Federal Prison Inmate Search


To perform a federal inmate search, click here. You are required to have an exact first and last name match. You will need both a first and last name.

When the inmate comes up, you will see links that allow you to get information about the facility, how to call or email the inmate, how to send mail, money or a package, how to visit or voice a concern.


Let's make sure there is no confusion about a federal inmate search.

-Federal inmates are those individuals who have been convicted of a federal crime. Upon sentencing, they will serve their time in a federal prison somewhere in the US.

-State inmates have been convicted of state crimes and will serve their time in state correctional facility. You can locate those inmates by clicking on a state name on the left side of the page.

-County or city jails typically hold inmates convicted of more minor offenses and generally serve less time than federal or state inmates.


Federal Bureau of Prisons

The Federal Bureau of Prisons many times is referred to by the abbreviation "BOP".  The BOP  has 117 institutions, 6 regional offices, a Central Office (headquarters), 2 staff training centers and 22 community corrections offices. They also contract with 12 private prisons which house federal inmates. As of 2017, they supervise over 185,000  inmates.


Lompac Federal Prison located in California. This is a medium security prison with an adjacent minimum security satellite camp.

Federal Prison Locator

Do you want information about a particular institution or correctional facility? Click here to locate a prison.  This page will give you a list of all the prison locations. You can also see all the prisons on a US map. You can also get additional information on population and prison statistics.

Once you find the facility, you will also be able to follow links to contact information and visiting information. Note: there are alot of abbreviations. (The government loves acrynyms.) Here is what they mean:

  • CCM: Community Corrections
  • FCC: Federal Correctional Complex
  • FCI: Federal Correctional Institution
  • FMC: Federal Medical Center
  • FPC: Federal Prison Camp
  • MDC: Metropolitan Detention Center
  • USP: United States Penitentiary

You can find on the BOP web site lots of additional information other than what you need to perform a federal inmate search. There are great resources for former inmates including and downloadable document titled: Reentering Your Community-A Handbook. Also you can find articles on employment assistance and information on how you can obtain your GED.


Home: Federal Inmates

Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.