Previously: 088-8888-888.
Fact: I hate the telephone. I have trouble talking to people when I can’t see who I’m talking to; I’d much rather either speak face-to-face or converse in a text-base medium. (I am a writer, after all.) But I’m willing to make an exception for… shall we say, special cases: I am more than willing to call creepy phone numbers that actually work. It helps, of course, that most of these creepy phone numbers don’t require that you actually speak with anyone; when you dial them, you almost always reach a voicemail box set to play a spooky recording to anyone who rings. Still, though — I will happily set aside my phone phobia in pursuit of that delightful frisson one gets from a brush with the unknown. Especially around Halloween.
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Novelty hotlines are nothing new; indeed, I would argue that their heyday occurred during the ‘80s and ‘90s, at which time you could call everyone from Freddy Krueger to the Ninja Turtles. Their popularity began to wane during the 2000s — but interestingly, we’ve seen them evolve in the years since, too. Thanks to free, online tools like Google Voice, pretty much anyone with internet access can set up a weird novelty number with ease. What’s more, the draw of a novelty phone number might even be stronger than ever — possibly because we so rarely use our phones these days to actually, y’know, make calls. Distance makes the heart grow fonder and all.
Sadly, a good deal of formerly wonderful creepy phone numbers are no longer in service (RIP, Call Carrie White) — but I can attest to the fact that, as of Fall 2018, all of the numbers seen here are in working order. I know, because I called every single one of them myself. I am also, you might note, still alive and well, so it’s… shall we say, unlikely that any of these numbers is actually “cursed,” “haunted,” or otherwise dangerous to call. They are, however, all based in the United States, so you might want to be wary of long-distance charges if you’re calling from somewhere else. Phone bills can quickly become one of the most frightening things of all.
So, if you’re feeling brave this Halloween season — or any other time of year — try giving these numbers a ring.
Who knows? Maybe you’ll get lucky.
Maybe one of them will call you back.
951-572-2602
Remember the SCP Foundation? This phone number is a fun little Easter egg pegged to the fictional organization. It’s basically a tip line: Upon calling, you’ll be greeted with a recorded message informing you that you’ve reached the Southern California, Division 19 branch of the Foundation and asking you to leave the date, time, location, and description of an “incident” you may have witnessed — an incident which you believe requires the Foundation’s… unique skill set. The number is based in Banning, Calif., which is located in Riverside County just north of the San Bernardino National Forest.
I don’t know if they call you back, though; I didn’t leave a message. The strangest thing I’ve witnessed so far today has been my cat running around the house like a maniac for about 20 minutes before engaging in a sudden and abrupt nap — which is perfectly normal behavior for her and therefore did not require SCP Foundation intervention.
408-634-2806
A lot of rumors surround this number, the freakiest of which insists that it’s a so-called “red room number” — a number which can allegedly be used to track down the physical location of people who either call the number themselves or answer calls they receive from it, after which they are kidnapped, brought to a “red room,” and tortured, killed, or both. These alleged torture sessions/murders are said to be broadcast live over the deep web.
I can assure you, however, that 408-634-2806 is not a red room number. As far as I know, red room numbers don’t even exist; they’re just an urban legend — a legend which, notably, forms the premise of the of the video game series Welcome to the Game. Indeed, it’s not even totally clear how the number 408-634-2806 gained a reputation for being a red room number in the first place; the clearest link I’ve been able to find is still tenuous: YouTube channel MKP Studios’ video on 408-634-2806 starts out by likening it to an alleged red room number they had previously called, but fails to actually connect the two numbers in any meaningful way.
So: If 408-634-2806 is not a red room number, what the heck is it? Because it’s still really weird-sounding; when you call it, you hear a recording of demonic voices, someone saying “All’s well that ends well,” and a spooky music box. It’s got to be connected to something, right?
The answer is yes. It’s connected to the iOS game Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP, which was released by Capybara Games in 2011. At the end of the game, you’re given a number that turns out to be this phone number. It may have been part of an ARG attached to the game that never quite took off, or it may not have been; I don’t know that the meaning of the message you hear when you call the number has ever been “solved.”
