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 September 26, 2026.
Altoona, Wisconsin, in Eau Claire County, has about 9,300 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Altoona is held at the county jail, run by the Eau Claire 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: Altoona public records, Eau Claire County inmate search, Altoona arrest records, Altoona warrants, Altoona criminal records, Altoona court records, Wisconsin arrest records and Wisconsin inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Altoona
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Altoona is held at the county jail, run by the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office at eauclairecounty.gov/departments/sheriff/inmate_listing (page title: Inmate Listing | Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office), phone 715-839-4707, 710 Second Ave. Eau Claire, WI 54703, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the place to look for someone booked recently. A person cited and released at the scene, or held only a few hours by a city department, will not be on it.
The Eau Claire County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2025 the jail held about 190 people, down from about 270 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2025 was 418 beds, and it ran at 45 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Eau Claire County has about 109,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 17 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Eau Claire County Jail
The Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Altoona (filed by the FBI as Altoona Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Altoona.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Eau Claire County: the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire (campus police).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Eau Claire's 3,768 for 2025, the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office's 982 for 2025 and Altoona's 318 for 2025.
Together, the four agencies in Eau Claire County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 5,213 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 Altoona arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the Wisconsin Department of Corrections lists its inmates at appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/welcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Altoona?
Look on the custody page of the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office at eauclairecounty.gov, or call 715-839-4707. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Eau Claire County jail?
About 190 on an average day in 2025, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 418 beds.
What is the phone number for the Eau Claire County jail?
715-839-4707, the number on the page of the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Eau Claire County go?
To a facility of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/welcome.
Is this the official Altoona 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.