The +503 country code is for El Salvador, the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America. With roughly 6.5 million people in the country and another 2 to 3 million in the United States, calls between these two countries are constant. If you've seen a number starting with +503 on your phone or need to reach someone in San Salvador, Santa Ana, or a small town in the eastern departments, this guide walks you through the dialing format.
El Salvador's numbering is simple: 8 digits, no area codes, no trunk prefix. Mobile numbers start with 6 or 7, landlines start with 2. The whole country is on one time zone (the same as Guatemala next door), and it's close enough to US time zones that scheduling calls is easy.
Quick answer: Dial +503 followed by the 8-digit local number. No area codes, no trunk prefix. Mobile numbers start with 6 or 7. Landlines start with 2. From a US landline, dial 011-503 then the 8 digits.
How to call El Salvador: quick reference
No area codes to look up, no trunk prefix to remember. The only variable is the international exit code, which depends on where you're calling from. From the US and Canada it's 011 on a landline or + on a mobile. From Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico it's 00.
| Calling from | Dialing format |
|---|---|
| US/Canada mobile | +503 XXXX XXXX |
| US/Canada landline | 011-503-XXXX-XXXX |
| Guatemala | 00-503-XXXX-XXXX |
| Honduras | 00-503-XXXX-XXXX |
| Mexico | 00-503-XXXX-XXXX |
Understanding El Salvador phone numbers
All Salvadoran phone numbers are 8 digits. The country moved from 7-digit to 8-digit numbering in 1999 by prepending a digit to existing numbers. There are no area codes and no trunk prefix.
Mobile numbers
Mobile numbers start with 6 or 7 and are 8 digits total. The format is XXXX XXXX.
- 6XXX XXXX - Mobile (various carriers)
- 7XXX XXXX - Mobile (various carriers)
The 7 prefix was the original mobile range. When those filled up, 6 was added. Both prefixes are split across carriers, so you can't tell the operator from the number alone.
Landline numbers
Landline numbers start with 2 and are 8 digits:
- 2XXX XXXX - All landlines nationwide
There's no geographic distinction within the 2 prefix. A 2-number could be in San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Miguel, or anywhere else. Before the 1999 renumbering, the second digit gave a regional hint, but that's no longer reliable since numbers have been reassigned.
No area codes, no trunk prefix
El Salvador is small enough that the entire country uses flat numbering. No area codes, no 0 to dial or drop. The 8 digits after +503 are the complete number. If someone gives you a Salvadoran number and it's not 8 digits, something is wrong.
Mobile carriers in El Salvador
El Salvador has three main mobile operators. The market consolidated after Telefónica sold its Central American operations in 2019.
Tigo (~45-50% market share)
Tigo, owned by Millicom (Luxembourg), is the largest operator after absorbing Telefónica's Movistar subscribers in 2019. Before the acquisition, Tigo and Movistar were separate competitors; the merger gave Tigo a commanding lead. They have the broadest 4G coverage, particularly outside San Salvador. Tigo Money is their mobile wallet service, used widely for receiving remittances from the US.
Claro (~30-35% market share)
Claro, part of Carlos Slim's América Móvil, is the second-largest operator. They compete hard on prepaid pricing and data bundles. Claro's network is strong in urban areas (San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Miguel) but can be patchier in rural eastern departments like Morazán and La Unión.
Digicel (~15-20% market share)
Digicel, the Irish-Jamaican operator known across the Caribbean, entered El Salvador's market and holds a smaller but stable share. They tend to target the budget-conscious prepaid segment with aggressive promotional pricing. Coverage is decent in populated areas but limited in remote zones.
Don't confuse +503 with nearby codes
El Salvador sits right in the middle of the Central American country code sequence (+502 to +507), making it easy to accidentally dial a neighbor.
| Code | Country | How to tell apart |
|---|---|---|
| +502 | Guatemala | 8-digit numbers, mobiles start with 3/4/5 |
| +503 | El Salvador | 8-digit numbers, mobiles start with 6/7 |
| +504 | Honduras | 8-digit numbers, mobiles start with 3/8/9 |
| +505 | Nicaragua | 8-digit numbers, mobiles start with 5/7/8 |
The +502/+503 confusion is the most common. Guatemala and El Salvador share a border, both use 8-digit numbers, and millions of Salvadorans in the US also have Guatemalan contacts. If you're dialing a Salvadoran mobile (starts with 6 or 7) and accidentally type 502 instead of 503, your call goes to Guatemala. Since Guatemalan mobiles start with 3/4/5, not 6/7, you'll likely get an "invalid number" message, which is actually helpful since it tells you something went wrong.