Then again, maybe it doesn’t have to be. Also, it’s worth noting that the message reportedly changed a few times. Just, y’know… FYI.
828-756-0109
[NOTE: If you try this one, make sure you dial it correctly. It’s 828-756-0109. A common misdial for this one goes to a real person’s phone number. If you hear anything other than the message heard in the video here, you’ve misdialed. Don’t bug the person, and don’t be rude or obscene. But, again, ideally, check to make sure you’ve entered the number correctly BEFORE you hit the “call” button so as to avoid that whole situation in the first place.]
This number is a true mystery. I can tell you where it’s based (Marion, North Carolina, in McDowell County about 85 miles west and slightly north of Charlotte); I can tell you what you hear when you call it (some earsplitting noises and a man’s voice frantically relaying what sounds like a message coded in binary); I can even tell you what the binary says when it’s been converted into text (“death”); but I can’t tell you anything else. I have no idea who made it, what it means, or what it may or may not be connected to.
It’s super weird, though. Call it. It’ll give you chills.
407-734-0254
If you call what is possibly my favorite find from the research process for this post, you’ll reach a clown named Wrinkles who lives in Naples, Fla. and will, according to the Washington Post, “make an appearance at your party or gathering, prank your friend, or even scare your misbehaving kid straight” for the low, low price of a few hundred bucks. Very little is known about the man behind Wrinkles; he’s in his 60s, retired, and originally from Rhode Island, but that’s all he’ll say to reporters. He’s definitely got the evil clown market cornered, though — and if you call this phone number, you’ll get his voicemail. Leave him a message and he’ll call you back.
Update, 11/11/19: More on Wrinkles here.
270-301-5797
Technically this one is a video game tie-in, but as one Metafilter use put it, “You don’t have to know anything about the game to appreciate the sheer oddity and scope of what there is to listen to on this phone number.” That game is Kentucky Route Zero, a magical realist point-and-click adventure that’s been releasing episodes periodically since 2013; episodes one through four are live now, with the fifth and final episode scheduled for release at some point in 2018. It’s delightful — as are the auxiliary experiences developers Jake Elliott and Tamas Kemenczy have been releasing between episodes.
This phone number is one of those auxiliary experiences. Called Here and There Along the Echo, the phone tree you’ll reach if you dial 207-301-5797 purports to be “a guide to the Echo River for drifters and pilgrims” provided by “the Bureau of Secret Tourism.” It’s weird and surreal, yet also wonderfully serene — and there’s plenty to explore as you dial your way through the various menus to which it gives you access. Pro tip: The first time you’re presented with some options, dial 5.
If you’re into Welcome to Night Vale or the works of David Lynch, you’ll probably dig both Kentucky Route Zero and Here and There Along the Echo. Check ‘em out.
786-519-3708
I’ll confess that I didn’t enjoy the actual gameplay of Hotline Miami that much — I’m kind of, uh, not great at top-down shooters — but the story and storytelling are both A-plus; I’m also a sucker for interesting marketing, and, well… this phone number and the message that was placed on its answering machine in advance of the release of Hotline Miami 2 definitely tick all those boxes. Bonus points for the fact that the number is actually a Miami number.
The 786-519-3708 phone number wasn’t new for Hotline Miami 2; indeed, the Hotline Miami Twitter account has been tweeting the number since 2012, prior to the original game’s release in October of that year. But in February of 2015, the number appeared with some new context on the series’ Twitter feed: This time, it included an extension number. What’s more, when fans dialed the number, they found that a new message recorded—the message that’s still there today. When properly analyzed, the message combined with the extension number (10) provided a full title and release date for the second game in the series: Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, to be released on March 10, 2015. And that’s exactly what happened.
The voicemail message is short, but it’s still pretty freaky to listen to; give it a call if you like.
858-651-5050
“Fishing in a mountain stream is my idea of a good time.”
“There was water in the cellar after the heavy rain.”
“Smoke poured out of every crack.”
