Factual, plain-English answers about searching for federal, state, and county inmates in the United States — how locators work, what the different agencies do, and how to mail, fund, and visit someone in custody.
NmateFinder is a free directory and smart router that points you to official U.S. inmate locators — the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), all 50 state Departments of Corrections, and major county jails. We do not store, host, scrape, or sell inmate records; we link you to the agency that holds them.
Yes. Searching, browsing facilities, and using our guides is free. We don't charge for lookups, don't sell background reports, and don't gate any inmate-related content behind a paywall or registration.
No. We never copy, cache, or republish inmate records. When you search a name, we open the official government locator (BOP, state DOC, sheriff's office, ICE, etc.) and pre-fill the search where the locator supports it. The data you see comes directly from the agency.
No. NmateFinder is a privately operated platform run by StarNest LLC. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, ICE, the U.S. Marshals Service, or any state or county corrections agency.
Facility addresses, phone numbers, and locator URLs are manually verified and re-checked periodically (each facility and state page shows its last-verified date). However, government systems change without notice. Always confirm critical details — especially mailing addresses and visitation rules — directly with the facility before relying on them.
Enter the inmate's first and last name in the NmateFinder search bar. We open the federal BOP inmate locator and the major state DOC locators with the name pre-filled where supported. For county jails, you'll be linked to that sheriff's office roster, which usually requires you to type the name into their own search box.
Federal inmates are people convicted of federal crimes and held by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) — search them at the BOP Inmate Locator. State inmates are people convicted of state crimes and held by that state's Department of Corrections — each state has its own locator. County jail inmates are typically pre-trial detainees or people serving short sentences (under one year), held by a county sheriff. Each county runs its own roster, and there is no nationwide county-jail database.
Common reasons: (1) they were just arrested and haven't been booked into a searchable system yet — county booking can take 12–24 hours, federal intake can take days; (2) they're being held in transit by the U.S. Marshals or ICE, which use separate systems; (3) the name is misspelled, hyphenated differently, or filed under a middle name; (4) they've been released; (5) they're a juvenile and the record is sealed; (6) the locator itself is down for maintenance. Try variations of the name and check both county jail and state DOC.
County jail rosters update once booking is complete — usually within a few hours, but can take up to 24 hours. Federal BOP records appear after the U.S. Marshals transfer custody to the BOP, which can take days or weeks after sentencing. State DOC records appear once the person is transferred from county jail to a state facility, typically within a few weeks of sentencing.
Most locators only accept name, BOP register number, or state DOC ID. The BOP locator supports DOB and race filters as a tiebreaker. SSNs are never used for inmate search and you should never enter one on any third-party site claiming to do an inmate lookup. County booking numbers work on that county's jail roster only.
Generally no. Juvenile (under 18) records are sealed by law in nearly every U.S. jurisdiction and do not appear in public locators. A small number of states publish limited information for juveniles charged as adults; otherwise, juvenile custody information is only available to parents, legal guardians, and attorneys through direct contact with the facility.
No. Once a record is legally sealed or expunged, it is removed from public locators. If you previously saw a record and it has disappeared, that's the most likely explanation. Sealed records cannot be retrieved through any third-party site, and any service claiming to provide them is operating illegally.
Use the official Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator at bop.gov/inmateloc. You can search by BOP register number or by name plus optional filters like age, race, and sex. NmateFinder's federal page links you straight in with the name pre-filled.
A BOP register number is the unique 8-digit identifier (formatted as XXXXX-XXX) assigned to every federal inmate. It stays with the person for life across multiple sentences and is the most reliable way to look someone up if you have it. The trailing 3 digits indicate which federal district processed the inmate.
Only after they're transferred into BOP custody. People awaiting federal trial are usually held by the U.S. Marshals Service in contracted facilities (often county jails or private detention centers). The Marshals do not publish a public locator — you generally need to call the U.S. Marshals district office or the holding facility directly.
There is no public USMS inmate locator. To locate someone in Marshals custody, contact the U.S. Marshals office for the federal judicial district where they were arrested or charged. The Marshals can confirm custody and the holding facility but generally won't share details over the phone without a verified relationship.
Yes, through the ICE Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS) at locator.ice.gov. Search by A-Number (alien registration number) plus country of birth, or by full name plus DOB and country. ICE detainees do not appear in the BOP locator, even though some are held in BOP-contracted facilities.
Every U.S. state operates a Department of Corrections (DOC) inmate locator on its official .gov website. Browse the state list on NmateFinder, pick the state, and we'll link you directly to that DOC's search tool with verified URLs. State locators only show people currently in state DOC custody — not county jail or federal custody.
County jails are run by the county sheriff's office. Most large and mid-size counties publish an online jail roster — search the sheriff's office name plus 'inmate roster' or use NmateFinder's facility directory. Smaller and rural counties often have no online roster; in those cases, call the jail's booking line directly.
There are over 3,000 counties in the U.S. and each sheriff's office decides independently whether to publish a roster online. Smaller counties often lack the budget or IT staff to maintain one. There is no federal requirement to publish jail rosters online.
State systems occasionally go offline for maintenance, usually overnight or on weekends. Try again in a few hours. If it's down longer, you can call the DOC's central records office (linked from each state page on NmateFinder) and request a custody status check by phone — they're required to confirm whether someone is in custody, though they may not share location details with non-family.
You need three pieces of information on the envelope: the inmate's full committed name, their inmate ID or BOP register number, and the facility's mailing address (which is often different from its physical address). Most facilities also require the sender's full name and return address. See our mailing label tool for the correct format, and always check the specific facility's mail rules — many ban photocopies, glitter, stickers, perfume, drawings, and mail with stamps already affixed.
Most facilities use a third-party processor — JPay, GTL/ViaPath (Touchpay/Connect Network), Access Corrections, or TRULincs (federal). You'll need the inmate's ID and the facility name. Each processor charges a service fee. Federal inmates can also receive money via a U.S. Postal money order mailed to a centralized BOP lockbox in Iowa — never to the facility itself.
Visitation rules vary by facility. Generally you must (1) be on the inmate's approved visitor list, (2) submit a visitor application, and (3) schedule the visit in advance through the facility's portal or by phone. Federal BOP visits require a BP-A0629 form. Bring valid government ID and follow the facility's dress code — denim, gang colors, see-through clothing, and revealing outfits are typically banned.
Almost all U.S. prisons and jails require books to be shipped new, in their original packaging, directly from an approved retailer like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or a specialized prison book program. Books mailed by individuals are usually rejected and returned. Hardcover books are banned at many facilities. Confirm the rules with the specific facility before ordering.
Most state and federal facilities support email and video visitation through approved vendors — typically JPay (state), GTL/ViaPath (county), or CorrLinks/TRULincs (federal BOP). The inmate must add you to their approved contact list first. Messages are monitored, attachments are restricted, and per-message and per-minute fees apply.
Because NmateFinder does not host inmate records, we cannot remove or correct entries — those exist only in the official government locator and must be corrected by the agency that owns them (BOP, state DOC, or county sheriff). If you believe NmateFinder has inaccurate facility information, see our corrections page to submit a request.
No. Your searches on NmateFinder are not associated with any account, are not shared with the inmate, and are not reported to law enforcement. We use privacy-friendly Plausible analytics, which doesn't use cookies and doesn't collect personal data. When you click through to an official government locator, that agency's own privacy policy applies.
Browse our deeper educational guides, look up a specific state's DOC, or contact us. For record corrections or removal requests, see our corrections / DMCA page.
Notice: NmateFinder does not host inmate records. We route users to official sources. Always verify information directly with the relevant government agency.