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Greater Phoenix · Arizona

480 Area Code: Phoenix, Arizona Time and the 2023 Overlay With 602 and 623

480 is an area code for the Phoenix area in Arizona. It began in 1999 as the East Valley's code — Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert and Scottsdale — but since September 2023 it can be issued anywhere in the combined Phoenix area, alongside 602 and 623. Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time all year.

By Vedant Vhanyalkar 6 min read

623 overlay since 2023 602 overlay since 2023 480 overlay since 2023
State
Arizona
Area
Greater Phoenix
Time zone
MST all year (no DST)
Same area as
602 · 623 (since 2023)
Local calls
10 digits
In service
1 March 1999

480 is no longer East Valley only

Many sources still describe 480 as the East Valley code. That was accurate from 1999 to 2023, when greater Phoenix was divided between three codes. NANPA's Planning Letter 576 sets out who had what before the change:

Phoenix-area code coverage before the 2023 boundary elimination
CodeArea before 12 September 2023
480Part of Phoenix, plus Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, Scottsdale and Sun Lakes — in Maricopa and Pinal counties
602Most of the City of Phoenix, plus parts of Glendale, Cave Creek and Ahwatukee
623Glendale, Avondale, Tolleson, Buckeye, Sun City and New River

The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) then approved a boundary elimination overlay in Decision No. 78311 (November 2021). The lines between the three codes were removed, and from 12 September 2023 a new number with any of the three codes could be assigned anywhere in the combined area. The ACC notes that the 1999 split had divided the single Phoenix rate center between three codes, and the change made it one again.

Two consequences follow. A 480 number issued since late 2023 may belong to a line in Glendale or Buckeye. And the combined area is the old three-code footprint, not whole counties — Tucson and the rest of southern Arizona are still 520.

Arizona time: the clocks never change

Time zone is one of the most searched questions about 480. Arizona law sets the state's time to Mountain Standard Time and rejects daylight saving time, using the option federal law gives a state lying entirely in one time zone (15 U.S.C. 260a). Phoenix stays at UTC−7 all year.

Time zone Mountain Standard Time (MST, UTC−7) all year — no daylight saving time

Because the rest of the country moves its clocks, Phoenix lines up with different places in different seasons — the arithmetic follows directly from the UTC offsets:

How Phoenix time compares during and outside daylight saving time
PeriodPhoenix matchesPhoenix is one hour behind
Mid-March to early NovemberPacific Daylight Time (e.g. Los Angeles)Mountain Daylight Time (e.g. Denver)
Early November to mid-MarchMountain Standard Time (e.g. Denver)Central Standard Time (e.g. Dallas)

If you schedule calls into Phoenix from another state, the mismatches happen while the rest of the country is on daylight saving time. The 720 area code guide covers Denver, which uses the same zone but does change its clocks.

From a split in 1999 to an overlay in 2023

  1. 1947

    602 covers all of Arizona

    One of the original area codes, per NANPA's area code database.

  2. 1995

    520 splits off

    The rest of Arizona outside the Phoenix area moved to 520, in service from 19 March 1995.

  3. 1999

    A double split

    On 1 March 1999, 480 took the East Valley and 623 the West Valley, leaving 602 with central Phoenix. NANPA's split letter kept calls between the three codes local.

  4. 2001

    928 splits from 520

    Most of northern and western Arizona moved to 928 on 23 June 2001.

  5. 2021

    480 goes to ten digits for 988

    480 was one of three Arizona codes on the FCC's 988 list. Ten-digit local dialing became mandatory on 24 October 2021.

  6. 2023

    Boundaries removed

    602 and 623 moved to mandatory ten-digit dialing on 12 August 2023; from 12 September any of the three codes could be issued anywhere in the area.

The reason was 480's supply. NANPA projected 480 would run out of prefixes in the first quarter of 2024, while the ACC noted that 623 on its own would not have needed ten-digit dialing for about 48 more years. Pooling the three codes solved 480's shortage without a new code. NANPA's April 2026 exhaust analysis projects the combined 480/602/623 area to last until the fourth quarter of 2056.

Dialing in the Phoenix area

  • Local calls: ten digits. Some carriers also accept 1 + ten digits.
  • Toll calls: 1 + ten digits. Operator-assisted: 0 + ten digits.
  • Three-digit services — 911, 988, 711 and the rest — still work.
  • Local stayed local. Calls that were local before the change remain local.

480 lines had a head start: they switched in 2021 for 988, so the 2023 change mostly affected 602 and 623 numbers. If your business still has seven-digit entries in a phone system or dialler, our guide to area codes in call routing covers where they hide.

"Telephone code 480" from outside the US

Searches for 480 are often phrased as "telephone code 480" or "480 country code". 480 isn't a country code. The US uses country code 1, and 480 follows it: from abroad, dial your exit code (or + on a mobile), then 1, then 480 and the seven-digit number — +1 480 XXX XXXX. The confusion is understandable: in the ITU's list, country code 48 belongs to Poland, so a number written +48… is Polish, not Arizonan.

Arizona's other area codes

602

Same area as 480 since 2023. The original Arizona code and 480's parent.

623

Same area as 480 since 2023. Created alongside 480 in the 1999 split.

520

Southern Arizona, including the greater Tucson calling area. Split from 602 in 1995.

928

Northern and western Arizona. Split from 520 in 2001.

More codes, grouped by time zone, are in our area code guides.

Questions

What time zone is area code 480?

Mountain Standard Time, UTC−7, all year. Arizona does not observe daylight saving time, so Phoenix matches Los Angeles in summer and Denver in winter.

Is 480 Scottsdale or Phoenix?

Both. Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe and Chandler were 480's original territory, and since September 2023 480 numbers can also be issued elsewhere in the Phoenix area.

Are 480 and 602 the same?

They cover the same area today but are different codes. A number keeps the code it was issued with.

Is Tucson in the 480 area code?

No. Tucson is in 520, which split from 602 in 1995 and was not part of the 2023 overlay.

Sources

  1. NANPA — Planning Letter 576: 480, 602 and 623 boundary elimination overlay (30 December 2021)
  2. Arizona Corporation Commission — All about area codes
  3. NANPA — Planning Letter NANP-153: 602 split creating 480 and 623 (1 February 1999; archived copy)
  4. NANPA — Planning Letter 268: 520 split creating 928 (27 March 2001; archived copy)
  5. NANPA — Planning Letter 556: 10-digit dialing transition for 988 (8 January 2021)
  6. FCC — Area codes required to transition to 10-digit dialing (988)
  7. NANPA — Area code (NPA) database, file dated 16 September 2026
  8. NANPA — 2026-1 NPA exhaust analysis (April 2026)
  9. Arizona Revised Statutes § 1-242 — Standard time
  10. 15 U.S.C. 260a — Daylight saving time
  11. ITU — List of ITU-T E.164 assigned country codes

Scheduling calls into Arizona from another time zone?

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