Background check software runs the screening a company does before, and sometimes after, it hires someone: pulling a criminal record search, confirming a claimed job title and dates with a former employer, checking a diploma, verifying identity, or querying a sanctions list. What separates the vendors here is less the checklist of report types, most cover a similar range, and more how the results get back to a recruiter: turnaround time, how many countries a search actually reaches, whether pricing is published or quote-only, and how clearly the tool documents the consent and adverse-action steps a hiring team still has to run under its own legal advice. What counts as a lawful check, and how results may be used, varies sharply by country and by check type, so every claim below is the vendor's own description of what it does, not legal guidance for any jurisdiction, and a hiring team should confirm its own obligations with qualified local counsel before ordering any check.
Visibility in this ranking can be paid for. Payment moves a vendor's position within the
shortlist; it never adds a vendor, and it never changes a word of the review. The largest vendors in background check software
cannot hold places 1 to 3. How it works: placement disclosure ·
editorial process.
How we ranked these
Setup: ATS integration and how a check actually gets ordered
Nearly every vendor here can be used as a standalone portal, but the products that get adopted well are the ones that plug into the applicant tracking system a recruiter already lives in, so a background check gets triggered from an offer stage rather than a separate login. We scored setup on how many ATS platforms each vendor lists as native integrations, whether the candidate-facing consent and data-entry flow is mobile-friendly, and how clearly the vendor documents its own onboarding time, since several enterprise-oriented platforms here take weeks rather than days to go live.
The real price: published per-report rates versus a quote
Pricing in this category splits sharply between a small group of vendors, Checkr, Certn, Veremark and PESCHECK among them, that publish real per-report or per-candidate prices, and a larger group of established players that route every enquiry to a sales call. A published price lets a small or mid-sized employer budget without a negotiation; a quoted price usually reflects volume-based enterprise contracts that can undercut the published rates at scale. We favoured transparency for buyers doing under a few hundred checks a year, and noted where a published price applies only below a stated volume threshold.
Coverage: which countries a check can actually run in, and how fast
Global country counts on a vendor's homepage, 195-plus and 200-plus are common claims here, describe how many jurisdictions a search can technically be attempted in, not how deep or fast every one of those searches is. We looked for vendors that are specific about average turnaround time by check type and region, since a criminal record search that takes a day in the United States can take weeks in a country with a manual court-record system, and a candidate left waiting is often the actual complaint an employer has about this category.
Independence from the vendor: an industry mid-consolidation
Background screening has consolidated significantly at the top: First Advantage completed its acquisition of Sterling Check Corp in 2024, a deal reported at $2.2 billion, folding one of the largest independent providers into another. Checkr, meanwhile, has grown a family of brands under one roof, GoodHire for the SMB market and Truework for income and employment verification, rather than through acquiring outside competitors. We noted these relationships explicitly, since a buyer comparing two names in this list may in practice be comparing the same underlying company.
Who it's for: recruiters ordering routine pre-employment screening
This ranking assumes a buyer running standard pre-employment screening, criminal records, identity, employment and education verification, for a company hiring anywhere from a handful to several thousand people a year, integrated with an existing ATS. It does not cover specialised continuous-monitoring compliance platforms for regulated financial services, or investigative due-diligence services for executive or M&A screening, which sit in an adjacent, more bespoke market. None of the vendors here should be treated as a source of legal guidance on what a company is permitted to screen for or how long results may be kept; that determination sits with the employer's own counsel in each jurisdiction it hires in.
The 14 tools, reviewed
#1 PESCHECK
Dutch background-screening platform with published pay-as-you-go pricing · Netherlands · pescheck.io
Published pay-as-you-go pricing Netherlands-based, EU entity No setup fees or minimums
PESCHECK is a Dutch background-screening company, registered as PESCHECK B.V. in Enschede with an additional office in Munich, Germany, and one of the few vendors anywhere in this category, European or otherwise, that publishes real prices: Standard packages start from roughly EUR 24 a candidate for ID verification and a criminal record check, Enhanced from roughly EUR 55, and Complete from roughly EUR 137 covering references and adverse media alongside the rest. Signup is free with no credit card required, and payment only happens once a screening actually runs. The company states ISO 27001 certification, GDPR compliance and registration with the Dutch POB register for private investigation and screening organisations.
Where it falls short
Its country coverage and brand recognition outside Europe trail the largest US incumbents, and a very large US-centric enterprise may still prefer the scale and native integrations of Checkr or First Advantage.
