Started in 1996 as a hobby, WhitePages has become the largest independent provider of contact information on the Internet. See how we got there.


2008

200 million and counting! WhitePages adds contact information for nearly 20 million U.S. adults, bringing the total number of contacts in the WhitePages database to 200 million—nearly 90% of the U.S. adult population.

More in 2008


2007

The laurels keep coming: For the third consecutive year, WhitePages is recognized by Deloitte as one of the 500 fastest-growing technology companies in North America (#119). For the fourth consecutive year, it is recognized by the Puget Sound Business Journal as one of the 100 fastest-growing private companies in the Pacific Northwest (#39).

More in 2007


2006

WhitePages wraps up 2006 with record revenue and strong consumer traction, significantly boosting its ranking as one of the most trafficked sites on the Web. Consumers conducted more than 1.8 billion searches that year, saving nearly $2 billion in landline directory assistance fees.

More in 2006


2005

WhitePages begins powering MSN's white-pages channel in the U.S., positioning it as the nation's largest online residential directory assistance service in the U.S.

More in 2005


2004

WhitePages acquires 411.com, the number-eight directory assistance portal, which draws more than a half million unique visitors per month and is a highly recognized brand.



2003

WhitePages continues on a path of consistent profitability, experiencing triple-digit year-over-year revenue and profit increases. Monthly user averages grow 80% over 2002.



2002

During an economic downturn, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer article "A Few Gems Rise Out Of The Dot-Com Slag Heap" trumpets WhitePages as a Seattle Internet company that has never lost money.



2001

Building on its trusted brand reputation, growing name recognition, and recognized consumer benefit, WhitePages serves up more than 20 million page views per month.



2000

WhitePages is incorporated. Its mission: to provide consumers with free, fast, and accurate online residential directory assistance. The company transforms itself into a profitable business within its first year.



1999

WhitePages expands its best-in-class directory-assistance service, using an internally hosted enhanced database. With the help of a growing staff, the site becomes one of the first online services to offer true nationwide search without the need for state-by-state queries.



1998

Moonlighting from his Wall Street day job, founder Alex Algard continues to enhance WhitePages. The site becomes one of the first free online directory assistance services, with access to more than 100 million U.S. white-pages listings and phone number reverse-lookup functionality.



1997

WhitePages goes live with its first content, serving as an information resource on telephone white pages with links to leading directories.



1996

After experiencing the frustration of searching in vain for an old friend on the Internet, and dialing 411 just to get the wrong information, Alex Algard has a "light-bulb moment." He realizes that there should be an easier and less costly way to access directory information online. He starts WhitePages as a hobby out of his dorm room at Stanford University.



Nov 2000:

Nathan Webb and Alex Algard attempt to close recruit over dinner at The Keg. Their credit cards are declined. Recruit pays for himself and turns down the job offer.