__NOTOC__ Area code 218 is a 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, re ...

in the

North American Numbering Plan The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is a 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 and has the international calling ...

(NANP) for the northern part of 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 sove ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...

. It is assigned to the largest of Minnesota's original two numbering plan areas (NPAs), although its geographical boundaries have been modified since inception. It comprises roughly the northern half of the state, and includes the cities of

Duluth , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

Hibbing Hibbing is a city in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 16,214 at the 2020 census. The city was built on mining the rich iron ore of the Mesabi Iron Range and still relies on that industrial activity today. At t ...

, Brainerd,

Bemidji Bemidji ( ) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 census. According to 2021 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 15,279, making it ...

Fergus Falls Fergus Falls is a city in and the county seat of Otter Tail County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,119 at the 2020 census. History The falls from which the city gets part of its name were discovered by Joe Whitford (a Scotti ...

, and Moorhead.

History

In the initial 1947 map of the North American Numbering Plan, area code 218 was conceived as an ''r''-shaped area in the northern and western two-thirds of Minnesota. The southeastern portion, including the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...

, was located in

area code 612 Metropolitan Minneapolis area codes with 612 in yellow Area code 612 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The numbering plan area comprises the city of Minneapolis and a few surrou ...

. As the implementation of the new

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, re ...

proceeded, the Minnesota area code boundaries were redrawn in 1954 to avoid cutting across major toll traffic routes out of the Twin Cities. This resulted in three area codes, with 218 covering the northern band of the state, 612 covering the central band, and the new

area code 507 Area code 507 is the telephone numbering plan code for the southern fifth of Minnesota, including cities such as Rochester, Mankato, Worthington, Fairmont, Albert Lea, Northfield, and Austin. It was the third area code created for use in the ...

forming a southern band. The southern portion of the old 218 (

Worthington Worthington may refer to: People * Worthington (surname) * Worthington family, a British noble family Businesses * Worthington Brewery, also known as Worthington's * Worthington Corporation, founded as a pump manufacturer in 1845, later a di ...

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an ...

, and Pipestone), was merged with the southern portion of 612 to form the new 507, which ran along the entire length of the

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

border. 612 was rotated to stretch from the

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

border to the

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

border, absorbing a slice of the old 218 ( St. Cloud,

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandr ...

Appleton Appleton may refer to: People *Appleton (surname) Places Australia * Appleton Dock Canada * Appleton, Newfoundland and Labrador * Appleton, Ontario United Kingdom * Appleton, a deserted medieval village site in the parish of Flitcham w ...

). 218 was pushed into east-central Minnesota, absorbing the old 612's eastern portion and taking on roughly its present shape. A small change in the 1990s brought the

Northwest Angle The Northwest Angle, known simply as the Angle by locals, and coextensive with Angle Township, is a pene-exclave of northern Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota. Except for surveying errors, it is the only place in the contiguous United Sta ...

into the 218 area code; that region had previously been part of

Bell Canada Bell Canada (commonly referred to as Bell) is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the borough of Verdun in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is an ILEC (incumbent local exchange carrier) in t ...

Clearwater Bay Clear Water Bay () is a bay on the eastern shore of Clear Water Bay Peninsula of Hong Kong, located within Clear Water Bay Country Park. There are two beaches at Clear Water Bay: " Clear Water Bay First Beach" and "Clear Water Bay Second Beach ...

exchange in

area code 807 Area code 807 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the Canadian province of Ontario. The numbering plan area (NPA), comprising only Northwestern Ontario, was created in early 1962 in an area code split of NPA ...

. Because of the low population density in northern Minnesota, the region was unaffected when the 612 area was subdivided in 1996. The resulting

area code 320 Area code 320 is the telephone numbering plan code covering most of central Minnesota, excluding the Twin Cities metro. It was the fourth Minnesota area code, and the first new one in the state in 42 years. It was created in 1996 by carving out o ...

, the former western portion of 612, runs the length of the southern border with 218, and the 612 area code has been reduced in size so much that it now just includes the city of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with list of lakes in Minneapolis, thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. ...

and a few nearby suburbs. The western portion of 218, generally everything from Brainerd westward, shares a

LATA Lata (Hindi: लता) is a Hindu/Sanskrit Indian female given name, which means "creeper" and "vine". Lata may refer to: Notable people named Lata * Lata Bhatt (born 1954), Indian singer. * Lata (born 1975), Musician. *Lata Mangeshkar L ...

with the eastern half of

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, S ...

, including

Fargo Fargo usually refers to: * Fargo, North Dakota, United States * ''Fargo'' (1996 film), a crime film by the Coen brothers * ''Fargo'' (TV series), an American black comedy–crime drama anthology television series Fargo may also refer to: Othe ...

and

Grand Forks Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the state of North Dakota (after Fargo and Bismarck) and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 59,166. Grand Forks, along with its twin city o ...

