When a user connects to a mobile operator, along with a new SIM card, he receives an 11-digit individual number, from which and to which he will subsequently receive calls, make outgoing calls, and also use other capabilities of modern means of communication.
Users often have a question: what does a federal and city number mean for MTS or another cellular operator?
What is the difference between a federal and a city number?
A telephone number in federal format is the familiar 11-digit numbers that include the following elements:
- +7 — international country code of the Russian Federation;
- The prefix is three numbers that indicate the operator and region (905, 961, 987, etc.). Each operator has a certain list of prefixes in the region, many of them have long been known to Russians. For example, people know that a call is from Moscow if they see the numbers 926 (Megafon), 916 (MTS) on their mobile phone, but Beeline does not have such a clear trend; its codes 903, 905 are used in many regions.
- Unique 7-digit subscriber number.
For example, the federal number of MTS Moscow looks like this: +7-916-xxx-xx-xx, and federal Megafon numbers often start with the prefix 926: +7-926-xxx-xx-xx. The federal number is international, that is, to call from abroad, you need to dial the same sequence of numbers as in Russia.
The city number is identical in appearance to the regular numbers of the city landline network. In Moscow it consists of 7 digits. However, it is worth considering that from a mobile phone or from a landline you need to dial not only 7 digits without codes and prefixes.
This is due to the fact that the capital has a closed numbering format, and it is impossible to use dialing without an area code or operator. The closed numbering plan is also due to the fact that for Moscow today there are not one, but two codes - 495 and 499. It turns out that one seven-digit number can be in two codes.
Also, if you call from another region, you need to dial a city number with an area code, say, or with a region code, but for this you need to know the full federal number.
So, the main difference between a federal number and a city number is that they have an international format of 11 digits, and you can call it both within your home region and from abroad in the same way.
What does it mean
Many users have been familiar with the concept of a city number for many years, but what a federal number is .
In fact, this is an ordinary mobile phone number that is used by almost every modern resident.
The total number of digits is always the same - 11. The number begins with +7, then three digits indicate the operator prefix, followed by the number itself.
In order to dial a federal number, you must dial it in the prescribed manner.
In this case, a completely logical question arises: how is it different from the city?
For whom are landline numbers created?
Landline cell phone numbers are usually of interest to businesses related to customer services. Such numbers are chosen by taxi services, food delivery services, car services, online stores, etc. For such companies, a landline number is definitely beneficial:
- The client needs to remember only 7 digits instead of 11, as in the federal number. Most often, companies buy beautiful and easy-to-remember numbers, like 555-33-33, etc., in which the numbers form a sequence. Numbers with code 495 are considered more expensive.
- Landline numbers are associated with a reliable company that has its own office connected to a fixed city network. Although today an ordinary student running a micro-business from a rented room can own a city cell number
- City numbers look beautiful in outdoor advertising, be it banners, printing or business cards.
Today, private individuals rarely connect regular landline phones, but landline numbers from cellular operators, on the contrary, are gaining popularity. Calls from landlines to landline numbers are free, and for people who are interested in saving money, this can be a determining factor when choosing a company.
Usage differences
How does using a Federal number differ from using a City number?
- Calls to landline numbers within your region do not require payment.
- Calls to landline numbers within your region do not require dialing region prefixes.
- Calls from all regions of Russia require dialing a regional prefix, which was previously strictly tied to a specific region.
The difference in the set of numbers has only a psychological meaning and is in no way an indicator of “solidity”, “location” or anything else. There are, of course, differences: calls made within your “geographic pool of local numbers” become more convenient due to the shorter digital number combination.
Key advantages of city numbers
City numbers from cellular operators have at least 3 more key benefits compared to federal numbers or numbers from a landline network.
- You can change your office without any problems. The SIM card is inserted into a regular cell phone, which means that it is not tied to a location. There is no need to draw a new line when moving or interrupt work. This SIM card can also be transferred to regions where the company does not yet have an office or representative office.
- Fast connection. With a city number, you don’t need to purchase expensive equipment and wait for installers to install wires.
- Huge possibilities for setting up telephony. It is to landline numbers that you can connect call forwarding, set up multi-channel, call recording, etc.
However, you need to take into account that servicing a city number is more expensive.
How does this happen?
So how do subscribers using mobile devices receive “City numbers” if there is a strict geographical binding of number combinations?
The fact is that when you purchase a new SIM card with a “City number” or connect it, you get two numbers linked to each other, duplicating the last 4 – 7 unique digits (local number depending on the region). These numbers are the correspondence between city and federal MTS numbers. That is, knowing the subscriber’s federal mobile number, we will be able to call him in the “City Number” format. But it’s difficult to tell how to find out a federal mobile number, knowing the city number. There are a lot of prefixes of different mobile operators in the same region.
There is mutual constant call forwarding between your numbers. By providing , your mobile operator enters into a special tripartite agreement with the local fixed-line operator (MGTS in Moscow, Rostelecom mainly in the Russian Federation).
Connecting to your current federal number is not always possible - it all depends on whether the operators have the opportunity to provide a duplicate landline number.
Disadvantages of a direct number
So, direct numbers have quite a lot of advantages, mainly for those who are doing business. But there are also several disadvantages:
- It is impossible to find out which number was called, the direct number or its federal version - this may be important for call statistics, for example.
- Subscribers will not be able to send SMS to a direct number; they must know its mobile version.
- When calling from a direct number, the subscriber will display a federal number; only the last 5-7 digits will match if these are paired numbers.
- It is not possible to connect more than one direct number to one mobile phone.
Despite these points, there is a steady demand for additional direct numbers from Beeline, Megafon and MTS.
