Emergency Code HQ

What is Emergency Code HQ?

If you've ever heard a dispatcher call out a code and wondered what it meant, you're in the right place.

Emergency Code HQ is a reference tool for police, fire, and EMS radio codes used by public safety agencies across the United States. Our mission is to build the most comprehensive and accurate database of emergency radio codes, signals, and dispatch terminology in one easy-to-use resource.

Whether you're a scanner listener, public safety enthusiast, researcher, journalist, or simply curious about police communications, Emergency Code HQ is designed to make finding and understanding radio codes easier.

What Are Emergency Codes?

Emergency codes are shorthand terms used by police officers, firefighters, EMS personnel, dispatchers, and other public safety professionals to communicate quickly over the radio. Instead of transmitting a long message, a short code can instantly convey important information.

These systems often include 10-codes, signal codes, status codes, and agency-specific terminology. While some codes are widely recognized, there is no single national standard. The same code can have different meanings depending on the agency, county, or state using it.

That's why Emergency Code HQ focuses on documenting agency-specific usage whenever possible. Understanding who is using a code is often just as important as knowing the code itself.

How to Use This Site

Search for a code to see known meanings and agency-specific usage, or browse by system, state, and agency to explore how different departments structure their radio communications.

If you're listening to a scanner and hear an unfamiliar code, start with a search. If you're researching a particular agency or communication system, browse the database to see all known codes used by that department.