Regex for US Phone Numbers — Pattern Explained with Examples

US phone number validation is essential for forms and contact management systems targeting North American users. This pattern handles the common formatting variations: area code in parentheses, dashes, dots, spaces, and the optional leading 1 country code.

The Pattern

/^\+?1?\s?\(?[0-9]{3}\)?[-.\s]?[0-9]{3}[-.\s]?[0-9]{4}$/

Pattern Breakdown

Matches

• (555) 123-4567
• 555-123-4567
• +1 555 123 4567
• 555.123.4567
• 15551234567

Does NOT Match

• 123-4567 (missing area code)
• 555-123-456 (line number only 3 digits)
• +44 555 123 4567 (UK country code)
• 555-ABCD-EFG (letters in number)
• (555)123-4567 extra (trailing characters)

Language Examples

JavaScript

const phoneRegex = /^\+?1?\s?\(?[0-9]{3}\)?[-.\s]?[0-9]{3}[-.\s]?[0-9]{4}$/;
console.log(phoneRegex.test('(555) 123-4567')); // true
console.log(phoneRegex.test('123-4567'));       // false

Python

import re
pattern = r'^\+?1?\s?\(?[0-9]{3}\)?[-.\s]?[0-9]{3}[-.\s]?[0-9]{4}$'
print(bool(re.match(pattern, '(555) 123-4567')))  # True
print(bool(re.match(pattern, '123-4567')))         # False

Ruby

pattern = /^\+?1?\s?\(?[0-9]{3}\)?[-.\s]?[0-9]{3}[-.\s]?[0-9]{4}$/
puts pattern.match?('(555) 123-4567')  # true
puts pattern.match?('123-4567')        # false

Common Pitfalls

• This pattern does not validate that the area code is a real US area code — (000) 000-0000 passes
• International formats starting with country codes other than +1 will be incorrectly rejected
• Phone number extensions (e.g. x123) are not supported without additional pattern modifications
• Accepting the leading 1 inconsistently can cause duplicate records in databases

Real-World Use Cases

• E-commerce checkout forms — collect valid US billing and shipping contact numbers
• CRM systems — normalize and store customer phone data from multiple input sources
• Two-factor authentication — validate phone format before sending SMS verification codes

FAQ

Related Patterns

Regex for International Phone Numbers Regex for Email