Find a Phone Number: Top Providers Announced

June 24, 2013 - PRLog -- The people behind FinderMind have spent years poring over companies specializing in reverse phone lookups, and take months to judge them accurately.

See the top-rated company on FreePhoneLocators.com


There are various types of companies that find information based on a phone search. Most of them cost some amount of money, and will offer a “full report” on your subjects, including an address, city, postal code, phone carrier and age. But some promise even more details, including a criminal background check, former historical sites that may have sat on the property and even the subject’s potential relatives.

The cost will often depend on which site and what’s being promised. More popular companies have flashier websites, and offer separate services (criminal checks, background checks) as well as reverse phone lookups. Others start and end at the phone number. According to FinderMind, depending on clients’ needs, a more thorough company may be a good deal for an investigation down the rabbit hole. But FinderMind also considers how good of a deal the payment system is; not every company offers a one-off payment of $5 for a phone, and instead will require a month-long membership for $20.

Reverse phone lookups have become increasingly common since the rise of the Internet. The iconic Yellow Pages have led the march in moving personal lookups from print to online, and since the beginning of their question to make anyone virtually accountable, dozens more websites have popped up to offer more thorough examinations.

Clients should be wary, though, of sites that offer more than they may provide. Reading their proposals carefully is necessary: some websites write plainly and in small font, “Report may include...” and then list meaty details like marital status, bankruptcies and liens, court records and possible relatives. The use of the word “may” is crucial and can often be misleading.

Other websites offer a “free trial” period which automatically signs consumers up for a monthly billing schedule. Providing your email and bank account details means that, unless you actively disengage your membership, you’ll be billed after a period of time. Companies like this bank on consumers simply forgetting that they signed up, while enough time passes that they become ineligible for a refund on the months they paid for. Even if you scan the small print and agreements, you’ll find the rules written in print confusingly enough that you may not fully understand it.