WI · Find someone in custody

How do I find someone in jail or prison in Wisconsin?

Take a breath. You can find where your person is being held in Wisconsin using official sources — here is exactly where to look and what to have ready.

State locator: Wisconsin DOC Offender Locator
VINELink: Covers Wisconsin
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Jurisdiction: Wisconsin

Which system is holding them in Wisconsin?

There is no single search that covers everyone. Match the situation to the right official locator — most families start with the first one.

If the arrest was recent

Start with the county jail

County jail rosters are fragmented: some Wisconsin sheriffs publish an online 'who's in jail' / inmate roster, many do not.

The reliable statewide online path is Wisconsin's Statewide VINE system (search at vinelink.com, choose Wisconsin), which covers custody status for people held in county jail / sheriff custody and lets you register for free phone, email, or text alerts when that status changes; VINE has a live operator 24/7.

Note WI-VINE covers sheriff/county-jail custody, not people under Wisconsin DOC supervision.

For a very recent booking or the bail/bond amount, call the county jail's booking or records line directly.

County jails are run by the 72 county sheriffs; online jail rosters exist in some counties but not others. Use Wisconsin Statewide VINE (vinelink.com, select Wisconsin) for county-jail custody status, or the county sheriff's own jail roster where one is published, and call the county jail for very recent bookings and bail amounts. Wisconsin's DOC Offender Locator does NOT include county-jail inmates.

Search VINELink (choose Wisconsin)

If they were sentenced to prison

Use the state prison locator

It is a public search for people in WI DOC custody - state adult prisons and DOC field/community supervision - searchable by name or DOC number.

DOC states the database EXCLUDES people sentenced to a county jail, juvenile offenders, and certain others, and cautions that it makes no guarantee of accuracy and that information can change quickly and may not reflect the person's true current location, status, or release date.

Because it excludes county jail, this locator is for someone already sentenced to state prison, not someone just arrested.

Open the Wisconsin inmate locator

If the charge is federal

Search the Federal Bureau of Prisons

A federal charge means the person is in the federal system, not a Wisconsin state or county facility. Search the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator by name or register number — it is separate from every state and county tool.

Search the Federal BOP locator

Finding your person in Wisconsin, step by step

Work through these in order. Each step points to an official source — you do the searching there, on the government site.

Step 1

Figure out where the person is likely held

If they were arrested recently and not released, they are almost certainly in the COUNTY JAIL of the county where the arrest happened (run by the county Sheriff). If they were already sentenced to state prison, they are in WISCONSIN DOC custody. If the charge is federal, they are in federal custody (use the Federal Bureau of Prisons locator).
Official source
Step 2

For a recent arrest, use Wisconsin VINE or the county sheriff's jail roster

Search Wisconsin Statewide VINE at vinelink.com (choose Wisconsin) by name to check county-jail custody status, and register for free alerts. If the county sheriff publishes an online jail roster, that is another official source. If nothing shows online yet, call the county jail's booking/records line to confirm custody and the bail/bond amount.
Official source
Step 3

For a sentenced state-prison inmate, use the Wisconsin DOC Offender Locator

Search the Wisconsin DOC Offender Locator (appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/) by name or DOC number to confirm the state facility and status. Remember it excludes county-jail inmates, juveniles, and some others.
Official source
Step 4

For a federal arrest, use the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator

If the charge is federal, search the BOP inmate locator by name or register number instead of the state or county tools.
Official source

What you’ll need to search

You can start with just a name, but these make a match faster and surer.

The person's full legal name, plus any aliases, nickname, or maiden name.
Date of birth, which helps confirm the right person when names match.
If you have one, a DOC number (for the state Offender Locator) or a booking/jail number (for a county jail or VINE) - helpful but usually not required to search by name.

Use official, free sources — and a few things to watch for

Use only official sources: the WI DOC Offender Locator (appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/) for state prison, Wisconsin Statewide VINE (vinelink.com) or the county sheriff's jail roster for a just-arrested person, and a call to the county jail for very recent bookings. Confirm a match by full name and date of birth, since name-only matches are common.
Wisconsin's DOC Offender Locator does not include county-jail inmates, juveniles, or certain others, and DOC warns the data may not reflect the person's true current location, status, or release date.
Custody data can lag. Someone booked within the last few hours may not appear online yet; VINE jail data typically refreshes about every 15 minutes, but if an official source shows nothing, call the county jail's booking or records line.
Be wary of paid data-broker 'inmate search' and mugshot sites. They are not official, often charge fees, and may show stale, incomplete, or expunged records.
This tool only links to official sources. It does not store, search, or republish any inmate records itself.

