Area codes 617 and 857 are telephone

area code A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, rea ...

s in the

North American Numbering Plan The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is an integrated telephone numbering plan for twenty-five regions in twenty countries, primarily in North America and the Caribbean. This group is historically known as World Zone 1, World Numbering Zone ...

(NANP) for the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, serving the city of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

and several surrounding communities such as Brookline,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, Newton and Quincy. Area code 617 is one of the original North American area codes created in October 1947, when it served the eastern two-thirds of Massachusetts, from roughly the western end of Worcester County to

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

and the South Coast.

History

Massachusetts was the only

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

state divided into multiple numbering plan areas (NPAs) when the

American Telephone and Telegraph Company AT&T Corporation, an abbreviation for its former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, was an American telecommunications company that provided voice, video, data, and Internet telecommunications and professional services to busi ...

(AT&T) devised the first nationwide

telephone numbering plan A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, reach ...

in 1947. Area code 617 was assigned to the more populous eastern portion, stretching from roughly the western end of Worcester County to

and the South Coast. The rest of the state, roughly everything from Hardwick westward, was served by area code 413. In July 1988, most of the western, northern, and southern portions of the old 617 territory, including Worcester County, the Merrimack Valley, the South Coast, and the Cape and Islands, were split off as

area code 508 Area codes 508 and 774 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The numbering plan area comprises south-central and most of southeastern Massachusetts ( LATA 128). It includes ...

. Permissive dialing of 617 continued across eastern Massachusetts until January 1, 1989. In 1997, the northern, western and southern portions of the new 617 split off as 781, which almost completely surrounds 617. This made 617 largely coextensive with the inner ring of Greater Boston. This was intended as a long-term solution, but within three years 617 was close to exhaustion once again due to the demand for more phone lines for auxiliary devices (mobile phones, fax machines, pagers, and BBS lines). On May 2, 2001, 857 was overlaid onto 617. Since then, 10-digit local dialing has been mandatory. Some mobile telephone numbers from the 1990s assigned to communities in the area surrounding 617 (which is now the 781 area code) kept the 617 area code after the split.

Area code 508 Area codes 508 and 774 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The numbering plan area comprises south-central and most of southeastern Massachusetts ( LATA 128). It includes ...

was split from 617 on July 16, 1988.

Area code 978 Area codes 978 and 351 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan for north central and most of northeastern Massachusetts. Area code 978 was created in an area code split of area code 508 on September 1, 1997. A permissi ...

subsequently split from 508 on September 1, 1997.

Area code 781 Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while ''surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-dime ...

was split from 617 on September 1, 1997. As of 2018, the 617/857 NPA is projected to be exhausted by 2041.

Service area

The numbering plan area 617/857 includes portions of the following counties: *

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

This includes the following communities: * Belmont *

* Brookline *

* Chelsea * Everett * Milton * Newton * Quincy * Somerville * Watertown * Winthrop

