Sunday, April 2nd
2023 Background Check Service Reviews
PeopleFinders
- "A+" rated by the BBB
- In business for over 30 years
- Search by name, address (physical or email), or phone
- Affordable prices for a single report or 3- to 5-day trial
- Pay less than $30/month for full background reports
Launched in 1999, PeopleFinders is one of the largest sources of public records data across the nation. Whether you need to check out a new neighbor or a prospective romantic interest, you're likely to get the results you need with this platform.
Fast and hassle-free
If you're starting your background check with a name, city, and state, consider adding the middle initial or name and age range to make your search go super-fast. Even if you don't have those details, PeopleFinders will still return results quickly and without making you wait for it to "process" (like many rival sites do). For each target we researched, this platform gave us almost immediate matches that were correct - and with enough preliminary information to confirm we had found the right people.
Two types of searches and reports
Once you've spotted the person you're checking out and clicked for the report, you'll be given two choices: pay $1.95 and get that report and a three-day trial of PeopleFinders' most basic search level, or upgrade to a full background check that includes criminal records, property records, and other in-depth databases. This is the option most people will need for a true background check; the results from the basic search are, well, basic. When we selected the more rigorous search for $9.95, PeopleFinders upped the ante with a price of $3.95 for the report and a three-day trial of the more comprehensive plan. (Be aware that the checkout page included an optional emailed report for $0.50. We're not sure why that's a thing, but keep an eye out for it.)
It's worth it to wait a little
If you're not in a hurry, let your browser page sit open on the PeopleFinders' checkout page for a few minutes, then start to navigate away from the site. In our case, this led to a pop-up offer of a longer trial (five days) and the full background check report for only $1. Good things come to those who wait. With any plan or trial you select, you should expect it to become a monthly subscription - $24.95/month for basic and $29.95 for comprehensive background checks - if you don't cancel your PeopleFinders account prior to the end of the trial period.
No bait-and-switch
Transparency is always a positive thing for a business, and PeopleFinders gets high marks in that regard. Other background check services obscure the fact that users will pay extra to get the most comprehensive reports, but there's none of that here. Better yet, PeopleFinders' monthly pricing is lower than the competition's, and they spell out that your membership will have a limit of 150 monthly searches on the basic tier and 400 on the comprehensive one.
Costs
- $1.95 for a 3-day trial of basic search
- $9.95 for a one-time report with full background info ($1 with pop-up offer)
- $24.95/month for basic people search (150 searches/month)
- $29.95/month for comprehensive background reports (400 searches/month)
Excellent reputation
This company gets a lot of positive feedback. To start, the Better Business Bureau assigns PeopleFinders a perfect "A+" grade. Beyond that, more than 1200 customers say that this service merits a flawless five-star rating: the customer service team is knowledgeable and friendly, and the reports are about as accurate as you can expect from a background check service. It's good to see a service with so many satisfied users, in an industry where hundreds (if not thousands) of complaints are the norm.
Best overall choice
PeopleFinders tells you exactly what to expect when running background checks. You'll have plenty of time to try out the service, and you should have no issues if you decide to cancel instead of subscribing. On the whole, the results here are accurate and offer a great value when you pay for a monthly membership. This is our first-place winner among providers of background checks.
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Where Can You Get the Most Accurate and Affordable Background Checks?
You're already well aware of the fact that you can find out lots about people with a simple Google search, but what if you need to know more? There are plenty of reasons to pay for a background check, from vetting your newest love interest to making sure a childcare provider doesn't have a criminal past.
These paid platforms can access records that won't show up in a traditional search - and they save you time by pulling together information from thousands of databases into one place. When you run a background check, most services will give you two tiers of pricing: basic and "premium" . What's the difference? A basic search typically renders results showing a person's known aliases (like maiden names) and relatives, address history, phone number, email addresses, and possibly social media accounts.
Background Check Service FAQ
Continued from above...
To get to the kinds of records you've probably got in mind, like criminal and court proceedings, you'll have to upgrade to the premium service. That may be included as an add-on to a monthly subscription cost or as a one-off fee each time you conduct a search.
As you consider whether or not to conduct a background check, it's important to understand that some uses are strictly prohibited - and every service will require you to acknowledge those limitations at some point during the process (usually with an "I accept" or "I agree" checkbox). Identified as FCRA (short for Fair Credit Reporting Act), this regulation means that you can't use a background check service to influence decisions on employment, tenant applications, insurance, and several other scenarios. There are a small number of services that offer FCRA compliant searches, but expect to pay accordingly.
No matter which background check service you ultimately select, there's one good reason to visit more than one site: to protect your privacy by requesting that your own records be removed from their listings. Look for a link at the bottom of the site that says "Opt Out" or "Do Not Sell My Information" . From there, you'll either conduct a search for your own records (at no cost) or provide the URL you got when you looked up your own profile previously. Once you click the link sent in a confirmation email, it can take several business days for your info to be deleted (though we've seen it happen almost instantly as well).
With so many platforms offering background checks, which one is right for you? Keep in mind these criteria as you make your decision:
- Accuracy of Information. Background check services don't guarantee that their reports are accurate: public records can have errors, and with common names it's not unheard of to have incorrectly-attributed results. However, some services have a better reputation for quality data. You may want to search for your own report to get a feel for how on-target your results will be if you do a background check on someone else.
- Value. What will you get for what you spend? Is there a trial period that lets you test out the background check service before committing to a paid plan? How does that monthly fee compare with rival services?
- Reputation. What do other customers say about their experience with running background checks with the service? Has the Better Business Bureau given the provider a favorable rating?
- Customer Support. Some background check services let you get one-on-one help to find the information you need. Are support reps easily reached if you have questions or issues with billing?
To help you get all of the information you need. TopConsumerReviews.com has evaluated and ranked the most popular background search providers available today. Are you ready to find out more about your neighbor, date, or coworker? Choose one of our highest-ranked services and see what you discover!
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