San Diego Central Jail Inmate Commissary

San Diego Central Jail

Address:
1173 Front Street
San Diego, CA 92101

Phone:

619-610-1647

Purchasing Commissary for an Inmate at the San Diego Central Jail

San Diego Central Jail Commissary and Money Deposits

Friends and family of inmates in the San Diego Central Jail can purchase commissary online and have that shipped directly to an inmate.

Commissary items range from snacks to hygeine products to stationary. You can even deposit money so that your inmate can purchase their own items.





 

Commissary Deposits using Touch Pay

Options for putting money on an inmate's books in San Diego Central Jail:

Option 1 - Dropping Money at the Jail
Bring money to the jail in person. 
You will use a Touchpay self-serve kiosk in the lobbies that accepts cash, debit or credit cards.


Option 2 - Deposit Inmate Money Online
San Diego Central Jail uses Touchpay to process all online deposits to an inmate's account. The company charges you a small fee for doing so, but the fee probably isn't as much as gas and parking would cost to take it to the jail in person.


Option 3 - Mail the Inmate Deposit to the Jail 
Mailing a deposit takes more time to process than the other methods but can be done if you live too far away to bring it in person and you don't have a debit/credit card for online deposits. Never send cash. Always send a Money Order from the US Post Office, a reputable bank or Western Union. 

NOTE: Call the San Diego Central Jail at 619-610-1647 to see if they are still allowing money orders to be mailed.

Option 4 - Make an Inmate Deposit over the Phone by calling Touchpay at 866-232-1899.
To do this you will need the inmate's offender # (inmate ID #), full legal name, and Facility Locator Number. Call 619-610-1647 to get the Facility Locator Number.

What is an Inmate Commissary?

Commissary, also known as Canteen, is the ‘store’ within a jail or prison where inmates can purchase items that they want or need to make their stay in jail or prison less of a burden.

Snacks and comfort foods, branded hygiene products they are used to, sneakers and t-shirts, prayer blankets, radios, headphones, television sets, tablets, stationary products and art supplies; depending on the facility, there are thousands of products to choose from.

Some jail and prison systems run their own commissary store, others contract out to companies that serve dozens or hundreds of jails, where inmates and/or their friends and families can purchase products through a website from home, or a kiosk or tablet within their facility.

What items can inmates purchase in jail and prison?

Food
•    Cookies
•    Pastries
•    Candy
•    Tuna and mackerel
•    Coffee and Tea
•    Soft drinks
•    Energy drinks
•    Pizza
•    Hamburgers
•    Chicken fingers
•    Spices

Hygiene
•    Shampoo
•    Soap
•    Shaving supplies
•    Lotions
•    Deodorant
•    Oral care
•    Toilet paper
•    Nail care

Clothing
•    Sweats
•    Sneakers
•    Shorts
•    Underwear and bras
•    Socks
•    Jackets
•    Hats

Electronics
•    Televisions
•    Radios
•    Headphones
•    Tablets
•    Watches

Miscellaneous
•    Playing cards
•    Games
•    Bibles
•    Books
•    Art supplies
•    Stationery supplies
•    Vaping products (only some states)
•    Greeting cards

How much money can an inmate spend on commissary each month?

Generally, the maximum spend in jail is about $300 per month. Prisons allow a bit more as it is more of a permanent home, whereby jail is temporary. To find out how much an inmate in the San Diego Central Jail can spend each month, call 619-610-1647.

How often can inmates purchase commissary?

Some jails it's twice a week, others once a week or every other week. A lot of the online stores care pack companies are once a month. To find out the exact schedule for San Diego Central Jail, call 619-610-1647.

How can a friend or family member deposit money for an inmate in jail or prison?

San Diego Central Jail has its own methods for receiving money for inmates, and that information can be found above or by calling 619-610-1647 and asking, however all jails and prisons all receive money for an inmate’s trust and commissary account, as well as an account used for communications, pretty much the same way.

