15 Best People Search Engines to Find People Easily

There are situations that make us say “It’s a small world”, like when you meet someone at an unexpected place. However, if you are looking for a long-lost friend or for that one person you met at the airport, you might agree when I say that the world isn’t that small after all. Thankfully, as we all know, the web is a place where you can get most of your answers.

Well, there are several people finder services that let you search for people and get details about them. Apart from finding people that you are looking for, the people search engines can come in handy when you are looking for a roommate or starting to work with someone. So, without any further ado, here are the 15 best people search engines you should use.

Note: Some search engines mentioned on this list work better in some countries like the USA, UK, and more. Do check if your country is supported or not before buying a paid subscription.

Best People Search Websites You Should Use (Updated 2023)

Before we go ahead, take a quick look at all the people search engines to find a person. You can click on the link below to move to the relevant website easily. After that, go through our explainer and find out why you should use people search engines to your advantage.

List of People Search Websites You Should Use

1. Truthfinder – Overall Best People Search Engine

Truthfinder is a people search engine that offers accurate information from a variety of sources. You can search for police records of an individual, check court records, photos from social media, contact information, and much more.

More than connecting with people, Truthfinder is about finding people online. For example, if you are moving to a new location then Truthfinder will be a better pick as compared to other best people search engines we’ve enlisted. It uses information from Federal, State, and County data sources. However, it is to be noted that Truthfinder is a US-only service.

truthfinder public records search engine

Truthfinder also has some great tools like reverse phone, address lookup, dark web scan, and more. Earlier, there was a Family Tree feature as well, but that is no longer available. Basically, if you are in the US then Truthfinder seems to be the best option for reconnecting with long-lost friends or simply for avoiding scams. Having said that, keep in mind, the service is not entirely free. For free users, you can only see basic information like age and possible location. In addition, the search takes considerable time to show the results as the information is sourced from several sources before a final report is compiled.

Like other people search engines, Truth Finder also prohibits its users from using the product for any kind of purposes that require FCRA compliance.

Pros

  • Best for background checks
  • Accurate US-only results
  • Huge database of criminal and court orders
  • Multiple tools including reverse phone

Cons

  • Takes considerable time to show results

Pricing

Starts at $28.05/month

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2. Intelius – People Search, Lookup Phone Numbers, & Background Checks

Intelius is one of the best people finder services out there that has you covered on most fronts. Be it the usual people search details, email lookup, social network search, property records, background check, criminal records, or reverse phone lookup. The results are great too, thanks to Intelius’ robust database. Moreover, the website claims that the searches are secured using a 256-bit encryption connection.

intelius search page

That being said, the drawbacks of Intelius are that it is not free and the results are only catered to the US. There are different subscriptions offered by Intelius by combining the several services it provides. For example, the subscription for detailed people search and address lookup with location details, ownership history, crime stats, and evictions, costs $29.78 per month. However, if you just want a reverse phone lookup, Intellius offers that for $34.95 per month.

Pros

  • Reconnect with old friends
  • Review property data
  • Exhaustive criminal and court records
  • Best for background checks

Cons

  • US-only
  • Pretty expensive

Pricing

Starts at $29.78/month

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3. US Search – Best Way to Search People in the US

US Search is a reputable website for finding people across the US. It has a simple UI where you just need to enter either name, phone number, or address and you will get results within a few seconds. If you want, you can provide additional information so that it can filter the results much faster. In my brief usage, the website was able to locate the individuals for whom I was looking.

us search engine people search options

Again, just like other people search engines, for free users, it only shows age, places where one has lived, and possible relatives. If you want complete information like recent addresses, and phone numbers then you will have to pay a monthly subscription which starts at $19.86 and allows access to unlimited reports.

And if you want to do a full background check then the pricing goes even higher. To sum up, US Search has a vast amount of data and it’s one of the oldest and most reliable people search engines out there.

Pros

  • Affordable service
  • Pretty fast
  • Best for US-based searches
  • Oldest database
  • Automatic filter 

Cons

  • Limited information for free users

Pricing

Starts at $19.86/month

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4. BeenVerified – Background Checks, Public Records & People Search

BeenVerified is one of my personal favorite people search websites, thanks to its simplicity and feature-set that make it stand out against other people finder services. With BeenVerified, you can search using names, email addresses, phone numbers or locations.

