Every ZIP code in the United States, with weather, radar, trivia and the numbers behind it. Five digits since 1963!

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zipcodes.pro — AREA-CODE/281

281 area code

Area code 281 is in Texas. It covers Houston, Cypress, Pasadena and 98 other places: 284 ZIP codes in Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery and 6 other counties. Local time there is , Central Time. In service since 1996 as an overlay: it covers the same area as 346, 621, 713 and 832, so a number from there can have any of them.

State
Texas
Time zone
Central
Largest city
Houston
Overlays
346, 621, 713, 832
In service since
1996
Rate centres
45
Prefixes assigned
786 (7,860,000 numbers)

Who calls from a 281 number

NANPA records the carrier each block of 281 numbers is assigned to. Of the 7.8 million 281 numbers assigned, 44% are with local phone companies (AT&T); 27% with cable, internet-calling, business and other carriers (Onvoy and Level 3); 26% with mobile carriers (T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility); 3% with paging companies.

That is who the numbers were assigned to: people keep their number when they change carrier, so any one number may have moved since.

Carriers holding the most 281 numbers
CarrierKindShare
AT&TLandline29%
T-MobileMobile11%
Verizon WirelessMobile8%
AT&T MobilityMobile8%
OnvoyCable, VoIP, other7%
Level 3Cable, VoIP, other6%

An area code says where a number was issued, not where the caller is: people keep their numbers when they move, and caller ID can be set to show any number, which the FCC calls spoofing. If a call you did not expect asks for money or personal details, the FCC advises hanging up and calling the company back on a number you look up yourself. Unwanted calls can be reported to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Places in area code 281

The 36 places with a telephone rate centre of their own using 281, largest first. Each links to its ZIP codes.

Places in area code 281
PlaceZIP codesPopulation
Houston, TX 178 2,328,253
Cypress, TX 3 212,884
League City, TX 2 116,215
Sugar Land, TX 5 110,016
Baytown, TX 4 85,205
Missouri City, TX 2 76,558
Spring, TX 12 68,580
Porter, TX 1 46,418
Channelview, TX 1 43,605
Friendswood, TX 2 41,030
La Porte, TX 2 36,730
Deer Park, TX 1 33,967
Alvin, TX 2 28,333
Katy, TX 6 25,184
Dickinson, TX 1 21,753
Stafford, TX 2 17,401
Humble, TX 4 16,521
Manvel, TX 1 14,758
Huffman, TX 1 14,342
Seabrook, TX 1 13,768
Tomball, TX 2 13,655
Mont Belvieu, TX 1 9,020
Cleveland, TX 2 8,984
Highlands, TX 1 6,335
Brookshire, TX 1 5,495
Crosby, TX 1 4,617
Pinehurst, TX — 4,266
Beach City, TX — 3,309
Sheldon, TX — 2,208
Kemah, TX 1 2,168
Splendora, TX 1 2,131
Arcola, TX — 1,911
Rosharon, TX 1 1,737
Porter Heights, TX — 987
Liverpool, TX 1 477
Barker, TX 1 —

Nearby places using 281

These places have no rate centre of their own in NANPA's records; the nearest one uses 281. Near an area-code boundary that can be wrong for part of a town.

ZIP codes in area code 281

284 ZIP codes in 54 towns, by the town each is mailed to, largest first. Each links to its own page.

Houston
77001, 77002, 77003, 77004, 77005, 77006, 77007, 77008, 77009, 77010, 77011, 77012, 77013, 77014, 77015, 77016, 77017, 77018, 77019, 77020, 77021, 77022, 77023, 77024, 77025, 77026, 77027, 77028, 77029, 77030, 77031, 77032, 77033, 77034, 77035, 77036, 77037, 77038, 77039, 77040, 77041, 77042, 77043, 77044, 77045, 77046, 77047, 77048, 77049, 77050, 77051, 77052, 77053, 77054, 77055, 77056, 77057, 77058, 77059, 77060, 77061, 77062, 77063, 77064, 77065, 77066, 77067, 77068, 77069, 77070, 77071, 77072, 77073, 77074, 77075, 77076, 77077, 77078, 77079, 77080, 77081, 77082, 77083, 77084, 77085, 77086, 77087, 77088, 77089, 77090, 77091, 77092, 77093, 77094, 77095, 77096, 77098, 77099, 77201, 77202, 77203, 77204, 77205, 77206, 77207, 77208, 77209, 77210, 77212, 77213, 77215, 77216, 77217, 77218, 77219, 77220, 77221, 77222, 77223, 77224, 77225, 77226, 77227, 77228, 77229, 77230, 77231, 77233, 77234, 77235, 77236, 77237, 77238, 77240, 77241, 77242, 77243, 77244, 77245, 77248, 77249, 77251, 77252, 77253, 77254, 77255, 77256, 77257, 77258, 77259, 77261, 77262, 77263, 77265, 77266, 77267, 77268, 77269, 77270, 77271, 77272, 77273, 77274, 77275, 77277, 77279, 77280, 77282, 77284, 77287, 77288, 77289, 77290, 77291, 77292, 77293, 77297, 77299

Where 281 numbers are issued

NANPA's rate centres with the most 281 prefixes (each prefix is 10,000 numbers), under NANPA's own abbreviated names.

Rate centres using area code 281
Rate centrePlacePrefixes
HOUSTON Houston 148
HSTNSUBURB — 131
BAMMEL — 60
SUGAR LAND Sugar Land 44
SPRING Spring 35
APOLLO — 28

Counties

The counties of its ZIP codes, most residents first, with how many of its ZIP codes each has.

Which code covers where you are now? What area code am I in? answers from your location.

Questions about area code 281

Where is area code 281?

Area code 281 is in Texas. It covers Houston, Cypress, Pasadena and 98 other places: 284 ZIP codes in Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery and 6 other counties.

What ZIP codes are in area code 281?

284 ZIP codes, by the town each is mailed to: Houston (178, 77001 to 77299), Cypress (3, 77410 to 77433), Pasadena (8, 77501 to 77508), Pearland (3, 77581 to 77588) and 50 more towns. The full list is on this page.

What time zone is area code 281 in?

Central time.

Is a 281 number a mobile or a landline?

It can be either. 26% of 281 numbers are assigned to mobile carriers and 44% to local phone companies (NANPA, 2026-10-10); the rest are with cable, internet-calling, business and paging carriers. A number keeps its area code when it moves to another carrier.

What area codes overlay 281?

346, 621, 713 and 832. They cover the same area as 281, so a new number there can be given any of them.

Does a 281 number mean the caller is in Texas?

Not necessarily. An area code says where the number was first issued. People keep their numbers when they move or switch carriers, and calling software can show any number, so a 281 call can come from anywhere.

Other area codes in Texas

All 29 Texas area codes, by area, with the cities each covers

Source: NANPA NPA database, central office code and thousands-block assignments, 2026-10-10. Places are matched to NANPA's rate centres by name; see sources.

Cite this page

zipcodes.pro. “Area code 281.” Data release 2026-10-12. Retrieved 2026-10-20. https://zipcodes.pro/area-code/281

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