How to Find a Telephone Number

As awareness and technology advances and more individuals are beginning to protect their personal information, it has become increasingly harder to find simple contact information like addresses and telephone numbers. We are able to keep our phone number out of the phone book, block 4-1-1 from giving out our data, and keep our contact information private. But this level of privacy can work against us when we need to be able to reach our friends, family members, corporations, or other individuals for important matters. If you need to find a telephone number for any reason - even if you have limited information on the person or business you need the information for - then read on to learn how to find a telephone number:

Instructions

1. Try Contacting 4-1-1 First

   Before you assume that the number you are looking for is unlisted, or that you don't have enough information to find it, try giving Information a try. You can reach Information by dialing 4-1-1 from any landline or mobile phone; most areas in the U.S. support this feature. There is a charge for calling the Information hotline from your phone; it averages between $2 and $4 per inquiry.

   You can opt to use a free information service as an alternative to 4-1-1's fees to find a telephone number, as well. Below is a list of a few free information services that do not charge a fee for calling; you will still be subjected to any fees from your telephone company for making the call (for example, it will still cost you minutes if you make the call from your mobile phone):

   Free 4-1-1: 1-800-FREE-411

   Metro 4-1-1-: 1-800-411-METRO

   Google 4-1-1: 1-800-GOOG-411 (Business Information Only)

   After dialing your 4-1-1 service of choice, request a home phone number and provide whatever information you have. At the very least, you will need to be able to provide the state and the city or zip code (or the city/zip code of a neighboring area, if you aren't 100% sure). You will also need to provide either the last name or the physical address of the house where you need the phone number for. If you only have some of this information, provide what you can and see if Information can help. If the representative isn't able to find the number for you, or the number is marked private, you can try another method in this guide.

2. Visit White Pages Online

   White Pages is the very same service found in your local phone book. White Pages operates a web site, free for consumer use, that you can use to find a telephone number. White Pages seems to offer more information than traditional call-in information services, and is used by individuals and professionals alike to find a telephone number for free before utilizing a more expensive method. You can find the website by visiting the address below:

   http://www.whitepages.com/

   To start a new search, enter the information you have available into the search boxes. While in most cases, you would want to enter as much information as possible for best results, White Pages has better success when searching by address instead of by name or all available information. This is likely because of individuals using an initial in replace of their first name, and/or the home telephone number being registered under another household member, or even a family member not living in the household, thus making searches by first and last name far less reliable. If you don't have the physical address of the individual, try sticking to last name only, or the first initial and last name of the person who you are searching for.

3. Purchase a Simple Background Report

   If you come up short with the free sources listed above, you can still find a telephone number - although it will cost you, if only minimally. For a little less than the cost of one 4-1-1 inquiry, you can purchase a simple background report instantly online. In order for this method to be successful, you will need to know the first and last name of the person for whom you need to find a telephone number for. If you aren't entirely sure of their name, try using Google or a similar search engine to uncover the information. Some background search services may also enable you to find a telephone number by address, but you will need to know the exact physical address to be successful.

   Purchasing a background report is easy, quick, and legal - and the person won't know that you ran the report on them, so you do not need to fear repercussion. You can find background searching services by looking online and using your favorite search engine, or visit some of the background searching websites listed below:

   US Search: http://www.ussearch.com/

   Intelius: http://www.intelius.com/

   Background Checks: http://www.backgroundchecks.com/

   Search It!: http://www.searchlt.org/

Tips & Warnings

• Telephone numbers are NOT considered private or personal information; they are considered a matter of public record. While you can pay a premium to have your telephone number marked "private" or "unavailable" for general search purposes, it is perfectly legal to obtain a person or corporation's telephone number, even through paid background check services.

• The above article is not legal advice. If you are seeking legal advice, please consult your attorney. There is no attorney-client relationship between you and Regal Legal.