🇨🇳International Calling Guide

Call China from USA
Country Code +86

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Product facts: Calls to China

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How to Dial
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How to Call China Step-by-Step

Dialing China requires knowing whether you are calling a landline or a mobile phone.

1

Exit Code

Dial 011 from a US landline.
Or just + from mobile/VoIP.

2

Country Code (+86)

Dial +86. This routes the call to mainland China.

3

Number

Landline: Area Code (no 0) + Number.
Mobile: 11-digit number directly.

Mobile vs Landline Format

Chinese mobile numbers are 11 digits long and always start with 1 (e.g., 13x, 15x, 18x). Landlines have area codes (like 10 for Beijing) that you dial without the leading zero.

Landline (Beijing)
+86 10 1234 5678
Mobile
+86 139 1234 5678

Major China City Codes

Area codes for landlines in major Chinese cities.

CityRegionArea Code
BeijingMunicipality10
ShanghaiMunicipality21
GuangzhouGuangdong20
ShenzhenGuangdong755
ChengduSichuan28
CityRegionArea Code
TianjinMunicipality22
WuhanHubei27
HangzhouZhejiang571
NanjingJiangsu25
ChongqingMunicipality23

Reliable Calls to
China from USA

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Reliable

Stable connections to mainland China.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the country code for China?

The country code for China is +86. You must dial this after the international exit code.

How do I call a mobile number in China?

Dial +86 followed by the 11-digit mobile number. Chinese mobile numbers always start with the digit 1.

Do I need to dial 0 before the area code for landlines?

No. When calling from outside China, you drop the leading zero of the area code. For example, dial +86 21 for Shanghai (instead of 021).

Can I call Hong Kong with +86?

No. Hong Kong has its own country code, which is +852. Macau is +853, and Taiwan is +886.

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Country deep dive

From United States to China

Practical reference covering the destination country's dial code, time zone, mobile carriers, city area codes, business etiquette, and any regulatory rules that affect inbound calls. The information below is specific to this route — different country pairs surface different operational details.

Calling China (+86)

China sits in CST (UTC+8) — entire country runs on a single time zone.. The country dial code is +86 and the official language for business is Mandarin Chinese (standardized as Putonghua). Local business hours run roughly 9:00–18:00 with a 12:00–13:30 lunch. Saturday work is still common in some industries; '996' (9 AM to 9 PM, 6 days) was widespread in tech until recent regulatory pushback..

Major cities & area codes

  • Shanghai · 21
  • Guangzhou · 20
  • Shenzhen · 755
  • Chengdu · 28

Mobile carriers in China

  • China Telecom · 133, 149, 153, 173-174, 177, 180-181, 189, 191, 199
  • China Mobile · 134-139, 147, 150-152, 157-159, 178, 182-184, 187-188, 198
  • China Unicom · 130-132, 145, 155-156, 175-176, 185-186, 196

What to know when calling China

  • Mobile numbers are 11 digits starting with 1. Drop the leading 0 from area codes.
  • WeChat dominates communication; voice calls inside China often happen through WeChat Voice rather than carrier voice.
  • International calling routes to China traverse different gateways for landline vs mobile — quality varies significantly by source country.

Regulation & compliance (China)

  • MIIT regulates voice termination — international VoIP traffic terminating to mainland China is technically restricted; legitimate B2B traffic should route through licensed gateways.

Calling from United States

From United States (Five time zones from Eastern (UTC−5) to Hawaii–Aleutian (UTC−10); most business activity sits in Eastern and Pacific.) the local business window is Standard hours 9:00–17:00 in each local time zone. Federal offices skew earlier; West-Coast tech routinely runs to 19:00. Banks close 17:00 sharp.. Most outbound callers reach a live answer most easily mid-morning local time, before lunch, and again in the late afternoon.

  • Caller ID display name (CNAM) is honored by most major US carriers; a recognizable display name materially improves answer rates.
  • Voicemail is widely used and read by transcription; leaving a brief callback request often gets faster response than re-dialing.
Operational facts above are sourced from regulator publications and carrier disclosures; specific rates and routing are confirmed in the live dialer.
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