The easiest way to lookup the carrier of a phone number is to use a free phone number lookup service to perform a search. At Lookify.io, we provide you with the carrier of a phone number at absolutely no cost - click here to begin your search.
Step 1: Enter your phone number in the phone number lookup field
Step 2: On the results page, look next to the "Carrier" section to see which carrier supports the phone number. See the photo below for an example.
Using the Lookify API to Lookup Carrier Information
For more technical developers and businesses that need to lookup carrier information programmatically, the Lookify Carrier Lookup API provides a powerful and reliable solution. With a single API request, you can retrieve carrier data for any phone number worldwide.
Getting Started with the API
To use the Lookify API, you'll first need to obtain an API key from your Lookify dashboard. Once you have your API key, you can make requests to retrieve carrier information along with other valuable data points such as:
- Carrier name – The telecommunications provider associated with the number
- Line type – Whether the number is a mobile, landline, or VoIP line
- Country and location data – Geographic information based on the area code
- Number validation – Verify if the phone number is properly formatted and valid
- Risk score – Assess the threat level of the phone number to prevent fraud
The Lookify API supports over 177 countries and territories, making it one of the most comprehensive carrier lookup solutions available. For detailed implementation instructions and code examples, visit our API documentation.
Using Lookify Integrations to Obtain Carrier Data
If you prefer a no-code approach, Lookify offers seamless integrations that allow you to lookup carrier information directly within your favorite tools and platforms—including Google Sheets for spreadsheet enrichment and HubSpot for CRM contact validation.
Automate Carrier Lookups with Zapier
The most powerful way to integrate carrier lookups into your workflow is through Zapier. With Zapier, you can connect Lookify to over 1,000+ apps including Salesforce, Airtable, Slack, and more. This enables you to:
- Automatically enrich new contacts with carrier data as they're added to your CRM
- Validate phone numbers in spreadsheets and databases in real-time
- Flag high-risk numbers based on carrier type or threat score
- Route leads differently based on mobile vs. landline detection
No coding is required—simply set up a Zap to trigger carrier lookups whenever a new phone number enters your system. Visit our integrations page to explore all available options and get started.
Important considerations when looking up the carrier of a cell phone number
Due to the US act made into law surrounding wireless local number portability (referred to as the WLNP Act) – a wireless subscriber can change service providers within a given location while retaining the same phone number.
What this means is that the original carrier that first registered the phone number (and the name of the carrier that appears in many reverse phone number lookups) may be the original carrier that is associated with the phone number, but not the current carrier that the user at the other end of the phone number is using. This is important to consider when you’re looking up the carrier of a phone number – be sure to check whether the phone number has been ported as this may indicate that the phone number has been switched to a new carrier.
What is a Phone Carrier?
A phone carrier, also referred to as simply a “carrier” or “provider”, is a phone company that provides cellular or landline service to end users (the customers). Most carriers support 3G, 4G and more recently, 5G service across large swaths of land due to years of investing time and resources in networking infrastructure.
The interactive map below showcases areas within the United States with at least 3G speed or better based on number of service providers within the area, based on data collected from 2016.
In the United States, the largest carriers are Verizon Wireless, Sprint, AT&T Mobility, and T-Mobile. If you use a carrier within the United States that is not one of the “big four” carriers, then you are most likely using a mobile virtual network operator.
What is a mobile virtual network operator?
Mobile virtual network operators (also referred to by their acronym MVNO‘s) are wireless communications services providers that do not own the wireless network infrastructure over which they provides services to customers. In many cases, the MVNO rents or leases access to the main network at a wholesale or discounted rate, and then sells the services to consumers.
In a FTC report from 2006, one analyst estimated that there were more than 50 MVNOs operating in the United States. TracFone Wireless Inc., which served more than 8 million customers with prepaid offerings, is the largest independent reseller of wireless service, with Virgin Mobile USA (“Virgin Mobile”) in second place serving almost 4.6 million subscribers, to a primarily young audience. Many of these MVNO’s are targeting specific demographic groups – such as specific age groups (Virgin Mobile, for example, and the young demographics) and even so much as certain ethnicities (Azteca Mobile).
How do I lookup the carrier of a phone number in bulk?
If you have multiple phone numbers and want to know the carrier for each one, it's reccommended to use a carrier lookup API to programatically search for the carrier of each number without having to manually enter the phone number into a search box. In order to utilize a carrier lookup API, typically you need to obtain an API key. Lookify offers free carrier lookups through our carrier lookup API, all you need to do is contact us to recieve an API key, and you'll ready to obtain carrier data for any international phone number.