The +504 Honduras mix-up is also frequent. All three Northern Triangle countries have sequential codes and 8-digit numbers. If you regularly call contacts in two or all three countries, save numbers with the full +country code in your phone's contacts to avoid mistakes.
Time zone considerations
El Salvador uses Central Standard Time (CST), UTC-6, year-round. No daylight saving time. This is the same time zone as Guatemala and Honduras (in winter), making calls between Northern Triangle countries straightforward.
| Your location | El Salvador time | When it's noon in El Salvador |
|---|---|---|
| US Eastern (EST/EDT) | 1 hour behind (winter) / 2 hours behind (summer) | 1:00 PM / 2:00 PM your time |
| US Central (CST/CDT) | Same (winter) / 1 hour behind (summer) | 12:00 PM / 1:00 PM your time |
| US Pacific (PST/PDT) | 2 hours ahead (winter) / 1 hour ahead (summer) | 10:00 AM / 11:00 AM your time |
| Mexico City (CST/CDT) | Same (winter) / 1 hour behind (summer) | 12:00 PM / 1:00 PM your time |
| London (GMT/BST) | 6 hours behind (winter) / 7 hours behind (summer) | 6:00 PM / 7:00 PM your time |
The Washington D.C. metro area, home to the largest Salvadoran community in the US, is on Eastern Time. That means El Salvador is 1 hour behind in winter and 2 hours behind during US daylight saving time (March-November). A 7 PM call from D.C. reaches El Salvador at 6 PM in winter, or 5 PM in summer. Both are reasonable hours.
Communication in El Salvador
Business hours and availability
Business hours in El Salvador run from about 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM or 6:00 PM, Monday through Friday. Banks typically close at 4:00 PM. Government offices can be slower and may close earlier on Fridays. Saturday mornings are common for shopping and markets, and many small businesses stay open.
For personal calls, evenings from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM work well. Salvadorans tend to be reachable by phone throughout the day, but avoid calling during lunch hour (noon to 1:30 PM) for business purposes. Sundays are family time, and people are generally available by phone after morning church services.
Language
Spanish is the national language, spoken by virtually everyone. Unlike Guatemala, El Salvador has very few indigenous language speakers remaining (Nahuatl survives in a few communities but is not something you'll encounter on the phone). All business, government, and personal phone interactions happen in Spanish.
Network quality and WhatsApp
El Salvador is compact, about the size of Massachusetts, and mobile coverage is decent across most of the country. 4G LTE is available in San Salvador and other cities. Coverage thins out in mountainous rural areas in the north (Chalatenango, Morazán) and parts of the coast, but full dead zones are uncommon.
WhatsApp is the default communication tool. Most Salvadorans prefer WhatsApp calls and messages over traditional voice calls because data plans are cheap and voice minutes are not. If someone gives you their number, try them on WhatsApp first. This is especially true for the diaspora calling home, since WhatsApp calls are free over WiFi.
The El Salvador diaspora
El Salvador has one of the highest emigration rates in the Western Hemisphere. Roughly a third of all Salvadorans live outside the country, the overwhelming majority in the United States. Remittances from abroad account for about 24% of GDP, one of the highest ratios in the world. Phone calls between the US and El Salvador are not occasional check-ins; they're a constant part of how families function across borders.
United States (~2.5-3 million)
The Salvadoran population in the US grew rapidly during and after the 1979-1992 civil war, when hundreds of thousands fled the violence. Many received Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which has been renewed and contested multiple times since. The largest concentration is in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area, particularly in suburban Maryland (Langley Park, Wheaton, Silver Spring) and northern Virginia (Arlington, Fairfax). D.C. metro has the largest Salvadoran community outside El Salvador itself.
