Unknown calls from Spain
Many people in Spain stop answering numbers they do not recognise, partly because energy and telecom sales calls arrive at all hours. Since the 2022 telecoms law, companies need consent or another legal basis to call consumers for marketing, but the calls have not disappeared. Smishing is the bigger danger: texts that seem to come from a bank, Correos or the DGT traffic authority slip into the same thread as genuine messages. Expats on the Costa del Sol or in Madrid, holiday-home owners and Erasmus students regularly search a 6xx or 9xx number to find out whether a gestoría, landlord or delivery driver was trying to reach them.
Spain phone numbers at a glance
- Country calling code
- +34
- Trunk prefix
- None
- Number format
- Spanish numbers have nine digits and no trunk prefix. Landlines begin with 8 or 9 (91 Madrid, 93 Barcelona), mobiles begin with 6 or 7, and special services start with 80x or 90x.
- Example (national)
- 912 345 678
- Example (international)
- +34 912 345 678
- Emergency number
- 112 (all emergencies), 091 (Policía Nacional), 062 (Guardia Civil)
- Telecom regulator
- CNMC (Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia)
Spain numbers have no trunk prefix, so the international form is simply +34 followed by the national number: 912 345 678 becomes +34 912 345 678.
How to tell what kind of Spanish number called you
Mobile numbers
| Type | Starts with | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile (6) | 6 | Most Spanish mobile numbers start with 6; portable between operators. |
| Mobile (7) | 7 | Numbers beginning 71 to 74 were opened for mobile use as the 6 range filled up. |
Toll-free, premium and special numbers
| Type | Starts with | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Toll-free | 900 | 900 and 800 numbers are free to call. |
| Shared-cost / single-rate | 901 | 901 and 902 lines are paid by the caller, often at more than a normal call; 902 numbers are widely disliked by consumers. |
| Premium rate | 806 | 803, 806 and 807 numbers carry premium charges for adult, entertainment and professional services. |
Mobile networks in Spain
Numbers can be ported between networks, so the prefix alone does not prove which carrier a number is on today. A WhoCallsMe lookup reads the current carrier of record. The main mobile operators are:
- Movistar
- Vodafone
- MasOrange (Orange, Yoigo)
- Digi