“Those words were the cue for the actor to leave.”
These are the kinds of sentences you’ll hear if you dial 858-651-5050. They’re spoken by two people — one with a male-sounding voice and one with a female-sounding voice — who just sit there, intoning these poetic yet meaningless messages for as long as you choose to stay on the line.
However, there’s a perfectly rational explanation behind this number: It’s a phone testing tool. The sentences, known as Harvard sentences, were chosen for their phonetic balance — that is, “the frequency of sounds in these lists [match] that of natural language,” as Sarah Zhang put it at Gizmodo in 2015; they “hit all the noises a person would typically hear in a conversation.” According to Ernie Smith writing at Motherboard, calling this number allows phone companies to “ensure the signal quality is strong” — that is, it’s the “can you hear me now?” of phone tests.
It’s still weird, though. It’s the lack of context that makes what you hear when you call the number kind of unsettling.
630-296-7536
An oldie but goodie: 630-296-7536 is the original Boothworld Industries phone number. To read the story that launched a thousand phone calls, head here.
801-820-0263
Aaaand here’s the second Boothworld Industries phone number. We’ve covered this one in depth before — check it out here.
701-347-1936
Like several other numbers on this list, this one is a video game tie-in — this time for the infamous Five Nights At Freddy’s series. It’s not clear whether the number is canon or whether it’s fan made; either way, though, it’s pretty unmistakably FNaf-related to those familiar with the games: The voice we hear seems to be a garbled version of Phone Guy, and about 32 seconds in, the aria “Votre toast, je peux vous le render” from the opera Carmen — colloquially known as the Toreador Song — which signifies the approach of the Freddy Fazbear animatronic in the game kicks in.
It is not, as some YouTube videos featuring the phone number have suggested, a “cursed phone number” that will make you behave erratically and/or kill you “within 24 hours of calling it.”
Whether or not you know the source material, though, it’s still pretty spooky to listen to; give it a ring if you want to see what the hubbub is all about.
978-435-0163
Perhaps the only number on this list that’s more cryptic than the one featuring binary code that translates to “death” is this one. If you call 978-435-9163, you’ll hear a looped message of a man sobbing. He sounds like he’s maybe in a cave or a sewer; there’s a lot of echo and reverb, and it sounds kind of like something’s dripping somewhere in the background. Oh, and periodically, you’ll hear something screech — something that sounds decidedly not human.
It’s a Massachusetts number — as a Massachusetts native, I recognized that right off the bat — and it turns out it’s registered in Billerica, a town not too far away from where I grew up. But other than that, I know nothing about this number — not who owns it, not what the bigger story might be, not even exactly what’s going on in it.
And that, I think, is the creepiest thing of all.
Oh, hey — gotta run. My phone is ringing.
Even though I’m, uh… not actually expecting any calls.
It’s probably fine.
Right?
Right.
Hang tight, okay? I’ll be right back.
…I hope.
***
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[Photo via ISO_S_Fotografie/Pixabay]
I’ll probably call them, thanks for the update! Creepy as always.
Guys I’m scared to death because I called the 978 number and it picked up. I heard like sobbing and stuff and like sewers dripping and I hung up I hope I don’t die…😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
Did you die ??….
Yes
And the person writing this was never to be seen again….
Wow😭😭😭😭
Are you dead??
Don’t worry, it’s just a voice mail. Nothing will really happen, you will probably just have nightmares
You dead?
I called that one too!!! We listened to the whole thing and then a huge beep went off and we jumped off out chairs!!!
did u die?
I called all these numbers at 3 am and I heard a bunch of noises in my house
probably a squirrel
But did you die?!?!?
You won’t you need dark web murders
I called the first number and it said welcome to hell in it I’m scared outa my mind rn
So did I. that was creepy as hell.
Did you die?
Are you ok?
Imma call the police on you.
lmao
Have you heard of the crooked man
I have lmao
Bruh I’m from Billerica Mass so that 978 number was like wtf
Its weird. I called red room and it said ‘See you at 5:00’
These numbers are interesting. I’ll call them. Hope I’m not cursed.
