337 Area Code: Lafayette, Lake Charles & Cajun Louisiana

The 337 area code covers southwest Louisiana — the heart of Acadiana, or Cajun Country — anchored by Lafayette and Lake Charles. It is a region of crawfish boils and zydeco, Gulf Coast energy plants and rice fields, with a culture unlike anywhere else in the United States. Split off from 318 in 1999, 337 has served this distinctive corner of Louisiana ever since.

This guide covers where the 337 area code is, the Cajun culture that defines it, how it split from 318, the energy-and-agriculture economy behind it, its time zone and dialing, and how to get a 337 number.

Where is the 337 area code?

The 337 area code location is southwest and south-central Louisiana — the Acadiana region. It sits west of Baton Rouge (225) and New Orleans (504), and south of the northern Louisiana cities served by 318.

Cities and communities inside the 337 footprint include:

The heart of Cajun Country

More than most area codes, 337 maps onto a distinct cultural region. Acadiana is the home of the Cajun and Creole peoples, and the 337 carries that identity:

• Food — crawfish boils, gumbo, boudin, and étouffée are everyday fare, and New Iberia's Avery Island is the birthplace of Tabasco sauce.
• Music — Cajun and zydeco music fill the dance halls, and Opelousas calls itself the zydeco capital.
• Festivals — Lafayette's Festival International de Louisiane is one of the largest Francophone festivals in the country, drawing huge crowds each spring.
• Language — French and Louisiana Creole heritage still shape the region's place names and everyday life.

For tourism, hospitality, and any local business, a 337 number signals you belong to this proud regional community.

How 337 split from 318

The 337 code has a straightforward origin. For decades, all of Louisiana outside the New Orleans area used 318. As phone demand grew through the 1990s, that single code could not keep up.

In 1999, the 337 area code split off the southwest corner — Acadiana — leaving the 318 area code to cover northern Louisiana around Shreveport and Monroe. The 337 region has stayed steady since, so it still uses a single code today with no overlay.

Energy, agriculture and the Gulf economy

The 337 economy runs on the Gulf and the land:

• Energy — Lake Charles is one of the country's biggest petrochemical and liquefied-natural-gas (LNG) export hubs, with massive plants along the Calcasieu Ship Channel.
• Agriculture and seafood — Acadia Parish leads Louisiana in rice, the region farms sugarcane and crawfish, and Gulf seafood anchors a major fishing industry.
• Gaming and tourism — Lake Charles is a regional casino-resort destination, and Lafayette draws cultural tourism year-round.
• Healthcare and education — the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and regional hospital systems anchor the metro.

For energy services, agribusiness, hospitality, and professional firms, a 337 number reads as genuinely local to southwest Louisiana.

337 time zone and dialing

The 337 area code time zone is Central Time (CT) — CST (UTC−6) in winter and CDT (UTC−5) in summer, the same clock as New Orleans and Houston. Because 337 has no overlay, seven-digit local dialing still technically works, but ten digits is the reliable standard.

A 337 number works for calls and texts on a cell phone just like any US number: dial 1 337 XXX XXXX from elsewhere in the US, or +1 337 XXX XXXX internationally and from mobiles.

Putting a 337 number to work for your business

A 337 number puts a southwest-Louisiana address on your caller ID without a local lease. For energy services, agribusiness, hospitality, and contractors selling into Lafayette or Lake Charles, a local code reads as familiar and lifts answer rates over an unknown out-of-state or toll-free line.

You do not need a Lafayette office to claim one. A cloud phone provider can assign you a 337 number that rings and texts on your existing devices and routes calls anywhere. With a provider like My Country Mobile, you can pick a 337 line, set up routing, an auto-attendant, and voicemail, and be live in minutes.

Staying safe from spoofed 337 calls

Scammers spoof 337 numbers — faking an Acadiana prefix, sometimes matching the first digits of your own number — so a call or text looks local. A 337 on your screen does not prove the contact is really in Louisiana.

A few habits keep you safe:

• Let unknown 337 calls go to voicemail, and don't tap links in unexpected texts.
• Never share one-time codes, card numbers, or login details with an inbound caller or texter.
• Be skeptical of "utility shutoff," "storm relief," or "your account is compromised" messages that pressure you to act fast.
• Use carrier spam filtering. The FCC's STIR/SHAKEN call authentication framework is why many phones now label these as "Spam Risk."

Key takeaways

• 337 covers southwest Louisiana — Lafayette, Lake Charles, and the Acadiana region.
• It split from 318 in 1999 and still uses a single code with no overlay.
• The region is the heart of Cajun and Creole culture, with a Gulf energy and agriculture economy.
• It runs on Central Time.
• You can get a 337 number from the cloud without a Louisiana address.

Frequently asked questions