How to Find Someone for Free on the Internet: Tips, Tricks, and Tools
Looking for someone online might seem tricky, but it’s not about having the latest tools or paying for expensive services. It’s about knowing how to use what you’ve already got. Sometimes, the simplest tools, combined with a bit of strategy, can lead you right to the information you need.
So, you ask ‘How to find someone for free on the internet’, and we answer: follow this guide. Tips, tricks, and really practical expert advice.
Finding a Person Online – Where to Start?
First, you need to understand the sheer scale of the playing field. According to Statista, as of January 2024, there were over 5.44 billion internet users worldwide. That’s a huge space to search through, and you’re looking for something specific. To narrow it down, you need to be strategic.
The process is about more than efficiency though. Don’t forget it’s also about legality too. So when you’re searching for someone online, be careful and don’t break any privacy laws.
There are lots of regulations in place to protect personal information, things like GDPR in Europe and CCPA in California. So you’ve got to be cautious and respectful of people’s privacy.
1. Find Someone Online With Searqle – Best Free People Finder
Searqle is one of the best free people finder to start with. The information you can see includes the person’s name, address, phone numbers, email addresses, and sometimes even details about their education, employment history, vehicles they own, and any criminal records. Simply choose one (or even all) of the tools:
- Address Lookup to get insights into the location’s history, property and neighbors;
- People Lookup to reconnect with old friends, relatives, and read background checks;
- Email Lookup to verify emails, detect scams;
- Phone Lookup to see the potential owner of a device.
Of course, the exact information you’ll find depends on what the person has shared publicly in open registries and data sources. But it’s still the most foolproof and the best website to investigate someone free.
2. Investigate Someone via Search Engine
First, start by entering the person’s name and any other info you’ve got, like their city, job or social media handles. So, if you know their name and location, search for “John Smith in Miami” or “Jane Doe, Miami photographer.” The more specific your search, the better the results.
Another key tip: Use advanced search techniques. For instance, you can search within specific websites (e.g., site:linkedin.com “John Smith Miami”) or filter by date to find the most recent updates about a person.
The beauty of this method is that it’s free and accessible to anyone with an internet connection. You don’t need any special tools. But not all the data you find will be accurate or up-to-date, so always cross-reference the information you discover.
3. Find Someone Free of Charge Using Social Media
More than five billion people use social media (at least, one of them) in 2025. It’s worth trying the biggest players.
| One of the most widely used platforms, and many people have public profiles or posts that are visible to everyone. Simply search for the name and refine your results by adding the person’s city or any other specific details you know about them. | |
| People often share more personal or up-to-date content. Searching for a name or username could lead you to their profile. | |
| Know the person’s profession? LinkedIn’s advanced search filters allow you to narrow down your search by company, industry, or location. Even if they have a private profile, you might be able to see their job title, work history, and education, all of which can help you connect the dots. | |
| People often share a lot about their lives, so by searching for keywords, hashtags, or their username, you may uncover useful information. |
4. Use Google Person Finder Free
Google Person Finder is a free, open-source web app developed by Google to help users post and search for info about missing people during a crisis. It collects data from loads of different places, like government organisations, NGOs, and even the public, so it stays up to date and reliable.
If you’re looking for how to find out information about someone for free, just go to the Google Person Finder website, type in the person’s name or details that you know about them, and you’ll see any updates or reports about where they are.
Can’t find the person? You can also add a post to the database, which allows others to see your inquiry and contribute any relevant information.
5. Perform a Criminal Search
It’s not a way to find someone online for free with email or exact location, but it can give you a bit more insight into their past and help you understand who you’re dealing with better.
If you need to do a criminal search, you can find information on past arrests, convictions, and charges in public records. There are various tools you can use to conduct this search, such as online databases and government websites that provide access to criminal records:
- National Sex Offender Public Website (NSOPW)
- Identity History Summary on FBI.gov
- Court Records by United States Courts
Many jurisdictions offer online services where you can find someone on the internet, including someone’s criminal history, by using their name, date of birth, and sometimes even their address.
6. Try Reverse Image Search
You might have seen a photo of someone on a social media profile, in a group chat, or as part of a document you found online. How to find someone online with this photo? Upload the image to a reverse image search tool like Google Images or TinEye, and you can see where that image has been posted on the internet.
Google Images is a really popular tool that’s super easy to use. Just hit the camera icon in the search bar, upload the image, and Google will show you websites that have used the same or similar images. I
If the image has been shared on social media like Facebook or Instagram, you can go to the original source to identify the person, and gather more details.
7. Find Out Personal Information With FamilyTreeNow
How can I find a person for free if they’re my relatives? Genealogical research could be your best solution. FamilyTreeNow is one of them. Absolutely free, of course.
One of the big pluses of FamilyTreeNow is that it gives you access to so much data, which may include:
- Full name and date of birth
- Known addresses and phone numbers
- Relatives and household members
- Marriage and divorce records
- Possible criminal records
- Social Security numbers (in some cases)
Just to flag, some details might be a bit out of date or wrong, and there’s always the chance that some data points are missing because of privacy stuff or gaps in the records.
8. Conduct a Property Records Search
Property records are public documents that are kept by local government offices, like county assessor’s offices or property registries. These records often include info about property ownership, transactions, and history, which can give you clues about an individual’s identity and location.
The best way to find someone online with property records search is to use online tools that let you access these documents digitally. Many local government websites provide free access to public property records through their online portals.
You can usually find detailed information by searching for a person’s name or address. Websites like Zillow or Realtor.com provide property listings and sales history, which can be useful for tracking ownership changes.
9. Create a Google Alert
Receive notifications whenever new content related to a specific search term appears on the internet? Possible! The only thing you need: setting up a Google Alert.
- Visit Google Alerts and sign in with your Google account.
- In the search bar, enter the person’s name, business name, or any other specific term you’re interested in.
- Google will then notify you whenever that term appears in new content on the web.
You can adjust the frequency of the alerts (as it happens, once a day, or once a week), the type of content (news, blogs, videos, etc.), and the sources (blogs, web, etc.).
Algorithm of Finding Out Personal Information About Someone
If you’re wondering how to find out personal information about someone for free, the key is combining different methods.
Start with a simple Google search to uncover public profiles or mentions. Social media is another powerful tool for digging deeper, as people often share personal information on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn. Then, use a people-finder tool like Searqle to find all the details you need.
