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UK mobile prefixes all start with 07 followed by nine digits, but the next three digits after the 07 reveal which mobile network operator (MNO) Ofcom originally allocated that block to. Because UK mobile number portability has been mandatory since 1999, the current network can be different from the original one, so the prefix tells you the historical home, not necessarily where the SIM lives today.
This guide lists every active UK mobile prefix in 2026 grouped by the originally allocated network (EE, O2, Vodafone, Three and the major MVNOs), explains the overlapping ranges, and shows you how to confirm the live carrier behind any number using the Who Called Me lookup tool.
UK mobile numbers sit in Schedule S7 of Ofcom’s National Telephone Numbering Plan. The plan reserves the entire 07 range for non-geographic personal numbering, but only three of those sub-ranges are real cellular mobile: 077x, 078x and 079x. The other two, 070 (personal numbering) and 076 (pagers and reserved), are not mobile lines and behave very differently on the cost and trust side, which we cover further down.
Ofcom allocates 07 numbers in blocks of 1,000 or 10,000 consecutive numbers to a Communications Provider, typically one of the four UK MNOs: EE (part of BT Group, inheriting the old Orange and T-Mobile estates), O2 (Virgin Media O2), Vodafone, and Three UK (CK Hutchison). Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) such as Tesco Mobile, Giffgaff, Sky Mobile, Lebara, BT Mobile, Asda Mobile, iD Mobile and Lyca don’t usually get their own Ofcom prefix; instead they ride on top of an MNO and pull from that host’s blocks. From the outside, a Tesco Mobile number on an O2 block looks identical to an O2 retail number.
For a fuller introduction to the wider UK numbering plan (landlines, 03, 0800 and so on), see our companion guide on UK phone area codes explained.
The four lists below cover the UK mobile prefixes in active circulation in 2026. They reflect the original Ofcom allocation; the live network behind any specific number may differ after porting or after Ofcom reallocates a returned block.
MVNOs inherit the host MNO’s prefix. As a rule of thumb:
Because an MVNO’s number is drawn from its host MNO’s allocation, you cannot tell a Tesco Mobile number from a regular O2 number purely from the prefix. The number lookup will identify the underlying MNO and the block holder, but the retail brand is invisible to the public Ofcom data.
You will notice several prefixes appear in more than one list (for example 0741x shows up under both Vodafone and Three; 0750x spans EE, O2 and Vodafone). That overlap is not a mistake. Ofcom assigns sub-blocks of 10,000 numbers inside a wider prefix to different operators. So 07410 200 000 might be Vodafone while 07415 600 000 might be Three, even though both start 0741. The only reliable way to pin down the original allocation for a specific number is to look up the exact block in the live Ofcom data: try our area pages for 077 numbers, 078 numbers or 079 numbers, which break each prefix down to the 10,000-number block holder.
Since 1 January 1999, UK mobile customers have had the right to switch network and keep their number under Ofcom’s mobile number portability (MNP) rules. The switching process is now governed by the ‘Text-to-Switch’ regime introduced in 2019, which requires a customer to text PAC to 65075 to receive a porting authorisation code, then hand that code to their new network. The transfer typically completes in one working day.
Ofcom’s guidance on switching mobile provider confirms that the number itself travels with the customer, not with the original MNO. In practice this means a number that looks like an EE number (say 07951 234 567) might today be served by Tesco Mobile on O2’s network, or by Sky Mobile back on EE, or by any other UK provider.
This is why even a perfectly accurate Ofcom allocation lookup will only give you the original network. To find the current network you would need real-time HLR (Home Location Register) data, which is paid, regulated, and only available to telecoms providers. For an everyday consumer or business trying to identify a caller, knowing the original allocation plus the typical scam patterns associated with that block is normally enough to make a sensible call.
The 070 prefix looks like a mobile number, dials like a mobile number, and is frequently mistaken for one. It is not. 070 is the UK ‘personal numbering’ range, used for follow-me services that forward calls to another line. Calls to 070 can cost a caller up to £0.50 per minute from a landline and more from mobile, even though the recipient sees a normal-looking 11-digit ’07’ number.
Fraudsters routinely exploit this confusion by leaving missed calls from 070 numbers, hoping the recipient returns the call from their mobile and unknowingly racks up a high charge. Action Fraud has flagged missed-call return scams as a recurring pattern in its UK consumer alerts. If you see an unfamiliar 07 number where the third digit is 0, treat it as suspect. We cover the full mechanics, the regulator’s recent enforcement and how to protect a workforce mobile fleet in our deep-dive on the 070 personal-number scam in the UK.
Most people first care about a UK mobile prefix when an unknown number flashes up on their handset. Here is how to read the signal sensibly:
077, 078 or 079 is a true mobile. Eleven digits starting 070 is personal numbering, 076 is paging or reserved, and anything else with a 07 stem is not a mobile at all.0741 or 0745 appears, the original allocation is Vodafone or Three. If 0775 or 0797 appears, the original allocation is EE.For a step-by-step approach that combines prefix analysis, online lookups and call-blocking, see our guide on how to find out who called from an unknown number in the UK, and the deeper reverse phone number lookup walkthrough.
Memorising every UK mobile prefix is unrealistic, especially when Ofcom keeps assigning new blocks to satisfy demand from new MVNOs and IoT estates. The Who Called Me lookup on The Business Hub takes any UK mobile number, normalises it, and returns the exact Ofcom-allocated block holder along with the broad usage pattern and recent search activity.
Common entry points:
The dataset is a clean copy of Ofcom’s National Telephone Numbering Plan, refreshed every Wednesday so newly allocated blocks appear within 24 hours of going live. There is no sign-up, no charge, and no tracking of who searched for what.
If you are running a UK SME and the cost of nuisance calls to mobile handsets has become a real productivity drag, our business mobile plans and networks page covers the main UK network choices, including the call-screening features available to enterprise fleets.
The 07700 prefix sits in Ofcom’s reserved ‘drama range’ (07700 900 000 to 07700 900 999), set aside for use in films, TV and training material so that fictional calls never reach a real customer. Outside that drama sub-block, the wider 0770x allocation has historically been split between Vodafone and EE depending on the specific 10,000-number block, and individual numbers may have ported to any UK network since.
The 07900 prefix was originally allocated to Vodafone as part of the broader 0790x range, which has been a Vodafone stronghold since the early 2000s. As with every UK mobile prefix, the current owner of any specific 07900 number may have ported to another network. To see the exact block holder for a number, look it up on the Who Called Me 079 page.
Yes. 07496 sits inside the 0749x range allocated primarily to Three UK, and is a genuine UK mobile prefix in active use. It has been reported in scam patterns from time to time (often automated ‘missed call’ nuisance dialling), but the prefix itself is legitimate and used by many ordinary Three and Three-host MVNO customers.
Ofcom allocates 07 numbers in 10,000-number sub-blocks inside a wider four-digit prefix. So 07410 0xxxxx can be Vodafone while 07415 6xxxxx can be Three, even though both look like ‘0741’ numbers to a human. The Who Called Me tool resolves the lookup down to the actual allocated sub-block rather than the broad prefix.
Not from the public data alone. UK mobile number portability lets any number move to any other UK network at any time, and the live network is only visible via paid HLR queries restricted to licensed providers. The prefix tells you the original network only. For business use cases such as SMS routing or fraud scoring, you can subscribe to a commercial HLR service; for everyday call screening, the original allocation plus the published scam patterns is normally enough.
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