Texas public records are governed by the Texas Public Information Act and held across 254 counties plus state agencies. Business filings run through the Comptroller and SOSDirect, property data through county appraisal districts, and courts through re:SearchTX and county district clerks.
Texas splits records duty three ways: state agencies, 254 county governments, and a separate appraisal district in every county. Business entities are filed with the Secretary of State through SOSDirect, but the free way in is the Comptroller's Taxable Entity Search, which confirms an entity's franchise-tax standing and registered agent without a subscription. County clerks hold deeds, liens, and marriage licenses; district clerks hold felony and civil case files; and the county appraisal district — not the assessor — publishes owner name, parcel maps, and assessed value.
The Texas Public Information Act sets a ten-business-day clock for agencies to respond or ask the Attorney General for a ruling, and the AG publishes those open-records decisions, which makes Texas unusually transparent about what it withholds. Criminal history is available two ways: the DPS Computerized Criminal History site sells statewide conviction searches for a small fee, and county district clerk portals show underlying case documents free. TDCJ's inmate search covers anyone currently in state custody.
The one thing Texas will not tell you is what a house sold for. Texas is a non-disclosure state, so sale prices are not recorded on deeds and appraisal districts publish assessed value instead of transaction price. Buyers and researchers work around it with appraisal-district value history, deed-of-trust loan amounts, and MLS data. For the ownership side of that lookup, our guide on how to find out who owns a property covers the appraisal-district route in detail, and the property records hub links every state's equivalent.
Last Updated: September 2026 · Reviewed quarterly by the Searchadex editorial team.
Each county's CAD publishes owner, value, and parcel maps free online.
Statewide re:SearchTX exists; full access often via county clerks.
Free Comptroller search; certified SOSDirect documents carry fees.
Free verification/index search; certified copies fee-based.
DPS public site charges per search; TDCJ inmate search free.
Free status and precinct lookup; bulk file fee-based.
Free name, ZIP, and proximity search.
Free statewide search and online claims.
Yes. Texas does not require sale prices to be disclosed or recorded, so county deed records show the parties and the transfer but not the purchase amount. Appraisal district assessed values, recorded deed-of-trust amounts, and comparable sales published by lenders are the usual substitutes.
Both, for different things. re:SearchTX aggregates e-filed civil dockets statewide, while the district clerk in the county of filing holds the complete file, including criminal and older paper cases. Harris, Dallas, Bexar, and Travis counties all publish free searchable indexes.
Use the Comptroller's Taxable Entity Search for free — it shows franchise-tax status, right-to-transact-business standing, and the registered agent. SOSDirect has the formation documents and certified copies but charges per search. Our business records hub links both.
Yes, with a fee for the statewide view. DPS sells name-based Computerized Criminal History searches covering convictions and deferred adjudications statewide; individual county district and county-court-at-law portals show case-level records free. Sealed and expunged matters do not appear in either.
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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