Go for free address search first

There are free Internet sites that verify addresses and/or phone numbers.

I recommend: Run an address search or phone number search at  U.S Postal Service, WhitePages, Switchboard or AddressDoctor, which offers 250 free transactions. Many free services act as gateways to paid address search services that will do more extensive checks for arrest or court records.

Use your merchant account for address lookup

Most credit-card companies offer merchants online Address Verification Systems (AVS). AVS can run an address search on cardholders’ billing addresses at no cost to the merchant. It can save merchants the cost of purchasing software, help combat fraud, and check customer billing addresses for shipping.

I recommend: Open a merchant account at Chase Paymentec, Visa, Barclaycard Business, SecureTrading or Infomerchant.

Buy verification software for reverse address lookup

Reverse address search software can do more than check addresses. It also can perform postal presorting and detect duplicate addresses and/or names, which can save money by cutting down on wasted mailings and postage.

I recommend: Purchase reverse address search and verification software from Satori Software, Intelligent Choice Technology, Intelius or Capscan.