Central office codes by location

The NPA includes central offices with the following prefix format ''617-NXX'': * Belmont: 209, 404, 484, 486, 489, 672, 826, 855, 883, 932, 977, 993 * Boston Central: 204, 205, 210, 212, 217, 222, 223, 224, 226, 227, 228, 235, 236, 239, 246, 247, 248, 255, 259, 261, 262, 263, 266, 267, 275, 279, 283, 289, 292, 293, 295, 303, 304, 305, 306, 309, 310, 312, 314, 316, 320, 330, 331, 338, 341, 342, 343, 345, 346, 348, 350, 351, 352, 353, 356, 357, 358, 366, 367, 368, 369, 371, 372, 373, 375, 377, 378, 385, 391, 392, 399, 406, 407, 412, 413, 414, 416, 421, 422, 423, 424, 425, 426, 428, 429, 434, 437, 438, 439, 443, 447, 448, 449, 450, 451, 456, 457, 459, 470, 476, 478, 480, 482, 488, 490, 502, 504, 507, 510, 512, 513, 515, 517, 519, 521, 523, 526, 530, 531, 532, 534, 535, 536, 542, 543, 549, 556, 557, 563, 565, 570, 571, 572, 573, 574, 578, 579, 585, 587, 589, 590, 592, 593, 594, 595, 598, 603, 619, 620, 624, 626, 635, 636, 637, 638, 643, 645, 646, 648, 650, 654, 662, 664, 670, 671, 672, 680, 683, 686, 692, 694, 695, 697, 699, 717, 719, 720, 721, 722, 723, 724, 725, 726, 727, 728, 733, 737, 742, 743, 747, 748, 753, 755, 756, 757, 760, 763, 772, 777, 778, 780, 784, 785, 788, 790, 794, 799, 816, 818, 820, 823, 824, 828, 830, 832, 834, 835, 838, 839, 840, 848, 849, 850, 851, 854, 856, 859, 861, 865, 867, 869, 872, 875, 877, 878, 880, 888, 892, 894, 896, 897, 901, 904, 908, 912, 918, 919, 921, 927, 931, 933, 936, 937, 938, 939, 943, 946, 947, 948, 951, 954, 956, 959, 960, 961, 963, 973, 986, 988, 989, 994 * Brighton: 202, 206, 208, 254, 300, 319, 403, 415, 560, 562, 586, 746, 779, 782, 783, 787, 789, 817, 870, 891, 903, 925, 987 * Brookline: 232, 264, 274, 277, 278, 355, 383, 396, 432, 487, 505, 525, 566, 582, 608, 632, 651, 667, 677, 713, 730, 731, 732, 734, 735, 738, 739, 751, 754, 860, 879, 906, 935, 953, 975, 991, 992 * Cambridge: 201, 216, 218, 225, 229, 230, 233, 234, 245, 250, 251, 252, 253, 256, 258, 280, 290, 299, 301, 308, 324, 335, 339, 349, 354, 359, 374, 384, 386, 388, 395, 397, 401, 417, 430, 441, 444, 452, 453, 460, 465, 468, 475, 491, 492, 493, 494, 495, 496, 497, 498, 499, 500, 503, 520, 528, 540, 547, 550, 551, 575, 576, 577, 583, 588, 599, 613, 621, 642, 647, 649, 661, 665, 674, 679, 682, 685, 693, 703, 710, 714, 715, 758, 761, 768, 798, 800, 802, 803, 806, 812, 821, 836, 844, 852, 858, 864, 866, 868, 871, 873, 876, 899, 902, 909, 914, 940, 945, 949, 955, 976, 995, 998, 999 * Charlestown: 241, 242, 286, 337, 380, 398, 580, 669, 681, 712, 886, 952, 982 * Chelsea: 270, 336, 370, 409, 461, 466, 660, 819, 884, 887, 889, 958 * Dorchester: 265, 282, 287, 288, 297, 326, 379, 436, 446, 474, 506, 514, 533, 704, 707, 740, 822, 825, 905, 929, 979 * East Boston: 271, 418, 455, 561, 567, 568, 569, 634, 716, 874, 895, 913, 970, 981, 997 * Everett: 203, 294, 381, 382, 387, 389, 394, 410, 420, 544, 545, 601, 843, 917, 944 * Hyde Park (includes Readville and parts of Milton): 214, 272, 276, 333, 360, 361, 362, 364, 408, 604, 675, 705, 833, 910, 990 * Jamaica Plain (includes Roslindale and West Roxbury): 323, 325, 327, 344, 363, 390, 435, 469, 477, 522, 524, 553, 676, 942, 971, 983 * Melrose: 957 * Milton (includes Mattapan; see also Hyde Park): 273, 291, 296, 298, 313, 322, 433, 615, 690, 696, 698, 898, 907, 915, 922, 980 * Newton: 213, 215, 219, 243, 244, 332, 340, 431, 454, 467, 473, 485, 527, 546, 552, 558, 559, 564, 581, 584, 597, 609, 610, 614, 618, 630, 631, 641, 644, 655, 656, 658, 659, 663, 678, 762, 775, 795, 796, 831, 853, 862, 881, 882, 885, 893, 916, 928, 964, 965, 969 * Quincy: 221, 237, 249, 302, 317, 328, 347, 376, 405, 471, 472, 479, 481, 483, 509, 537, 639, 653, 657, 687, 689, 691, 706, 729, 745, 750, 769, 770, 773, 774, 786, 793, 801, 804, 829, 837, 842, 845, 847, 890, 934, 984, 985 * Roxbury: 238, 318, 400, 427, 442, 445, 516, 541, 602, 606, 652, 708, 749, 792, 989 * Saugus: 285 * Somerville: 284, 440, 501, 591, 616, 623, 625, 627, 628, 629, 666, 684, 702, 718, 741, 764, 767, 776, 863, 941, 996 * South Boston: 268, 269, 307, 315, 334, 463, 464, 596, 622, 701, 752, 765, 766 * Watertown: 231, 321, 393, 402, 458, 600, 607, 612, 668, 673, 744, 923, 924, 926, 972 * Winthrop: 207, 329, 539, 841, 846 The NPA includes central offices with the following prefix format ''857-NXX'': * Belmont: 373, 626 * Boston Central: 201, 204, 205, 207, 221, 222, 238, 241, 254, 257, 272, 277, 284, 288, 294, 319, 334, 350, 355, 362, 366, 383, 413, 445, 449, 453, 472, 488, 654, 753, 869, 891, 931, 991, 996 * Brighton: 498, 540, 559, 919 * Brookline: 218, 225, 234, 245, 307, 364, 576 * Cambridge: 209, 253, 550, 600, 756, 829, 928, 940, 976, 998 * Charlestown: 389, 452, 588 * Chelsea: 776 * Dorchester: 212, 217, 220 * East Boston: 574 * Everett: 363, 888 * Hyde Park: 342, 345 * Jamaica Plain: 203, 547, 719, 728 * Milton: 598 * Newton: 226, 229, 231, 232, 255, 404, 636 * Quincy: 252, 403, 499, 526, 939 * Roxbury: 399, 492, 544 * Somerville: 227, 523, 995, 997 * South Boston: 401, 496, 524 * Watertown: 228 * Winthrop: 201, 816

