# A lot of people keep their old cell number when they move far away. How does that affect rates? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 9, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239 "2009-10-09T21:39:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Never\_Say\_Dice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee59a6/32.png) [@Never\_Say\_Dice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Never_Say_Dice)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/1 "2009-10-09T21:39:54Z")
My coworkers cells have area codes ranging from New York to Florida to Seattle. When I call from my cell phone, it’s no extra charge. But if I use my desk land line, wouldn’t I be paying huge long distance fees for reaching someone on the next floor? Or does it just charge to the closest tower of their carrier’s brand? ---
**Author:** ![qazwart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/5fc32e/32.png) [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2009, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/2 "2009-10-09T22:26:42Z")
If you have a national plan, it doesn’t make any difference except that locals calling you will be charged for calling a long distance number. At the same time, your former neighbors will be calling you on a local number. However, even long distance is disappearing. My landline has a national plan and no national long distance charges. ---
**Author:** ![sfbiker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@sfbiker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sfbiker)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2009, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/3 "2009-10-09T22:29:08Z")
You would be charged normal long distance fees for the call even if the carrier can route the call locally. If you’re paying “huge” long distance fees, you should look at other calling plans and carriers - the default plan from most carriers is abysmal (like 30 cents even up to 49 cents/minute or more), but just by asking you can get on a low cost or even no-cost plan that cuts your cost per minute dramatically. ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2009, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/4 "2009-10-09T22:49:18Z")
I’m on Verizon. It doesn’t matter what USA area code I call, my rate is the same. Even locally. No free local calls on cellular. A friend recently moved to Utah to work with me and he kept his Los Angeles cellphone. We call each other quite frequently to discuss business and there is no difference. ETA: If you call a New York cellphone on a Los Angeles landline, you will incur long distance charges (unless you’re on a national plan as stated earlier). We’re slowly moving toward a wireless communication world, IMHO, where area codes will simply be considered a 10 digit number, not as an indicator of where you are located. ---
**Author:** ![runcible\_spoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc29f/32.png) [@runcible\_spoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/runcible_spoon)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/5 "2009-10-10T15:13:51Z")
> [@Rico](#): > > ETA: If you call a New York cellphone on a Los Angeles landline, you will incur long distance charges (unless you’re on a national plan as stated earlier). We’re slowly moving toward a wireless communication world, IMHO, where area codes will simply be considered a 10 digit number, not as an indicator of where you are located. Area codes are still useful to figure out where people are from, generally. Living in a city, I meet plenty of people from elsewhere, and since most people my age got their numbers either in high school or college, it’s a (not-totally-reliable) way to see where someone moved here from. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/6 "2009-10-10T15:27:11Z")
As a crotchety old Luddite with a land line, I’ve gotta say I find it annoying as hell to have to make a “long distance” call to someone a mile away. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/7 "2009-10-10T16:11:33Z")
With number portability, people are taking their existing numbers (including area code) when they go to new providers and locations… so the area code and exchange code are slowly losing their geographical significance. It’ll be a while before the phone number just becomes a serial number though. I believe that when you call a number, the system assumes it’s in the original location, then if the number is flagged that it had been moved, does a database query to see where it’s gone. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/8 "2009-10-10T16:15:05Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > As a crotchety old Luddite with a land line, I’ve gotta say I find it annoying as hell to have to make a “long distance” call to someone a mile away. One thing the old analogue cellphone system did better than GSM (sacrilege!) was ‘roamer access numbers’. You knew someone with a distant Bell mobile number was going to be in your town, you dialed the local Bell roamer access number to get onto the Bell mobile system as a local call, then at the second dial tone entered their mobile number. I don’t know why they couldn’t do that in GSM. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/9 "2009-10-10T16:20:26Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > As a crotchety old Luddite with a land line, I’ve gotta say I find it annoying as hell to have to make a “long distance” call to someone a mile away. as new area codes are added as an overlay you need the 10 digits. with more phone devices this will happen. rotary dial phones are really annoying for this. new area codes as overlays have the benefit that people keep their phone number. new area codes as splits might work better where there is a single major metro area in an area code. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/10 "2009-10-10T16:30:31Z")
I live in a large metropolitan area with ten-digit calling – doesn’t bother me in the least. What bothers me is \*paying \*for a long-distance call. Yeah, I’m a cheapskate, sue me. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/11 "2009-10-10T16:57:29Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > As a crotchety old Luddite with a land line, I’ve gotta say I find it annoying as hell to have to make a “long distance” call to someone a mile away. I find it delightful that someone with 25,000+ posts on an internet message board can think of herself as a “Luddite.” ---
**Author:** ![Never\_Say\_Dice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee59a6/32.png) [@Never\_Say\_Dice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Never_Say_Dice)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/12 "2009-10-10T17:09:57Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > As a crotchety old Luddite with a land line, I’ve gotta say I find it annoying as hell to have to make a “long distance” call to someone a mile away. This was the question. If I’ve moved closer to my mother’s area code should I get a new number so she won’t still be paying for my old farther area. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2009, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-lot-of-people-keep-their-old-cell-number-when-they-move-far-away-how-does-that-affect-rates/513239/13 "2009-10-10T17:22:10Z")
Yes. If she’s got a landline with a traditional type of account where she pays a higher rate for long-distance calls, she pays at the long-distance rate for a call to a number with an area code that is considered long distance, regardless of where, physically, that phone is.