How to Find Anyone's Email Address: A Complete Guide

Learning how to find someone's email address is a critical skill for building connections, closing sales, and pitching your ideas. But when you hit a wall, it's easy to get frustrated and give up.

Don't. Most professional email addresses are not hidden, just hard to find.

This guide provides more than a dozen proven methods to find the exact email you need. From simple 5-minute tricks to advanced strategies, we will show you how to find, verify, and responsibly contact almost anyone.

Stop searching and start connecting. Let's find that email address.

A Quick Word on Ethics: Use This Guide for Good

Before we begin, let's set the stage. This guide is designed to help you make professional and respectful connections. The goal is to find information that is already semi-public, not to invade someone's private life.

• Don't Spam: Finding an email is not an invitation to add someone to a marketing list or send them irrelevant messages. This is bad practice, often illegal (thanks to laws like CAN-SPAM and GDPR), and the fastest way to get your emails marked as spam. ‍
• Be Respectful: Your first email should be clear, concise, professional, and provide value. Explain who you are and why you are contacting them. ‍
• Be Transparent: If you're cold-emailing, be honest. A simple, "I'm reaching out because..." is all you need.

With that in mind, let’s get started and learn how to find anyone’s email address the right way.

Method 1: The Low-Hanging Fruit (The 5-Minute Methods)

Always start here. You would be surprised how often these simple, free methods work.

1. Check Their Website (The Obvious Place)

This sounds basic, but it's often overlooked. Go to the person's company website or their personal blog. Look for:

• "Contact Us" Page: This is the most common spot. ‍
• "About Us" or "Team" Page: Many companies list their team members, and their names are often linked directly to their email addresses. ‍
• Author Page: If your target has written a blog post for their company, their byline or a bio at the end of the article may contain their email. ‍
• Press or "Media Kit" Page: These pages often list a "media contact." Even if this isn't the person you want, it's a real email at the company. You can use it to (politely) ask for the right person or to... well, we'll get to that in the next section.

2. Search Their Social Media Profiles

Many professionals list their email addresses publicly on social media.

• LinkedIn: This is the most valuable tool for professional contact. On a person's profile, look for a "Contact info" link near their name. If they've made it public, their email (and sometimes phone number) will be right there. For a faster way, you can also use a LinkedIn email finder to pull verified emails directly from LinkedIn profiles. ‍
• Twitter (X): Check the person's bio. Many journalists, marketers, and developers put their email directly in their bio to invite contact. ‍
• Facebook: For professionals who use a public Facebook page (like authors, speakers, or public figures), the "About" section often includes a contact email.

3. Just Ask Them

This is the most direct and respectful method. If you're connected on LinkedIn or have another way to send a direct message (DM), just ask.

Sample Message:

"Hi [Name], I'm hoping to send you a quick note about [Your Topic]. Would you be open to me sending it, and if so, what's the best email address to use?"

It's polite, it respects their time, and it works.

Method 2: Educated Guessing (The Most Powerful Free Way)

This is where the real detective work begins. The vast majority of company emails follow a simple, consistent pattern. If you know the pattern, you can "guess" almost anyone's email.

Here is the step-by-step process.

Step 1: Find Their Company's Domain

This is the part after the "@" symbol. It's usually just the company's website.

• For John Doe at Google, the domain is google.com.
• For Jane Smith at The New York Times, the domain is nytimes.com.

Step 2: Guess Common Email Formats

Most companies use one of a handful of common formats for their emails. All you need is the person's first name, last name, and the domain.

Here are the most common patterns:

Your goal is to make 5-10 likely guesses.

Step 3: Verify Your Guess (The "Gmail Trick")

So, you have a list of guesses: j.doe@company.com, john.doe@company.com, jdoe@company.com. How do you know which one is right without sending 10 emails?

You can use Google to check for you.

1. Open Gmail (or your Google Workspace account).
2. Click "Compose" to start a new email.
3. In the "To" field, type your first guess (e.g., john.doe@company.com). ‍
4. Do not press Enter. Instead, just hover your mouse over the email address you typed.

If the email address is correct and linked to a Google account, a profile card will often pop up showing the person's name and profile picture. This is a positive confirmation.

If nothing appears, it doesn't mean the email is wrong, but if a profile card does appear, it's almost certainly right.

Alternative: Find One Email to Learn the Pattern

If you can find any employee's email address at that company, you've found the key.

For example, you found a press release with a media contact: susan.jones@company.com.

You now know the company's pattern: Firstname.Lastname@company.com.

You can now confidently apply this pattern to your target, "John Doe," and know his email is very likely john.doe@company.com.

Method 3: Use Advanced Google Search (Google-Fu)

You can turn Google into a powerful email-finding tool by using "search operators." These are special commands that narrow down your search.

1. The Basic Search

Don't underestimate this. Sometimes, the person has posted their email on a forum, in a comment, or on their personal site.

• "John Doe" + "email"
• "John Doe" + "contact"

2. The Site Search Operator (site:)

This is one of the most useful operators. It tells Google to only search one specific website.

• Search the company website: site:company.com "John Doe" email ‍
• Search their personal blog: site:johnsblog.com "contact"

3. Search for Their LinkedIn Bio

Many people copy their LinkedIn "About" section and paste it all over the web. They often include their email in this bio.

• site:linkedin.com "John Doe" "Marketing Manager" contact

4. Search for Obfuscated Emails

People sometimes "hide" their email from bots by writing it out in a weird way. You can search for these.

• "John Doe" "at" company "dot" com
• "John Doe" [at] company [dot] com

5. The Filetype Operator (filetype:)

This operator searches for specific types of files. People often include their contact info in PDFs, slide decks, or spreadsheets.

