Area codes · +1
Area code 256
Area code 256 is centred on Huntsville, Alabama. We hold 6,391 allocated blocks for it across 92 rate centres, split 42% mobile, 46% landline and 11% VoIP.
The other area codes laid over 256
Area code 256 does not have Huntsville to itself. 1 other code — 938 — serves the same rate centres, laid over the same ground rather than dividing it. That is an overlay: a new code added when the old one ran out of numbers, covering the same streets. Two neighbours can hold different area codes, so the code says roughly when a number was issued rather than where it sits.
9381,792 blocks, 56 rate centres, mostly mobile
Each holds its own blocks and its own carrier mix, so a 256 number and a 938 number from the same street can report different line types. Filtering Huntsville by area code needs all 2 of them.
256 is not confined to Huntsville itself: its blocks sit across 92 rate centres, named in the table below.
Alabama is split across 7 area codes — 256, 205, 334, 251, 938, 659 and others. By allocated blocks 256 is the largest of them, holding 25% of the Alabama total.
Where 256 numbers are concentrated
NANPA truncates rate-centre names to ten characters and drops the spaces, which is why Alexandrcy and Guntersvl are shortened. Names are reproduced as recorded rather than expanded — the abbreviation is the key the block data is filed under.
| Rate centre | Blocks | Share of 256 |
|---|---|---|
| Huntsville | 988 | 15% |
| Decatur | 379 | 6% |
| Cullman | 336 | 5% |
| Anniston | 333 | 5% |
| Gadsden | 267 | 4% |
| Florence | 219 | 3% |
| Athens | 216 | 3% |
| Alexandrcy | 178 | 3% |
| Guntersvl | 158 | 2% |
| Scottsboro | 157 | 2% |
| Talladega | 157 | 2% |
| Albertvl | 145 | 2% |
| Fort Payne | 144 | 2% |
| Rogersvl | 122 | 2% |
| Sylacauga | 121 | 2% |
| Madison | 115 | 2% |
| Russellvl | 106 | 2% |
| Hartselle | 101 | 2% |
| Arab | 81 | 1% |
| Sheffield | 81 | 1% |
| Jacksonvl | 78 | 1% |
| Boaz | 67 | 1% |
| Hanceville | 66 | 1% |
| Attalla | 56 | 1% |
68 further rate centres in 256 hold fewer blocks than these.
Carriers holding the most 256 blocks
AT&T Wireless1,130 blocks
Onvoy836 blocks
Verizon Wireless732 blocks
Bellsouth Telecomm Inc Dba South Central Bell Tel633 blocks
Bandwidth393 blocks
T-Mobile USA, Inc.212 blocks
The largest holder, AT&T Wireless, has 18% of the code.
These are original allocations. A number keeps its digits and its block when its subscriber moves network, so a ported 256 number still reports the carrier it started with. Closing that gap needs a live query against the routing database. How line type is derived.
Check a single 256 number, or run a whole list through the free cleaner — neither uploads anything.
Common questions
Where is area code 256?
Area code 256 covers Huntsville, Alabama. It is not the only code there: 938 is an overlay on the same rate centres, so a Huntsville, Alabama number can start with any of them.
Is a 256 number a mobile or a landline?
It can be either, and the digits do not say which. North American mobile and landline numbers share the same ranges, so the answer comes from the carrier holding the block. In 256 the split runs 42% mobile, 46% landline and 11% VoIP, so landline is the most likely single answer.
Which carriers hold 256 numbers?
The largest holders are AT&T Wireless, Onvoy, Verizon Wireless. That is the carrier the block was allocated to, which is not necessarily the network a given number sits on today.
How many 256 numbers are there?
The code holds 6,391 allocated blocks in our copy of the numbering plan. A block is 1,000 or 10,000 consecutive numbers depending on how deeply it has been pooled, so 256 covers on the order of 6,391,000 possible numbers — most of which have never been issued to anyone.