507 Area Code: A Guide to Rochester and Southern Minnesota

Quick answer: Area code 507 is the telephone prefix for southern Minnesota, covering the region from Rochester and Mankato west to Worthington and east to Winona. It spans 31 counties and more than 200 communities, sitting entirely in the Central Time Zone. Created in 1954, 507 served the southern fifth of the state on its own for seventy years. In August 2024, area code 924 was introduced as an all-services overlay, making ten-digit dialing mandatory across the entire 507 region.

What is the 507 area code?

The 507 area code is the telephone prefix for the southern fifth of Minnesota — a wide stretch running from the Iowa state line north through the farm counties and mid-size cities that define this part of the Upper Midwest. Unlike the dense metro codes that cover the Twin Cities, 507 spans a mix of rural communities, regional trade centers, and one globally recognized medical hub in Rochester.

Like the 484 area code, which shares its eastern Pennsylvania territory with 610 and the newer 835, the 507 region now hosts two active codes. In August 2024, area code 924 was introduced as an all-services overlay — the first overlay ever assigned to southern Minnesota — meaning newly issued lines in the region may carry either prefix while every existing 507 number remains exactly the same.

For residents and businesses, the practical effect is straightforward: all calls within the region now require ten digits, and a 507 number still carries the regional identity it has built over seven decades of continuous service.

Cities and counties in the 507 area code

The 507 area code covers the southern fifth of Minnesota, bounded by the Iowa state line to the south, the Mississippi River bluffs along the Wisconsin border to the east, and the Dakotas border to the west. It is the only Minnesota area code defined entirely by small cities, regional hubs, and agricultural communities — no major metro anchors the territory.

Major cities and communities in the 507 area:

• Rochester — Minnesota's second-largest city and the global home of Mayo Clinic, one of the most recognized healthcare institutions in the world
• Mankato — A regional trade and education hub anchored by Minnesota State University, Mankato, on the Minnesota River
• Winona — A Mississippi River bluff city with a strong manufacturing, higher-education, and river-commerce tradition
• Austin — Headquarters of Hormel Foods, maker of SPAM and dozens of major grocery brands, a Fortune 500 anchor for the region
• Albert Lea — A lakes-and-industry community near the Iowa border along the I-35 corridor
• Worthington — A southwestern hub for agriculture and large-scale food processing
• Northfield — Home of Carleton College and St. Olaf College, one of the most concentrated college-town economies in the Midwest
• Fairmont, Owatonna, Faribault, and New Ulm — Smaller cities rounding out the region's manufacturing, retail, and service base

Selected counties within the 507 service territory:

The entire 507 coverage area observes Central Time (UTC−6 in winter, UTC−5 during DST). When scheduling calls between Rochester or Mankato and Eastern Time cities such as Atlanta or New York, keep in mind that the 507 region runs one hour behind.

A short history of the 507 area code

Minnesota entered the telephone era in 1947 with two area codes: 218 for the northern and western portions of the state, and 612 for the rest, including the Twin Cities and southern Minnesota. As postwar growth spread telephone use into every rural county, the southern tier of 612 generated enough demand for its own dedicated code.

In 1954, area code 507 was carved out of the southwestern portion of 218 and the southern portion of 612, giving southern Minnesota its own prefix. That assignment proved remarkably durable. While the Twin Cities added codes over the following decades — 651 for St. Paul in 1998 and both 763 and 952 for the northwestern and southwestern suburbs in 2000 — the 507 region held its single code for seventy years without relief.

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, which oversees telephone numbering in the state, eventually approved area code 924 as a 507 overlay after the growth of mobile subscriptions, business lines, and internet services pushed the available pool of 507 numbers toward exhaustion. A permissive ten-digit dialing period began on January 30, 2024, mandatory ten-digit dialing took effect on July 30, 2024, and new lines in the 924 code began issuing from August 30, 2024.

