956
Area code
TX
United States geographic area code, in service since 1997-07-07. NANPA has flagged this area code for relief planning.
Split from 210.
Statusin service
Introduced1997-07-07
JurisdictionTX, US
Local dialing7D
Time zoneCentral
ReliefPlanning
Last verified2026-09-17
Utilization 95.1% of assignable prefixes assigned
As of 09/17/2026
0%753 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 2001-02-02, most recent 2026-09-16.
Relief planning is under way for area code 956.
No planning letter has been issued yet for this cycle — this page will be updated the day one is published. Subscribe to the change-event feed to be notified.
Area codes serve rate-center geographies, not municipal boundaries. “TX” identifies the jurisdiction, not an exact city footprint.
Top assignees
Ranked by assigned prefixes · initial assignee ≠ current carrier| Rank | Assignee | Prefixes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | SOUTHWESTERN BELL | 145 | 19.3% |
| 02 | STPCS JOINT VENTURE, LLC | 144 | 19.1% |
| 03 | NEW CINGULAR WIRELESS PCS, LLC - IL | 129 | 17.1% |
| 04 | CELLCO PARTNERSHIP DBA VERIZON WIRELESS - TX | 44 | 5.8% |
| 05 | ONVOY, LLC - TX | 43 | 5.7% |
| 06 | METROPCS, INC. | 26 | 3.5% |
| 07 | TWC IP ENABLED SERVICES, LLC | 19 | 2.5% |
| 08 | BANDWIDTH.COM CLEC, LLC - TX | 18 | 2.4% |
| 09 | FRONTIER SOUTHWEST INC DBA FRONTIER COMM OF TEXAS | 17 | 2.3% |
| 10 | FRACTEL, LLC | 14 | 1.9% |
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- 1997-07-07Area code 956 entered service (created from 210).
Planning letters & orders
Primary documents| Date | Document | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| 1997-01-22 | PL-035 ↗ | NANP-Split of 210 (Texas) Numbering Plan Area (NPA) |