202 and 771 All-Services Ovelray (District of Columbia) |