Tacoma, WA Area Code

Area code serving Tacoma

Tacoma sits in Washington, part of the West region and the Pacific Time zone. Its area code is 253, which covers Tacoma, Pierce County and south King County suburbs in western Washington. 253 has no overlay today, so every Tacoma landline and mobile number with a local code starts with 253.

253 has served the area since 1997. If the region runs low on numbers, regulators will most likely add an overlay code on top rather than split the area, which would make 10-digit dialing mandatory.

Code	Area served	In service
253	Tacoma, Pierce County and south King County suburbs in western Washington	April 27, 1997

Nearby cities sharing this area code

• Kent
• Auburn
• Federal Way
• Lakewood
• Puyallup
• University Place
• Des Moines
• Bonney Lake
• Gig Harbor
• Sumner
• Fife
• Covington
• Milton

Getting a Tacoma phone number

Any new landline, mobile or VoIP number from a local carrier in Tacoma gets the 253 area code. Numbers come from the blocks each carrier holds in the area; a number ported in from elsewhere keeps its original area code, so you may also see out-of-state codes locally.

Dialing in Tacoma

Tacoma is covered by the single area code 253 with no overlay, so some local calls may still connect with seven digits. Dialing all 10 digits (area code + seven-digit number) always works and is the safest habit. From outside the US, dial +1, then the area code and number. See 10-digit dialing and overlay area codes for the background. For every code in Washington, visit the Washington area codes page.