Free Public Records Search Portal Review

Free Public Records Search Review – Comparison Of Various Free Public Records Search Portals

There are dozens of one-stop portals where you can conduct your almost free public records search. We put every single service through our review based on a set of stringent requirements such as the responsiveness of the customer support, the pricings, user feedback, extensiveness of public records, format of reporting and how easy and quick it is to search for the records.

Here are the results of our review of these one-stop portals.

No.1 Free Public Records Search Portal

Government-Records




This site is fast and we can run an instant public records search without going through many different buttons and functions. The interface is easy to use and intuitive. Everyone should be able to search without going through any tutorial or instructions.

You will be able to conduct a search for public records, death records, marriage and divorce filings, county public records, criminal background records and so on. While other services are also able to provide such information, we find their additional service of providing records like cemetery records, local newspaper archives, and even county court records a big plus point!

Their database is huge with over 400 million public records which means that you are very likely to find the information you need.

The pricing is competitive and reasonable. There is only 1 option.

1 Year Gold Membership Unlimited Access at $29.95

We love this site because of its professional and instant loading search interface, its easy to understand and organized reporting format and its intelligent data matching tool.

Government-Records has an added advantage over its competitors - a new cutting edge feature to locate records that are not digitized yet. Many people are using this to conduct genealogy research and trace their family trees.

No.2 Free Public Records Search Portal

Gov-Resources

Gov-Resources is a top public records search portal that carries over 200 million public records. It is constantly beefing up its database with the latest records. It has a user-friendly interface, excellent customer support as well as good pricings. Take a look at its packages.

5 Year Ultimate Investigation Search Pass at $29.99 *Most Popular*
***Includes Unlimited People Searches for United States, United Kingdom, Canada, & Australia.

1 Year Unlimited People Searches at $19.99

Here are some of the testimonials of existing users here:

"Using Gov-Resources helped me find the appropriate background checks on my new employees. This method saved me a great deal of time! Thanks."
-David Lohan

" My daughter went missing over a year ago and the police closed the investigations. I used your Gov-Resources missing people search and instantly had leads on my daughter. Thank-you so much! "
-Dianne Lemming

"I love this classmate search! I was able to locate almost my entire high school class for our reunion. Thanks Gov-Resources, this tool is very helpful!"
-Mya Banks

"All I had to do was fill in the phone number of my friend and I instantly was given their address, name and more! All the information I needed to find. Once I found these results I used many other phone numbers in this search and found tons of information!"
-Louise Walker

" This is the most unique search tool I have found on the internet today. I was able to track down my family history in just a few short minutes! Great research tool. "
-Patty Lynne

No.3 Free Public Records Search Portal

Government Registry

You can browse through the following quick stats.

Update frequency: Daily

Public records on file: 1,247,528,873

Database photographs on file: 1,592,733

New records added in the past 7 days: 677

This service is a power house of public records with well over 1 billion records to date. While it has more records than Government-Records and Gov-Resources, it is also pricier than the two. This is why we are ranking as No.3.

If you only need to do a couple of searches, you definitely want to go for the most economical option. However, if you work in the investigation industry, we will not hesitate to recommend Government Registry to you. After all, it has the largest database among its competitors and also provide a easy to use and search friendly interface. We also find its customer and technical support competent and friendly.

These are its packages:

Instant Report Access at $29.95

Add 1 Year Unlimited* Search Pass at $9.95

For an additional $9.95, you can get Unlimited Background Searches and access to all their resources.

* Unlimited Searches May Include: Basic Background Searches, People Searches by Name, People Searches by Phone, People Searches by Address, Relative Searches, Business Search by Name and Phone, Reverse IP Search, Census Search, Property Records Search

Ready to run your near free public records search?

Free Public Records Search Q&A

Free Public Records Search – Questions & Answers About Public Records Search

You may have some questions about the one-stop portals we spoke about. Since you can expect an almost free public records search here, it can be a useful resource to use when you need to perform a background check today.

They are frequented by professionals who need to perform background checks and investigations. Even individuals like you and me need to occasionally run searches here for public records.

The beauty about these services is that they do have a one-time payment option which allows you the privilege to run unlimited checks for a flat fee of less than $50. For frequent users, this is extremely affordable. If you just need a single search, they also offer such a package.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are these one-stop portals for public records for?

They are databases or directories of public records. Anyone is able to use them without having to apply for authorization. The records can be used for business or personal usage. The user should handle such information in accordance with the rules and regulations stated by the one-stop public records portals.

What public records are available?

There are dozens of records you will find in the databases. Such databases include:

Arrest Records
Birth Records
Bankruptcy Records
Corporate Filings
Civil Court Filings
Court Records
Courthouses
Criminal Files
Correctional Files
Cemetery Records
Criminal Traces
Death Files
Family History
Federal Court Dockets
Felony Arrests
Genealogy Databases
Grave Finder
Incarceration Records
Inmate Locator
Inmates Records
Judgment Records
Juvenile Files
Locate People
Lien Records
Military Records
Missing Persons
Old Marriage Records
People Search
Personal Record Finder
Personal History
Prison Records

Which countries’ public records can you find in the portals?