N11 codes

* 2-1-1: United Way Worldwide (UWW) and the Alliance for Information and Referral Systems (AIRS) * 3-1-1: Used in Newton, Boston, and elsewhere for 3-1-1 services. * 4-1-1: directory assistance *

5-1-1 5-1-1 is a transportation and traffic information telephone hotline in some regions of the United States and Canada. Travelers can dial 511, a three-digit telephone number, on landlines and most mobile phones. The number has also extended to b ...

traffic Traffic is the movement of vehicles and pedestrians along land routes. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic laws and informal rules that may have developed over time to facilitate the orderly an ...

information Information is an Abstraction, abstract concept that refers to something which has the power Communication, to inform. At the most fundamental level, it pertains to the Interpretation (philosophy), interpretation (perhaps Interpretation (log ...

or police non-emergency services * 6-1-1: unused (on landlines) * 7-1-1: TDD

relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated switc ...

(MassRelay) for the

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

* 8-1-1: underground public utility location (Dig Safe),FCC Doc. No. 92-105
/ref> *

9-1-1 911, sometimes written , is an emergency telephone number for Argentina, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Jordan, Mexico, Pakistan, Maldives, Palau, Panama, Iraq, the Philippines, Sint Maarten, the United States, and Uruguay, as well as ...

emergency service Emergency services and rescue services are organizations that ensure public safety, security, and health by addressing and resolving different emergencies. Some of these agencies exist solely for addressing certain types of emergencies, while oth ...

References

External links

Massachusetts Area Code Map
Mass. Department of Telecommunications and Cable * * * * {{Area code box, State=MA , This=Area codes 617/857 , N= 339/781 , S= 339/781 , E=

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...