The area code 318 serves the northern portion of Louisiana. If you receive a call from a 318 number, it originates from a region stretching from the Texas border to the Mississippi River, including several of the state’s major urban centers. This area code has a long history and has undergone significant changes over the years to accommodate population growth and technological demand.
Major Cities
Three primary cities anchor the 318 region.
- Shreveport is the largest city in the 318 area code. Located in the northwestern corner of the state, it is a major commercial and cultural hub for the Ark-La-Tex area, where Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas meet.
- Monroe, located in the northeastern part of the 318 territory, is another key economic center. It is home to the University of Louisiana at Monroe and serves a large portion of the state’s northeastern parishes.
- Alexandria sits in the central part of the 318 region. It functions as an important transportation, retail, and healthcare hub for the many smaller towns and rural communities surrounding it.
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Geographical Coverage
The 318 area code covers a large and geographically diverse area of northern Louisiana. It includes the following parishes, which are Louisiana’s equivalent of counties.
- Bienville
- Bossier
- Caddo
- Caldwell
- Catahoula
- Claiborne
- Concordia
- De Soto
- East Carroll
- Franklin
- Grant
- Jackson
- La Salle
- Lincoln
- Madison
- Morehouse
- Natchitoches
- Ouachita
- Rapides
- Red River
- Richland
- Sabine
- Tensas
- Union
- Webster
- West Carroll
- Winn
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History of the Area Code
The 318 area code was one of the original codes created by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) in 1947. At its creation, it covered the entire state of Louisiana. As the demand for phone numbers grew with the rise of car phones, pagers, and new telephone lines, the state needed more numbers than a single area code could provide.
This led to two major splits.
- In 1999, the southern half of the state was assigned a new area code, 337. This new region included cities like Lafayette and Lake Charles.
- Just two years later, in 2001, the southeastern portion of the remaining 318 territory was split off again. The Baton Rouge metropolitan area became area code 225.
After these divisions, the 318 area code was left to serve its current territory across northern Louisiana.
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The 457 Overlay
By the early 2020s, the 318 area code was once again projected to run out of available phone numbers. To solve this, the Louisiana Public Service Commission approved an overlay plan. An overlay adds a new area code to the same geographic region as an existing one.
In 2023, the area code 457 was introduced as an overlay for the 318 region. This means that new phone numbers assigned in northern Louisiana can now have either a 318 or a 457 area code. The biggest change this brought for you, if you live in the area, is mandatory ten-digit dialing. You must dial the area code followed by the seven-digit phone number for all local calls. This ensures that calls are routed correctly, whether the number is a 318 or a 457.