1.    Mailing an inmate a money order or cashier’s check from a trusted source such as the Post Office, a local bank, or Western Union. The Money order should be be made out to either the inmate or the facility, with the inmate’s name and ID# on the memo line of the check.  

When mailing a money order or cashier’s check, send it an envelope by itself.  Never send it with a letter or photos for your inmate.

Never send personal checks or cash either.

2.    Deposit cash or use a debit or credit card to send an inmate money using an ATM machine that is usually located in the lobby or visitation area of the facility.

3.    Some jails have a reception desk or booth that is open during certain hours that they will list on their website. They will accept cash, money orders or cashier checks. Other facilities that don’t have a human manning the desk will have mail drop where you can leave a money order or check. No cash can be left in these boxes.

4.    There are multiple companies that jails and prisons contract with which accept inmate deposits online, by mail or over the phone, or even in ATM machines you can find in check cashing stores and retail outlets across the country. 

If one of these companies (listed in the next question) works with San Diego Central Jail, this information will be outlined above.

Who are the companies that jails use to send money to inmates?

There are many companies competing for the accounts of jail and prison inmates. Their intention is to alleviate the staffing and financial responsibility of handling inmate’s accounts. They usually charge a fee equal to 3-5% of the total deposit.

The companies, in alphabetical order, are:

Access Corrections
AllPaid (aka GovPayNet)
Care A Cell
Cash Bond Online
CIDNET
City Tele Coin
CommissaryDeposit.com
Correct Solutions Group
Correctpay
Ctel
Edevo
Express Account
gettingout
GTL
Inmate Canteen
InmateSales
JailATM
Jail Pack Store (McDaniel Supply)
Jailpayments.com
Jpay
NCIC
JailCanteen (Oasis)
Paytel
Pigeonly
Prodigy Sales
Reliance
Securus
Smart Communications
Tennessee Business Enterprise
Tiger
Touchpay

How do I send an inmate money by mail?

To send an inmate money by mail you first have to have the money converted to a money order, preferably from the US Post Office, or a Cashier’s Check. Never send cash, and never send a personal check.
To find the address for sending money to an inmate, call the jail at 619-610-1647.

Can I send an inmate money online?

Almost every facility contracts with a company that helps friends and families of inmates send them money. The list can be found above.
To find out who San Diego Central Jail contracts with for inmate deposits, call them at 619-610-1647.

How expensive are items on commissary?

Items on commissary are no more expensive than they would be at a local Walmart store.

What is a Commissary deposit?

A commissary deposit is the money that a person on the outside deposits in an inmate’s trust account, so they can have money to spend on commissary and communication services.

How much money can inmate have in his commissary account?

The limit that an inmate can have in their commissary account is usually about $300.00. To find out what the limit is for San Diego Central Jail, call 619-610-1647.

Can I send an inmate a package or care pack??

Many jails contract with companies that send food, hygiene products and/or clothing to inmates. These can be purchased and sent by friends and family on a weekly or monthly basis.

You can only send items from the one that your jail has a contract with. 

An inmate carepack is a pack of snacks and/or hygiene products that friends or family members of an inmate can purchase online and have shipped to an inmate. The carepack company needs to have a contract with the facility before it can be shipped to the inmate.

Check this page, the Money Page or the Commissary Page for further information, or call the jail at 619-610-1647 to see which one that the San Diego Central Jail works with.

Here are the commissary package companies, in alphabetical order, that provide this service to jails in the United States:

Access Securepak
Care A Cell
Commissary order
Correct Pay
Express Account
icare
Inmate Canteen
Jail ATM
Jail Pack Store (McDaniel Supply)
My Care Pack
Oasis (jailcanteen)
Prodigy Solutions
Tiger
Union Supply Direct

Can an inmate buy gifts on commissary?

Not really. Other than the basic supplies mentioned above there are no gifts other than greeting cards that they can fill out and mail to a friend, family or loved one.