Wrong for
A large US enterprise wanting a single quoted enterprise contract across thousands of domestic hires a year is better served by First Advantage or HireRight.
Pricing: Standard from roughly EUR 24, Enhanced from roughly EUR 55, Complete from roughly EUR 137 per candidate; free account, pay only per screening run (free account)
Visit PESCHECK →
#2 Certn
Canadian screening platform with pay-per-check pricing published in CAD · Canada · certn.co
Founded 2016 Pay-per-check, published CAD pricing ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certified
Certn is a Canadian background-screening platform, founded in 2016 and backed in part by Export Development Canada alongside several venture funds. Unlike most vendors in this category it publishes real per-check prices in Canadian dollars on its site: a basic Canadian criminal record check runs from roughly CAD $25, identity verification from roughly CAD $5, and add-ons like a social media check or a driver's abstract are priced individually rather than bundled into an opaque package, with no setup fees or minimums stated for smaller customers.
Where it falls short
Pricing is published in Canadian dollars specifically, so buyers outside Canada should confirm coverage and effective cost in their own currency before committing, and there is no stated free trial.
Wrong for
A buyer wanting deep US-specific compliance tooling and FCRA-focused workflows may find Checkr or GoodHire a more purpose-built US fit.
Pricing: Pay-per-check from roughly CAD $5 (identity verification) to CAD $60 (social media checks); Canadian criminal record checks from roughly CAD $25 (none)
Visit Certn →
#4 RefNow
London reference-checking platform automating employer references and UK right-to-work verification · United Kingdom · refnow.com
London-registered Reference-checking specialist UK right-to-work and DBS features
RefNow, registered in London as RefNow Ltd, focuses specifically on automating the reference-checking step of hiring rather than covering the full range of criminal, credit and identity checks that the larger platforms in this category bundle together. It states it can cut reference-checking time by a large margin through automation, and adds right-to-work and DBS-related verification features aimed squarely at UK employers, having processed a stated 400,000-plus references.
Where it falls short
It is not a substitute for a full criminal-record and identity screening vendor, so most buyers will run it alongside, rather than instead of, a broader platform, and pricing is not published.
Wrong for
A company wanting a single vendor covering criminal records, identity and references together should choose Checkr, Zinc or PESCHECK instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; free trial with no credit card required (free trial)
Visit RefNow →
#5 HiPeople
Berlin AI hiring platform combining reference checks with pre-hire assessments · Germany · hipeople.io
Berlin-based, EU entity EU or US data hosting offered Bundled with assessments and AI interviews
HiPeople, registered as HiPeople GmbH in Berlin, is not a pure background-check vendor: its platform bundles automated reference checks alongside application screening, AI-run interviews and skills assessments, positioned as an end-to-end hiring workflow rather than a single screening report. The company states it offers a choice of EU or US data hosting, which is relevant for a European employer that wants reference data kept inside the EU, and cites SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and GDPR/CCPA compliance.
Where it falls short
It is a narrower fit for a buyer who specifically wants a criminal-record or identity-verification vendor rather than a reference check bundled into a broader AI hiring suite, and it does not publish self-serve pricing.
Wrong for
A buyer wanting criminal record and identity verification as the primary product, with reference checks as one feature among several, should choose PESCHECK, Certn or Zinc instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit HiPeople →
#6 GoodHire
Checkr's SMB-facing background-check brand, San Francisco · United States · goodhire.com
A Checkr company 100,000+ employers claimed FCRA-compliance focus
GoodHire operates as a distinct brand within Checkr's corporate family, sharing Checkr's San Francisco address and underlying screening infrastructure while marketing separately toward small and mid-sized employers. The company states it serves more than 100,000 employers and centres its pitch on FCRA compliance and straightforward, candidate-facing screening reports, covering criminal background checks, employment and education verification, driving records and drug testing.
Where it falls short
Pricing is not published on the main site, and because it shares ownership and infrastructure with Checkr, a buyer comparing the two should check current pricing and feature differences directly rather than assume they are meaningfully different products.
Wrong for
A larger employer wanting Checkr's full API-first, developer-facing platform and published per-report pricing should go directly to Checkr instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing on the main site (none)
Visit GoodHire →
#7 Checkr
US background-check platform with published per-report pricing and API-first integrations · United States · checkr.com
Published per-report pricing API-first, developer-friendly Owns GoodHire and Truework
Checkr is a San Francisco-based background-check platform built around an API that plugs into an ATS rather than a standalone portal, and it is one of the few vendors in this category that publishes real per-report prices instead of routing everyone to a sales call: Basic covers an SSN trace, sex-offender registry and national criminal search, Essential adds identity verification and unlimited county search, and Complete adds state and federal criminal search. Checkr also owns GoodHire, its own SMB-facing brand, and Truework, an income and employment verification company, giving the group reach across several adjacent screening products.
