A condo or an office sublet gets a downtown number.
Put a 312 number on the listing and take the calls on your own phone. Burn it when the space is let.
Local 312 numbers
Get a 312 phone number for downtown Chicago.
Ask for 312 when you create a number on ExpressNumber, and the number you hand out reads as downtown Chicago. It rings the phone you already carry, and you burn it in one tap.
$0 todayLive in about a minute
This is how you get a 312 number.
- Start your 7 days free and open Create a number.
- Type 312 as the area code and give the number a name.
- Hand it out. Calls ring the phone you already carry, and texts land in your inbox.
- Burn it in one tap when you are done. Calls and texts to it stop at once.
9:41
Your numbers
Condo sublet
(312) 555-0146
Forwarding
Job hunt
(312) 555-0193
Forwarding
Trade show
(312) 555-0120
Blocked
People ask for 312 because it is the downtown Chicago code.
A job hunt gives your number to every recruiter.
Put a 312 number on the applications. When you have signed the offer, end it.
A trade show collects phone numbers at the door.
Register with a number you already plan to burn, and the follow-up calls go nowhere.
This is where a 312 number is from.
Area code 312 covers the center of the City of Chicago, on the lakefront.
On the phone network that is a single rate center, Chicago Zone 01. The rest of the city, including O'Hare and Midway airports, uses 773.
Downtown Chicago, IL
Area code 312 and the codes around it, oldest first.
1947
312
This code
1989
708
Split off
1996
773
Split off
2009
872
Shares the area
These are the facts about area code 312.
From the public records of the body that runs US phone numbering, read October 13, 2026.
- Place
- Downtown Chicago, Illinois
- In service since
- 1947
- Local calls are dialed with
- 1 plus ten digits
- Shares its area with
- 872 (2009)
- Codes split from it
- 708 (1989) and 773 (1996)
312 is one of the original codes of 1947. 708 was split from it in 1989, and in 1996 the city itself was divided, with 773 taking everything outside the center.
In 2009 a third code, 872, was laid over both 312 and 773, so it can turn up anywhere in Chicago. A local call is dialed as 1 plus all ten digits.
Try it free for 7 days.
Then pick the plan that fits how many numbers you hand out.
Basic
7 days free$9.99/mo
- 5 numbers, one for each site, store or dealer
- 100 forwarded minutes a month
- Burn a number in one tap
- Extra numbers $1 a month each
Pro
7 days free$29.99/mo
- 100 numbers
- 1,000 forwarded minutes a month
- A number per vendor, client or listing
- Extra numbers 50¢ a month each
$0 today. Monthly plans, cancel any time.
People ask these questions about getting a 312 number.
More in the full FAQ.
Create a number in your dashboard, type 312 as the area code and give it a name, such as Condo sublet. It is live in about a minute. You do not need to live in Chicago: calls ring the phone you already carry.
Yes, for taking calls and texts. A consultant or a trade show stand can put a 312 number on the card and the booth sign, take the calls on their own phone and burn the number after the show.
Yes. 312 is the center of the city and 773 is the rest of it, including O'Hare and Midway. 872 was laid over both in 2009, so an 872 number can be anywhere in Chicago.
No. Your numbers are receive-only: they take calls and texts, and they never make them. You answer calls on your own phone, and you cannot reply to a text from the inbox.
You get 7 days free and pay $0 today. After 7 days your plan starts: $9.99 a month for Basic or $29.99 a month for Pro. Cancel before then and you pay nothing.
More area codes
Every fact on this page comes from public numbering records.
The state, the dates and the related codes are rows of the North American Numbering Plan Administrator's area code database. The places are from its planning letters. Read October 13, 2026.
Put 312 on a number you can burn.
Hand out a number you can burn. Keep the one your family calls.
Try it free for 7 days