UK phone number checker

What the checker looks at

• Could the number be real? Every UK number sits in a block that Ofcom gives to a phone company. We show the company and the date. If the block was never given out to anyone, a call showing that number almost certainly used a faked caller ID.
• What type of number is it? Landline, mobile, freephone, premium rate and the rest. The type tells you roughly what a call back will cost and whether the number is tied to a place.
• What did other people report? Reports are counted by person, not by button press, and shown with their dates. A number reaches our list of numbers several people reported only once people on different networks have reported it.
• Has a business claimed it? A business that proves it holds the line is shown by name, so its calls stop looking unknown.

UK number types at a glance

The first digits tell you a lot. Each row links to the full page for that range, with what it is used for and what it costs.

• 01 and 02Landlines tied to a place. The area code list covers every one.
• 03UK-wide numbers for organisations. Ofcom says they cost no more than a call to an 01 or 02 number.
• 0330UK-wide numbers from the 033 range, open to any organisation. Priced like 03.
• 0333Another 033 range, open to any organisation. Priced like 03.
• 07Mobiles. The number tells you nothing about where the caller is.
• 070Personal numbers that look like mobiles but forward anywhere. They can cost far more than a mobile call.
• 0800 and 0808Freephone. Free from UK landlines and mobiles.
• 084Service numbers. You pay your provider’s access charge plus a service charge.
• 087Service numbers like 084, but the service charge can be higher.
• 09Premium rate. The most expensive numbers to call in the UK.

Costs depend on your own provider. Ofcom’s call costs guide sets out the ranges.

Signs a number is not what it seems

• It is in a range nobody was given. The checker says so on the number’s page. It almost certainly means the caller ID was faked.
• It looks like a mobile but starts 070. Personal numbers forward to any phone, anywhere, and cost more to call than a mobile.
• It looks local. A caller anywhere can show a number with your area code, so it tells you nothing about where they are.
• It shows your bank’s real number. Caller ID can be faked. See caller ID spoofing.
• A missed call wants a call back to 09 or 087. Do not ring an unexpected premium or service number to find out who it was.

No reports does not mean safe

A number used for the first time this morning has no history at all, and a call nobody reported leaves no trace here. We show a number with no reports as exactly that. We do not call any number safe or dangerous. The only score we show counts how many different people reported a number, and it says so.

How to check a caller is genuine

The checker tells you about the number. To check the caller, go round them.

If it was a scam, text the number to 7726 (free), and report any loss to Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040, or Police Scotland on 101. Then report it here so the next person is warned. For nuisance calls that keep coming, see how to stop spam calls.

Want to know who the number belongs to rather than whether it is safe? Try the reverse phone lookup. Just found it in your missed calls? Start with whose number is this?