Where it falls short
Add-ons like motor vehicle records, drug screening and employment verification are priced separately, and enterprise-tier pricing is not published. Its scale and multi-brand ownership structure mean a buyer should confirm which entity, Checkr or GoodHire, actually fits their size before signing.
Wrong for
A very small employer running a handful of checks a year may find PESCHECK's or Veremark's lower per-check pricing and simpler packaging a better fit than Checkr's tiered US-centric plans.
Pricing: Per report: Basic roughly $30, Essential roughly $60, Complete roughly $95, plus custom Enterprise pricing (none)
Visit Checkr →
#8 Zinc
UK background-checking platform covering criminal checks in 195+ countries · United Kingdom · zincwork.com
ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certified claimed 195+ country criminal-record coverage claimed FCA, CQC and Ofsted compliance features
Zinc, registered as Zinc Work Ltd in England and Wales, runs pre-employment screening across a stated 195-plus countries from a single dashboard, covering criminal records, right-to-work verification, employment references, financial checks and social media review. It reports ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certification and builds in compliance features aimed at UK-regulated sectors specifically, including FCA, CQC and Ofsted requirements, with an average turnaround the vendor states at around three days.
Where it falls short
Pricing is not published; the site describes three tiers, from pay-as-you-grow for under 20 hires a year up to an enterprise tier, but every one of them routes to a demo booking rather than a visible number.
Wrong for
A buyer wanting a published price without a demo call should choose Certn, Veremark or PESCHECK instead.
Pricing: Three tiers (pay-as-you-grow, SMB, Enterprise), quoted on request (none)
Visit Zinc →
#9 Vetty
US screening and onboarding platform, Cedar Park, Texas · United States · vetty.co
Combines screening with onboarding/I-9 Mobile-first candidate flow Healthcare, education and staffing focus
Vetty, based in Cedar Park, Texas, bundles background screening with the onboarding paperwork that usually follows it, covering criminal records, health screenings, professional license monitoring, drug testing and I-9 verification through what it calls a mobile-first platform. That combination targets employers in healthcare, education, tech and staffing who want one system spanning the pre-hire check and the post-offer paperwork rather than two separate tools.
Where it falls short
Pricing is not published and requires a sales conversation, and its country coverage and brand recognition are narrower than the largest incumbents in this category.
Wrong for
A large multinational needing broad international coverage across dozens of countries is better served by First Advantage, HireRight or Zinc.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit Vetty →
#10 iprospectcheck
US employment-screening firm, Granite Bay, California, founded 2009 · United States · iprospectcheck.com
Founded 2009 FCRA-compliance focus US-based support team claimed
iprospectcheck, headquartered in Granite Bay, California, has offered employment screening since 2009, covering criminal background checks, employment and education verification, and drug testing with coordinated clinical services. It advertises a 24-hour average turnaround, FCRA compliance and a US-based support team as its core pitch, aimed at employers who want a smaller, more responsive vendor rather than one of the largest incumbents.
Where it falls short
Pricing is not published on the site and requires a direct conversation with the company, so budgeting means requesting a quote before comparing it against the published-price options in this list.
Wrong for
An employer wanting to see a price before any sales contact should start with Checkr, Certn, Veremark or PESCHECK instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit iprospectcheck →
#11 Accurate Background
Irvine, California screening firm with 25+ years in the market · United States · accurate.com
Operating 25+ years 16,000+ customers claimed 60M+ annual searches claimed
Accurate Background, based in Irvine, California, positions itself on scale and longevity: the company states it has operated for more than 25 years, serves over 16,000 customers worldwide, and processes more than 60 million searches a year, describing itself as the largest privately held, minority-owned global provider of employment background screening services. Its range covers the usual criminal, credit, drug-screening and identity-verification checks aimed at large and mid-market employers managing high-volume hiring.
Where it falls short
As with most of the established US players in this category, pricing is not published and requires a sales conversation, which makes it harder to compare on cost alone against the handful of vendors here that do publish numbers.