The platform brings you all the details you might expect, like social media accounts, pictures, friends & connections, professional records, address history, background records, etc.

image of the been verified people search engine

While the basic details can be checked by just signing up for an account at BeenVerified, if you want a full report on someone’s background like criminal records, court records, and more, you will have to get a membership ($26.89 for one month).

BeenVerified brings you details of people from all over the world but some features might be limited to the US. It’s available as a website, as well as a mobile app for Android (Free) and iOS (Free).

Pros

  • Combines social graph and public record
  • Authentic information
  • Offers criminal record
  • Affordable service
  • App available for smartphones

Cons

  • US-centric

Pricing

Starts at $17.48/month

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5. Pipl – People Search and Identity Verification

Pipl is arguably the most popular people search engine and deservedly so, considering it works in almost all countries and offers very accurate results. The platform lets you easily get professional, social, and contact info.

You can find people using their name, email, username, or phone number. While Pipl was earlier available for free, it is no longer the case now. This people finder website is more of a professional identity information service and works accordingly.

pipl-people-search-engine

While it is highly efficient and could be regarded as one of the best search engines to find a person, it is not like other people search engines mentioned in this list. Pipl is now limited to professional users. The company also makes it clear on its website that the service is not intended for personal, non-commercial purposes. Which is why it offers APIs that can be integrated on websites and applications for search services.

Pros

  • Accurate information
  • Free search for 5 days
  • Social media linking
  • Minimal information required
  • Available worldwide

Cons

  • Not intended for personal use

Pricing

NA

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6. TruePeopleSearch – Free People Search Engine

If you’re looking for a free people search engine, TruePeopleSearch should be your destination. This website is quite easy to use as you can search for people using name, phone number, or address. Simply type in the required details and you will get search results in a jiffy. You can adjust the age to further refine search results. One of the biggest reasons why I prefer this people search engine is that it is completely free to use, unlike other alternatives. You get addresses, phone numbers, and even email IDs for free using TruePeopleSearch.

Free people search engine

Since it is a free people search engine, there are no extensive options for searching. For example, for a background report that includes court records, criminal data records, property records, and more, TruePeopleSearch relies on BeenVerified.com and you’ll have to shell out some money for the detailed report. Nonetheless, it is a great tool if you want to search for the address/phone number or email ID of a person by just using their name. Also, TruePeopleSearch offers an Android app (free) as well. Unfortunately, there’s no iOS app but you can add it to your iOS device’s home screen by using a browser.

Pros

  • Free people search engine
  • Simple user interface
  • No account required
  • Android app

Cons

  • Detailed reports are paid
  • No iOS app

Pricing

Free

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7. Spokeo – Search and Reunite People

Spokeo is another popular people search engine that shows you details from white pages listings, public records, and social networks. You can search for people in Spokeo using their name, email address, phone details or location.

The area where Spokeo really shines as compared to other people search sites is its massive collection of data. As the website claims, the reports are prepared from 130 million property records, 6 billion consumer records and 120+ social networks. It is a good tool to learn about online sellers and connect with lost friends by finding their information online. Also, Spokeo says it uses proprietary deep web technology to search over billions of records.

image of the spokeo homepage

The service has a paid subscription, starting at $29.95/month. However, before you purchase the subscription, do note that it works only in US. I mean, you can use it outside the US but its results are US-based.

So, although I was able to use the service without using any VPN, I was not able to find any of my friends as they don’t live in the US. However, I was able to find my cousin brother who reside there. If you are searching for people in the US, this is one of the best people finder services that you can use.

Pros

  • Best for connecting with people
  • US-based searches
  • Basic results for free
  • Easy to use

Cons

  • Quite expensive

Pricing

Starts at $29.95/month

Visit

8. FastPeopleSearch – Free People Finder

FastPeopleSearch is another free-to-use people search engine that comes with an easy-to-use interface and outputs information accurately. You can begin searching for people by name phone number or address. The website shows US-only results which means you cannot use it to search for people globally but it works flawlessly if you’re searching for a person from the States. As mentioned on the website, the search results are driven from 16.5 billion records, which is a huge data set! You can reverse search phone numbers and also search people using their addresses.

Free people finder

However, do not that FastPeopleSearch is not a consumer reporting agency and cannot be used for employment, credit or tenant screening, or other related purposes. In case you’re looking forward to finding a long-lost loved one or want to get the address of an official, FastPeopleSearch gets the job done instantly.

