| Type of Search | Eligibility | Cost | Pros | Cons |
| Confidential Intermediary Program | Adoptees 18+, must show medical cause | $425 + petitioning fee ($230 in Cook County, as little as $20 in some downstate counties) | Search is based on all records (obc, court docs, agency file) | No identifying info is shared w/adoptee searching unless bp agrees to contact; can take several months for CI to gather docs need for search due to slow response of courts/agencies |
| Private or Public Agency | Adoptees 18+, birth mother (father if he was involved in adoption), adopted siblings | From $0 (smaller agencies) to $500 (CC Chicago, the Cradle) | Search is based on agency file | No identifying info is shared w/adoptee searching unless bp agrees to contact; some agencies "pick & choose" which searches they will take on; searches not always conducted using most effective search methods |
| Dept. of Children & Family Services | Adoptees, adoptive & birth parents (case must have been handled by DCFS) | Free | Search based on DCFS (and contingent upon DCFS locating the file) | No identifying info is shared w/adoptee searching unless bp agrees to contact; info found in DCFS file is sometimes insufficient to resolve search |
| Professional Searcher | Adult adoptees, adoptive & birth relatives | $125 (White Oak, volunteer searchers) to $1000 + up | All info gathered is shared with searching party; ability to decide how initial contact will be made, lack of red tape, generally faster than agency searches | Difficulty in locating persons who have common or falsified names or for whom only limited background info is available; some private searchers lack proper experience and qualifications |