What you need
Your Lively account number and a Number Transfer PIN. Neither is printed on the handset. Call 1-866-482-1424 and ask for both before you start the transfer.
It runs on Verizon
Lively is an MVNO. It owns no towers. The service rides on Verizon’s network, which is what actually determines your coverage. Best Buy has owned the company since August 2018.
Give the right carrier name. The carrier of record is Lively — not GreatCall, and not Jitterbug. Jitterbug is the handset line. A new carrier’s system may not recognise “GreatCall,” and it will not recognise “Jitterbug” at all. Say Lively. If you are looking for the old name, see the GreatCall record.
What you need to port a Lively number out
- Your Lively account number. Not the phone number and not your online password — a separate field on the account. Lively does not print it on the device or the box.
- A Number Transfer PIN. Lively uses that exact wording in both directions. There is no self-service screen for it; it comes from customer service.
- The billing name and address exactly as Lively has them. A mismatch here is the single most common reason a port is rejected.
- Keep the Lively line active until the port completes. Cancelling first releases the number and the transfer fails.
Who to call
- Customer service: 1-866-482-1424 — Monday to Friday 7:00AM–10:00PM ET, Saturday and Sunday 9:00AM–7:00PM ET
- SIM and porting line: 1-866-233-3436 — Monday to Friday 7:00AM–10:00PM ET, Saturday and Sunday 9:00AM–6:00PM ET
- GreatCall-era number, still answered: 1-800-733-6632
How Lively got its name
- GreatCall built the business on the Jitterbug phone and the 5Star medical alert service for older adults.
- August 15, 2018: Best Buy acquired GreatCall for $800 million.
- May 2021: the company renamed itself Lively, taking the name of a company it had acquired in 2015. It now sits inside Best Buy Health.
Check coverage before you port
Lively runs on the Verizon network, so the coverage you get at your address is Verizon coverage. Check it on Verizon’s own coverage map before you start the transfer.
Your right to keep the number is federal, not a carrier policy. The rule is the FCC’s: Portability: Keeping Your Phone Number When Changing Service Providers.