. Exhaust Projections by the NANP Administrator estimate that northern Minnesota will not need another area code until about 2028.https://nationalnanpa.com/reports/October%202021%20NPA%20Exhaust%20Analysis.pdf Prior to October 2021, area code 218 had telephone numbers assigned for the

central office code The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is a 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 and has the international calli ...

988. In 2020, ''988'' was designated nationwide as a dialing code for the

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (formerly known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline) is a United States-based suicide prevention network of over 200+ crisis centers that provides 24/7 service via a toll-free hotline with the number 9- ...

, which created a conflict for exchanges that permit

seven-digit dialing Seven-digit dialing is a telephone dialing procedure customary in some territories of the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for dialing telephone numbers in the same numbering plan area (NPA). NANP telephone numbers consist of ten digits, of ...

. This area code was therefore scheduled to transition to

ten-digit dialing Ten-digit dialing is a telephone dialing procedure in the countries and territories that are members of the North American Numbering Plan (NANP). It is the practice of including the area code of a telephone number when dialing to initiate a telep ...

by October 24, 2021.

Cities and communities

Ada Ada may refer to: Places Africa * Ada Foah, a town in Ghana * Ada (Ghana parliament constituency) * Ada, Osun, a town in Nigeria Asia * Ada, Urmia, a village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Ada, Karaman, a village in Karaman Province, Tu ...

* Aitkin * Akeley *

Ashby Ashby may refer to: People * Ashby (surname) * Alan la Zouche, 1st Baron la Zouche of Ashby (1267–1314), governor of Rockingham Castle and steward of Rockingham Forest, England * Walter Ashby Plecker (1861–1947), American physician and publ ...

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

* Babbitt * Backus * Bagley * Barnesville *

Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...

* Battle Lake *

Baudette Baudette is a city in, and the county seat of, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 1,106, and in 2018 the population was estimated at 1,003. Baudette is known as the Walleye Capital of t ...

* Baxter *

* Bena * Big Falls * Bigfork * Biwabik * Bovey * Boy River * Brainerd * Breckenridge * Brookston *

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

* Cass Lake * Chisholm * Clearbrook * Cloquet * Cohasset *

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from ga, Cúil Rathain , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern I ...

Cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

* Crookston *

Crosby Crosby may refer to: Places ;Canada *Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario *Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario ;England *Crosby, Cumbria *Crosby, Lincolnshire *Crosby, Merseyside **Crosby (UK ...

Dalton Dalton may refer to: Science * Dalton (crater), a lunar crater * Dalton (program), chemistry software * Dalton (unit) (Da), the atomic mass unit * John Dalton, chemist, physicist and meteorologist Entertainment * Dalton (Buffyverse), minor c ...

* Deer River * Deerwood *

Detroit Lakes Detroit Lakes is a city in the State of Minnesota and the county seat of Becker County. The population was 9,869 at the 2020 census. Its unofficial population during summer months is much higher, estimated by citizens to peak at 13,000 midsumm ...

* Dilworth *

Duluth , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

East Grand Forks East Grand Forks (also known as EGF) is a city in Polk County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 9,176 at the 2020 Census, making it the largest community in Polk County. It is located in the Red River Valley region along the east ...

* Elbow Lake *

Ely Ely or ELY may refer to: Places Ireland * Éile, a medieval kingdom commonly anglicised Ely * Ely Place, Dublin, a street United Kingdom * Ely, Cambridgeshire, a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England ** Ely Cathedral ** Ely Rural District, a ...

Emily Emily may refer to: * Emily (given name), including a list of people with the name Music * Emily (1964 song), "Emily" (1964 song), title song by Johnny Mandel and Johnny Mercer to the film ''The Americanization of Emily'' * Emily (Dave Koz son ...

Erhard Erhard is a male German given name and surname, and may refer to: People * Erhard of Regensburg, bishop of Regensburg in the 7th century * Erhard Altdorfer (c. 1480–1561), German Early Renaissance printmaker, painter and architect * Erhard Arnold ...

Erskine Erskine (, sco, Erskin, gd, Arasgain) is a town in the council area of Renfrewshire, and historic county of the same name, situated in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the southern bank of the River Clyde, providing the l ...

Eveleth Eveleth is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,718 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highway 53 and State Highway 37 (MN 37) are two of the main routes in Eveleth. Eveleth was the site of the conflict that resu ...

* Federal Dam *

Fertile Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Ferti ...

* Floodwood *

Fosston Fosston is a city in Polk County, Minnesota, United States. It is part of the Greater Grand Forks region. The population was 1,434 at the time of the 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total are ...

* Frazee *

Gilbert Gilbert may refer to: People and fictional characters *Gilbert (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Gilbert (surname), including a list of people Places Australia * Gilbert River (Queensland) * Gilbert River (South A ...

* Glyndon * Grand Marais *

Grand Portage Grand Portage National Monument is a United States National Monument located on the north shore of Lake Superior in northeastern Minnesota that preserves a vital center of fur trade activity and Anishinaabeg Ojibwe heritage. The area became one o ...

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...

