Reverse phone lookup for UK numbers

How a reverse lookup works here

A normal phone book goes from a name to a number. A reverse lookup goes the other way: you start with the number and find out what is known about it. When you search a number on GotMyNumber, we put four things together on one page.

• The kind of number. A landline, a mobile, a freephone, a premium rate line or something else. A landline code such as 0121 tells you where the number was given out. The UK area code list covers every code.
• Who the range belongs to. Ofcom gives blocks of numbers to phone companies. We show which company holds the block and when it was given out, from Ofcom’s own data.
• What people reported. Anyone who got a call from the number can report it. We count each person once and show every report as that person’s account, with its date.
• Whether a business claims it. A business that proves it holds the line is shown by name. A business that has registered but not yet proved it is shown without its name.

That gives you one of four answers: a named business that proved the number, a business that has not finished proving it, a personal number, or a number nobody has claimed. We never guess between them.

What you will find, and what you will not

Be wary of any site that promises the name behind any number. Here is exactly what our reverse lookup can and cannot tell you.

Mobile numbers are not listed in any public directory. A name together with a phone number is often enough to identify one person, which makes it personal data under UK GDPR. That is why no honest free UK service will hand you a stranger’s name. Our guide on finding out who owns a phone number explains what does work.

Other ways to identify a caller

• Search the number in quotation marks, with and without spaces. A business usually publishes its number on its own website.
• Dial 1471 on a BT landline to hear the last number that called. It is free to check. It cannot tell you a withheld number, and pressing 3 to ring back costs 35p plus the call.
• Give them time to leave a message. A caller with a real reason to reach you can leave a voicemail or send a text, and that tells you more than the number does.

If you are not sure whether a number is safe to ring back, our phone number checker explains which types of number cost more to call.

When the number on screen is not the caller

Caller ID can be faked. A scammer can make a call show a real bank’s number, or a number that looks local. A lookup tells you about the number, not about who dialled it. Our guide to caller ID spoofing shows how it works and what Ofcom now makes phone companies block.

If it was a scam

• Text the caller’s number to 7726. It is free and tells your mobile provider, which can investigate and block it.
• If you lost money or gave away details, contact your bank straight away, then report it to Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.
• Report the number here so the next person who looks it up is warned.

For a missed call you have not dealt with yet, whose number is this? covers what to do before you ring back, and after a missed call walks through the steps one at a time.