I called all of them, they’re pretty cool.
But are you ok
I called the boothworld numbers and they BOTH called me back. Luckily i didnt say anyones real name. Was creepy though, it seemed that when i was called back the reseptionist knew that i didnt say anyones real name. ANYONE ELSE TRIED IT?
Have you heard of Zioptis? It’s a bit of an old mystery, but their phone number is fun for the sheer oddity and variety of the messages:
(313) 274-1111
Their website purports to be a hotline for haunted attractions…but nothing on their hotline has anything to do with haunted houses.
http://www.zioptis.com
I’ll have to check that one out — thanks for the recommendation!
I’m scared to call the clown 🤡 but I want to know if he knows penny wise 😂
That 313 number rang for 2 minutes. Not joking. It rang and rang and rang, nobody answered, but nobody hung up. Strange..
Yeah. The same thing happened to me.
Ya it did. I just did it and I am freaking out.
I almost cried when the SCP Foundation answered the first number.
Omg me too
Those phone numbers are literally super scary. You should call them!!🙊🙈
Dude I called one and it was a really deep male voice I couldn’t make out what it was saying but I did hear see you again in the red room and now I’m freaked out.
Please don’t call these numbers because is very scary and you never know what noise you will hear from call 088_0888_08888 so don’t call 666_666_6666 and so don’t 1_666_666_66666 and so don’t call 1_00000000
And so don’t call 999_999_9999 and so don’t call 666 and so don’t call 1_0888_0888_08888
(323) 999-6616 is also very creepy. Like a secret government thing – deep state ghouls!
I went through the menu on this number and chose a class 3 violation and IT TOOK ME BACK TO THE ECHO PHONE NUMBER
I didn’t hear anything 😑🤔
I just called that number and 2 seconds later someone hung up, I am now super freaked.
Do these phone numbers actually go through?
Are you Alive and ok still?
Yes.
I’ll call ALL of the numbers! I have them written down!
The fnaf does not work.
It works — I just double checked it. Some of the numbers here ring for a while before the recordings they connect to play, so you might just have to stay on the line a little longer.
I know that some of this are recordings on these things it does not sound real and if it is I am creeped out but somehow I call the police because I think the police took over the number! 😐
You may have just misdialed — I wouldn’t worry too much!
Yes it does, you have to wait
We’ll all I’ve got to say is that on one number a male picked up and started saying all is well but me and my cousin freaked out and we hung up real quick💯🙏💀😭😑
I always get a “user busy” message when I try calling the last one.
Works for me. Creepy.
A guy asked for my number and I gave him the demon number lol
I just cannot understand why in the love of god you have disabled copypaste on this page when people want to call these numbers for themselves.
Sorry. We’ve had a lot of issues with our content getting straight-up stolen and republished elsewhere, word for word, without permission or credit, so copy-paste has been disabled across the entire site in an effort to curb the problem somewhat.
Phone numbers that worked for me: 408-634-2806, 828-756-0109, 786-519-3708, 858-651-5050, and 978-435-0163.
I heard the 408 one say, “see you in the python”
HOLY SH*T. I called the 407 number and I thought I heard my last name. It’s scary. :”'(
You’re mistaking it for another word, I’m guessing, bc when I called, I didn’t hear my name or last name once.
This one freaks me out even more:
(323) 999-6616
It’s like a Halloween haunted house with 100 rooms!
No numbers worked for me.
They’re all still operational — I just double checked them. Not sure where you’re dialing from, but they ARE all U.S.-based, in case you’re calling from elsewhere.
All of them worked for me
One of these numbers somehow gets redirected to my business phone. I’ve received a few calls from people saying they got my number from this website. My number is not listed here and I called all of them and non seem to redirect to me. Every time I answer the people on the other end are freaked out which is kind of funny but I still have no idea why I am receiving calls from people on this website.
Hi! I’m so sorry about that! I just called all the numbers again to confirm that they were all accurate, and they all connected me with the various recordings they were supposed (that is, NOT to your business phone!) — maybe people are misdialing one of the numbers here?
