Telephone numbers in Kenya explained

Country:Kenya
Country Link:Kenya
Continent:Africa
Country Calling Code:+254
International Prefix:000
Trunk Prefix:0
Regulator:Communications Authority of Kenya (CA)
Nsn Length:9
Dial Plan Type:Closed

The following telephone numbers in Kenya are destination codes for international calls terminating in Kenya as well as the procedures for dialling internationally from within Kenya. Until 1999, Kenya shared its telephone numbering plan with Tanzania and Uganda, meaning that to make calls between the three countries, subscribers needed only dial the area code and number, a legacy of the East African Post and Telecommunications Corporation (EAPTC) which was dissolved in 1977. As a result of the reorganisation of Tanzania's numbering plan in that year, direct dialling was discontinued, although calls between the three countries do not require international dialling, only a special three-digit code.

Land lines

Land line phone numbers in Kenya follow the format Area Code + Phone Number.To dial a number within an area or city, only the phone number needs to be dialled. When dialling from a different area or city, the telephone number is dialled in the format 0 + Area Code + Phone Number. When dialling from abroad, the 0 is omitted.

List of area codes in Kenya

List of area codes
AreaArea codeAreaArea code
Nairobi20Mombasa41
Kwale40Malindi42
Voi43Machakos44
4546
Naivasha50Nakuru51
Kericho5253
Kitale54Bungoma55
56Kisumu57
5859
Murang'a6061
6264
Nyahururu65Karuri66
67Embu68
6946

Mobile operators

In Kenya there are four[1] mobile network operators (MNO): Safaricom, Airtel (formerly Kencell, Celtel, and Zain), Equitel (MVNO) and Telkom Kenya (Orange).[2] The Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) has assigned several Area Codes to each operator. All mobile Area Codes used the start with the digit 7. As of May 2019, the Communications authority introduced codes starting with the digit 1.[3] Please note: Since April 2011 Mobile number portability (MNP) is implemented in Kenya.[4] The phone number can be ported by the customer to another operator.