Wrong for
A small employer running occasional checks will find its enterprise-oriented sales process heavier than needed; PESCHECK or Veremark fit that volume better.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit Accurate Background →
#12 HireRight
Nashville-based screening firm, founded 1995, taken private again in 2024 · United States · hireright.com
Founded 1995 Went private again in 2024 ($1.65B deal) Built through acquisitions (GIS, Kroll, PeopleCheck)
HireRight, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, is among the longest-established names in this category, founded in 1995 and grown substantially through acquisitions, including Powerchex and Kroll Background Worldwide in 2010, General Information Services in 2018, and J-Screen and PeopleCheck in 2019. It listed on the NYSE in 2021 and went private again in 2024, when General Atlantic and Stone Point Capital acquired it for a reported $1.65 billion.
Where it falls short
Pricing is not published, and evaluating it means a sales conversation rather than a self-serve signup, consistent with an enterprise-oriented buyer rather than a small business ordering one-off checks. Its recent change of ownership adds some uncertainty to long-term contract terms.
Wrong for
A small business wanting a card-payable, self-serve signup should choose Checkr, Certn, Veremark or PESCHECK instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit HireRight →
#13 First Advantage
US screening group processing 200M+ candidate screens a year, now including Sterling · United States · fadv.com
Founded 2003, Atlanta Acquired Sterling Check Corp in 2024 1B+ records, 200+ countries/territories claimed
First Advantage is an Atlanta-founded (2003) screening group operating at a scale most vendors in this category cannot match: it states over 200 million candidate screens a year, more than 1 billion records across proprietary databases, and coverage in 200-plus countries and territories, serving roughly 80,000 customers. The company became substantially larger in 2024 when it completed its acquisition of Sterling Check Corp, one of its largest direct competitors, folding Sterling's screening volume and client base into its own platform.
Where it falls short
Pricing is not published and runs through a sales conversation, which fits its positioning toward large enterprise accounts rather than a self-serve small-business buyer, and its scale means recent-acquisition integration work is still ongoing for former Sterling customers.
Wrong for
A small or mid-sized employer wanting a fast, self-serve signup with visible pricing should choose Checkr, Certn, Veremark or PESCHECK instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit First Advantage →
#14 Sterling
Long-standing US screening brand, now operated by First Advantage · United States · sterlingcheck.com
Now part of First Advantage Global screening network Brand retained post-acquisition
Sterling was one of the largest independent background-check providers in the US market before First Advantage completed its acquisition of Sterling Check Corp in 2024 for a reported $2.2 billion. Its own website now states "Sterling is now a First Advantage company" and directs prospective customers toward First Advantage's platform for ongoing service, though the Sterling brand continues to operate under that name.
Where it falls short
Anyone evaluating Sterling today is, in practice, evaluating First Advantage's combined pricing, coverage and account terms, so it is worth comparing the two entries on this page side by side rather than treating them as fully independent options. No pricing is published for either.
Wrong for
A buyer wanting a clearly independent vendor, rather than a legacy brand inside a larger combined company, should treat First Advantage as the entry to evaluate instead.
Pricing: Quoted per organisation via First Advantage; no published self-serve pricing (none)
Visit Sterling →
What the data says about this market
Of the fourteen vendors ranked here, ten are headquartered in the United States, two in the United Kingdom, and one each in Canada, the Netherlands and Germany. Published, self-serve pricing is the exception rather than the rule: Checkr, Certn, Veremark and PESCHECK show real numbers on their sites, while the remaining ten, including the largest names in the industry, First Advantage, HireRight, Accurate Background, route every enquiry to a sales conversation.
The US market has consolidated heavily at the top. First Advantage, already one of the largest screening groups by volume, completed its acquisition of Sterling Check Corp in 2024 in a deal reported at $2.2 billion, combining two of the industry's biggest names into one platform; Sterling's own site now redirects prospective customers toward First Advantage. HireRight, one of the oldest names in the category, went private again in 2024 when General Atlantic and Stone Point Capital acquired it for a reported $1.65 billion, having built much of its scale through earlier acquisitions of Kroll Background Worldwide, General Information Services and others. Checkr has taken a different route, building a multi-brand group, GoodHire for small and mid-sized employers, Truework for income and employment verification, under common ownership rather than folding acquired competitors into one name.
