A US number for international students

Why get a US number before you arrive?

Most of the calls that matter happen in the months before you land. A landlord in Boston wants to confirm a viewing. A roommate wants to talk through the lease. A campus job or a summer internship recruiter wants a quick phone screen. Many US forms also have a phone field that only accepts a 10-digit +1 number.

Your home number works for email-first contacts, but plenty of Americans will not dial an international number. They are unsure of the cost or the dialing format. A +1 number removes that step, and it gives you one number to put on every form, so you do not have to update them all again in August.

Who will actually call you?

• Housing: landlords, property managers and off-campus housing agents, who often prefer a call or a voicemail to email.
• University offices: the international student office, housing and admissions sometimes call about missing documents, though most of them use email and the student portal.
• Employers: on-campus jobs, research labs and internship recruiters who schedule phone screens.
• Roommates and other students: people you are matched with before the semester.

What works from abroad, and what does not?

The TripoSIM number runs in an app over Wi-Fi or mobile data, so it works from your home country with no US SIM. Here is what to expect.

The time difference is the hard part. A landlord in New York may call at 10 a.m. while you are asleep in Delhi or Lagos. Put your time zone in your voicemail greeting and use the US time-zone clock to call back during their working hours. Since you cannot reply by text, give contacts an email address, or set up WhatsApp on your US number so they can message you there.

What should you switch after you arrive?

Once you are in the US, get a line from a US carrier or MVNO (a SIM or eSIM plan). You need it for two things the TripoSIM number does not do: sending texts and calling 911. The virtual number vs mobile number guide explains the difference.

After that, you have two choices. Keep the TripoSIM number if you gave it to many people and want it as a second number for work, or for family abroad to call you at US rates. Or let it lapse once everyone has your new number. When a TripoSIM plan ends, the number is kept for 30 days on the yearly plan or 90 days on the monthly plan, then released. Move any accounts and logins to your new number before that happens; our guide on number recycling explains why.

A timeline checklist

3 months before you fly

1. Get the US number. You need a phone, a photo ID for a short identity check and a payment card; no SSN or US address.
2. Pick an area code near your university so local contacts see a familiar number. See the area code list.
3. Record a voicemail greeting with your name and time zone.
4. Add the number to housing applications, your student portal and your CV.

1 month before

1. Confirm housing, airport pickup and orientation details by phone where needed.
2. Research US carrier and MVNO plans, and check whether your phone is unlocked and supports eSIM.
3. Set up an authenticator app for the accounts that allow it, so logins do not depend on any one number.

Arrival week

1. Activate a US carrier plan.
2. Use that carrier number for texting and the university's emergency alerts.
3. Decide whether to keep the TripoSIM number as a second line or let it end, and tell your contacts which number to use.

What does it cost?

If you only need the number until arrival, the monthly plan is $12.99 a month: $38.97 for three months, and you can cancel the renewal anytime. If you want to keep it as a second number for the whole academic year, the yearly plan is $100, including $5 of credit for travel eSIM data or extra minutes. Extra minutes cost $5 per 100. Try the cost calculator to compare the two for your dates.