How to Call Canada from the United States

Calling Canada from the United States from your cell phone or landline is a simple process. Like the USA, Canada uses the North American Numbering Plan (NANP). Canada has a country code of “1” and uses 10 digit phone numbers. Making phone calls is almost as easy as calling someone in the US.

For example, if your Canadian contact’s phone number is 780-123-4567, you just have to dial that number from your phone and add a “1” in front to make the call. So the final number you type will be 1-780-123-4567!

When calling countries out the US, dialing 011 as the exit code allows you to call other countries. You don’t need to dial 011 to make calls to Canada. Where US to Canadian calling can get complicated is in the costs.

Is it free to call Canada from the US?

The answer is, “it depends.” Since Canada and the US are two different countries, calls are treated as international calling. Depending on the service you use, the call to Canada could cost an additional fee. For example, if you have a cell phone plan with Verizon, you’ll have to pay per call to Canada. Or you can add Canadian calling to your account for an additional monthly charge that lets you make unlimited calls. 

If you have a toll-free 800 number, Canadian customers won’t have to pay long-distance fees to make calls to your business.

Alternative Options to Landlines and Phone Carriers for Calling Canada

VoIP phone services are a popular option for those looking to call Canada without having to pay extra fees. VoIP services also have their own pricing for Canadian calls. Some services like OpenPhone include Canadian calls in their pricing, so you can make calls without any extra fees. 

Google Voice is also a popular VoIP option for Canadian calling. If you want to make Canadian calls through Google Voice for business, it can be free if you’re the one making the call. But if you have an incoming call to your Google Voice number and it’s forwarded to your personal cell number, you will have to pay your carrier’s fees for international calls. 

While Google Voice is a good alternative, it’s better suited for personal use. If you want to use Google Voice for business with Canadian customers or clients, it has limited features including:

If you want to use Google Voice to work with or support Canadian customers, there are great alternatives to Google Voice available. OpenPhone provides all the features Google Voice doesn’t provide to support Canadian customers.

Canadian Area Codes

Like the US, Canada uses area codes to differentiate between provinces and regions. Below is a table showing Canada’s area codes and the area they belong to.

LocationArea CodeLocationArea Code
British Columbia250, 604, 778Alberta (Southern)403
Edmonton780Quebec City418
New Brunswick506Thunder Bay807
Sherbrooke819Toronto (Metro)416, 647
Toronto (Greater)289, 905Prince Edward Island902
Nova Scotia902Ottawa613
Montreal514Quebec450, 819
Alberta (Northern)780North Bay705
Canadian area codes

Make Business Calls to Canada with OpenPhone

For many US-based businesses, it makes sense to operate in Canada as well. With similar demographics and customers, US businesses can quickly grow their businesses by working in Canada. However, if you use landlines or mobile phone carriers to support Canadian customers, you’re still subject to extra fees for making and receiving calls to and from Canada. However, there are ways to make Canadian customer support cost-effective.

Thousands of businesses use OpenPhone for making calls to Canada. With OpenPhone, you can set up a business phone system that provides support to not only Canadian customers, but customers around the world. You can make unlimited calls to Canada to help support your customers, team members, and clients. OpenPhone is available for iOS, Android, and on the web.

Snapshot of the OpenPhone mobile and web applications

OpenPhone has many required features for business phone systems including:

  • Toll-free numbers
  • Automatic call recording
  • Works in the US and internationally
  • Crystal-clear audio quality
  • Ability to set business hours
  • Multiple phone numbers tied to one account
  • Number porting
  • Dedicated customer support

Get started with a free trial of OpenPhone today.



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