Los Angeles is the second-largest hub, with Salvadorans concentrated in the Westlake, Pico-Union, and MacArthur Park neighborhoods (overlapping with the Guatemalan community). Houston has a large and growing population in the Gulfton and southwest areas. Long Island, New York (particularly Hempstead and Brentwood) has a well-established community. San Francisco Bay Area, Dallas, and Boston (particularly Chelsea and East Boston) also have substantial populations.
Central American neighbors
Guatemala and Honduras both have Salvadoran populations, and cross-border movement is common. Families straddling the Guatemala-El Salvador border call each other frequently on a 00-503 or 00-502 pattern. Within Central America these calls are relatively cheap but still not free, which is why WhatsApp has taken over much of this traffic.
Other destinations
Smaller Salvadoran communities exist in Canada (Toronto and Montreal), Australia (Sydney), Italy, and Sweden. Sweden's community is unusual, dating from a 1970s-1980s refugee program that brought several thousand Salvadorans to Scandinavia.
Dialing examples
Calling a mobile in San Salvador from a US cell phone
Your contact's number is 7890 1234 (a mobile starting with 7).
You dial: +503 7890 1234
Hold the 0 key on your phone to get the + symbol, then 503, then the 8 digits. Done.
Calling a landline in San Salvador from a US landline
The office number is 2234 5678 (a landline starting with 2).
You dial: 011-503-2234-5678
011 is the US international exit code, 503 is El Salvador's country code, then the 8-digit number.
Calling a Salvadoran mobile from Guatemala
The number is 6123 4567 (a mobile starting with 6).
You dial: 00-503-6123-4567
00 is Guatemala's international exit code. Then El Salvador's country code and the 8 digits.
Calling within El Salvador
If you're inside El Salvador, just dial the 8 digits: 7890 1234. No country code, no prefix needed.
Common mistakes to avoid
Dialing +502 instead of +503
Guatemala (+502) and El Salvador (+503) are one digit apart. This is the most common mistake, especially for people in the US who call both countries. If you hear a Spanish recording but the voice sounds different, or the call doesn't connect to who you expected, check the country code. One easy tell: if you dialed a 6 or 7 mobile prefix and got a Guatemalan error tone, you definitely typed 502 instead of 503, since Guatemala's mobiles start with 3/4/5.
Adding area codes or a trunk prefix
El Salvador has no area codes and no trunk prefix. The number after +503 is always exactly 8 digits. Don't add a 0 in front (that's a European habit) and don't try to break the number into a city code plus subscriber number. It's flat: +503 followed by 8 digits.
Using old 7-digit numbers
Before 1999, Salvadoran numbers were 7 digits. If you have a number written on an old business card or in a pre-2000 directory, it's missing a digit. You can't just add a 0 or 2 to the front; you'll need to get the current 8-digit number from your contact.
Assuming Bitcoin changes how phone payments work
El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021, which generated international headlines. Some people assume this means phone top-ups, mobile money, or calling credits work differently. They don't. Prepaid airtime is still bought in US dollars (El Salvador's other legal tender since 2001) at corner shops, via apps, or through online top-up services. Bitcoin's Chivo wallet is a separate financial app, not a phone payment system.
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Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
What country uses the +503 code?
+503 is the country code for El Salvador. Any phone number starting with +503 is a Salvadoran number.
How many digits is an El Salvador phone number?
All El Salvador phone numbers are exactly 8 digits. There are no area codes. Mobile numbers start with 6 or 7. Landlines start with 2.
How do I call El Salvador from the US?
From a US mobile, dial +503 followed by the 8-digit number. From a US landline, dial 011-503 followed by the 8-digit number. No area code or trunk prefix needed.
What is the difference between +502 and +503?
+502 is Guatemala and +503 is El Salvador. They are neighboring countries with sequential country codes. Guatemalan mobiles start with 3/4/5, while Salvadoran mobiles start with 6/7.
What time zone is El Salvador in?
El Salvador uses Central Standard Time (CST), UTC-6, year-round with no daylight saving time. During US summer (March-November), El Salvador is 2 hours behind Eastern Daylight Time.
Does El Salvador use area codes?
No. El Salvador has flat 8-digit numbering with no area codes. The first digit tells you the line type (6/7 for mobile, 2 for landline) but is part of the number, not a separate code.
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