North American Numbers Source-cited · ownership disclosed
Area code
216
In service
United States · since 1947

Cleveland

One of Ohio's four original 1947 area codes, now covering the city of Cleveland and its inner-ring suburbs in Cuyahoga County. It is the only Ohio area code that has never been overlaid.

The essentials Numbering data · NumberResearch · as of 2026-09-18
Place
Cleveland
Type
geographic
Status
in service
In service since
1947
Projected exhaust
2044 Q2

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 216 is

The city of Cleveland and 34 inner-ring suburbs within Cuyahoga County.

Communities served wholly or partly by 216:

ClevelandLakewoodParmaShaker HeightsBeachwoodUniversity Heights

Partial list; serves ~34 inner-ring Cuyahoga County suburbs.

B · Relationships

How it relates to other codes

The codes 216 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?

Spawned · 1996 330 Akron/Canton/Youngstown Akron/Canton/Youngstown split off from the original 216 territory.
Spawned · 1997 440 Cleveland suburbs Cleveland suburbs and outlying counties split off, leaving 216 confined to Cleveland/Cuyahoga.
Related 440 Cleveland suburbs Surrounds 216 geographically.
What's changing. No overlay; the only Ohio NPA never overlaid. Relief reportedly not projected until ~2046.
C · History

How 216 got here

1947
Established as an original NANP area code covering the northeastern quadrant of Ohio, from Lorain to Youngstown.
Source: Wikipedia: Area code 216
1996
Southern portion (Akron, Canton, Youngstown) split off as area code 330.
Source: Wikipedia: Area code 216
1997
Eastern and western portions split off as area code 440, reducing 216 to Cleveland and inner-ring Cuyahoga County suburbs.
Source: Wikipedia: Area code 216
D · Capacity

How full it is

Prefixes assigned
637
Prefixes available
163
Thousands-blocks assigned
2,353

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

Compare 216 with another code →
Sources
Wikipedia ↗
Area code 216
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.