Pros

  • Free people finder tool
  • Huge database
  • User-friendly interface

Cons

  • Limited to US-only searches
  • Paid detailed report

Pricing

Free

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9. Instant Checkmate – Background Check

Instant Checkmate is more of a public records search service but it’s still handy if you want to know about important details of a person. The US-only people search engine lets you easily check a person’s criminal records, related court documents, addresses, age, phone numbers, etc.

It brings you data from online profiles, federal data sources, and state & country data sources. The results are pretty great, thanks to Instant Checkmate’s advanced search tech. All the details around a search are compiled in a neat report which is helpful.

instant checkmate search page

Instant Checkmate is one powerful service and while it seems a bit overwhelming with all the details around background reports, it can be used as a people finder service too. However, you can only get the reports after you’ve bought one of the subscriptions, starting at $35.12.

Pros

  • Search through publicly available data
  • Best for criminal and background checks
  • Advanced search filters
  • Access property data

Cons

  • Premium price for detailed data

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10. PeopleFinder – Get Addresses for Free

If you want to reconnect with people with whom you have lost contact then PeopleFinder is a great platform that you must try. It has indexed millions of publicly available data including federal data sources, state data sources, and country data sources which helps in accurately identifying an individual. On top of that, PeopleFinder uses Intelius’ backend service for a more detailed report.

people finder public records search engine

What I like about PeopleFinder is that it offers a complete address even for free users, which is rarely found in other people search engines mentioned here. If you choose to pay $24.86/mo then you can access unlimited reports in a month that include financial information, relatives, phone numbers, court records, and much more. So if you are looking for a people search engine that offers decent information then just go for PoepleFinder.

Pros

  • Recent address available for free users
  • Quite affordable 
  • Intelius-backed service
  • Check criminal and social records

Cons

  • Search results can take considerable time

Pricing

Starts at $24.86/month

Visit

11. Whitepages People Search for Free

Whitepages needs no introduction. It is much more than just a person finder service. It’s also a great tool for users who want to get more than just basic social or professional information. The tool serves “phone numbers, addresses, email addresses, relatives, property records, background reports, and more” of the people you search for.

If you are just looking to find a person, Whitepages is a great service because it offers details about family members & associates, current contact details, and more. You can find a person using name, phone number, and address. Moreover, you can do this on Android (Free, offers in-app purchases) and iOS (Free, offers in-app purchases) apps as well.

White Pages people finder

While details like address, family members, locations, etc. are available for free, if you want a full background report, you will have to get the premium subscription, starting at $4.99/month. Also, the premium service of the website is only available in the US as the service works best there.

Pros

  • Best for hiring employees, tenant information
  • Accurate contact information
  • Basic info for free users
  • Global search available

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Limited dataset

Pricing

Free, Premium plan starts at $4.99/month

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12. LinkedIn – Professional Profiles and Work History

If you are looking to search for people through their professional details, LinkedIn is the best option there is. The Microsoft-owned service features some great search capabilities, not everyone is aware of. You can search for specific keywords with names & location, use Boolean searches, and more.

linkedin find people professionals

The search page on LinkedIn also features a very handy sidebar, which lets you use filters to refine your search. So, if you are looking for a person you met at a professional meeting, LinkedIn should help you find him/her with ease.

Pros

  • Excellent platform for employers
  • Get professional details
  • Handy sidebar for filtering
  • Personalized recommendation

Cons

  • Premium subscription needed to get the best out of it

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13. Quora – Best way to find like-minded people

Another option worth checking out is Quora. Although Quora is originally a question-and-answer website where you can write and ask answers, you can make a quick Quora lookup to find who you’re looking for, especially if the person is interested in reading or writing. All you have to do is open Quora and search for the person’s name.

quora people search

You can narrow down the results by switching to ‘Profiles’ from the left-side menu. If the person has filled in all the basic details, you can easily find the profile. Simply put, you can use Quora to find a person, but the chances of finding them highly depend on their interests. For what it’s worth, you can give it a shot if you can’t find them in other people finder services we’ve listed above.