Key milestones:

• 1947 — 218 and 612 created to cover all of Minnesota
• 1954 — 507 split from 218 and 612 to serve southern Minnesota
• 2024 (Jan 30) — Permissive ten-digit dialing begins across the 507 region
• 2024 (Jul 30) — Ten-digit dialing becomes mandatory for all 507/924 calls
• 2024 (Aug 30) — 924 overlay activated; new lines begin issuing 924 numbers

Calling a 507 number

Because 507 and 924 now share the same geographic territory, ten-digit dialing is mandatory for every call in the region — including calls to a neighbor on the same block. Ten-digit dialing has been required since July 30, 2024, so any contact stored with only seven digits should be updated to the full ten-digit format to avoid failed calls.

Time zone tip: Southern Minnesota observes Central Time — one hour behind Eastern Time cities like Atlanta and New York, one hour ahead of Mountain Time, and two hours ahead of Pacific Time. Houston, Dallas, and Chicago share the 507 region's Central Time Zone, making calls across the Gulf South and central United States easy to schedule.

Why a 507 number is good for business

Southern Minnesota combines one of the world's most renowned medical institutions with deep roots in food production, precision manufacturing, and higher education — a mix that makes a local 507 number a meaningful signal of regional presence. Rochester is particularly unusual for a city of its size: Mayo Clinic draws patients and professionals from every continent, which gives local businesses a far more international customer base than the regional population alone would suggest.

Reasons to choose a 507 area code number:

• Healthcare and Mayo Clinic — Mayo Clinic in Rochester is one of the largest employers in Minnesota and drives sustained demand across hospitality, housing, medical supply, and professional services throughout the region
• Food production and agriculture — Hormel Foods anchors Austin, while Worthington and the southwest counties host major food-processing and agricultural-supply operations serving both national and export markets
• Manufacturing and logistics — Companies across the Mankato and Winona corridors operate in plastics, aerospace components, commercial printing, and distribution, connected by the I-90 and I-35 transportation network
• Higher education — Minnesota State Mankato, Winona State, Carleton, St. Olaf, and several smaller colleges bring tens of thousands of students and faculty into the 507 economy each year
• Virtual reach — Just as businesses connect with New Orleans customers through a 504 area code number without a physical office there, a virtual 507 number routes calls to any device and establishes a genuine southern Minnesota presence from any location

507 area code scam calls to watch for

Because 507 is the established code for all of southern Minnesota, scammers spoof it to appear as a familiar local number. Neighbor spoofing — displaying a 507 prefix that matches a resident's own exchange — is especially effective in smaller cities and rural areas where a call from the same area code feels inherently trustworthy.

Common 507 scam types to watch for:

• Medicare and health insurance fraud — Scammers impersonating Mayo Clinic staff or insurance coordinators to capture Medicare numbers, targeting older residents and retirees across the region
• IRS and tax fraud — Callers threatening immediate arrest over unpaid taxes, a high-pressure tactic aimed at residents and small-business owners throughout the year
• Social Security suspension fraud — Automated calls claiming a Social Security number has been suspended, frequently targeting seniors across the rural 507 counties
• Utility shutoff threats — Callers posing as Xcel Energy or other regional utility representatives demanding immediate payment to prevent service disconnection
• Fake legal and debt-collection threats — Fraudsters threatening lawsuits or wage garnishment to extract payment or personal information from both businesses and individual residents

How to protect yourself:

• Let unknown 507 calls go to voicemail and verify the caller independently before returning the call
• No government agency, hospital, or utility will demand payment by gift card, wire transfer, or cryptocurrency during an unsolicited call
• Confirm any organization through the contact details on its official website
• Report suspected 507 scam calls to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov

The 507 area code in brief

• Area code 507 covers southern Minnesota, spanning 31 counties and more than 200 communities
• It was created in 1954, split from the original 218 and 612 codes that served the state at launch
• The entire 507 region observes Central Time — one hour behind Eastern Time and two hours ahead of Pacific Time
• Ten-digit dialing is mandatory throughout the 507/924 region for every local and long-distance call since July 2024
• Area code 924 was activated as an overlay in August 2024 — the first overlay assigned to southern Minnesota
• The economy is anchored by Mayo Clinic, Hormel Foods, manufacturing, and higher education
• Major cities include Rochester, Mankato, Winona, Austin, Worthington, and Northfield
• Common scam types include Medicare impersonation, IRS threats, Social Security fraud, utility shutoff calls, and fake legal threats

Frequently asked questions about the 507 area code