Remove Yourself from Spokeo — Steps, Timeline & What Comes Back (2026)
Most relevant if this is you:Privacy for families
Spokeo sells access to personal data on millions of Americans — full name and aliases, phone numbers, email addresses, current and past addresses. The free preview confirms your identity. The paid report hands over the dossier. No verification of who is searching or why.
What is Spokeo?
People search engine founded in 2006 that aggregates publicly available information from phone books, social networks, marketing surveys, real estate listings, and other public sources. Indexes 13+ billion public records.
Spokeo's particular danger is the surfacing of information most people do not realize is publicly available. A single search reveals your home address, the names of your family members, and your approximate age. All without any verification of who is searching, or why.
What data Spokeo has on you
A Spokeo profile can include a surprisingly detailed picture of your life. Here is what they typically display:
- full name and aliases
- phone numbers, landline and mobile, sourced from commercial providers and public records
- email addresses, often going back 10 to 20 years
- current and past addresses, often going back 10 to 20 years
- family members and associates
- social media profiles (120+ networks), across major platforms including Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram
- dating site profiles, profiles detected across dating platforms
- education history
- employment and estimated income, estimated from occupation, property, and demographic models
- property records, ownership, estimated value, and neighborhood data
- marital status
- age and birth information
- criminal records, arrests, convictions, and court filings where available
- neighbors and household members
Not every profile contains all categories. Depth depends on what public records exist in your jurisdiction and how much commercial data has been linked to your identity. For most adults with any public record history, Spokeo has enough to paint a detailed picture.
How to opt out of Spokeo: step by step
- Search for your name at spokeo.com and locate your profile listing
- Copy the full URL of your specific profile from the address bar
- Navigate to spokeo.com/optout
- Paste your profile URL into the URL field
- Enter a valid email address
- Complete the reCAPTCHA verification
- Click 'Remove This Listing'
- Check your email for a confirmation from noreply@spokeo.com
- Click the confirmation link within 72 hours to finalize removal
- Repeat for each additional profile URL if you have multiple listings
Spokeo is one site. Delist scans for your personal information across the internet and shows exactly where you are exposed, in minutes.
Run a free scan →How long does Spokeo removal take?
After you complete the opt-out, Spokeo typically processes removals within 24-48 hours after email confirmation. By broker standards, that is relatively fast — many sites take 7 to 45 days.
The catch: your data comes back
The most important thing to understand about Spokeo removal: it is temporary.
Not permanent. Spokeo continually receives new records from public sources; data typically reappears within 3-6 months. Each listing has a unique URL and must be opted out individually.
This is not unique to Spokeo. Every people-search site works this way. Your opt-out removes one listing. It does not stop the data pipeline. The only way to stay off permanently is to repeat the process every few months yourself, or use a service that detects re-listings and re-submits automatically.
What Spokeo's opt-out does not cover
- Other brokers are not affected. Removing yourself from Spokeo does nothing to Whitepages, BeenVerified, Radaris, or the dozens of other sites where your data is exposed. Each requires its own opt-out.
- Cached copies may persist. Google and other search engines may cache your Spokeo profile for days or weeks after it is removed. Use Google's content removal tool to request de-indexing.
- Multiple profiles may exist. If you have lived in multiple states, changed your name, or have multiple phone numbers, Spokeo may have built separate profiles for each variation. Search and opt out of each.
Tips for a successful opt-out
Use a dedicated email. Use an alias or a separate account for removal requests. Keeps your primary inbox out of Spokeo's system and keeps confirmation emails organized.
Search every angle. Do not just search by name. Try phone number and email too. You may have more than one listing.
Set a calendar reminder. Your data will likely be back within a few months. Set a recurring reminder to re-check and re-submit — tedious but necessary if you are doing this manually.
Document the request. Screenshot the confirmation page and save the confirmation email. Useful if you ever need to prove you requested removal.
Or skip the manual work entirely
Spokeo is one of dozens of people-search sites with your information. Even if you complete this opt-out today, your data reappears within months — and every other broker requires its own separate process, its own verification, its own re-check schedule.
Delist scans for your personal information across the internet, handles removals automatically, and monitors for re-listings so you do not have to.
Frequently asked questions
How long does Spokeo take to remove my information?
Does Spokeo put my data back after I opt out?
Is the Spokeo opt-out free?
Do I have to opt out of Spokeo if I use Delist?
Steps current as of 2026-06-22. Verify on Spokeo's official opt-out page.