Phone prefixes in Burlington

In numbers

In-service prefixes

67

Telephone numbers covered

670,000

Carriers

21

Area codes

5

Provinces and territories

2

First assignment

October 14, 1999

Most recent assignment

September 4, 2024

Provinces and territories

This name is used for separate rate centres in 2 provinces. The prefixes below share a name in the CNAC register but belong to different communities.

• Ontario — 65 prefixes
• Newfoundland and Labrador — 2 prefixes

Burlington’s share of its area codes

Within area code 289, Burlington accounts for only 28 of 772 prefixes (3.6%): the code is dominated by Hamilton and spread over 87 rate centres. Within area code 905, Burlington accounts for only 23 of 773 prefixes (3.0%): the code is dominated by Hamilton and spread over 94 rate centres. Within area code 365, Burlington accounts for only 12 of 706 prefixes (1.7%): the code is dominated by Markham and spread over 88 rate centres. Within area code 709, Burlington accounts for only 2 of 631 prefixes (0.3%): the code is dominated by St. John's and spread over 209 rate centres. Within area code 742, Burlington accounts for only 2 of 148 prefixes (1.4%): the code is dominated by Brampton and spread over 68 rate centres.

Who holds these numbers

Bell Canada holds the largest share at 17 prefixes, 25.4% of the total, ahead of 20 other carriers. Code by code: in 289, TELUS Integrated Communications leads with 5 of 28 prefixes ahead of 14 others; in 905, Bell Canada leads with 14 of 23 prefixes ahead of 4 others; in 365, Bell Canada leads with 2 of 12 prefixes ahead of 9 others; in 709, Aliant Telecom (NF) leads with 1 of 2 prefixes ahead of 1 others; in 742, IXICA Communications Inc. leads with 1 of 2 prefixes ahead of 1 others. No carrier holds prefixes in every one of Burlington’s 5 area codes, while 11 appear in just one.

Wireless and wireline

16 of Burlington’s 67 prefixes (23.9%) are held by carriers whose registered name marks a wireless business: Rogers Communications Canada Inc. (Wireless), TELUS Mobility and Fido Solutions Inc. Wireline prefixes still outnumber them, carried by Bell Canada, TELUS Integrated Communications, Distributel and Fibernetics Corporation. This is a sort by name, not a licence lookup, and a mobile prefix may have been ported to another network since.

How the allocation was built up

Burlington’s dated assignments run from 1999 to 2024. The busiest period was 2010–2014, when 14 prefixes went to 9 carriers. 16 prefixes (24%) carry no date in the register: these are the historic pre-1999 assignments, the wireline bedrock of the rate centre. Since 2020 another 9 prefixes have been added, so the rate centre is still growing.

Burlington’s oldest prefixes, the ones the register leaves undated, belong to Bell Canada, TELUS Mobility and Aliant Telecom (NF): these carriers made up the landscape before competition arrived. The first dated assignment went to Bell Canada in 1999. The most recent arrivals are Cogeco Connexion Inc. (2024), TekSavvy Solutions Inc (2021) and IXICA Communications Inc. (2017), a sign that new carriers are still asking for numbers in Burlington.

Burlington’s 67 prefixes provide 670,000 numbers, which corresponds to a mid-sized city or a well-established suburb that every major carrier wants a slice of.

No single carrier dominates Burlington: the leader, Bell Canada, holds only 25.4% of the prefixes against 20 competitors, a sign of a highly fragmented market where cable companies, mobility brands and VoIP providers weigh as much as the incumbent.

Allocation is mature: only 17.6% of the dated prefixes are less than ten years old, most having been handed out in 2010–2014, and 16 prefixes go back to the undated monopoly era. New Burlington numbers mostly come out of blocks that were assigned long ago.

16 undated in the register.

Dialling a Burlington number

Burlington is served by 5 overlaid area codes (289, 905, 365, 709 and 742). A 742 number is no more “out of town” than a 289 one; from abroad, dial +1 and the full ten digits.

The numbering neighbourhood

Burlington shares area codes 289, 905, 365, 709 and 742 with at least 20 other rate centres, including Hamilton, Brampton, Oshawa, St. Catharines-Thorold, St. John's, Oakville, Markham and Ajax-Pickering. The largest of them, Hamilton, holds 222 prefixes in 289, 365, 742 and 905; the smallest on the list, Dunnville, has just 28.

What a Burlington number tells you

A number attached to Burlington tells you that its prefix was issued to a carrier for this rate centre in Ontario, most often Bell Canada. It does not tell you where the handset is today: a subscriber may have ported the number to any of the 21 carriers present here or to a VoIP service usable anywhere. Nor does it tell you who is calling: caller ID can be spoofed, and an Ontario area code is easy to borrow to look local.

Reading a register entry for Burlington: code 289-313 is recorded for Bell Canada, so every 289-313-XXXX number (10,000 possible) descends from that assignment. “Burlington, Ontario” there names a rate centre, not a municipality, and several area codes overlay it.

Every Burlington prefix

Each row is an in-service central-office code recorded for Burlington, with its original holder and year of assignment.

Had a call from a Burlington number?

No clear pattern in reports on these numbers yet. If a call worried you:

1. Call back on a number you trust

   If a caller says they are your bank, the Canada Revenue Agency, a courier or your phone company, hang up and call the organization on the number from its website or your statement, never the number that called you. Caller ID can be faked.

2. Report the fraud

   Report the call or text to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre online or at 1-888-495-8501. If you lost money or gave out personal details, tell your bank first, then your local police.

   Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre ↗

3. Register on the National Do Not Call List

   Registering a landline or mobile on the National DNCL is free. Registered charities, political parties, newspapers and companies you already do business with may still call.

   National Do Not Call List ↗Who can still call you ↗

4. Forward suspicious texts to 7726

   Forward a scam or spam text to 7726 (SPAM on the keypad). It's free, and your carrier uses it to block the sender. Don't tap links or reply.

   Get Cyber Safe: forwarding to 7726 ↗

Allocated prefixes

All 67 in-service prefixes, grouped by rate centre.

Elsewhere in Ontario