Pros

  • Sidebar for basic filtering
  • Good for finding friends with reading and writing interests
  • Free to use
  • Available globally

Cons

  • No advanced filter options
  • Not suitable for everyone

14. Truecaller – Find People Using Phone Numbers

If you got a missed call from someone and are wondering how to find them, Truecaller is your best bet. With Truecaller, you can search phone numbers to know the name of the person. For those with privacy concerns, you can learn more about how Truecaller handles privacy in our article here. You can follow our guide on completely deleting the Truecaller account if you’re not satisfied with the service or want to remove yourself from the platform.

truecaller phone number lookup

Pros

  • Works well for Indian users
  • Can find the name, approximate location of a person using phone number
  • Works on web
  • Free to use

Cons

  • Requires phone number

Visit

15. Google Search and Reverse Image Search

Google Search might not really be marketed as a people search engine but it can do the job pretty well. You can search for people using names with specific keywords like location, job, interests etc.

Google Adcance Seearch

You can also do a reverse phone number search and if you have a photo of the person, you can also do a reverse image search to find the person you want. Plus, Google offers various tools like filters for time, country, and an advanced search page, where you can narrow down your search easily. To further improve your Google Search results, check out our article on best Google Search tricks to search better.

Bonus: Twitter

Out of all social media platforms, I have found Twitter to be extremely useful to search people online. Since Facebook comes with a big privacy concern, many people are leaving it behind by deleting their Facebook accounts. However, you can still find them on Twitter as they don’t have to share personal information on Twitter.

12. LinkedIn – Professional Profiles and Work History

I am not on Facebook but use Twitter as it acts as my primary news source and allows me to follow people I want to keep tabs on. Twitter also makes it really easy to send direct messages to users and is generally a good place to break the ice.

If you have never used Twitter as a people finder search engine before, I urge you to give this a try. Also, check out our Twitter tips and tricks article to get the most out of this service.

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Why You Should Use People Search Engines

Whenever we hear the term people search engine, our mind mostly goes to finding people with whom we were connected in the past. While people finder services will help you find those people too, there is a myriad of real-life scenarios where they come in handy and might even save you a ton of headaches and regret in the future.

For example, if you own a business and work with a number of remote workers, it is always good to find out information about them before you give them important business details. You might be a college student who is looking for a flatmate to share the rent. One thing that you should make sure of is that the person is trustworthy.

Note: Some services, like TruthFinder, do not allow usage of their platform for employment screening, consumer credit, or tenant screening. So make sure you don’t use services like TruthFinder for Consumer Reports.

You might be someone who is looking to buy a property and wants to make sure that the seller has a good record. In hundreds of scenarios like this, the people search websites we have mentioned above can help you a lot.

Not only they can help you find people’s social profiles but also let you know if they have any criminal or arrest records. In lighter terms, these search engines can help you find email addresses and phone numbers so that you can contact someone who is hard to find. Now that you know why the best people websites to search people and why one should use people search engines, it’s time to pick the best out of the lot to suit your requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are some totally free people search sites?

As we went through the article, it’s clear that not many services offer detailed reports for free. That said, I think you can use FastPeopleSearch and TruePeopleSearch for free. Apart from that, PeopleFinder is also pretty good for basic yet informative results.

2. Which is the best free website to find a person?

I would say Pipl and Intelius are a few websites that allow you to find a person for free albeit in a limited manner.

3. What is the best way to search for a person?

People Search Engines are one of the easiest ways to search for a person. We have mentioned many websites above so go through them and find your preferred website.

4. What is the best website to find someone’s address?

In my experience, FastPeopleSearch was able to show the recent and past addresses of an individual without paying any charge so you should try that out.

Find People with These People Finder Services

So, those were some of the best people finder services that you can use in 2023. Some of them work best in the US, while some work globally, so you can choose accordingly. Also, we are positive that you will be able to find the person you are looking for with one of these websites, considering all of them are pretty capable and offer advanced features. Well, try them out and let us know if they managed to help you out.

comment Comments 26
  • Benny says:

    I tried people Whiz and it gave me more information then anyone else I had tried, I was really surprised it even gives you a property search that is pretty extensive and will cost you a little more but well worth it. One thing you can’t do is download the info or at least maybe I didn’t know how because of my -94 IQ with a touch of up and down syndrome maybe I’ve reached Full Retard status, I don’t know. Anyway what really sucks is none of these sites give you a test run to see if you like what their doing. I vote for every search site to at least give you a test drive before you have to pay, ya no. well goodnight everyone! BFS

  • john says:

    All these people search engines are a joke they are not free They say try for 95 cents for 7 days or so and after that they will bill you a monthly fee and there is no getting out of that . You can’t even look up a death record with out paying for it I remember you could find a friend that you haven’t heard from in many years for free not anymore what a JOKE All I want to do is find a friends thats it. I don’t care nothing about a police record or tickets or court records etc etc etc

  • David Hardcastle says:

    Thanks for sharing the great information with us. Also, Glad I Know is the newest and most advanced people search platform in the industry.

