California public records are spread across state agencies and 58 counties. The Secretary of State (BizFile), the Department of Public Health, the DOJ, and county recorders and courts each hold different records. The California Public Records Act guarantees broad access, though vital records and compiled criminal histories carry the usual privacy limits.
California runs a split system: a handful of statewide databases sit on top of 58 county governments that each hold their own land, court, and marriage files. The Secretary of State operates BizFile Online for corporations and LLCs, the Department of Justice controls compiled criminal history, and the California Department of Public Health administers birth, death, and marriage certificates. Everything tied to real property — deeds, liens, assessed values, transfer taxes — lives with the county recorder and assessor where the parcel sits, which is why a Los Angeles County lookup looks nothing like a Humboldt County one.
The California Public Records Act gives any requester the right to inspect agency records without stating a purpose, and a 2023 amendment pushed agencies toward posting frequently requested files proactively. In practice that means assessor parcel data, campaign finance filings, and code-enforcement histories are often already online, while records containing personal identifiers require a written request. Criminal history is the sharpest exception: the DOJ will only release a rap sheet to the subject of the record, so background research has to be reconstructed from individual county court records instead.
The Superior Courts are the other complication. There is no unified statewide docket search — each of the 58 Superior Courts publishes its own case index, with wildly different coverage and fees. Los Angeles, San Diego, and Orange County offer usable free name searches; smaller courts may require a terminal visit to the courthouse. For anything federal, PACER covers the four California district courts. Our state-by-state guide to finding public records online walks through the order to search these in.
Last Updated: September 2026 · Reviewed quarterly by the Searchadex editorial team.
Assessor data is free; recorded deeds often require a county login or copy fee.
No unified statewide search; each Superior Court runs its own case portal.
Search LLCs and corporations; Statement of Information status shown.
Index/ordering online; certified copies restricted and fee-based.
Compiled history restricted to the subject; CDCR locator free.
Free status check; bulk file restricted to authorized uses.
Free name and address search run by CA DOJ.
Free search and claim; CA does not participate in MissingMoney.
No. Each of California's 58 Superior Courts runs its own case index, so you have to know the county where a case was filed. Large courts like Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange, and Santa Clara publish free online name searches; several rural courts still require an in-person terminal lookup. Federal matters are searchable in PACER across the state's four district courts.
California administers its unclaimed property program independently and does not feed the multi-state MissingMoney database. Search the State Controller's Unclaimed Property site directly by last name and city. See our walkthrough on how to find unclaimed money in your name for the claim steps.
Yes. California is a disclosure state — recorded grant deeds carry documentary transfer tax, and county assessors publish sale prices and assessed values. Because of Proposition 13, however, the assessed value on a long-held property can sit far below market value and should not be read as a current appraisal.
You can order one, but only authorized parties — the person named, a parent, spouse, or legal representative — receive a certified copy. Everyone else receives an informational copy stamped as invalid for identity. Recent records go through CDPH or the county recorder where the event occurred.
Official portals verify a single record. For compiled multi-source reports, these paid tools go further. Not government sources.
People search, contact info, and background reports.
Reverse phone, email, and people lookup.
Background checks and public-records reports.
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