How to Locate a Person by Date of Birth
If you want to find a friend, relative or acquaintance of whom you've lost track, your first instinct may call for you to search for her by name. Unfortunately, people can change their names---for example, a woman may get married and assume her husband's last name---or you may find several people with the same last name in one area. Instead, search by birth date to help you narrow your results.
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Instructions
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Search by Birth Date
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On your favorite search engine, type the name of the person you seek, along with his birth date. If he has completed a profile on a social media site, blog or other website, you may find him through this type of search.
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Visit your county, city or town hall and ask for the public records department, or look for public records departments online (see Resources below). Use your friend or relative's name and date of birth to search through marriage, birth, real estate and other types of public records. Search death records if you think the person may be deceased.
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Place an ad in a newspaper or on an online bulletin board. If you suspect the person may live in a certain town, place an ad in the newspaper there, listing the name and date of birth of the person you seek. Place the same type of ad on a city- or town-specific online bulletin board.
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Hire a private investigator to find the person for you. Give her as much information as possible, including the person's name, birth date, last-known address, occupation and former school.
Use a Service
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Compare various online services that perform people searches; they may differ somewhat in terms of prices and services they offer.
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Type the person's full name and date of birth into the search box of the service you choose. You may have to provide her last-known state of residence as well. If possible, provide location information to help the service narrow your results.
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Pay for your report. Many online people locators accept credit card payments, and some even accept online checks.
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Access your report, which should become available as soon as you pay for it. Many services post the results on your computer screen, but others will send them to the email address you provide.
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Contact the person you seek by calling, emailing, or mailing a letter to him, depending on the information provided in the report. If your contact attempts reveal that the search found the wrong person, begin your search again.
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Tips & Warnings
Public records, including birth, marriage and real estate sale records may be available for free. However, some records departments may charge a small fee for administrative purposes.
If you plan to do a public records search, look into your state's laws before you begin. Some states have more restrictions for the release of public records than others.
Some search services allow you to begin a search and pay once you want to receive the report. Others require payment before you provide any information about your missing person.