  • Amanda McDougall says:

    Does anyone know one that works foe canada

  • J Krause says:

    I’ve sent an email to Pipl and BeenVerified, they were more than willing to remove any and all information that they had on me. If you seriously don’t want your information on the internet it will take a lot of time but it can be done. Quit crying and get to it 🙂

  • Faith McCann says:

    Get your information correct. Pipl IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR PERSONAL USAGE. It does not allow one to log in and create a user account with which to use their services if one has a gmail account, which pretty much everyone does!! They require a corporate email account. SCAM!! IF YOU ARE GOING TO REVIEW ANYTHING, know how to do the job. Waste of everyone’s time.

    • Don’t you wish you knew says:

      In the writer’s defense, pipl used to be a free site. It provided usernames and family, associates. Pipl provided more details. It was good until it wasn’t free anymore.

  • Jan Marie LLoyd says:

    Pipl isn’t free or for personal accounts, Beenverified isnt free either and thast what Peekyou turns into. Thank you for wasting my time.

  • Frank says:

    I have had way better success using backgroundcheckfox than I’ve had using any of the big name providers listed above. Plus I don’t have to worry about trying to get out of a subscription agreement.

    • Justin says:

      There doesn’t seem to be a site called backgroundcheckfox. I would like to check out alternatives, if you wouldn’t mind double-checking the name of the site you prefer.

  • Marko says:

    Privacy rights, what a joke.

  • Ellemdee 2000 says:

    PIPL is a rip-off. The other paid sites are scams as well. You can get almost anything for free Why pay for garbage? I have a huge list of awesome sites . I can locate anything from current address, cell number, who’s talking about you on line, and I can see if your on dating sites like Adult Friend Finder, Ashley Madison, POF, etc. I wouldn’t expect to be paid for nothing. But thanks for the effort. Was hoping to find something new and refreshing.

    • Chevy says:

      You said “I can locate anything from current address, cell number, who’s talking about you on line, and I can see if your on dating sites”. How are you able to get all that info?? What site(s) do you use to obtain that information?? Please share your vast wealth of knowledge with another?!?, itd be greatly appreciated. Tyia

      • Sue says:

        You know, it used to be free because I remember using a couple of years ago. Didn’t need a corporate account then.

      • Sue says:

        If you search hard enough you can find anything about anyone on the net.

    • Hannah says:

      Im with Chevy on this one:
      If you know of better sites to use then why not list them in your comment box instead of just bragging about being able to do it. Yes I understand that if you really do know how, you are using various hacking tools which shouldn’t be mentioned in a public forum unless it’s considered Ethical hacking.
      My point being, what was the point of saying anything at all if it’s neither helpful or beneficial to anyone? Either A. You just wanted to sound cool although nobody even knows who you are. Or B. Your a scammer hoping that someone will offer to pay you for your “hacking services”. Which I’m sure is nothing but a skimmed through article you once read about the topic.
      Or prove us wrong and give us some “new and refreshing” info from your numerous sites you have. ✌️

      • Sue says:

        Like I said, if you search long and hard enough you can find whatever it is you are looking for. And it doesn’t involve hacking sites as you suggest.

    • Jones says:

      So would you want to share the list

  • Ashley says:

    Pipl I guess no longer services those not associated with a business and it doesn’t allow personal searches. Please update your information.

  • Abhisar champ says:

    Best way to find out our old friends. Really it works. Thank you for sharing worthwhile information.

  • anetey samuel says:

    i am in Ghana and none of the above works here
    do u know any site that works in africa

  • anetey samuel says:

    check out my channel on Youtube at technofit logan

  • Patti says:

    An old fashioned phone book might work

  • DG says:

    I remember the days when you could look up a person in the white pages and you didn’t have to PAY. Is there any place I can just look up a phone number and address without paying for a subscription? Sheesh, I’m over this greedy world we live in

    • Izzy says:

      THANK YOU! I AGREE!

    • Ashley says:

      I understand what you mean. It’s crazy, can’t use white pages for free to look up just a person and their phone number. It’s wrong and it’s insane!!

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