Area code

SC

United States geographic area code, in service since 1998-03-22. Part of the 843/854 overlay complex — ten-digit dialing required.

Split from 803. Created 854. Overlaid with 854 .

Statusin service

Introduced1998-03-22

JurisdictionSC, 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 2001-01-02, most recent 2024-07-03.

Area codes serve rate-center geographies, not municipal boundaries. “SC” identifies the jurisdiction, not an exact city footprint.

Top assignees

Ranked by assigned prefixes · initial assignee ≠ current carrier

Largest initial assignees in area code 843
Rank	Assignee	Prefixes	Share
01	BELLSOUTH TELECOMM INC DBA SOUTHERN BELL TEL & TEL	143	17.9%
02	CELLCO PARTNERSHIP DBA VERIZON WIRELESS - SC	103	12.9%
03	SUNCOM DBA T-MOBILE USA	65	8.1%
04	PAETEC ITEL, LLC	58	7.2%
05	FRONTIER COMMUNICATIONS OF THE CAROLINAS INC. - SC	57	7.1%
06	NEW CINGULAR WIRELESS PCS, LLC - GA	53	6.6%
07	LEVEL 3 COMMUNICATIONS, LLC - SC	40	5%
08	TWC IP ENABLED SERVICES, LLC	26	3.3%
09	HORRY TEL. COOP., INC.	24	3%
10	BRIGHTSPEED OF SOUTH CAROLINA, LLC	16	2%

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

2014-11-14 NPA 854 to Overlay NPA 843 (South Carolina) overlay
1998-03-22Area code 843 entered service (created from 803).

Planning letters & orders

Primary documents

NANPA planning letters for area code 843
Date	Document	Subject
2014-11-14	PL-474 ↗	NPA 854 to Overlay NPA 843 (South Carolina)
2014-02-11	PL-463 ↗	NPA 854 to Overlay NPA 843 (South Carolina)
1997-09-05	PL-086 ↗	NANP-Split of 803 (South Carolina) Numbering Plan Area (NPA)

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