How to Call Colombia from the US

Calling from a Landline or Cellphone

Dial “011,” the exit code in the U.S. This code tells your telephone provider that your call should be directed to a different country, thus basically allowing you to “exit” the U.S. via your phone. Start your call to Colombia by dialing 011-xx-x-xxx-xxxx.

Dial Colombia’s country code, which is “57.” This specifies to your telephone provider that you are calling Colombia. Each country has its own access code, unless there happens to be a region of countries that share the same code. That is not true for Colombia, so the only country code you need to remember is “57.” At this point, your call will look like this: 011-57-x-xxx-xxxx.

Include the mobile code if dialing a cellphone. The person you are calling in Colombia will be using a mobile area code instead of a landline area code. The person you are calling should be able to give you this number, but if they don’t know you should be able to figure it out based on their mobile network provider. You can find the mobile network code online if your contact doesn’t know it. The mobile code is 3 digits long. Keep in mind that it needs to come after the exit code and country code, so the numbers will read as follows: 011-57-315-xxx-xxxx.

Include the area code if you are calling a landline. Every region has its own area code (for example, the area code for Bello is 4 and the code for Soledad is 5) and this must be dialed after the exit code and country code in order for your call to go through correctly. Each area code is only 1 digit and these can be found online. For instance, if you are calling Armenia, dial 011-57-6-xxx-xxxx.

Dial the rest of the 7 digit number to complete your call. This is the rest of the phone number, and you’ll dial it just like you would dial any number here in the U.S. Calling a cellphone means you will dial 10 digits in total, while calling a landline means you will dial 8 digits total.

Using an Alternative

Invest in an international calling card if you have a landline. These cards come preloaded with a specific number of minutes for you to make international calls, and this can help you avoid expensive charges from your phone company. All you need to do once you have a card is call the 1-800 number on the back to activate your minutes. The cost for a card runs anywhere between $1 and $20. You pay for a certain amount of minutes. International calling cards can be found at convenience stores, grocery stores, online, or from phone companies.

Look into different smartphone apps. Apps like WhatsApp, Skype, Viber, and Rebtel place international calls through WiFi. These apps can often be easier to use than actually placing a call on your cell phone or landline. Some of these apps will let you make calls for free if the person you are calling is using the same app, and a lot of them will also let you text or make video calls. Some apps will charge a fee per minute, so make sure to read the agreement before placing any calls!

Use your social media messenger apps. If you have an account like Facebook and have access to the Messenger app on your phone, you can use it to call someone over WiFi who also uses that app. If you are using data rather than WiFi to make your call, pay attention to how long your phone call is so you don’t get charged money for going over your data limit. Other apps to check out are Kik and WeChat.