How release works in Wisconsin

Finding the person comes first. Once you know where they are, this is how getting them out works in Wisconsin.

No commercial bail

In Wisconsin, there is no commercial bail-bond industry — there is no bondsman to hire and no premium to pay. A judge decides whether the person is released, often on their own recognizance or on set conditions, and any money bail the court orders is paid directly to the court.

Wisconsin does not have commercial bail bondsmen.

Wisconsin is one of only four states (with Illinois, Kentucky, and Oregon) that prohibit for-profit surety bail bonding.

Wisconsin law is explicit: under Wis. Stat. sec. 969.12(2), 'No surety under this chapter may be compensated for acting as such a surety,' so there is no private, for-profit bail-bond industry to hire.

Instead, release is set by the court under Wis. Stat. chapter 969.

After arrest a person is brought before a judge or court commissioner for an initial appearance, where the court sets conditions of release.

Common forms are a signature bond (a written promise to appear, also called a personal recognizance bond, with no money required) or a cash bond.

When a cash bond is set, the full cash amount is posted directly with the clerk of circuit court, not a percentage paid to a bondsman; Wisconsin generally does not use a 10 percent deposit option.

If all conditions and court appearances are met, the cash is returned at the end of the case, though the court may apply part of it to fines, costs, or restitution.

No private bondsman is involved at any step.

The person’s rights. The person in custody has the right to talk to a lawyer about their case, and if they cannot afford one, the court can appoint a public defender.

Other official Wisconsin contacts

County jails are run by the sheriff where the arrest happened — call that jail’s booking or records line for a very recent booking or the bail amount. These statewide sources can also help.

If there is also a warrant to deal with

Two companion guides pick up where this one leaves off — checking for a warrant, and resolving it on your own terms.

Check for a warrant in Wisconsin Worried the person has an open warrant too? Check first, state by state. Resolve a warrant in Wisconsin If they need to resolve a warrant, this walks through turning yourself in calmly.

Common questions about finding someone in Wisconsin

How do I find someone who was just arrested in Wisconsin?

Someone who was just arrested in Wisconsin and not released is almost always held in a COUNTY JAIL run by that county's Sheriff, not in a state prison - so the DOC Offender Locator will not show them. County jail rosters are fragmented: some Wisconsin sheriffs publish an online 'who's in jail' / inmate roster, many do not. The reliable statewide online path is Wisconsin's Statewide VINE system (search at vinelink.com, choose Wisconsin), which covers custody status for people held in county jail / sheriff custody and lets you register for free phone, email, or text alerts when that status changes; VINE has a live operator 24/7. Note WI-VINE covers sheriff/county-jail custody, not people under Wisconsin DOC supervision. For a very recent booking or the bail/bond amount, call the county jail's booking or records line directly.

How do I find someone in state prison in Wisconsin?

The Wisconsin Department of Corrections runs the official Offender Locator (the legacy address offender.doc.state.wi.us/lop/home.do now redirects to appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/, page title 'Welcome to Locator'). It is a public search for people in WI DOC custody - state adult prisons and DOC field/community supervision - searchable by name or DOC number. DOC states the database EXCLUDES people sentenced to a county jail, juvenile offenders, and certain others, and cautions that it makes no guarantee of accuracy and that information can change quickly and may not reflect the person's true current location, status, or release date. Because it excludes county jail, this locator is for someone already sentenced to state prison, not someone just arrested.

Is there a free way to check if someone is in custody in Wisconsin?

Yes. VINELink (the free national custody service) covers Wisconsin. Search by name for custody status and register for free alerts. County jail rosters and the state locator are also free and official.

What do I need to look someone up in Wisconsin?

The person's full legal name, plus any aliases, nickname, or maiden name. Date of birth, which helps confirm the right person when names match. If you have one, a DOC number (for the state Offender Locator) or a booking/jail number (for a county jail or VINE) - helpful but usually not required to search by name.

Does Wisconsin have commercial bail bondsmen?

No. Wisconsin has no commercial bail-bond industry, so there is no bondsman to hire and no premium to pay. A judge decides release, commonly on recognizance or on conditions, and any money bail is paid directly to the court.

Sources & last verified

Everything here links out to official government or public-safety sources. We don’t store, search, or republish records.

Last verified 2026-07-23 · 12 sources