Not long ago, everyone had a standard phone in their home and finding a number or address was a matter of opening the yellow pages and finding the name. This has become more difficult now that cell phones are widely used and many people do not even have landlines, and if they do their number may be unpublished.

Even with the invention of caller ID on most landlines, many numbers may come up without an identifying name and there are ways for callers to prevent their name from showing up. Reverse phone lookup providers have stepped up to these changing times to offer a very useful service to resourceful phone users.

There are two common functions for these directories.

Searching for Names

If you are getting calls from someone and only a number shows on your ID, or you want to figure out cell phone callers, reverse phone lookup directories can help you find out the name registered to the phone number in question. Just by typing in the phone number you will be able to identify whoever is initiating the phone calls in question.

People needing such services include those who need to check up on a number often calling their spouse or children's cell phone, since there is no accessible directory for cell phone numbers. Other people may use lookup directories when they need to know a name connected to a home phone that may be unpublished. Anytime you have a phone number but aren't sure who it belongs to, a reverse phone lookup directory can deliver the information.

Locating Addresses

another typical use is to locate an address for someone, whether you know the name of the person or not. Once you gain access to the contact information linked with a particular phone number most directories will give other sorts of information as well, such as the address of an landline or an address connected to a cell phone number.

This may not be a common need for some people, but it does have its benefits in quite a few situations. For example, take a parent needing to locate a teenager who has run away or is still out long after curfew. If they can come up with numbers from the teenager's bedroom or cell phone a lookup directory could quickly uncover addresses as well as names of places the teenager may be at that time.

More common circumstances may be searching for addresses to send out party invitations to your child's classmates. If you have their phone number you can access their address and easily deliver the invite without calling and tracking down other busy parents.

Lookup websites can also deliver access to other various types of information, like income brackets and address histories, and one site even gives a map with an estimated pinpoint of where the home or business is located.

There is a small charge for any up to date reverse phone lookup directory, but if your business or personal life demands particular data it is worth the money in the end. The charge is necessary because this sort of information is not easy or free to research, compile, and save, so distributing it immediately to others like you must also include a charge to cover these working costs.

There likely will never be a phone book for cellular numbers, and even if there were it is probable many of the numbers would be unlisted as is the case with many landline numbers today. The best way to get access to these numbers is to give a small fee either to complete a single phone number search or to join a lookup directory if you will be using the directory on a regular basis.