Other than US, you are able to run a free public records search for records in countries such as Australia, Canada and United Kingdom.

What can you do with such information?

Most users use the portal to find missing persons or to conduct background checks on another individual for personal and business reasons.

Are there any limitations to the way you can use the information?

Yes. Please read the terms and conditions stated by the portals. On a general note, you are not allowed to use the data to harm or embarrass another individual. You cannot file the information as the ancillary document for pre-screening a potential job applicant though you can use it for personal reference.

Will anyone know that I am searching for the information?

The whole process is 100% confidential. No one is able to trace your searches. All your data is transferred to a secured page meant only for your eyes and usage. These one-stop portals emphasize a lot on the security and privacy protection so that their customers can be assured of 100% confidentiality.

Can you find confidential records such as credit reports?

There are some kinds of records you will not find through your public records search. They are credit reports, credit score, consumer credit reports, tax records and bank records. Such information is protected under the non-disclosure clauses of the federal and state laws.

In the next post, you will read about our detailed review of the one-stop portals for public records.

Free Public Records Search Portals

This post will answer an age-old question of whether you can do a free public records search.

Public records used to be stored physically in stacks of files and folders. You can imagine the piles and piles of documents stashed away in some old rusty cabinets. This was at least one to two decades ago.

Today, all the public records are filed online in huge databases under the custodian of various public agencies and state authorities.

While you may be able to retrieve public birth records from the city council or public statistics department, rarely can you find the whole range of details like death records, marriage records, court records and so on in a single government agency.

Also, the process to search public records starts with a formal application to the specific public agency which can take days to weeks. Once authorized, you may then proceed with your check. While the search is free, you do have to pay for the report should you need to bring it home with you.

So yes, you can run a free public records search, but if you need the documents, be ready to pay. At the same time, the search is not instant and can be laborious.

Obviously, in order to dig out enough information on a person, you need more than just one kind of records. This can mean running to various places and repeat the entire process again.

While it is good to be able to run a free public records search, however, it will take weeks to be able to search. You also need to pay if you need the records.

The faster and cheaper way to run a public records search is to use a one-stop public records search database or directory. With a few simple clicks, you can retrieve practically all kinds of records online.

These paid services are professional services that have a huge and sophisticated network of databases where all public records are kept. You can find any government public records as well as private records.

Whether it is birth, death, criminal, civil, police arrests, warrants, real estate, tax, marriage, divorce records, phone number or residential address, you will be able to search and find your desired records successfully.

This is what the folks in the investigation industry call it the “Tell All” one-stop database.

While you cannot do a free public records search here, do not feel disappointed. It is so affordable to perform a search here that it is almost free. All you need to pay is a nominal fee.

Contrast this to hiring a private investigator for a few hundred dollars or going from place to place just to search and compile all your information, you will find it convenient, time saving and most important of all, deliver the exact details you want.

Stay tuned for more information about these one-stop portal to run an almost free public records search.

Free Public Records Search – Why?

Free Public Records Search – Why Do You Need A Public Records Search?

Why do you need to run a free public records search? If you are working in a field where investigations are needed, it is understandable. Investigations could be necessary to investigate an insurance claim, a crime or even as preparation for a law suit.

The usual people who needs to run public records searches are the law enforcers, insurance claims officers, lawyers, legal associates, and other professionals in their course of work.

As for the individual folk like us, when do we need to run such a free public records search?

Before you quickly dismiss the need to search public records, consider the following situations. These are all common scenarios where people eagerly need to perform such background checks.

1. Business Deal. Before entering into a business transaction with a business associate, you need to make sure that this person is trustworthy and has strong financial backings. You want to know whether he is in debt or dire financial state or worse off, a bankrupt!

2. Buying A Home. When you are making a home purchase, you do want to check out your neighbors. I am sure you do not want to live next to dubious characters only to regret the decision to buy the home.

3. Background Check On Date. A lot of people are participating in speed dating and online dating. Before seriously going on a date, it is safe to first check out your potential date.

4. Renting Out A Room. Before you rent out that empty room to someone, you do want to do a background check on your potential tenant.

5. Buying A Used Car. You can run a free public records search for details of the previous car owner. This will tell you whether the owner is an ex-convict or offender and whether he still owes the bank some money and the car could possibly be repossessed.

6. Hiring A Part-time Nanny. There are just too many horrible stories about nannies ill-treating the kids they are taking care of. You do want to be sure that the person you are hiring has a clean record.

There are a thousand and one other reasons when a free public records search is handy.

Free Public Records Search

Free Public Records Search

While there are many people looking to run a free public records search, can you really conduct a search for free? If so, how do you go about conducting a public records search?

Why do you need a public records search?

If you are a law enforcement officer, an investigator, lawyer or law associate, insurance claims investigator or just about anyone who needs to find out more about a person, dead or alive, that is when you would need a public records search.

What are the types of public records searches available?

Birth Record Search
Phone Number Search
Address Search
Criminal Search
Court Record Search
Inmate Record Search
Marriage Record Search
Death Record Search
Obituary Search
Cemetery Search
Bankruptcy Search
Sex Offender Search
Military Record Search

People also conduct a public records search for other records but they are less common.

Read on for more information on how to conduct a free public records search.