Area codes · +1
Area code 978
Area code 978 is centred on Lowell, Massachusetts. We hold 6,597 allocated blocks for it across 58 rate centres, split 31% mobile, 54% landline and 15% VoIP.
The other area codes laid over 978
Area code 978 does not have Lowell to itself. 1 other code — 351 — 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.
351836 blocks, 44 rate centres, mostly VoIP
Each holds its own blocks and its own carrier mix, so a 978 number and a 351 number from the same street can report different line types. Filtering Lowell by area code needs all 2 of them.
978 is not confined to Lowell itself: its blocks sit across 58 rate centres, named in the table below.
Massachusetts is split across 9 area codes — 978, 781, 774, 508, 413, 617 and others. By allocated blocks 978 is the largest of them, holding 17% of the Massachusetts total.
Where 978 numbers are concentrated
Rate-centre names are reproduced as NANPA records them. The agency truncates them to ten characters, so longer names appear shortened elsewhere on this site.
| Rate centre | Blocks | Share of 978 |
|---|---|---|
| Lowell | 693 | 11% |
| Lawrence | 568 | 9% |
| Billerica | 308 | 5% |
| Peabody | 270 | 4% |
| Andover | 233 | 4% |
| Danvers | 233 | 4% |
| Haverhill | 225 | 3% |
| Beverly | 209 | 3% |
| Wilmington | 203 | 3% |
| Salem | 200 | 3% |
| Acton | 192 | 3% |
| Fitchburg | 180 | 3% |
| Leominster | 179 | 3% |
| Concord | 177 | 3% |
| Maynard | 160 | 2% |
| Westford | 148 | 2% |
| Littleton | 123 | 2% |
| Newburypt | 123 | 2% |
| Gloucester | 109 | 2% |
| Sudbury | 102 | 2% |
| Gardner | 93 | 1% |
| Hudson | 91 | 1% |
| Ayer | 90 | 1% |
| Clinton | 72 | 1% |
34 further rate centres in 978 hold fewer blocks than these.
Carriers holding the most 978 blocks
Onvoy657 blocks
Verizon New England Inc.650 blocks
Verizon Wireless567 blocks
T-Mobile USA, Inc.429 blocks
AT&T Wireless390 blocks
Bandwidth383 blocks
No carrier holds more than 10% of 978; the blocks are spread thin across many companies.
These are original allocations. A number keeps its digits and its block when its subscriber moves network, so a ported 978 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 978 number, or run a whole list through the free cleaner — neither uploads anything.
Common questions
Where is area code 978?
Area code 978 covers Lowell, Massachusetts. It is not the only code there: 351 is an overlay on the same rate centres, so a Lowell, Massachusetts number can start with any of them.
Is a 978 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 978 the split runs 31% mobile, 54% landline and 15% VoIP, so landline is the most likely single answer.
Which carriers hold 978 numbers?
The largest holders are Onvoy, Verizon New England Inc., 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 978 numbers are there?
The code holds 6,597 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 978 covers on the order of 6,597,000 possible numbers — most of which have never been issued to anyone.