Adopting from a foster care home is one of the most common ways for parents to adopt a child. In a foster care adoption, the prospective parents work with an adoption agency licensed by the state of Nevada to adopt a child from foster care.Foster home adoption is often the least expensive way to adopt a child. Children in foster homes can vary in age, and it may be worth noting that some children in foster care situations have experienced trauma parents should prepare for and understand how to handle prior to proceeding with the adoption process

In private adoptions, prospective parents either work directly with an adoptee's parents or with an independent agency that connects biological parents with prospective adoptive parents. Private adoptions are often more expensive than adopting from a foster care home, but it may be easier for parents to adopt an infant or a child who they can have full records for. It's also a good option for adoptive parents who want to maintain a connection with their child's biological parents.

Families often adopt children from other states, and children can find permanent families living in other states. The basic adoption process for adoptions involving multiple states is similar to the process for adoptions within the same state. All prospective adoptive parents must obtain a home study (or family profile) and follow their state’s adoption laws. In addition, in an interstate adoption, prospective adoptive parents need also to comply with the laws of the sending state (the state where the child lives).

In international adoptions, prospective adoptive parents work with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to adopt a child from another country. This is often the most expensive kind of adoption.

In a relative adoption, a child's relative - often a grandparent - adopts them from their biological parents. In most relative adoption cases, the child's biological parents have to voluntarily terminate their parental rights for the adoption to move forward. However, if the parents are engaged in a dependency case and fail to prove their fitness as caretakers, a court may terminate their parental rights and allow the relative adoption to move forward with the parent's consent.