020 Area Code — London, City of Westminster & Islington

020 is the UK dialling code for London in Greater London, also serving City of Westminster, Islington and Archway, allocated by Ofcom under the National Telephone Numbering Plan. Our database has tracked 23,467 distinct 020 numbers across 49,847 public lookups.

Quick facts

About the 020 dialling code

020 is the UK geographic dialling code for London, allocated by Ofcom under the National Telephone Numbering Plan. It is used by landlines — and increasingly VoIP lines — registered to the London area.

A full London number is normally written as 020 XXXX XXXX. You can dial the local part on its own from within the same area, or the full number from anywhere in the UK.

Because of UK number portability and internet calling, a 020 number no longer guarantees the caller is physically in London. Fraudsters also "spoof" local codes like 020 so an unknown call looks like a nearby business or neighbour — so treat an unexpected call on what is actually said, not on the area code alone.

Getting repeated unknown calls from this code? See our dedicated prefix guides: who called me from 0204, who called me from 0207, who called me from 0208, who called me from 0203 — scam patterns, range holders and blocking steps for the whole range.

Map of the 020 dialling area

The marker shows London; the shaded circle is an approximate indication of the area the 020 code serves — exact Ofcom charging-area boundaries are irregular and don't follow a neat radius.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. View larger map

Areas typically served by 020

Settlements in and around the London dialling area that typically use 020 numbers. Approximate — Ofcom charging-area boundaries don't follow town or county lines exactly, and properties near a boundary may take a neighbouring code.

Calling 020 from abroad

From outside the UK, dial your international access prefix, then the UK country code 44, then 20 (the area code without its leading zero) and the local number.

History of the 020 code

London moved from 0171/0181 to the unified 020 code in the Big Number Change on 22 April 2000. Before 1995 the codes were 071/081, and before 1990 all of London was simply 01.

Top searched 020 numbers

These are the 020 numbers most-looked-up by visitors to our number checker. Click any number to see its full lookup page with risk-level, range holder, and community reports.

Is a call from 020 safe?

Most 020 calls are ordinary local calls from London homes and businesses. The main risk to be aware of is "neighbour spoofing", where a scammer fakes a local 020 prefix so you are more likely to answer. Never share bank details, passwords or one-time security codes with an unexpected caller, even when the number looks local — hang up and call the organisation back on a number you have verified yourself.

To call a 020 (London) number from outside the UK, drop the leading zero and dial +44 20 followed by the local number.

Operators serving London

These UK communications providers have been allocated 020 number blocks by Ofcom. The number of blocks per operator gives a rough sense of how widely each provider serves this area.

Ofcom number ranges on 020

Ofcom's National Numbering Plan lists 5,201 number blocks under 020, of which 3,139 are allocated to 246 communications providers. The first allocated blocks are shown below — look up any full number with the number checker to see its exact range holder.

Showing 12 of 3,139 allocated blocks. Source: Ofcom telephone numbering data, updated weekly.

Common scam patterns reported in London

Categories most-commonly tagged on user-submitted reports for 020 numbers in our community comments.

• scam — 72 reports
• silent — 35 reports
• spam — 31 reports
• telemarketing — 10 reports
• unknown — 10 reports

How to block and report 020 spam calls

Block or report 020

• You can block 020 directly from your recent-calls list on iPhone or Android, and forward scam texts free to 7726.
• Scam or fraud calls should be reported to Action Fraud (0300 123 2040) or Police Scotland (101); persistent marketing calls to the ICO / TPS.

Full step-by-step instructions for every phone, network-level blocking and all UK reporting routes are in our guide: How to block and report unwanted calls in the UK.

Frequently asked questions about the 020 code

Neighbouring dialling codes

Codes covering areas around London — useful when a caller is nearby but outside the 020 boundary.

Living in or moving to London?

Our free postcode reports cover house prices, crime, broadband and schools for the districts around London.

Check another UK number

Have the full 10- or 11-digit number? The UK Phone Number Checker shows the Ofcom range holder, risk level, and any community reports for that specific number.