Country Dialing Guide

Nicaragua country code +505 — call Nicaragua & get a number.

No area codes, no trunk 0 — Nicaragua flattened its phone numbers to a single eight-digit plan, and from Managua to Granada you dial the same way every time. Here are the exact formats from the US, UK, Canada and across Latin America, the live mobile prefixes, current time and weather, and how businesses pick up a Nicaragua number with MCM.

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🇳🇮 Nicaragua · LiveAmerica/Managua
--:--:--
Managua
León
Masaya
+505
Country code
00
Exit code
7 m
People
7 m
Population
~7 million
Active SIMs
3
Mobile operators
+505
Country code
01At a glance

Nicaragua at a glance

The numbers and facts you need before you dial.

Country name
Nicaragua
Country code
+505
ISO codes
NI / NIC
Exit code (from Nicaragua)
00
Trunk prefix (within)
none (no national trunk prefix; dial the 8 digits directly)
Capital
Managua
Largest city
Managua
Population
~7 million
Currency
Nicaraguan córdoba (NIO, C$)
Time zone
CST, UTC-6 (no DST)
Regulator
TELCOR (Instituto Nicaragüense de Telecomunicaciones y Correos)
Active SIMs
~7 million
02The basics

What is the country code for Nicaragua?

Nicaragua sits behind +505 and runs one of the simplest plans in Central America. Back in 2009 the country dropped area codes altogether and moved to a flat eight-digit format — so a line in Managua, León or Granada is dialed exactly the same way. A complete international number is +505 followed by those eight digits, full stop.

Code +505 was assigned to Nicaragua by the ITU under the E.164 plan. The “+” means “dial your local international exit code”; on a mobile, press and hold 0 to type it.

+50500505011 50500 505

All four mean the same thing — they connect your call to Nicaragua.

03Dialing format

How to call Nicaragua from anywhere

This is about as easy as international dialing gets: your exit code, then 505, then the eight digits. Nothing to add at the front, nothing to strip — no trunk 0, no area code, no city lookup.

COUNTRY
+505
·
AREA
22781234
·
SUBSCRIBER
XXX XXXX

Full example: +505 22781234 XXX XXXX — drop the local leading 0 when calling from abroad.

United States & Canada
exit 011
011 + 505 + area code + number
011 505 22781234 XXXXXXX
United Kingdom
exit 00
00 + 505 + area code + number
00 505 22781234 XXXXXXX
Europe
exit 00
00 + 505 + area code + number
00 505 22781234 XXXXXXX
Australia
exit 0011
0011 + 505 + area code + number
0011 505 22781234 XXXXXXX
04Number format

Nicaragua phone number format explained

With no area codes in the mix, the very first digit carries all the meaning. A 2 marks a fixed line; a 5, 7, or 8 marks a mobile. That single digit is the whole story — there's no city code hiding behind it, because Nicaragua did away with those years ago.

Landline

Eight digits opening with 2 (e.g., +505 2278 1234). No area code to dial.

Mobile

Eight digits opening with 5, 7, or 8 (e.g., +505 8123 4567).

05Area codes

Nicaragua area codes — major cities

Drop the local leading 0 when calling from abroad.

// Full directory2 entries
CityRegionArea code
Landline (fixed)222781234
Mobile5, 7, 881234567
06Mobile networks

Nicaragua mobile network prefixes

The prefix after +505 tells you which network issued the SIM — though number portability means it no longer guarantees the operator.

CN

Claro Nicaragua

+505 mobile numbers from the shared 5 / 7 / 8 prefixes

largest operator

TN

Tigo Nicaragua

+505 mobile numbers from the shared 5 / 7 / 8 prefixes

C

Cootel

+505 smaller operator, also using the shared mobile prefixes

07Time zone

Nicaragua time zone

Nicaragua holds Central Standard Time (CST), UTC-6, the year round and never touches daylight saving (IANA zone America/Managua). That fixed offset is a quiet convenience: because the country doesn't shift in spring or fall, the gap between you and Managua only changes when your own clocks move, not theirs.

Managua
12:00 PM
New York
1:00 PM (2:00 PM in summer)
London
6:00 PM (7:00 PM in summer)
Los Angeles
10:00 AM (11:00 AM in summer)
Mexico City
12:00 PM (same standard); varies seasonally
Best call windows

US callers have it easy — Nicaragua shadows US Central time, so most of the working day lines up. European callers should aim for their early afternoon to catch Nicaragua's morning. Just remember the gap widens by an hour when your side switches to summer time, since Managua stays put.

