Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and October 1, 2026.
Gainesville, Florida, in Alachua County, has about 149,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Gainesville is held at the county jail, run by the Alachua County Sheriff's Office, and the jail's record of each person held is a public record. This guide says where to look for someone in custody, what the jail holds and who books people into it.
This guide covers the search, the jail, who books people, state prison and common questions.
Related guides: Gainesville public records, Alachua County inmate search, Gainesville arrest records, Gainesville warrants, Gainesville criminal records, Gainesville court records, Florida arrest records and Florida inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Gainesville
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Gainesville is held at the county jail, run by the Alachua County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Alachua County Sheriff's Office at acso.us/inmate-search (page title: Inmate Search | ALACHUA COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Someone booked recently shows on that page; someone cited and released at the scene, or held a few hours at a city station, does not.
The Alachua County Jail by the Numbers
So far in 2026 the jail has held about 880 people on an average day, up from about 720 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 1,155 beds, and it ran at 73 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Alachua County has about 292,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 30 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Alachua County Jail
The Alachua County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Gainesville (filed by the FBI as Gainesville Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Gainesville.
The FBI's agency list also places two campus police departments, five state agencies and one state police unit in Alachua County (the arrest records guide names each one).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Gainesville's 2,163 for 2025, the Alachua County Sheriff's Office's 1,094 for 2025 and High Springs's 55 for 2025.
Together, the three agencies in Alachua County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 3,312 arrests to the FBI that year. Those kept in custody were booked into the county jail; a person cited and released at the scene was not.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Gainesville arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
The jail holds people awaiting trial and people serving short sentences. A person sentenced to prison in Alachua County serves the sentence in a facility of the Florida Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at fdc.myflorida.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Gainesville?
Look on the custody page of the Alachua County Sheriff's Office at acso.us/inmate-search. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Alachua County jail?
About 880 on an average day so far in 2026, against a rated capacity of 1,155 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Alachua County go?
To a facility of the Florida Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at fdc.myflorida.com.
Is this the official Gainesville website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.