Prefix Example Operator
13+250782528534MTN
11+254,11x xxxxxxSafaricom
701 +254,701 xxxxxx Safaricom
702 +254,702 xxxxxx Safaricom
703 +254,703 xxxxxx Safaricom
704 +254,704 xxxxxx Safaricom
705 +254,705 xxxxxx Safaricom
706 +254,706 xxxxxx Safaricom
707 +254,707 xxxxxx Safaricom
708 +254,708 xxxxxx Safaricom
709+254,709 xxxxxxSafaricom
710 +254,710 xxxxxx Safaricom
711 +254,711 xxxxxx Safaricom
712 +254,712 xxxxxx Safaricom
713 +254,713 xxxxxx Safaricom
714 +254,714 xxxxxx Safaricom
715 +254,715 xxxxxx Safaricom
716 +254,716 xxxxxx Safaricom
717 +254,717 xxxxxx Safaricom
718 +254,718 xxxxxx Safaricom
719 +254,719 xxxxxx Safaricom
720 +254,720 xxxxxx Safaricom
721 +254,721 xxxxxx Safaricom
722 +254,722 xxxxxx Safaricom
723 +254,723 xxxxxx Safaricom
724 +254,724 xxxxxx Safaricom
725 +254,725 xxxxxx Safaricom
726 +254,726 xxxxxx Safaricom
727 +254,727 xxxxxx Safaricom
728 +254,728 xxxxxx Safaricom
729 +254,729 xxxxxx Safaricom
730 +254,730 xxxxxx Airtel
731 +254,731 xxxxxx Airtel
732 +254,732 xxxxxx Airtel
733 +254,733 xxxxxx Airtel
734 +254,734 xxxxxx Airtel
735 +254,735 xxxxxx Airtel
736 +254,736 xxxxxx Airtel
737 +254,737 xxxxxx Airtel
738 +254,738 xxxxxx Airtel
739 +254,739 xxxxxx Airtel
740 +254,740 xxxxxx Safaricom
741 +254,741 xxxxxx Safaricom
742 +254,742 xxxxxx Safaricom
743 +254,743 xxxxxx Safaricom
744+254,744 xxxxxxHomelands Media
745 +254,745 xxxxxx Safaricom
746 +254,746 xxxxxx Safaricom
747 +254,747 xxxxxx Faiba 4G
748 +254,748 xxxxxx Safaricom
750 +254,750 xxxxxx Airtel
751 +254,751 xxxxxx Airtel
752 +254,752 xxxxxx Airtel
753 +254,753 xxxxxx Airtel
754 +254,754 xxxxxx Airtel
755 +254,755 xxxxxx Airtel
756 +254,756 xxxxxx Airtel
757 +254,757 xxxxxx Safaricom
758 +254,758 xxxxxx Safaricom
759 +254,759 xxxxxx Safaricom
760+254,760 xxxxxxMobile Pay
761+254,761 xxxxxxEferio
762+254,762 xxxxxxAirtel
763 +254,763 xxxxxx Equitel
764 +254,764 xxxxxx Equitel
765 +254,765 xxxxxx Equitel
766+254,766 xxxxxxEquitel
767+254,767 xxxxxxSema Mobile
768+254,768 xxxxxxSafaricom
769+254,769 xxxxxxSafaricom
770 +254,770 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
771 +254,771 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
772 +254,772 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
773 +254,773 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
774 +254,774 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
775 +254,775 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
776 +254,776 xxxxxx Telkom Kenya
777+254,777 xxxxxxTelkom Kenya
778+254,778 xxxxxxTelkom Kenya
779+254,779 xxxxxxTelkom Kenya
780 +254,780 xxxxxx Airtel
781+254,781 xxxxxxAirtel
782+254,782 xxxxxxAirtel
783+254,783 xxxxxxAirtel
784+254,784 xxxxxxAirtel
785 +254,785 xxxxxx Airtel
786 +254,786 xxxxxx Airtel
787 +254,787 xxxxxx Airtel
788 +254,788 xxxxxx Airtel
789 +254,789 xxxxxx Airtel
790 +254,790 xxxxxx Safaricom
791 +254,791 xxxxxx Safaricom
792 +254,792 xxxxxx Safaricom
793+254,793 xxxxxxSafaricom
794+254,794 xxxxxxSafaricom
795+254,795 xxxxxxSafaricom
796+254,796 xxxxxxSafaricom
797+254,797 xxxxxxSafaricom
798+254,798 xxxxxxSafaricom
799+254,799 xxxxxxSafaricom
[5] [6] [7] [8] [9]

Non-geographic numbers

Calls to numbers starting 0800 are free.

Calls to and from Tanzania and Uganda

To call Kenya from Tanzania and Uganda, subscribers must dial 005, followed by the area code and number. To call Uganda from Kenya, subscribers must dial 006, followed by the area code and number, while calls to Tanzania require the prefix 007.

International dialling

To call Kenya from other countries, subscribers must dial their international access code e.g. 00 for most European countries, and 011 from North America, followed by the country code 254. The international access code for calls from Kenya is 000.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: allAfrica.com: Kenya: Yu Mobile Customers Now Part of Airtel Network. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150805063115/http://allafrica.com/stories/201501150128.html. 2015-08-05.
  2. Web site: Mobile world live. GSM Coverage Maps of Kenya. 7 February 2012.
  3. Web site: New series of mobile number introduced in Kenya. 2 May 2019.
  4. Web site: Balancing act africa. Kenya launches Mobile Number Portability. 7 February 2012.
  5. Web site: SMS-Expert. Mobile network operators and mobile numbering plan of kenya. 7 February 2012.
  6. Web site: ITU. Telecommunication numbering plan for kenya (2010). 7 February 2012.
  7. Web site: CCK. Telecommunication numbering plan for Kenya (2012). 12 March 2014.
  8. Web site: CAK. National Numbering Plan (2019). 13 December 2019.
  9. Web site: TELECOMMUNICATION NUMBERING PLAN FOR KENYA . Communications Authority of Kenya . January 2019.