What’s the area code for Istanbul, Turkey

Two area codes are used in Istanbul: 212 and 216.

The 212 area code is used on the European side of Istanbul, and the 216 area code is used on the Anatolian side.

Istanbul’s dialing code

Every phone number within the borders of Istanbul has 212 or 216 at the beginning. The area code for Istanbul on the European side is 212, and the area code for Istanbul on the Asian side is 216.

All phone numbers in Turkey have a “prefix”. The prefix is ​​the first three numbers that appear after the area code. There are 81 provinces in Turkey and each province has its own area code. However, unlike Istanbul, there are two area codes. There are also different area codes according to certain services (for example, 850 area code for customer service of companies).

What does the area code of Istanbul mean?

The 212 or 216 codes do not mean anything special about Istanbul, but since they have been used for years, they are identified with Istanbul.

This numbering scheme has been used since the late 40s and early 50s. The reason why the area code for Istanbul was 212 was that the PTT copied the area code system from the USA and New York was using 212 at that time. Likewise, 312 used by Chicago were given to Ankara.