Routine
$170
First attempt within 3 business days.
Each additional defendant at the same address: $110.
Process Serving · Illinois
Illinois Process Server for Law Firms
Have summonses, complaints and other court papers served anywhere in Illinois, ordered and tracked from one account. Below: who can serve papers in Illinois, how service is made, the deadlines, the proof of service form and our prices.
Process serving through Legal Hub Group is for law firms, attorneys and their staff. Representing yourself? Our sister company Famous Legal Services handles serves for individuals.
How it is done
How papers are served in Illinois
- Personal service
Leaving a copy of the summons with the defendant personally. 735 ILCS 5/2-203(a)(1) ↗
- Abode service with mailing
Leaving a copy at the defendant's usual place of abode with a family member or person living there who is 13 or older, telling them what the summons is, and also mailing a copy in a sealed, postage-paid envelope to the defendant at that address. 735 ILCS 5/2-203(a)(2) ↗
Who
Who can serve papers in Illinois
Process is served by a sheriff (or a coroner if the sheriff is disqualified). In any county it may also be served, without special appointment, by a licensed or registered private detective or a registered employee of a certified private detective agency. On motion, the court may order service by a private person over 18 who is not a party. 735 ILCS 5/2-202(a) ↗
A private server who serves without a court order must be licensed or registered under the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act of 2004, and must give the sheriff of each county where they serve a copy of the license or certificate. 735 ILCS 5/2-202(a) ↗
Timelines
How fast, and the court's deadline
Our first-attempt promises:
- Routine: First attempt within 3 business days.
- Rush: First attempt within 24 hours.
- Same-day: for papers that cannot wait.
Every attempt shows in your account as soon as the server logs it.
The court's deadline for service: There is no fixed number of days. The court may dismiss if the plaintiff fails to exercise reasonable diligence to obtain service, looking at the totality of the circumstances; a failure after the statute of limitations has run means dismissal with prejudice as to that defendant. Ill. S. Ct. R. 103(b), as quoted in Sievert v. Duzinski, 2021 IL App (3d) 190179, ¶ 12 ↗
Proof
The proof of service in Illinois
Return or affidavit of service. A sheriff or coroner endorses the return on the process; when a private person serves, the return is made by affidavit. 735 ILCS 5/2-202(a) ↗
Your server's proof is built from the field record of the serve.
Price
What a Illinois serve costs
Per person served, shown before you submit. Subscription plans take up to 20% off every serve.
Rush
$220
First attempt within 24 hours.
Same-day
$270
For papers that cannot wait.
Questions
Serving papers in Illinois: questions
Who can serve process in Illinois?
A sheriff, or in any county a licensed or registered private detective (or a registered employee of a certified agency) without special appointment. The court may also appoint a private person over 18 who is not a party (735 ILCS 5/2-202(a)).
Can a family member accept a summons in Illinois?
Yes, at the defendant's usual place of abode, if they are a family member or resident 13 or older, are told what the summons is, and a copy is also mailed to the defendant there (735 ILCS 5/2-203(a)(2)).
Is there a deadline to serve in Illinois?
No fixed number of days. Under Supreme Court Rule 103(b) the court can dismiss for lack of reasonable diligence in getting service, with prejudice if the failure comes after the statute of limitations has run.
Keep reading
Guides to serving papers
- Who Can Accept Served Papers?
- How to Serve Someone Court Papers Without an Address
- Can You Serve Someone Yourself?
- What Happens If You Are Not Properly Served?
- Can Court Papers Be Served by Mail?
- What Does a Process Server Do?
- How Much Does a Process Server Cost?
- What Is a Return of Service?
- What Is a Declaration of Non-Service?
- What Is Insufficient Service of Process?
Serving in another state? See process serving in every state.
General information, not legal advice. The rules above are the ones in force when we checked them (October 2026); the court and the cited rules control.
Serve papers in Illinois today.
Create your free firm account, upload the papers and choose routine, rush or same-day.