If you’re looking to expand to this market or grow your business in area code 205, a local business phone number makes you appear local. Your calls are more likely to be answered. Your calls will be instantly recognizable to customers who see your caller ID. Plus, customers are more likely to see you as part of their community.
Area code 205 covers a lot of space, including its major city, Birmingham, AL, and its 200,733 residents. It touches 21 counties, including Jefferson, Shelby, Tuscaloosa, St. Clair, Walker, Blount, Chilton, Marion, Bibb, and Pickens.
That includes: Birmingham; Tuscaloosa, and parts of western and central Alabama. Because of the growing demand for phone numbers, newly activated cell phones, and new residents, 205 has an overlay area code of 659. Both cover the same territory.
There are nearby area codes in the region, like 251 (Mobile, AL), 256/938 (Huntsville, AL), 334 (Montgomery, AL), 601/769 (Jackson, MS), and 662 (Southaven, MS).
With a local 205 phone number, you can effectively get in front of the right people and establish a foothold in the Birmingham, AL area.
What is the business environment like for startups and small businesses in area code 205? After all, newcomers trying to establish a presence in a particular area do well knowing the lay of the land. With so much of the business climate centered on Birmingham, we gathered a few vital stats to help you understand what work-life is like in area code 205.
Birmingham residents are likely to work within one of the area’s top industries. According to census.gov, these are the most prominent sectors operating in the metropolis:
A career in these sectors means you’re in good company. You might even see some of them represented here in the largest employer’s in Birmingham: University of Alabama at Birmingham, UAB Medicine, Regions Bank, Southern Company, BBVA Compass, Children’s of Alabama, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Walmart, Birmingham City Schools, AT&T.
There are plenty of opportunities in these large industries, with existing employers and infrastructure in area code 205. But you can also strike off on your own, fulfilling your customers’ needs in less common sectors. That gives customers local options for many more goods and services.
Starting a new business? You won’t be alone. From 2019 to 2020, new business applications in Birmingham grew 44%. With all those new applications, many new businesses are striving to connect with residents in area code 205. And guess what? They are. The state’s startup survival rate is 77.20%, so many new businesses do well and prosper here.
Even so, the area code’s major city, Birmingham, experienced a slight dip (-0.29%) in population between 2019 and 2020. Perhaps that’s because of the area’s 6.2% unemployment rate. Still, it could also represent residents looking outside the urban area for their next home, possibly moving elsewhere in Jefferson County or another county nearby. Birmingham residents who make their homes in the city have a household mean income of $56,635.
Reach all the residents of Alabama in area code 205 with OpenPhone. Start a free, seven-day trial. You can start calling and texting today and establish a business presence near your biggest customers.
Try out calling and texting with an area code tied to this flourishing region and confirm OpenPhone is a great fit for your business by starting a free seven-day trial of OpenPhone.
See which specific 205 phone numbers are available and claim your own Birmingham, AL number by signing up for a free trial. Here’s how it works: using our service, you can easily set up your local phone number without the need to install any additional hardware. Easily download and install our app, and find the right numbers for your business.
Use the OpenPhone browser, desktop, or mobile app.
Activate a new 205 area code phone number in Birmingham, Alabama, in just a few minutes. Your existing number won’t see any service interruptions, and we do all the work. Get more than one number to use for people, teams, or locations immediately. There are no waiting periods, no stores to navigate, and no hidden fees.
Once you’re here, calling and texting to the US or Canada is free. You can use your local number anywhere, even if you work outside of Birmingham, AL and the US.
You can use your number on a smartphone or computer since all you need is an internet connection. Manage conversations in your inbox wherever you work using your preferred device; OpenPhone works with your laptop, computer, tablet, and smart phone
OpenPhone lets business owners take control over how and where they work while staying local for their customers. Personal numbers remain private and your favorite device is ready to call using your new work phone number.
Stay professional at work, but mute notifications after hours. Your personal calls come through on your personal line, but that doesn’t mean you have to be on-call for business at all hours.
When you sign up for multiple phone numbers using OpenPhone, you’ll always see which calls are coming from your personal line and which are from specific business telephone numbers.
OpenPhone’s modern business phone features give you powerful tools to do more business in area code 205.
OpenPhone’s modern app gives businesses the features they used to get from a complicated PBX system. You can use phone menus so customers can direct their own calls to team members that can help best. Setting up or updating a phone menu as needed is simple.
And getting your team on board is just as easy. You can activate new numbers instantaneously, assign them to teammates, and even share a main phone number. With shared numbers, your team can:
To help provide a professional presence with your new number, you can customize your caller ID. Plus, easily set up separate voicemail greetings for when your team is working and off.
Michael Seibel CEO at Y Combinator
Jason Ovryn Co-founder & COO at Carry