How to Purchase Commissary for an Inmate in San Diego Central Jail 

Friends and family of inmates in the San Diego Central Jail can purchase commissary online and have that shipped directly to an inmate.

Commissary items range from snacks to hygeine products to stationary. You can even deposit money so that your inmate can purchase their own items.

To learn everything you need to know about how to purchase commissary for an inmate, and limits to how much you can deposit, check out our Commissary Page.


 

How to Email / Text an Inmate in the San Diego Central Jail

Every San Diego Central Jail inmate is allowed to send and receive two digital messages per day, each totalling no more than 2,500 text charcters.

Instructions for emailing an inmate

Search for the inmate on Who’s in Jail site using the incarcerated person’s name. To prevent conflicts in spelling, you may search using only the first two letters of the first and last name.
Next, do the Captcha code to verify you are not a bot.

For complete instructions on how to exchange emails with an inmate in the San Diego Corrections system, check out our Inmate Email page.


 

How to Do San Diego Central Jail Money Deposits for an Inmate

Friends and family of inmates in the San Diego Central Jail can purchase commissary online and have that shipped directly to an inmate.

Commissary items range from snacks to hygeine products to stationary. You can even deposit money so that your inmate can purchase their own items.

To learn everything you need to know about how to deposit money for an inmate, purchase commissary for them, and limits to how much you can deposit, check out our Inmate Money Page.


 

San Diego Central Jail Inmate Mail Policies and Address - What Can You Send, and Where?

For inmates receiving mail in the San Diego Central Jail there are different addresses and policies depending on the inmate's status, as well as what type of mail they are receiving; personal mail, legal mail, subscriptions or books sent from a third-party such as Amazon.

All mail is to be shipped to the San Diego Central Jail:
Inmate's Full Name & Inmate Booking #
San Diego Central Jail
Mail Processing Center
451 Riverview Parkway, Building C
Santee, CA 92071


For complete information on mail policies, what you can send an inmate and what address to send them, check out our Inmate Mail page.


 

How an Inmate Makes a Phone Call to You or Others from San Diego Central Jail

To set up a phone account so that your inmate can call you from San Diego County do the following:

1. Enroll in an account with Securus Technologies.

2. Choose one of three account types, Securus Debit, Advance Connect or Direct Bill.
3. Choose [facility_name_1}, then connect with your inmate.
4. If you have any questions, call Securus: 972-734-1111 or 800-844-6591.

To find out fees, how to's, calling times, limits on phone calls and other systems Securus has do that you can communicate with your San Diego County inmate, check out our Inmate Phone Page.
NOTE: All of your inmate's phone calls are recorded and stored. It is advised not to discuss their pending case.


 

How to Deposit Money into an Inmate's Account in San Diego Central Jail

To deposit money into the account of an inmate in San Diego County, follow these instructions:

  • Create an account with Touchpay Services, a GTL company.
  • Select California.
  • Select San Diego Central Jail
  • Enter the Inmate ID of your inmate.  This can be found by calling 619-610-1647 or by looking up the inmate's name in the Inmate Search link.
  • Enter your billing information and send money.
  • You can also deposit cash using the kiosk at the San Diego Central Jail.  To do this you need the Inmate's ID Number and the Facility Locator Number for San Diego County.

For all the information you need regarding making an inmate deposit, what it costs, how much you can send, how long it takes for your inmate to receive funds and more, and to get the Facility Locator Number, check out our Send Money Page.


 

How to Schedule and Visit an Inmate in San Diego Central Jail

To schedule and set up a visit, either at-the-jail or remotely from your home, follow these instructions:

  • Register and/or log in.
  • Select San Diego Central Jail, then your inmate.
  • Review the days, available hours and the cost of remote and on-site visits in San Diego County.
  • Schedule your visit.

To get more complete instructions, and understand visit lengths, times, locations, fees and all the other rules including children, dress codes and more, check out or Visit Inmate Page.
NOTE: All visits are recorded and whatever you say and do will be monitored. It is best to never discuss sensitive information regarding your inmate's pending case.


 

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