Written by the Removal Lab team.
Searched your own name and found your home address on Spokeo, sitting next to your age and a list of your relatives? The Spokeo opt out is free and short: you paste the link to your listing into spokeo.com/optout, add your email address and click the link Spokeo sends you. This Removal Lab guide walks through each step the way Spokeo itself describes it, then shows you how to stop the listing coming back and how to clear the old result from Google.
The quick version: Spokeo removes one listing at a time and you confirm each one by email.
- Search Spokeo for your name and open the listing that shows your address.
- Copy the full web address from your browser bar. Spokeo says the right one usually ends with numbers.
- Go to spokeo.com/optout, paste the address, type your email and the CAPTCHA code.
- Open the confirmation email and click the link near the bottom.
- Repeat for every other listing about you, then check again every few months.
Everything below comes from pages Spokeo publishes: its opt out page, its consumer FAQ, its help centre and its privacy policy. Where Spokeo does not say something, we say so rather than fill the gap with a guess.
Spokeo opt out step by step
Step 1. Find every listing that is about you
Spokeo’s opt out page explains that each listing has its own unique web address and has to be opted out on its own. That matters more than most people expect. If you have moved house, changed your surname or appear in records with a typo, you may have two or three separate listings. Search your full name, then your name with each city you have lived in. Open every result that is clearly you and keep the tabs open.
Step 2. Copy the right address
The consumer FAQ tells you to choose the exact profile that contains your address and adds that correct addresses typically end with numbers. The opt out page shows the pattern it expects: https://www.spokeo.com/Smith-Sample/Houston/TX/p12345678. A search results page will not work. Click into the profile itself, then copy what is in the address bar.
Step 3. Submit the Spokeo opt out form
Go to the Spokeo opt out page. Paste the profile address into the box, enter your email address and type the CAPTCHA code exactly as it is shown. Use an inbox you can open straight away, because the next step happens there.
Step 4. Confirm from your inbox
Spokeo sends a confirmation email and the request is not finished until you click the link inside it. The FAQ points you to the link near the bottom of that email. Once you click it, Spokeo says the listing is flagged and removed.
Step 5. Do the next listing
Go back to Step 2 with the next tab. Spokeo’s FAQ warns that it limits how many listings can be removed each week from one IP address. If you hit that limit, the FAQ suggests trying from another location or waiting until the next day.
What you need for the Spokeo opt out
The Spokeo opt out asks for very little. Have these ready before you start.
| Item | Needed? | What Spokeo says |
|---|---|---|
| Listing web address | Yes | Each listing has its own address and must be opted out separately |
| Email address | Yes | Spokeo sends a confirmation link that you must click |
| CAPTCHA code | Yes | Enter it exactly as shown; the FAQ suggests another browser such as Firefox or Chrome if it keeps failing |
| Photo ID | Not mentioned | None of the Spokeo opt out pages we opened ask for identity documents |
| A Spokeo account | Not mentioned | The opt out steps in the FAQ do not include signing in |
| A .gov email | Optional | The FAQ says government officials who use one get priority processing |
How long the Spokeo opt out takes
Spokeo gives three slightly different answers on three different pages, so it is worth knowing all of them.
| Spokeo page | What it says about timing |
|---|---|
| Opt out page | Requests are processed in 24 to 48 hours, depending on the request and the amount of data |
| Consumer FAQ | Once confirmed, the listing will be removed within one business day |
| Privacy policy | Removal happens in real time once the request has been submitted |
Plan for the slowest of the three when you time your Spokeo opt out. If two full days have passed since you clicked the confirmation link and the listing still loads, start with the troubleshooting section below.
