Area code 978 covers Lowell and surrounding communities in Massachusetts.
Updated 8 October 2026
Area code 978 is in Massachusetts, shown here with Lowell marked.
Now in Lowell
Eastern Time · UTC−5, UTC−4 in summer
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Eastern Time
Where you are—
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Typical business hours, 9 to 5 Monday to Friday.
Typical business hours, 9 to 5 Monday to Friday, shown as the blue arc. A guide to when a real Lowell office is likely to answer. It says nothing about who called you.
Source: North American Numbering Plan Administrator, retrieved 8 October 2026.
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Is area code 978 a scam?
No. Area code 978 is a legitimate area code serving Lowell since 1997. Scammers spoof caller ID to display 978 numbers, which is why complaints exist against a code that is itself genuine.
Neighbour spoofing is the reason a local-looking number is not a guarantee. A caller anywhere in the world can display a 978 number, and the number they display may belong to a real business in Lowell that has nothing to do with the call.
The callerAnywhere in the worldSets the caller ID their equipment sends.
What is displayed(978) 444-5700May belong to a real Lowell business.
Your phoneLooks localA nearby code and prefix make you likelier to answer.
396Area code 978 had 396 different numbers reported for spam calls in the 30 days to 8 October 2026.
211thArea code 978 ranks 211th of 331 US geographic area codes by spam complaint volume.
70%Of the 418 complaints about area code 978 in the 30 days to 8 October 2026, 70% were reported as a recorded message or robocall.
23%The most reported subject on area code 978 is reducing your debt (credit cards, mortgage, student loans), appearing in 23% of its complaints in the 30 days to 8 October 2026.
Why am I getting text messages from area code 978?
Texts from 978 numbers follow the same pattern as calls — mostly local businesses and services. Treat any text asking for payment or credentials as suspect regardless of the code.
The common patterns are a wrong-number opener that turns into conversation, an unsolicited job offer, and a crypto or investment tip. Do not reply, do not follow the link, and forward the message to 7726 (SPAM) to report it to your carrier.
Pattern 1Wrong-number openerTurns into conversation.
Pattern 2Unsolicited job offerDo not reply, do not follow the link.
Pattern 3Crypto or investment tipTreat any payment ask as suspect.
Report it7726Forward the message. It spells SPAM on a keypad.
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Area codes that overlay 978
Area code 978 shares its geographic footprint with one other code: 351. Overlays are laid over an existing area rather than splitting it, so all local calls require the full ten-digit number.
Area code 978 has served northeastern Massachusetts since 1997, running from the Merrimack Valley to the North Shore, and Lowell is its largest city. Lowell was built as a planned mill town in 1826 and became the cradle of the American Industrial Revolution. The canals and brick mills are now a National Historical Park threaded through a working city of 115,554 people, per the 2020 census. The modern economy centers on UMass Lowell, one of the state's largest public research universities, plus health care, advanced manufacturing, and the technology employers spread along the I-495 corridor that cuts through the code.
Who lives in the 978 region
Lowell's population is a study in successive waves of arrival. Irish, French Canadian, Greek, and Portuguese workers staffed the mills. Today the city holds the second-largest Cambodian community in the United States, and about 30.6% of residents were born outside the country, per 2024 Data USA figures. Khmer, Spanish, and Portuguese are the most common languages after English. Median household income was $78,658 in 2024, and the employed population is growing at around 3% a year.
What a 978 number signals to a caller
Callers describe the Merrimack Valley as more blue-collar direct than Boston proper: less polish, more plain talk, and a quicker read on whether a caller is wasting time. Family businesses with decades of history still dominate whole commercial streets. A number in area code 978 tells a customer in Lowell, Massachusetts that the caller is from the region rather than from Boston, a distinction that carries more weight here than outsiders assume.
Area code 978 serves Lowell and surrounding communities in Massachusetts. It is in the Eastern Time zone.
What state is area code 978 in?
Area code 978 is in Massachusetts.
Is area code 978 toll free?
No. Area code 978 is a geographic area code serving Lowell, Massachusetts. The toll-free codes are 800, 833, 844, 855, 866, 877, 888, and a call to a 978 number is charged at your normal rate.
Why am I getting calls from 978?
Calls displaying a 978 number come from businesses and individuals in the Lowell area, and from anywhere at all when caller ID is spoofed to look local. 396 978 numbers were reported to the FTC in the 30 days to 8 October 2026.
How do I block calls from area code 978?
Both iOS and Android can silence calls from unknown numbers, and every major US carrier offers free call-blocking. Blocking the whole of area code 978 is rarely worth it, because spoofed numbers change constantly and you would lose legitimate calls from Lowell.