{{Short description|Telephone area code in the Cleveland, Ohio area}} {{Use American English|date=February 2026}} {{Ohio area codes image map}}
'''Area codes 440 and 436''' are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the U.S. state of Ohio, serving the parts of the Greater Cleveland area, surrounding the city of Cleveland, but not the city and most of its inner suburbs.
==History== Area code 440 was established on August 16, 1997, in a three-way split of area code 216, one of the original North American area codes,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldatlas.com/na/us/oh/area-code-440.html|title=Area Code 440 Atlas|publisher=worldatlas.com|access-date=August 27, 2017}}</ref> to provide relief from central office prefix exhaustion from increasing popularity of cellular phones and population pressure.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.areacodehelp.com/where/area_code_440.shtml|title=Area Code 440 History|publisher=areacodehelp.com|access-date=August 27, 2017}}</ref> The 216 numbering plan area (NPA) had already been divided the preceding year in 1996 to create area code 330 to the south, with NPA 216 stretching along the coast of Lake Erie.
Prior to October 2021, area code 440 had telephone numbers assigned for the central office code 988. In 2020, ''988'' was designated nationwide as a dialing code for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which created a conflict for exchanges that permit seven-digit dialing. This area code was therefore scheduled to transition to ten-digit dialing by October 24, 2021.<ref name="pl556">{{cite web|url=https://nationalnanpa.com/pdf/PL_556.pdf|date=January 8, 2021|publisher=North American Numbering Plan Administrator |title=Transition to 10-digit dialing (for 988 as 3-digit access to National Suicide Prevention Hotline)|access-date=March 9, 2021}}</ref>
In December 2022, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio announced a projection that the pool of available telephone numbers for the 440 area code would be exhausted by the third quarter of 2024. The Commission approved a plan of relief action which prescribes an all-service overlay in the numbering plan area with the new area code 436.<ref name="pl610">{{Cite web |url=https://www.nationalnanpa.com/planning_letters/PL-610.pdf |title=Planning Letter PL-610: NPA 436 and 440 All-Services Overlay (Ohio) |publisher=NANPA |date=2023-02-16 |access-date=2023-03-06 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://fox8.com/news/440-numbers-to-run-out-in-2024-new-area-code-to-dial-in/|title=440 numbers to run out in 2024; new area code to dial in|date=15 December 2022 |publisher=fox8.com|access-date=December 16, 2022}}</ref> The activation date was March 1, 2024.<ref name="pl610"/>
==Service area== The overlay complex serves most of the southern, western, and eastern suburbs of Cleveland, including the larger cities and communities of Ashtabula, Chardon, Eastlake, Elyria, Lorain, Mentor, North Olmsted, North Ridgeville, North Royalton, Parma, Solon, Strongsville, Westlake and Willoughby.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.areacodehelp.com/where/area_code_440.shtml|title=Area Code 440 Coverage|publisher=areacodehelp.com|access-date=August 27, 2017}}</ref> It serves all of Lake and Geauga counties. It also serves almost all of Ashtabula and Lorain counties, part of Erie County, the northeast corner of Huron County, and the northwest part of Trumbull County.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.areacodehelp.com/where/area_code_440.shtml|title=Area Code 440 Counties|publisher=areacodehelp.com|access-date=August 27, 2017}}</ref> It also covers far eastern Cuyahoga County, the rest of which stayed in 216.
The largest city in the numbering plan area is Parma, Ohio.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allareacodes.com/440|title=440 Area Code Location|publisher=allareacodes.com|access-date=August 27, 2017}}</ref>
==See also== *List of Ohio area codes *List of North American Numbering Plan area codes
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{Area_code_footer|Map=OH}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20090620070700/http://www.areacodedownload.com/440/index.html List of exchanges from AreaCodeDownload.com, 440 Area Code]
{{Area code box | State = OH | This = area code 440/436 | N = 216, 519/226/548/382, Lake Erie | S = 330/234, 419/567 | E = 724/878, 814/582 | W = 419/567 | S1=ON | S2=PA}}
{{coord|41|45|N|81|0|W|display=title}}
Category:Telecommunications-related introductions in 1997 Category:Telecommunications-related introductions in 2024 440 440 Category:Ashtabula County, Ohio Category:Cuyahoga County, Ohio Category:Erie County, Ohio Category:Geauga County, Ohio Category:Huron County, Ohio Category:Lake County, Ohio Category:Lorain County, Ohio Category:Trumbull County, Ohio