Outside the largest US names, a smaller group of vendors compete on transparency and specialisation rather than scale: Certn and Veremark publish real per-check and per-candidate pricing where almost none of the US majors do, PESCHECK is a Dutch, EU-based alternative with published pay-as-you-go pricing and a stated EU or US data-hosting choice at HiPeople, and RefNow narrows its focus to automating reference checks specifically rather than covering the full screening range. What counts as permissible to check, and for how long results may be retained, differs by country and by check type in ways none of these vendors, and this guide, can substitute for a hiring team's own legal advice.
The 14 ranked vendors, counted
- Headquarters by region: North America 9, Europe 5
- By country: United States 8, United Kingdom 3, Canada 1, Germany 1, Netherlands 1
- Pricing model: Quote only 10, Pay-as-you-go / candidate 1, Pay-per-check 1, Per candidate 1, Per report 1
- Free option: None 12, Free account 1, Free trial 1
Counted from the 14 vendors on this page. More in our market data.
For the wider market behind background check software, read our report The Global Shift to ICT Services,
or browse all industry reports.
Questions and answers
What is the best background check software in 2026?
For a company that wants to see a real price before talking to anyone, PESCHECK, Certn and Veremark all publish per-check or per-candidate rates. Checkr is the strongest choice for a US-focused, API-first integration with an ATS, and it also owns the SMB-facing GoodHire brand. Larger enterprises running high volumes across many countries typically end up evaluating First Advantage or HireRight, both of which have grown substantially through acquisition and quote pricing individually rather than publishing it.
Is background check software legal advice on what I'm allowed to screen for?
No. Every vendor in this list describes what its own product does, not what the law in any given country or state permits. Rules on criminal record lookback periods, consent requirements, and how a company must handle an adverse finding vary significantly by jurisdiction and change over time. Confirm your specific obligations with your own employment counsel before ordering checks, regardless of what a vendor's compliance page claims.
Why do First Advantage and Sterling appear as separate listings if Sterling was acquired?
First Advantage completed its acquisition of Sterling Check Corp in 2024, and Sterling's own website now states it is a First Advantage company and points customers toward the combined platform. We list both because the Sterling brand is still referenced by many buyers and still operates under that name post-acquisition, but anyone evaluating Sterling today is, in practice, evaluating First Advantage's combined pricing and coverage.
What is the difference between Checkr and GoodHire?
GoodHire operates as a distinct brand within Checkr's corporate family, sharing Checkr's underlying screening infrastructure while marketing separately toward small and mid-sized employers with a stated focus on FCRA-style compliance and candidate-facing report clarity. A buyer comparing the two should check current pricing and feature differences directly rather than assume they are identical products under two names.
Which vendors publish real pricing instead of routing to a sales call?
Checkr publishes per-report US pricing on its site, Certn publishes per-check pricing in Canadian dollars, Veremark publishes per-candidate package pricing for organisations screening under roughly 50 candidates a year, and PESCHECK publishes pay-as-you-go pricing in euros with no minimum commitment. Every other vendor in this list, including the largest names in the industry, requires a sales conversation to get a number.
Can these tools screen candidates outside the United States?
Most of the larger platforms, First Advantage, HireRight, Accurate Background, Checkr, Zinc, state coverage across well over 100 countries, though depth and turnaround vary enormously by jurisdiction and check type. PESCHECK and HiPeople are built around European, GDPR-oriented screening specifically, with HiPeople offering a stated choice between EU and US data hosting. Always confirm actual coverage and turnaround for the specific country you're hiring in rather than relying on a headline country count.
What's the difference between a full screening platform and a reference-checking specialist?
Most vendors here, Checkr, First Advantage, HireRight and others, bundle criminal record, identity, employment and education checks into one platform. RefNow, based in London, instead focuses specifically on automating the reference-collection step, positioning itself as a faster complement to a company's existing criminal-and-identity screening vendor rather than a full replacement for one.
How long do background check platforms keep candidate data?
Retention periods are set by the vendor's own policy and by applicable law in the relevant jurisdiction, and they vary across this list; several vendors state ISO 27001 or SOC 2 certification and GDPR-compliance claims, which describes their security programme rather than a specific retention period. Ask any finalist directly for its data retention and deletion policy in writing, particularly for identity documents and any biometric data captured during verification.
Do candidates need to consent before a check is run?
In most jurisdictions, yes, some form of documented candidate consent is a legal requirement before a background check can be run, and every vendor in this list builds a consent step into its workflow. The exact form that consent must take, and what must be disclosed to the candidate beforehand, again depends on local law, so confirm the specific requirement for each jurisdiction you hire in with your own counsel rather than assuming a vendor's default consent flow is sufficient everywhere.
