Is there a way to find a person by name, especially their first name? Perhaps, you wish to get in touch with a long-lost friend or locate a long-lost relative. No doubt, finding someone by their name can be tricky. And it’s more challenging if you don’t know their surname.
However, it’s not impossible. There are several tools and techniques like people’s search websites, social engines, and phone tracking solutions you could try to find people. Read on to discover steps on how to find anyone using their name only.
How to Find a Person by Name Using People Search
So you might ask – how can I find someone with just a first name? When you have only their first name, the most efficient method is using a dedicated people search website. Often they require steep fees. But do a more thorough job of searching for any data related to that name.
Spokeo
Spokeo is an ideal tool for anyone looking to find a person by name, phone number, or physical address. What especially makes Spokeo stand out is that it will also comb through government documentation, criminal records databases, and social media accounts. So, it will compile data from all kinds of records and online sources to bring you data like their social media profiles, aliases, email/mail addresses, mutual connections, relatives, age, criminal records, and more. Spokeo can also help you find their most recent contact through its extensive phone directory. Plus, you’ll love how easily you can pinpoint the person’s address as well.
Spokeo is also easy to use, here’s how:
- Enter the name you want to find and click “Search Now”.
- Spokeo instantly compiles all the data it has on different people bearing that name. Now go through the search to quickly identify who precisely fits. Right away, you can see their age, and possible relatives to help you make your choice. Next, to any name that seems to fit your search click “See Results”.
- Clicking “See Results” will help you uncover more information such as their addresses. However, if you want to access their complete information, select “Unlock Profile”. Next, you’ll have to pay the fee for the search to continue.
- If you searched using their first name alone, Spokeo will prompt you to pay the fee right away by selecting “Unlock Results”, before you can go through the results.
Social Catfish
Social Catfish is a specialized engine you can use to locate a person by name. This fantastic tool puts together data from government databases and all sorts of digital sites. So, you’ll find information like their social media profiles, phone numbers, aliases, mutual contacts, home addresses, and more.
Social Catfish can also help you find any articles online that may have mentioned that person before thereby completing the view of their digital footprint. What especially makes Social Catfish stand out is that you can even upload an image and search with that instead of their name. The only downside to using this tool is that you must have very specific details like their exact city and age range.
To use Social Catfish:
- Enter the name you want to use and their country, and tap “Search”.
- Next, enter their state. Tap “Continue”.
- Enter their city and click “Continue”.
- Select an age range and click “Continue”. You can also skip this.
- Validate that you aren’t a robot and you’ll see the preliminary search for that name. Here you’ll find different profiles matching the name and showing their age and known locations.
- Pick whoever best matches your search and tap “See complete results”. Finally, pay the fee for your search.
TruthFinder
TruthFinder is a background check service that will find and compile public and personal information for that name. But you must have the person’s first and surname. You’ll find data like their resume, phone numbers, email/mail addresses, current and previous location, possible kin, professional background, age, bankruptcies, and criminal records. The only downside is that Truthfinder only works in the US.
To find person by name using Truthfinder:
- Enter the first name and surname of the person you want to find. You can also enter their state right away to narrow your search.
- Pick their biological sex and tap “Next”.
- Add their middle name if you know it and click ‘submit’ or ‘I don’t know’.
- Enter their age and city and click ‘submit’ or ‘I don’t know’.
- Finally agree to keep all found information confidential. Then you will have access to the preliminary searches.
- Browse through to pick the profile that best fits and tap “Open Report”.
Use Social Media to Find Person by Name Free
Social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook are also great places to find someone using their name. People often make their public profiles under their given name alongside their email address and location. So you can always find someone on social media using their name.
You could also try multiple variants of the same name since people frequently use a variant of their name online.
Another cool trick you should try is searching for your shared friends and connections. Often this might be more tedious as most social media platforms don’t have dedicated search buttons for navigating through your friend’s lists. You can also think of possible groups they might belong to on social media. Think of their hobbies, locations, schools, and places of employment. Such can help you narrow down the list of groups you want to join.
However, also note that people who have intentionally made their pages private might not show up on your search.
