North American Numbers Source-cited · ownership disclosed
Area code
202
In service
United States · since 1947

Washington, D.C.

Area code 202 is the original area code for the District of Columbia, serving all of Washington, D.C. Since 2021 it has been overlaid by area code 771.

The essentials Numbering data · NumberResearch · as of 2026-09-18
Place
Washington, D.C.
Type
geographic
Status
in service
In service since
1947
Projected exhaust
2088 Q3

Status, dates and counts are read from NumberResearch (NANPA / CNAC / FCC records). Assignment records show initial assignees, not the carrier serving a number today.

A · Where it is

Where 202 is

The District of Columbia; extended local calling reaches parts of the Maryland and Virginia suburbs..

Communities served wholly or partly by 202:

Washington

Only D.C. proper is in the 202/771 geography; suburbs have their own Maryland/Virginia codes.

B · Relationships

How it relates to other codes

The codes 202 was split from, spawned, or shares its area with. A split divides the map and changes some numbers; an overlay shares the same ground and changes none — what's the difference?

Overlay · 2021 771 Washington, D.C. (overlay) 771 overlays the identical D.C. geography.
What's changing. Overlaid by 771 since 2021; 10-digit dialing mandatory throughout the District.
C · History

How 202 got here

1947-10
Assigned as one of the original North American area codes.
Source: Wikipedia
2021-04-10
Permissive 10-digit dialing began ahead of the 771 overlay.
Source: Wikipedia
D · Capacity

How full it is

Prefixes assigned
800
Prefixes available
0
Thousands-blocks assigned
3,496

Prefix-assignment counts describe allocation to carriers, not how many individual numbers are in use. Full technical records: NumberResearch ↗.

Compare 202 with another code →
Sources
Wikipedia ↗
Area codes 202 and 771
NumberResearch.org ↗
Live status, dates, assignment counts and exhaust forecast — data as of 2026-09-18 (CC BY 4.0).

Place, relationships and history above are compiled by North American Numbers from the sources listed and last checked 2026-09-18. A check date is not an expert review — see how this is made. Flag an error.