What the Spokeo opt out removes and what it leaves
A Spokeo opt out hides a listing from Spokeo’s search. It does not reach back into the records Spokeo draws on. The privacy policy says the tool cannot remove information from third party public sources such as phone books, social networks or government records. The opt out page makes the same point: your details may still appear on other websites.
| What you want gone | Can the Spokeo opt out do it? | What Spokeo says |
|---|---|---|
| Your listing on Spokeo.com | Yes | Remove A Public Listing at spokeo.com/optout |
| Listings on other sites Spokeo runs | Yes, with one exception | The privacy policy says the tool covers Spokeo.com and other Spokeo operated sites except Thatsthem.com |
| Your listing on Thatsthem.com | No, separate tool | Use the Thatsthem.com Optout tool at thatsthem.com/optout |
| Your home address itself | No | Spokeo can opt out the person linked to an address, but not the address. Homeowners, landlords and tenants can each opt out their own name |
| Your phone number | Partly | Your name comes off the phone listing. The area code, line type and carrier stay |
| Court records | Only with a court order | Spokeo needs an Order of Expunction or Sealing, sent to expungement@spokeo.com |
| A listing about a child | Yes | Public listings about people under 18 can be removed with the same tools |
That Thatsthem line catches people out. If you also appear there, you need to run its own opt out as well. For the other big people search sites, see our guides to the Whitepages opt out, the BeenVerified opt out and the TruePeopleSearch opt out.
Why your Spokeo listing comes back
You did the Spokeo opt out, the page vanished and three months later your name is back. Spokeo explains why in an article on its own blog. Opting out places a flag on your listing. Spokeo keeps receiving new and updated records and tries to match them to listings that were opted out. A computer cannot always tell that a record with your name at a new address belongs to the same person. A new address or a bad typo in a source record can therefore create a fresh listing that looks like the old one returning.
The opt out page is just as frank. It says records are updated all the time, a listing may reappear without notice and you should check from time to time for new ones.
How to monitor Spokeo without it taking over your life
- Keep a short log. Note each listing address you opted out and the date you clicked the confirmation link.
- Set a reminder. Every three months, search Spokeo for your name with your current city and your last city. This is our suggestion, not a Spokeo rule.
- Let Google watch for you. Google’s Results about you tool can email you when new search results show your phone number, home address or email. Google says some of these features are still rolling out to adults in certain markets.
What if the Spokeo opt out does not work
| What you see | What Spokeo suggests |
|---|---|
| An incorrect URL message | Check that you copied the exact profile that shows your address, not a search page |
| An incorrect CAPTCHA message | Type the code exactly as shown or switch to another browser such as Firefox or Chrome |
| A request limit message | Spokeo limits automated privacy requests. Try from another location or the next day |
| The online form is not working at all | The Spokeo blog says to contact support@spokeo.com |
| Any other question | The opt out page lists privacy@spokeo.com and its customer care team |
If no confirmation email arrives, look in your spam and promotions folders before you resubmit. That tip is ours, not Spokeo’s, but it solves most missing emails.
Remove the old Spokeo result from Google
Here is the part that surprises people. The Spokeo opt out can work perfectly and Google can still show the old page title and snippet for a while, because Google has not visited the page since it changed. Google says it can only remove things from Google Search and cannot touch the website itself, so you need both steps.
- Refresh the outdated result. Google’s Refresh outdated content tool is for content that has been deleted but still shows in search. Select Request refresh, enter the old Spokeo address on the Page tab and select Submit.
- Use Results about you for contact details. If a Google result still shows your phone number, home address or email, open Results about you, look at the To review tab and select Request to remove. Google emails you a confirmation and status updates.
- Check other results on the same search. Our guide to removing personal information from Google covers the wider form. How to remove your name from Google explains which results Google will and will not take down.
Your privacy rights beyond the Spokeo opt out
California residents have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act to know, delete and correct personal information and to opt out of its sale or sharing. Spokeo’s privacy policy says you can make a request to know, correct or delete through its privacy control web form or by calling 1 877 864 0183 during business hours. You will need to sign in to your Spokeo account or give enough matching information for Spokeo to verify you. The California Attorney General says businesses must answer requests to know, delete and correct within 45 calendar days and can extend that to 90 if they tell you. The same page notes that publicly available information, such as government records, falls outside the law’s definition of personal information and is a common reason requests are refused.
The Delete Act and DROP. California’s Delete Request and Opt out Platform, called DROP, lets a California resident send one free deletion request to every registered data broker. The California Privacy Protection Agency says brokers must start processing requests from 1 August 2026 and check DROP at least once every 45 days. Status updates can take up to 90 days. You confirm your residency through the California Identity Gateway. Spokeo has a historical registration in the California data broker registry, which lists the opt out tool and a privacy control page for California residents. Check the current CalPrivacy registry to see whether it is listed this year.
