North American Numbers Source-cited · ownership disclosed
Area code
805
In service
United States · since 1957

Santa Barbara / Ventura / San Luis Obispo

Area code 805 serves the central California coast, covering San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Created in 1957 from a reduction of area code 213, it was itself reduced in 1999 when 661 split off, and has been overlaid by area code 820 since 2018.

The essentials Numbering data · NumberResearch · as of 2026-09-18
Place
Santa Barbara / Ventura / San Luis Obispo
Type
geographic
Status
in service
In service since
1957
Projected exhaust
2074 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 805 is

Central California coast: San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, plus the southernmost portion of Monterey County..

Communities served wholly or partly by 805:

Santa BarbaraVenturaOxnardSan Luis ObispoPaso RoblesLompoc

Representative list of principal communities, not exhaustive.

B · Relationships

How it relates to other codes

The codes 805 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?

Split from · 1957 213 Downtown Los Angeles 805 was created when the original area code 213 was reduced in size.
Spawned · 1999 661 Bakersfield / Santa Clarita The eastern part of 805 split off on February 13, 1999 to form area code 661.
Overlay · 2018 820 Central Coast (overlay) 820 is an all-services overlay covering the identical 805 territory, in service June 2018.
What's changing. Overlaid by area code 820 since June 2018; ten-digit dialing is mandatory.
C · History

How 805 got here

1957
Area code 805 created when the original California area code 213 was reduced in size.
Source: Wikipedia
1999-02-13
Eastern portion of 805 split off to form area code 661, reducing 805 to the central coast.
Source: Wikipedia
2018-06
Area code 820 became available, requiring ten-digit dialing for all calls.
Source: Wikipedia
D · Capacity

How full it is

Prefixes assigned
800
Prefixes available
0
Thousands-blocks assigned
3,736

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

Compare 805 with another code →
Sources
Wikipedia ↗
Area codes 805 and 820
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.