* Greenbush * Hackensack *

Hallock Hallock may refer to: Places In the United States: * Hallock, Minnesota Hallock is a city in and the county seat of Kittson County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 906 at the 2020 census. History Hallock was platted in 1879. The ...

Hawley Hawley may refer to: * Hawley (surname) Titles * Baron Hawley * Hawley baronets Places named Hawley ;In Australia * Hawley Beach, Tasmania ;In the United Kingdom * Hawley, Hampshire * Hawley, Kent ;In the United States * Hawley, Colorado * ...

* Hermantown *

* Hill City * Hoyt Lakes *

Humboldt Humboldt may refer to: People * Alexander von Humboldt, German natural scientist, brother of Wilhelm von Humboldt * Wilhelm von Humboldt, German linguist, philosopher, and diplomat, brother of Alexander von Humboldt Fictional characters * ...

International Falls International Falls (sometimes referred to as I-Falls) is a city in and the county seat of Koochiching County, Minnesota. The population was 5,802 at the time of the 2020 census. International Falls is located on the Rainy River directly acro ...

* Karlstad * Keewatin * Littlefork * Longville *

Lutsen Lutsen Township is one of the three townships of Cook County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 537 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Lutsen is located within the township. The township was named after the town of ...

* Mahnomen * McGregor *

Menahga Menahga is a city in Wadena County in the U.S. state of Minnesota The population was 1,306 at the 2010 census. History Menahga was platted in 1891, and named for an Ojibwe language word meaning "there are anyblueberries". A post office has bee ...

* Mizpah * Moorhead * Moose Lake *

Motley Motley is the traditional costume of the court jester, the motley fool, or the arlecchino character in ''commedia dell'arte''. The harlequin wears a patchwork of red, green and blue diamonds that is still a fashion motif. The word ''motley'' i ...

Mountain Iron Mountain Iron is a city in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States, in the heart of the Mesabi Range. The population was 2,878 at the 2020 census. U.S. Highway 169 serves as a main route in Mountain Iron. The city's motto is " Taconite ...

* Nashwauk * Newfolden * New York Mills * Northome * Nisswa *

Outing Outing is the act of disclosing an LGBT person's sexual orientation or gender identity without that person's consent. It is often done for political reasons, either to instrumentalize homophobia in order to discredit political opponents or to com ...

* Orr * Park Rapids * Parkers Prairie * Pelican Rapids * Pequot Lakes * Perham * Pine River *

Proctor Proctor (a variant of ''procurator'') is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another. The title is used in England and some other English-speaking countries in three principal contexts: * In law, a proctor is a historical class of lawye ...

* Red Lake Falls * Remer *

Roseau Roseau ( Dominican Creole: ''Wozo'') is the capital and largest city of Dominica, with a population of 14,725 as of 2011. It is a small and compact urban settlement, in the Saint George parish and surrounded by the Caribbean Sea, the Roseau ...

* Rothsay * St. Hilaire * St. Vincent * Sebeka * Silver Bay *

Staples Staples commonly refers to: *Staple (fastener), a small strip of folded metal used to fasten sheets of paper together *Staples Inc., an office supply chain store with headquarters in North America *Staple foods Staples may also refer to: Places ...

Sturgeon Lake Sturgeon is the common name for the 27 species of fish belonging to the family Acipenseridae. The earliest sturgeon fossils date to the Late Cretaceous, and are descended from other, earlier acipenseriform fish, which date back to the Earl ...

Thief River Falls Thief River Falls, sometimes referred to as Thief River or abbreviated as TRF, is a city in Pennington County in the northwest portion of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 8,749 at the 2020 census. Thief River Falls is the county ...

Thomson Thomson may refer to: Names * Thomson (surname), a list of people with this name and a description of its origin * Thomson baronets, four baronetcies created for persons with the surname Thomson Businesses and organizations * SGS-Thomson Mic ...

Tower A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures. Towers are specifi ...

* Twin Valley * Two Harbors * Vergas *

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...

* Wadena *

Walker Walker or The Walker may refer to: People *Walker (given name) *Walker (surname) *Walker (Brazilian footballer) (born 1982), Brazilian footballer Places In the United States *Walker, Arizona, in Yavapai County *Walker, Mono County, California * ...

Warren A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Angl ...

Warroad Warroad is a city in Roseau County, Minnesota, United States, at the southwest corner of Lake of the Woods, south of Canada. The population was 1,781 at the 2010 census. Warroad had its own newspaper before it was incorporated in 1901. Minn ...

* Wawina * Willow River * Wrenshall

External links

List of exchanges from AreaCodeDownload.com, 218 Area Code

References

AreaCode-Info.com. *(2001)
1947 Area Code Assignment Map.
GIF image at AreaCode-Info.com. {{coord, 47, 18, N, 93, 56, W, region:US-MN_type:admin3rd, display=title

218 Year 218 ( CCXVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Adventus (or, less frequently, year 971 ''Ab urbe c ...

Telecommunications-related introductions in 1947

History

Cities and communities

See also

External links

References