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 24, 2026 and September 28, 2026.
Charleston County, South Carolina, has about 431,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Charleston County is held at the county jail, run by the Charleston 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: Charleston County public records, Charleston County arrest records, Charleston County warrants, Charleston County police reports, Charleston County property records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Charleston County
The county jail, run by the Charleston County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Charleston County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Charleston County Sheriff's Office at charlestoncounty.gov/departments/sheriff/law-enforcement.php (page title: Charleston County Sheriff's Office: Sheriff Al Cannon Detention Center | Chain of Command), phone (843) 202-7200, 3841 Leeds Ave., N. Charleston, SC 29405, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9-11:30AM, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 28, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster, so a search for a particular person goes through the office at (843) 202-7200.
The Charleston County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 1,080 people, up from about 1,060 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 1,693 beds, and it ran at 58 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Charleston County has about 431,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 25 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Charleston County Jail
The Charleston County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Charleston, North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Isle of Palms, Folly Beach and Sullivan's Island make the arrests that end in a booking in Charleston County.
The FBI's agency list also places one state police unit, four campus police departments, six state agencies and one other agency in Charleston County (the arrest records guide names each one).
The Summerville Police Department is listed by the FBI across three counties including Charleston County, so its arrests are not broken out for Charleston County here.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Charleston's 6,091 for 2025, North Charleston's 3,193 for 2025 and the Charleston County Sheriff's Office's 1,250 for 2025.
Together, the seven agencies in Charleston County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 12,405 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 Charleston County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the South Carolina Department of Corrections lists its inmates at doc.sc.gov/inmate-search-disclaimer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Charleston County?
Ask the Charleston County Sheriff's Office at (843) 202-7200; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at charlestoncounty.gov.
How many people are in the Charleston County jail?
About 1,080 on an average day in 2024, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 1,693 beds.
What is the phone number for the Charleston County jail?
(843) 202-7200, the number on the page of the Charleston County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Charleston County go?
To a facility of the South Carolina Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at doc.sc.gov/inmate-search-disclaimer.
Is this the official Charleston County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.