08Emergency

Emergency numbers in Nicaragua

Free to call from any Nicaragua phone, landline or mobile.

118
Police
115
Fire
128
Ambulance (Red Cross)
911
Unified emergency (where available)
09Avoid these

Common mistakes when calling Nicaragua

Almost every failed international call is a formatting issue, not a network issue.

Hunting for an area code

there isn't one. Nicaragua scrapped them in 2009, so a "Managua code" you find in old notes will only break your dial. Just key the eight digits after +505.

Tacking on a trunk 0

the country runs no national trunk prefix at all.

Reading the carrier off the prefix

portability means the 5, 7 and 8 ranges are shared across Claro, Tigo and Cootel.

Dialing only seven digits

every Nicaraguan number is exactly eight.

Mixing up +505 with a neighbour

Costa Rica is +506 and Honduras is +504, easy to fat-finger.

10Save money

Tips to reduce the cost of calling Nicaragua

Carry calls over VoIP or a virtual number to trade international tariffs for local pricing.

Reach landlines (opening with 2) where you can.

Keep calls inside CST business hours so you connect first time and skip reconnections.

Hold an MCM Nicaragua DID so customers dial a local number at local rates.

11For business

Why businesses get a Nicaragua virtual number

In a flat eight-digit market where every line looks local, a +505 number is the clearest signal you're actually here — and it routes straight back to whichever team you choose, anywhere in the world.

Higher answer rates

Higher answer rates — a local +505 caller ID gets picked up more often than a foreign one.

Lower trust friction

Lower trust friction — a Managua number puts callers at ease.

Cheaper inbound

Cheaper inbound — customers dial locally at local rates.

Centralized routing

Centralized routing — send every +505 call to any team worldwide.

Faster expansion

Faster expansion — enter Nicaragua without standing up an office.

Real PSTN presence

Real PSTN presence — a genuine, dialable Nicaraguan number.

MCMPlatform

Nicaragua virtual numbers with My Country Mobile

Standard body: My Country Mobile provisions genuine Nicaragua DIDs — carrier-grade voice, instant routing and full API control, with a local +505 presence live in minutes.

Local DIDs in major area codes — provisioned in minutes

Call forwarding to any mobile, landline, SIP endpoint, or softphone worldwide

HD voice with G.711, G.729, Opus & AMR-WB — auto-negotiated per call

Sub-150ms latency on major voice corridors via distributed PoPs

99.99% uptime SLA backed by geo-redundant infrastructure & sub-2s failover

WebRTC support for browser-based calling without softphone installs

REST APIs for provisioning, routing & call detail records (CDRs)

Built-in fraud protection with AI anomaly detection & STIR/SHAKEN

24/7 network monitoring and dedicated support

12Get started

How to get your Nicaragua virtual number

Most businesses are live within hours, not days.

1

Choose your Nicaragua (+505) number — one flat eight-digit line, no city to pick.

2

Select a plan and clear quick verification.

3

Point the number at your phones, SIP, or app.

4

Go live and start taking Nicaraguan calls.

13Related countries

Other country dialing guides

More country codes worth bookmarking.

Get a Nicaragua virtual number with MCM

Pick up a local +505 number in minutes and start taking Nicaraguan calls today — one clean eight-digit line.

FAQ

Nicaragua +505 — FAQ

Does Nicaragua really have no area codes?expand_more

— Correct. Since 2009 it's used a flat eight-digit plan, so there's no city code to look up — just dial the eight digits after +505.

Why does an old Managua "area code" not work anymore?expand_more

— It was retired in the 2009 switch to the flat plan. Drop it and dial the full eight digits.

How long is a Nicaraguan number?expand_more

— Exactly eight digits after +505; seven won't connect.

Is there a trunk 0 to add at home?expand_more

— No — Nicaragua has no national trunk prefix, so the eight digits stand alone everywhere.

How do I tell a mobile from a landline?expand_more

— A landline opens with 2; a mobile opens with 5, 7, or 8.

Can the prefix tell me the carrier?expand_more

— No — number portability means Claro, Tigo and Cootel all share the 5/7/8 ranges.

Does Nicaragua observe daylight saving?expand_more

— No — it stays on CST (UTC-6) all year, so only your own clock changes affect the time difference.

Can a business outside Nicaragua get a +505 number?expand_more

— Yes — My Country Mobile provisions local +505 DIDs with full routing to any team worldwide.