It used to be that everyone had a landline phone in their home and searching for a number or address simply required opening the white pages and locating the name. This has become more complex now that cell phones are in common use and many people do not even have landlines, and if they do their number may be unpublished.

Even with the widespread use of caller ID on most landlines, many numbers may show up without an identifying name and there are ways for callers to stop their details from showing up. Reverse phone lookup directories have responded to these changing times to offer a very timely service to modern phone users.

There are two common functions for lookup directories.

Locating Names

If you are getting calls from someone and only a number is revealed on your caller ID, or you need to figure out cellular phone callers, reverse phone lookup services can help you find out the name listed to the phone number in question. Just by entering the phone number you will have access to the person who is responsible for the calls of concern.

People needing this service include those who need to check up on a number constantly texting their spouse or teenager's cell phone, since there is no accessible directory for cell phone numbers. Other people may use lookup directories when they want to know a name listed to a home phone that may be unpublished. Anytime you have a phone number but are uncertain who it is connected to, a reverse phone lookup service can deliver the information.

Finding Addresses

The other common function is to find an address for someone, whether you know the name of the person or not. Once you find the information connected with a certain number most services will deliver additional information as well, which includes the address of the home phone or an address listed to a cell phone number.

This may not be an everyday need for most people, but it does have its benefits in some situations. Such as a parent needing to locate a teenager who has run off or has not returned home long after curfew. If they can find phone numbers from the teenager's belongings or cell phone a reverse phone lookup could quickly reveal addresses as well as names of locations the child may be at that time.

Other situations may be looking for addresses to send out party invitations to your child's peers. If you have the phone number you can access their address and get the invite in the mail without calling and tracking down other busy people.

Lookup directories can also deliver access to other kinds of information, like income brackets and previous addresses, and one site even gives a map with an rough pinpoint of where the home or business is located.

There is a minor fee for any up to date reverse phone lookup website, but if your business or personal life demands particular information it is more than worth the payoff in the long run. The charge is unavoidable because this variety of information is not simple or free to research, collect, and save, so distributing it immediately to consumers such as you must also come with a charge to make up for such operational expenditures.

There more than likely will never be a public directory for cellular numbers, and even if they were compiled it is probable many of the numbers would be unpublished just like many landline numbers right now. The only way to obtain access to these phone numbers is to pay a minor fee either to complete a single phone number lookup or to join a lookup directory if you will be using the service on a regular basis.