The Illinois Department of Corrections runs the search for people in Illinois state prisons. Here is how to use it, what it covers, and where to look if the person is not there.
- Agency
- Illinois Department of Corrections
- Official search
- Individual in Custody Search
Open the Individual in Custody Search
How to search the IDOC inmate list
The Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) runs a public search called Individual in Custody Search.
- Illinois calls people in its prisons "individuals in custody", so the search goes by that name.
Illinois state prisons we list
We do not copy the Illinois prison inmate list yet. These are the state prisons in our Illinois directory, with address, phone and visiting basics. Use the department's search above to find a person.
- Big Muddy River Correctional Center State prison in Ina
- Centralia Correctional Center State prison in Centralia
- Clayton Work Camp State prison in Clayton
- Crossroads Atc State prison in Chicago
- Danville Correctional Center State prison in Danville
- Decatur Correctional Center State prison in Decatur
- Dixon Correctional Center State prison in Dixon
- Dixon Springs Impact Incarceration Program (IIP) State prison in Golconda
- Du Quoin Structured Impact Program (DQSIP) State prison in Du Quoin
- East Moline Correctional Center State prison in East Moline
- Fox Valley Atc State prison in Aurora
- Graham Correctional Center State prison in Hillsboro
- Greene County Work Camp State prison in Roodhouse
- Hill Correctional Center State prison in Galesburg
- Idhs Treatment / Detention Facility State prison in Rushville
- Illinois River Correctional Center State prison in Canton
- Jacksonville Correctional Center State prison in Jacksonville
- Joliet Inpatient Treatment Center State prison in Joliet
- Joliet Treatment Center State prison in Joliet
- Kewanee Life Skills Re-Entry Center State prison in Kewanee
- Lawrence Correctional Center State prison in Sumner
- Lincoln Correctional Center State prison in Lincoln
- Logan Correctional Center State prison in Lincoln
- Menard Correctional Center State prison in Menard
- Menard Medium Security Unit State prison in Menard
- Murphysboro Life Skills Reentry Center State prison in Murphysboro
- North Lawndale Atc State prison in Chicago
- Northern Reception and Classification Center State prison in Joliet
- Peoria Atc State prison in Peoria
- Pinckneyville Correctional Center State prison in Pinckneyville
- Pittsfield Work Camp State prison in Pittsfield
- Pontiac Correctional Center State prison in Pontiac
- Pontiac Medium Security Unit State prison in Pontiac
- Robinson Correctional Center State prison in Robinson
- Shawnee Correctional Center State prison in Vienna
- Sheridan Correctional Center State prison in Sheridan
- Southwestern Illinois Correctional Center State prison in East St Louis
- Southwestern Illinois Work Camp State prison in East St Louis
- Stateville Correctional Center State prison in Joliet
- Stateville Minimum Security Unit State prison in Joliet
- Taylorville Correctional Center State prison in Taylorville
- Vandalia Correctional Center State prison in Vandalia
- Vandalia Work Camp State prison in Vandalia
- Vienna Correctional Center State prison in Vienna
- Western Illinois Correctional Center State prison in Mount Sterling
Which IDOC do you need?
"IDOC" is short for more than one state's corrections department, and each one searches only its own state. This page is about the Illinois Department of Corrections. If the person was sentenced in another state, use that state's page:
- Idaho: Idaho Department of Correction. Search tool: Resident/Client Search. Search by last name or IDOC number (at least the first two letters of the last name, or the first three digits of the number).
- Indiana: Indiana Department of Correction. Search tool: Incarcerated Search. Search by last name, first and last name, or DOC number.
- Iowa: Iowa Department of Corrections. Search tool: Iowa Offender Search. Search by first, middle and last name, offender number, sex, location, offense or county of commitment.
State prison, county jail or federal prison?
The Illinois Department of Corrections holds people serving state prison sentences. Someone arrested in the last few days is almost always in a county jail instead, and will not show up in the state prison search yet. For a recent arrest, start with the county: open our Illinois page and pick the county where the arrest happened.
People sentenced for federal crimes are held by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, which has its own search. See federal inmate search (BOP).
After you find them
- Visits: most prisons require you to be on the person's approved visitor list first. How visiting works.
- Money: how to send money and how commissary works.
- Mail and calls: sending mail, phone calls and video visits.
- Release and transfer alerts: VINE notifications.
Questions
Someone was just arrested in Illinois. Will they be in the IDOC search?
Usually not. People who were just arrested are held in a county jail first. They are moved to a state prison only after a sentence to state prison. Check the county jail where the arrest happened.
What does IDOC stand for?
It depends on the state. The Idaho Department of Correction, the Illinois Department of Corrections and the Indiana Department of Correction all use IDOC on their own websites, and people also use it for the Iowa Department of Corrections.
Can one IDOC search find people in another state?
No. Each department only lists people in its own state system. Search the state where the person was sentenced.
Is searchinmates.org part of the Illinois Department of Corrections?
No. searchinmates.org is a private website. It is not affiliated with the Illinois Department of Corrections or any government agency. The department's own search is the source of record.
Sources
We opened each of these pages on October 14, 2026. Rules and numbers change, so check the source before you act.
- Individual in Custody Search, Illinois Department of Corrections. How the search works and what it covers.
- Correctional Institutions, Bureau of Justice Statistics. How jails (run locally) differ from prisons (run by a state or the federal government).
searchinmates.org is a private website, not a government site, and is not affiliated with any agency named here. This page is general information, not legal advice. Removing a record from our site is always free: request removal.