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How Do You Look Up a Phone Number for Free?

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Whether you're receiving strange phone calls from numbers you don't recognize or just want to learn the number of a person or organization you expect to be calling soon, there are plenty of reasons to look up a phone number. However, many services for looking up a phone number charge fees or even require you to have a subscription.

Fortunately, there are also ways to look up a number that cost nothing at all. With a bit of luck, one of these methods will get you the information you need.

Start With Search Engines

It may seem obvious, but one of the best and easiest ways to look up a phone number is simply entering either the number or its likely owner into whatever search engine you prefer to use. Entering in any information you might have about the owner alongside the number — say, their last name, profession or town or city — may help you refine the search further.

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Either way, you can also enter in the telephone area code to quickly determine where the call came from if nothing else. Just be aware that many people keep their old cell phone numbers when they move, so the area code might not be as useful if you're looking up an individual's phone number rather than a business.

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Fortunately, there are also ways to look up a number that cost nothing at all. With a bit of luck, one of these methods will get you the information you need.

Use a Free Search Service

If you don't remember the bygone era when most people used phone books to find phone numbers, you probably at least know of it. That time may be gone now, but the fundamental concept remains through websites like The Real Yellow Pages and Whitepages still serve the same role. In addition to letting you look up the phone numbers of businesses, you can also look for phone numbers based on address or addresses or names based on phone number.

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Both sites may sometimes have outdated or missing information, and they may only provide you with limited details for free. For instance, Whitepages only lists possible past cities lived in, age, relatives and number of cell and landlines unless you're willing to pay to unlock more information. Even so, it can sometimes be enough information to continue your search elsewhere.

Other free phone number look-up services also exist and may allow you to reverse search for phone numbers, email addresses, property addresses, names and more. However, they generally charge for any information beyond what Whitepages or The Real Yellow Pages offer, although the rates are generally cheap. Spokeo, for instance, offers its services for less than $2 a search and often has sales. Keep in mind, however, that all such sites are susceptible to outdated information.