• filetype:pdf "John Doe" "company.com" (Finds PDF resumes, presentations, etc.)
• filetype:ppt "John Doe" "contact" (Finds PowerPoint presentations)

Method 4: Use Our Specialized B2B Contact Database

If the free methods fail, or if you need to find accurate contact data at scale, it’s time to use our dedicated platform. We are more than just a "finder"; we provide a massive, actively-managed B2B contact database that is human-verified and fully compliant.

With SMARTe, we provide access to over 281 million verified B2B contacts, complete with accurate work emails and industry-leading mobile number coverage (over 70% in North America).

Our most powerful prospecting feature is our "Email & Mobile Finder by SMARTe" Chrome extension. This tool is designed to integrate directly into your workflow, allowing you to find someone’s mobile number, email addresses, and company data without switching tabs.

It works seamlessly on LinkedIn, Sales Navigator, and directly on company websites. You can visit a prospect's profile or a corporate "About Us" page, and our extension will reveal their verified contact details in real-time. It's the most efficient way to get email address on LinkedIn directly using its chrome extension and build your prospect lists.

How to Find an Email Address Using SMARTe

Here is a step-by-step guide to using our platform and extension:

Using Our Chrome Extension (On LinkedIn & Company Sites)

1. Sign Up & Install: First, create your SMARTe account. (We offer a free plan with 10 monthly credits so you can get started today.) Then, install our "Email & Mobile Finder by SMARTe" from the Chrome Web Store. ‍
2. Navigate to Your Target: Go to the LinkedIn or Sales Navigator profile of the person you want to contact. This also works on company websites—just navigate to their team or contact page. ‍
3. Activate the Extension: Click on the SMARTe icon in your browser's toolbar. Our extension will open in a sidebar, automatically detecting the profile or website you are on. ‍
4. Reveal Contact: The tool will show the prospect's name and title. Simply click the "Reveal" button. ‍
5. Get the Email: Instantly, we will display the person's verified work email, direct-dial mobile number, and other key insights like firmographics and technographics. You can then save this lead directly to your CRM or a list with one click.

Watch How SMARTe's Chrome Extension Finds Verified Emails in Seconds

Using Our Web Platform (The Database Search)

1. Log In: Access your SMARTe account on our web platform. ‍
2. Use Prospector: Navigate to our "Prospector" or "Search" feature. ‍
3. Build Your List: Use over 55 advanced filters (like job title, industry, company size, location, and technology used) to build a precise list of your ideal customers. You can easily filter results to find CEO email addresses or CMO email addresses for your target companies. ‍
4. Find Your Contact: Our platform will return a list of thousands of verified contacts matching your exact criteria. You can then unlock the contacts you need and export them for your email marketing campaigns.

Method 5: Creative & "Out-of-the-Box" Methods

Still stuck? Time to think like a real investigator.

1. Subscribe to Their Newsletter

If the person has a personal blog or is a key figure at their company, they might have a newsletter. Sign up for it.

Many newsletters are sent from a personal or semi-personal email address. When you get the first "welcome" email, check the "From" address. It might be something like john.d@company.com. You can often reply directly to this.

2. Search GitHub (For Developers)

If your target is a developer, engineer, or in a technical role, there's a good chance they are on GitHub. When developers push code, their email address is often attached to the "commit" log. This is public information.

3. Check WHOIS Records

When someone registers a website domain (like johnsblog.com), they have to provide contact information. This is stored in a public database called WHOIS.

Note: This is less effective than it used to be. Most registrars now offer free "domain privacy" that hides this information. However, for older or personal sites, it's worth a 1-minute check. You can use a tool like who.is.

4. The "Forgot Password" Trick (Use With Caution)

Ethical Warning: This is a gray-hat technique. You are NOT trying to reset someone's password. You are only using the system to get a clue.

1. Go to a login page where the person might have an account (e.g., Gmail, Twitter).
2. Type in a guessed email address (like john.doe@gmail.com).
3. Click "Forgot Password."
4. The system will often show a masked version of the recovery email.

For example, if you're trying john.doe@company.com on the Microsoft login page, and the "Forgot Password" screen says "We will send a recovery code to j.d***@c****y.com," you have just confirmed that the email john.doe@company.com is real.

Again, do not send the reset code. Simply back out of the page. You have your confirmation.

Method 6: The Final, Crucial Step—Verify the Email

You've found an email! You're ready to send it.

Stop.

Before you hit "send," you must verify that the email address is real and can receive mail.

Why Verify?

Sending an email to a fake address results in a "bounce." If you get too many bounces, your email provider (like Gmail or Outlook) will start to see you as a spammer. This will hurt your "sender reputation," and your future emails—even to the right addresses—will start going straight to the junk folder.

How to Verify an Email Address:

1. Use a Verification Tool: This is the best and safest way. Services like ZeroBounce, NeverBounce, or Hunter's Email Verifier are built for this. You paste the email, and their system will "ping" the server (without sending a message) to see if the mailbox exists. ‍
2. Use Your Email Finder Tool: Most of the email lookup tools have a verifier built in. They will often give you a "confidence score" or a green checkmark. Trust these. ‍
3. The Gmail Hover Trick (Again): This is a form of verification. If the profile picture and name pop up, the account is active.

Conclusion: You're Ready to Connect

Finding someone's email address is a skill. It's a mix of simple research, smart guessing, and using the right tools for the job. No single method works 100% of the time, which is why having this entire toolkit is so valuable.

Remember the simple path:

1. Check the obvious places (websites, social media). ‍
2. Guess the pattern and Verify with the Gmail hover trick. ‍
3. Use Google's advanced search operators. ‍
4. Try a specialized email finder tool. ‍
5. Always verify the email before you send.

And most importantly, remember the ethical rule: The goal is to start a conversation, not to spam a person. Be clear, be kind, be respectful, and provide value. Now, go make that connection.