Find San Diego Death Records

San Diego County maintains death certificates for anyone who died within the county. You can order these records from the county assessor recorder clerk or from the county health agency. The recorder's office has death records for events in San Diego County only. Records are available from the 1800s to the present. Allow three weeks after the date of death before requesting a certificate. The fee is $26 per copy as of January 1, 2026 due to Assembly Bill 64. You can request death records by mail, email, or in person. No appointments are needed to visit the office.

How to Request Death Certificates

To get a death certificate from San Diego County, start at the county assessor recorder clerk death certificate page. This page explains the process and has application forms. You need the full name of the deceased and the date of death. The place of death in San Diego County helps speed up the search. State your relationship to the deceased and whether you need an authorized or informational copy.

For in person requests, visit the office at 1600 Pacific Highway, San Diego, CA 92101. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. No appointment is needed. Bring a photo ID and the completed application form. Staff will process your request and you can get the certificate while you wait if the record is available. In person service is the fastest way to get a death certificate.

Mail requests should be sent to P.O. Box 121750, San Diego, CA 92112-1750. Include the completed application, a check or money order for $26 per copy, and a self addressed stamped envelope. Make the check payable to County of San Diego. Do not send cash. Mail orders are processed in the order received and typically take two to four weeks.

Email requests are also accepted. Send a scanned copy of your completed application and payment information to ARCCRecorderCountyClerk.FGG@sdcounty.ca.gov. Include your contact information. The office will respond with instructions on how to submit payment and receive your certificate. Email is faster than regular mail but slower than in person service.

For very recent deaths, contact the San Diego County Office of Vital Records and Statistics instead of the recorder. This office handles deaths from the last three weeks. After three weeks, records transfer to the recorder's office for permanent archiving.

Authorized vs Informational Copies

San Diego County issues two types of death certificate copies. An authorized copy is a certified document that can be used for legal purposes like settling estates, claiming insurance, or notifying Social Security. An informational copy has a watermark and cannot be used to establish identity. The fee is the same for both types at $26 per copy.

To get an authorized copy, you must be an authorized person under California Health and Safety Code Section 103526. This includes the spouse or domestic partner of the deceased. Parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren, and siblings also qualify. Attorneys representing the estate and funeral directors handling the arrangements can get authorized copies. All others receive informational copies.

Authorized persons must provide a notarized sworn statement with their request. This statement declares under penalty of perjury that you are eligible to receive the record. Sign it in front of a notary public. Without this notarized statement, you will get an informational copy even if you qualify as an authorized person.

Informational copies are available to anyone. No notarized statement is needed. These work well for genealogy research or personal records. Banks, insurance companies, and government agencies will not accept informational copies for legal transactions. They require authorized copies with the official certification.

Wait Times and Processing

In person requests at the San Diego office can be completed the same day if the record is available. Most records from recent decades are in the computer system and print quickly. Older records may be stored offsite and take one to three business days to retrieve. Call ahead at (619) 237-0502 if you need an old record to ask about availability.

Mail requests take longer. Plan for two to four weeks from the date the office receives your application until you get the certificate in the mail. High volume periods may cause delays. Sending a complete application with all required information speeds the process. Incomplete applications are returned without processing.

Email requests fall between in person and mail in terms of speed. Expect one to two weeks for processing plus mailing time. The office will email you when your request is complete and the certificate has been mailed. Check your spam folder if you do not receive a response within a few days.

Death Certificate Fees

The fee for a San Diego County death certificate is $26 per copy. This fee went up from $24 on January 1, 2026 due to Assembly Bill 64. The fee covers the cost of searching for the record and one copy. Each additional copy of the same record costs $26. There is no discount for ordering multiple copies at once.

If the office cannot find the record based on the information you provide, they keep the fee and issue a Letter of No Record. This letter confirms they searched and did not locate the record. The fee is not refundable even if no record is found. Make sure you have accurate information about the deceased before you order.

Payment methods include check, money order, or credit card in person. Make checks payable to County of San Diego. Credit card payments in person may have a small convenience fee. Do not send cash through the mail. The county is not responsible for cash lost in the mail.

Information Required to Order

You must provide the full legal name of the deceased. Middle names help but are not always required. The date of death is very important. If you do not know the exact date, provide the year and month. A range like "sometime in 1995" may work if you have other identifying information.

The place of death within San Diego County helps narrow the search. This could be a city, hospital, or other location. Your relationship to the deceased must be stated on the application. This determines whether you get an authorized or informational copy.

For authorized copies, prepare a notarized sworn statement before you submit your request. The statement must say you are an authorized person under California law. It must be signed in the presence of a notary public. Without this, you will only receive an informational copy.

Note: Providing incomplete information may delay processing or result in a no record found response.

San Diego County Cities and Death Records

San Diego County includes 18 incorporated cities. The city of San Diego is the largest with over 1.4 million people. Other major cities include Chula Vista, Oceanside, Escondido, Carlsbad, and El Cajon. All of these cities are part of San Diego County for vital records purposes.

None of the cities in San Diego County issue death certificates. All death records are maintained by the county recorder's office. If someone died in any San Diego County city, you must request the certificate from the county, not the city government. The city where the death occurred will be noted on the certificate itself.

Deaths in unincorporated areas of San Diego County are also handled by the county recorder. The county covers all areas within its borders regardless of city boundaries. This makes it simple to know where to request records. You always go to the county level.

Older Death Records in San Diego County

San Diego County has death records dating back to the 1850s. These early records are stored by the county recorder. Very old records may be on microfilm or archived in special storage. Requesting a record from the 1800s or early 1900s may take extra time for staff to locate and retrieve.

California did not require statewide death registration until July 1, 1905. For deaths before that date, county recorders are the only source. San Diego County was formed in 1850, making it one of the original 27 California counties. Records from the county's early years may have less information than modern certificates.

Genealogists and family historians often use San Diego County death records to trace family lines. The county recorder can help you locate old records if you have basic information. Call ahead if you need a record more than 75 years old to confirm what is available and how long retrieval will take.

Neighboring Counties for Death Records

San Diego County borders Orange County to the north, Riverside County to the northeast, and Imperial County to the east. Mexico is to the south. If you are unsure which county a death occurred in, check with these neighboring counties.

Contact information for nearby counties:

• Orange County Recorder: (714) 834-2500
• Riverside County Clerk: (951) 486-7000
• Imperial County Recorder: (442) 265-1075

Each county maintains its own death records. If the death occurred outside San Diego County, you must contact the county where the death took place. The San Diego County office only has records for deaths within San Diego County boundaries.