Protected officials. Spokeo’s California registration says elected or appointed officials can ask for an opt out under California Government Code sections 6208.1(b) and 6254.21(c)(1), using the opt out tool, email, post or phone.
Mistakes to avoid with the Spokeo opt out
- Pasting a search page. Only a profile address works. It usually ends with numbers.
- Stopping at one listing. Every address history can produce its own listing.
- Forgetting the email. An opt out you never confirmed is not an opt out.
- Assuming Thatsthem is covered. Spokeo’s own policy says it is not.
- Opting out a stranger. Only remove listings that are clearly you or your child.
- Paying to delete a public record. Nobody can delete a court or property record through Spokeo. Court records need a sealing or expunction order.
A worked example
This is a made up example to show the steps. It is not a client case.
Imagine a primary school teacher who moved from Fresno to Sacramento two years ago. She searches Spokeo and finds two listings: one with her old Fresno flat and one with her new Sacramento house. She copies both profile addresses. Each one ends in numbers. She submits the first at spokeo.com/optout with her email and the CAPTCHA. She clicks the link in the confirmation email, then repeats the process for the second listing. Two days later both pages are gone from Spokeo.
Google still shows the Sacramento listing title for her name, so she uses Refresh outdated content on that address. She also turns on Results about you alerts for her phone number and new address. Because she lives in California, she submits a DROP request too, so registered brokers that hold her details receive a deletion request. Three months later, her reminder fires. A new Spokeo listing has appeared with a misspelt surname. She opts it out in five minutes.
When help makes sense
A single Spokeo opt out is a job you can do yourself in ten minutes. Help makes sense when the same details keep spreading across many people search sites, when a listing is being used to harass you or when the search results for your name are hurting your work. That is what our personal reputation removal service handles. You can also read how Removal Lab works and what we cannot remove before you get in touch.
Removal Lab offers a free, confidential case review. A specialist reads the content against the platform rules and replies within one business day. On qualifying cases there is no upfront payment and you pay only when the content is removed. We do not work for Spokeo or any other site, we cannot delete anything ourselves and we never promise a removal, because the platform decides.
More guides in this series: Intelius opt out, FastPeopleSearch opt out, PeopleFinders opt out and Radaris opt out.
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Frequently asked questions
Is the Spokeo opt out free?
The Spokeo opt out steps ask only for the listing address, an email address and a CAPTCHA code. No payment step appears in the opt out pages Spokeo publishes.
Does Spokeo need ID to opt out?
No identity documents are mentioned on Spokeo’s opt out pages. Privacy rights requests to know, correct or delete are different: Spokeo asks you to sign in or give enough matching information to verify you.
How long does the Spokeo opt out take?
Spokeo’s opt out page says 24 to 48 hours, its FAQ says one business day after you confirm and its privacy policy says removal happens in real time. Allow two days before you chase it.
Why did my Spokeo listing come back?
Spokeo says it constantly receives new records and a new address or a typo can create a fresh listing that its system does not match to your opt out. Check every few months and opt out any new listing.
Does the Spokeo opt out cover Thatsthem?
No. Spokeo’s privacy policy says its tool covers Spokeo.com and other Spokeo operated sites except Thatsthem.com, which has its own opt out at thatsthem.com/optout.
Will opting out of Spokeo remove me from Google?
Not straight away. Google may keep showing the old result until it revisits the page, so use Google’s Refresh outdated content tool once the listing is gone.
Can I remove my address or phone number from Spokeo?
Spokeo removes your name from the address or phone listing, not the address or number itself. Details such as the area code and carrier stay on the phone listing.
Sources: Spokeo opt out page, Spokeo help: How do I opt out, Spokeo consumer FAQ, Spokeo privacy policy (last revised 25 June 2026), Spokeo: how the opt out system works, Spokeo help: removing an address, Spokeo help: removing a phone number, Spokeo data broker registration, California, California Attorney General on the CCPA, CalPrivacy: DROP, Google: Results about you and Google: Refresh outdated content. Removal Lab does not work for Spokeo. Every decision is made by the platform.