Everyone else, here’s your reminder to check to make sure you’ve inputted the correct number before you call!
We are cracking the code for 828-756-0109 right now, tell you what happens.
the number 828b755 0109: the binary code spells out death.
so I called all the numbers and the 701 went out of signal coincidence????
I will be calling all these numbers live on an app called live.me! Check it out 10PM (EST), Mar. 1 2019.
I’m scared to call them because idk if it’ll actually work.
anyone have momo’s number?
Yea it’s me
momo’s phone number is 801-820-0263
I called the fnaf one! It just said something about a google subscriber!
Why? Like what’s the point In calling the police?
I called the 978 number and it just hangs up right away.
I just dialed the phone number with the man sobbing and after the screech I stayed on the line and then it beeped but still kept going….weird
1-(646)-868-1844 can be pretty creepy. I called it last night and got totally spooked.
Dude it sent me a text. A poem. It was freaking AF.
Oh no it’s Monika from doki doki literature club!!!😱😱😱😱
did you get a message from them? cause i did it’s kinda creepy
I got a message from this one that reads (chapter too parties its letter no. Cheerful but whatever ladyship disposed yet judgement. Lasted answer oppose us months no esteem ) any one make sense of that?
I just got that exact text message. Creepy and makes no sense but maybe there’s something encrypted in it? 🤷🏻♀️
I googled it and found the rest of the poem. I replied with the rest of that paragraph. No reply yet.
978 is creepy. I hear a guy/girl cry/laugh and I’m scared
All I got was: “Calls to this number are barred”
Try again
They all work the red room one terrified me and I got tears in my eyes
All the numbers work
I hope I don’t die…
OMG
What is the scariest one?
I called the 409 one and I’m so scared Right now!
I called all the numbers I hope I don’t die 😭
What one was the scp foundation?
The all worked
It was creepy
And it was scaring me
I am not dead thankfully. But these 11 creepy numbers scared the living hell out of me. Unless you want to be horrified then call every single one these numbers. If not the DON’T call these numbers!!!!!
Will these numbers work if I’m dialing from a Canada number?
Do these numbers work in Canada?
Yeah, you just need to put a 1 before the number.
I looked the number 801-820-0263 up a few times the first time it said it was the warranty center then the next time the ghost hotline. I called it it said 117 then rahhhhh.
IT FREAKING WORKS OMG I TRIED ALL OF THEM WITH MY FRIEND THEY WORK OMGGGGG 😢😢
My friend called the number (she called on her phone, I’m on my laptop) and when she hung up the man sobbing transferred to my laptop!
OMG!!!! It’s 1:30 AM and I just called the 4:08 number and it worked! First I heard creepy music playing, then I heard a creepy man’s voice say “all’s well that ends well” and I couldn’t understand the rest of it but it sounded like it said “see you in the python”. Now I’m scared to go to sleep!😭
yep!!!
I honestly can’t wait to call these numbers because I love horror things
I called Carrie (1 207 404 2604) and I could hear someone hanging the phone up but then it just kept saying 604 338 three times and then it started beeping so I called 604 338 and it didn’t ring for like half a minute and then I could hear someone hanging up but then it didn’t work and so I called 1 604 338 and the same thing happened. I also called the rest of the numbers and for the wrinkles the clown number I gave him a fake address and told him to scare my kids to death. Then for Boothworld, I told them my name and set the day for today. Wish me luck! Also Wrinkles the clown has a twitter profile @yaboiwrinkles.
OhMehGosh…..
Needless to say, they work. Or at least, most of them do… the last one killed me… It was fuckin creepy.
This is so creepy. I called boothworld industries and they fucking said “your number has been locked and traced. You have a marvelous day” I have them a fake name so now I feel better.
oh my god! i called 978!!! i heard someone crying and getting tortured!!! pls nevwer try it!!!!
I’ve tried all these phone numbers, some of them didn’t work! I checked the phone numbers again, found out I was dialing the wrong number. Dialing the correct number I got better results.
This was the most scariest thing ever…