What is the difference
In short, the difference between federal and city numbers is in their format. The first one starts with +7, followed by a specific region code (for example, 910), and then a combination of seven digits. To summarize, it turns out that the phone needs to be dialed in full international format. If you need to call from landline devices, then instead of +7 you need to dial 8, and then follow the standard: region code and a seven-digit number.
If you have chosen a landline number among MTS numbers, then you need to dial it from local mobile phones or landlines in seven-digit format. This option is more suitable for those people who are engaged in their own business. A shorter combination will be easier for potential clients to remember.
Each direct landline telephone has its federal duplicate. This only works within the network. The company provides each subscriber with two numbers at once under the terms of a tripartite agreement. That is, it turns out that if you know the direct landline phone number of a user, then you automatically know his federal duplicate.
Any MTS communication store offers its users to purchase a connection kit with a landline number. But it is worth noting that the subscription fee payments in this case will be 500 rubles more than with its federal duplicate.
“Smart” and other tariff plans provide access to a landline phone. For example, if the monthly fee for a tariff with a federal combination is 200 rubles, then with a city one it will be 700 rubles.
To choose a landline number from MTS, you need to contact specialists at the service salon. Then you should tell them what you want to purchase and for what purpose. The consultant will offer you all kinds of options, and you yourself can choose the one that you like. This may be the most memorable, easiest or beautiful combination of numbers. After your determination, you will be given a SIM card that will have a correspondence between two combinations (only the beginning is different, but the seven-digit end is the same).
Sets of federal and city license plates
The city number is in addition to the federal number. This means that you cannot buy only a Beeline city number - it will definitely have a federal version, and it may not coincide with the short number.
Megafon has a list of tariffs at which you can additionally connect a direct number. The subscription fee for a tariff with two numbers is more expensive.
Beeline offers a separate service “City Number” - adding a 6/7-digit city number to any tariff. After connecting an additional paid service, the operator forwards from an additional number to a federal one. Redirection is free. MTS also has a service with a similar name. The operator offers to use a landline number at any tariff, and the cost of unlimited forwarding depends on the main tariff plan on the mobile number.
Despite the presence of a direct number, when making outgoing calls and sending SMS, the main federal number will be determined as the subscriber number.
To convert a city number to a federal number, just add a prefix. But to do this, you need to know which operator provided the city number in addition to the federal one.
Mobile operators to help
You can also ask your mobile operator for the full version of your number. The fact is that for different operators the federal number may differ from the short one. For example, with MTS the short version turns into a federal one only by adding a prefix, but with Tele2 the short number is often completely different from the “long” one. And if there are no problems with long-distance calls if you use only the area code, then with SMS delivery everything is just the opposite: they will be delivered only to the “long” version of your number.
You can also find out a federal number from a city number using databases, but only if your operator is generous and posts one, which happens extremely rarely. The most popular operators are MTS, Megafon and Beeline. Almost all tariff plans of these cellular companies immediately provide a federal number. Federal number codes for the top three: MTS - 916, Megafon - 920, Beeline - 903.
The article describes what a city and federal number of mobile operators is: Megafon, MTS, Beeline, Tele2.
The use of mobile phones has long become commonplace for most people in all countries. Today, customers of mobile operators can no longer just get the opportunity to just make a call, but are also able to choose countless different additional services. For example, the ability to choose one or another personal number.
Such numbers can be “beautiful”, short, and belong to different operators. In addition, such popular Russian ones as Megafon, Beeline and Tele2 offer their clients federal and city numbers. Let's talk about this in more detail.
Gentlemen, tell me about changing the MTS direct tariff
numbers. Due to the lack of relevance of the city number, I decided to change it to a federal one (fortunately, it is in the code 985 by default). I wrote an application at the MTS salon to switch to MAXI federal
.
Accepted. Wait. I receive an SMS that I have been transferred to MAXI city
.
I call on 0990. And they tell me that it is impossible to disconnect from me, that there are federal and city numbers. So, my city and federal cannot do it.
Isn't this a blizzard? And what should I do now with the tariff plan to which I was transferred, despite the fact that I did not order it? They didn't notify us about this. It is also 2 times more expensive than the one I switched from (Business Universal).
I went to the MTS office on Saturday and wrote a claim asking for the old tariff to be returned.
Everyone agreed that they had no right to change to MAXI urban. They should have been notified of the impossibility of switching to the federal one.
So, we wait from 10 to 45 days.
Wow. Then I’ll go to the office and let them decide on the tariff. I did not order this service. There is no desire to pay 1200 per month.
Only I can’t understand how this can be. So that I could call directly, I connected it 5-6-7 years ago and paid for it monthly. Why can't it be turned off?
Everything is very simple. The city (495) number exists only in conjunction with the federal backup (985) with matching 7 digits. It is impossible to “untie” federal 985 from the corresponding city 495.
> I did not order this service. There is no desire to pay 1200 per month. quoted1 > > But I can’t understand how this can be. So that I could call directly, I connected it 5-6-7 years ago and paid for it monthly. Why can't it be turned off?
Everything was a little different. Either: a) you initially had a direct number in code 095 (now 495), to which a federal backup was added b) you initially had ANOTHER federal number (with a tariff for a federal number), and to ensure the ability to “call like a direct » You changed the number (entirely) along with the tariff.
It is simply impossible to connect to an ARBITRARY federal number (and such a possibility has never been possible).
Still, I can’t believe it. So I take the usual (985)7654321 (for example), and I can easily make sure that (495)7654321 exists, not tied to it in any way.
This link exists only on paper from OpSos in order to charge 1200 rubles per month. And a basic comparison of tariffs shows that the market level of subscription. City fees in code (495) are 250 rubles/month. For (499) — 150 rub./month.
An unsuccessful example was given