Facebook Search
Billions of people use Facebook, making it a great choice for anyone looking to find a person by name for free. On Facebook, you can use the search bar to find information by name. Alternatively, you can check your mutual connections and even “friends of friends”. If you also know them to be a part of specific groups, alumni networks, or communities, you can use Facebook to search for them. Often, joining these groups would give you access to their member lists.
To find people on Facebook by their name, follow these steps:
- On Facebook Search, enter their name and press the Enter key
- Filter search by navigating to the People tab. Under the People tab, you can further refine your search by “Friends”, “Education’, or “Work”.
- You can now click on each profile until you have the right person.
LinkedIn is a top-tier professional social networking site. It’s also a great place to find a person for free by name. On LinkedIn, your search outcomes might yield details like their resume, full name, previous and current employer, hobbies and interests, and a general idea of their possible location such as their city or state.
So, how do you find a person on Linkedin? Here are the steps:
- Use the search bar to search for their name even when you have only the first name. You can even search using variations of the same name. This is the quickest and easiest way to identify who you’re looking for.
- Click on any of the results
- You can also check using advanced search features to narrow your list by criteria such as industry, geography, current employer, previous employer, and more. You should also check your mutual connections to see if there’s someone connected to the person you’re looking for. And don’t also forget that some people hide their LinkedIn profiles, which you wouldn’t see via search or looking at common connections.
Use Search Engine to Locate Person by Name
Search engines offer billions of data you can filter through to find a person for free by name. However, trying to find details for a first name alone is impossible using this method. All you need to do is enter that name on search surrounded by quotation marks, followed by any other information you have such as their occupation, college, or birthplace. Search engines should reveal data like articles that may have mentioned them, direct links to their social media pages, possible matches on forums, and even personal websites.
However, if you’re searching for someone with a very popular name, you’ll have to go through many pages before you can find them.
You can start by using any of the three most popular search engines – Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and Yahoo.
Here’s how to find a person by name for free using Google search:
- Go to Google and write the person’s name in quotation marks. E.g. “Jane Smith”.
- Add additional information such as their city, or occupation. E.g “Jane Smith” Lawyer or “Jane Smith” Michigan University
- Check for different variations. For instance, if you also have their middle name you can try variations like “Jane S Smith”, “J.S. Smith” or “J. S Smith” Lawyer
- Try the image search option to see if there’s a photo of them. Finding someone with a picture is also a great and effective technique as well.
- Use different search engine pages to get a more complete picture as different engines might yield different outputs.
Use Phone Directory to Find Someone by Name
One of the most trustworthy ways to locate a person by name is using a phone directory. This method is fast, and efficient and was the preferred means of finding people before the internet became widespread. A phone directory, especially an old-fashioned phone book may not find their most present location.
If you also know their city, you could try a local phone directory. But you’ll be able to find their phone number and possible address where you can begin your search. However, if they use a mobile phone in place of a landline, it can be challenging to find them with a phone book.
Search Public Records to Find a Person
Public records websites are also a great source to find people. On such websites, you can find public details about such people including birth certificates, arrest records, family trees, government websites, and many more.
However, finding public documents can be time-consuming. Often, you would have to go down to county level, before you can confidently find the right person.
Bonus Tips: How to Find Someone by Phone Number
Sometimes you might benefit from a no-frills, straightforward solution to find anyone especially when you have their phone number. You can use this method directly or even after using any other technique we’ve listed to find possible contacts you can try. LocatePhone will help you find their precise location on the map, no matter where they are in the world. You won’t also have to download or install any software. It’s a great tool that reveals their location history, and phone carriers. You might even be able to check if their email is public.
To find people by phone number with LocatePhone:
- Go to LocatePhone Find People and enter their number. Tap “Locate”
- Enter your email address and click “Locate” again.
- LocatePhone quickly validates the number and deliver accurate results through the mapping.
Conclusion
So you may have wondered – how can I find a person with just a first name? Yes, it might seem impossible. But you can still find a person by name even when it’s their first name. All you need is patience and a meticulous mind and you’ll be able to locate them in no time.
