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Best Background Check Services

Best Background Check Services

We dedicate ourselves to bringing you high-quality information about the different background check solutions that are available on the internet. Whether it is thorough reviews written by our experts, comparisons or blog articles about the latest industry developments, our aim is to arm you with the necessary knowledge to make the right decision when it comes to picking a service. We’ll also keep you in the loop about special discount offers and coupons.

Best background check services of 2025

Editors' choice

TruthFinder

Editor's rating:
Quality of reports
Fast searches
Ease of use
Dark web monitoring
Budget-friendly searches

Spokeo

Editor's rating:
User-friendly report format
Easy searches
Block calls via smartphone app
Affordable prices
Detailed reports

PeopleFinders

Editor's rating:
Fast results
Run individual checks
Rewards scheme
Mobile app
Instant results

Intelius

Editor's rating:
User-friendly layout
Organized reports
Versatile search options
Criminal and financial records
Criminal history

Instant Checkmate

Editor's rating:
Wide variety of information
Reverse phone lookup
Financial data included
No cancellation fees
Online dating

Social Catfish

Editor's rating:
Multiple reverse searching options
Detailed reports
Report monitoring
Excellent for catfish prevention
Editors' choice

TruthFinder

Editor's rating:
Starting price: $4.99/mo
Main features
  • Quality of reports
  • Fast searches
  • Ease of use
  • Dark web monitoring
  • Quality of reports
  • Fast searches
  • Ease of use
  • Dark web monitoring
  • No single-purchase reports
  • Separate subscriptions for alternative searches
  • Extra fees for downloading reports
Summary
View summary

Having been in the business since 2015, TruthFinder is well versed in running background checks on U.S. residents. The service scans private and public records, gathers people’s data, such as their social media profiles, location, and criminal records, and compiles it into easy-to-read reports. TruthFinder’s diverse search methods allow users to look for information about someone by filling in their full name, phone number, email, or address. The results from these searches are data-rich and well-organized in reports, which can be accessed from computers and mobile devices. Prices start at $4.99 per month for phone reports and at $23.52 for people search reports.

Special offers
View offers
17% off TruthFinder*
Budget-friendly searches

Spokeo

Editor's rating:
Starting price: $7.95/mo
Main features
  • User-friendly report format
  • Easy searches
  • Block calls via smartphone app
  • Affordable prices
  • User-friendly report format
  • Easy searches
  • Block calls via smartphone app
  • Affordable prices
  • No data on assets or liens
  • Lacks report clarification
Summary
View summary

There’s any number of reasons why you might want to use a background check service, but being able to reunite with people is perhaps one of the quirkiest. Spokeo is one such tool, a background check and data organization service where the miracle of information gathering is utilized to bring people together. The site was founded by four Stanford University graduates who in the early days only pulled data from social media sites, but as time went on they upgraded the search engine piece by piece, and now members have access to a full portfolio complete with criminal records, a family tree and even property values.

In order to help people better accommodate themselves into Spokeo the company has made the whole experience user-friendly, which is one of the reasons why over 18 million people have decided to subscribe to the service. On top of all that members can enjoy the benefits of a smartphone app that recognizes unknown numbers or sends push notifications whenever their subject’s profile is updated with new information.

Special offers
View offers
Up to $6 discount on Spokeo membership fees
Free testing at Spokeo
Detailed reports

PeopleFinders

Editor's rating:
Starting price: $1.95/unit
Main features
  • Fast results
  • Run individual checks
  • Rewards scheme
  • Mobile app
  • Fast results
  • Run individual checks
  • Rewards scheme
  • Mobile app
  • No employment history
  • Doesn't check social media
Summary
View summary

California’s PeopleFinders claims it can “find anyone, anywhere”. It’s a bold claim, but with 43 billion public records to search from, the service can certainly has the power. As the name suggests the service has helped users find people since 1999. To do that, PeopleFinders runs everything from simple people searches to in-depth background checks. You can find out information from addresses and phone numbers to more in-depth financial history and criminal records. The service checks over 6,000 different sources to ensure its data is as accurate as possible. PeopleFinders allows you to run one-off reports, or you can get a monthly subscription if you need to run them frequently with prices starting at $24.95 a month.

Special offers
View offers
First month of PeopleFinders for $9.95
3-day trial of PeopleFinders
15-day refund policy with PeopleFinders
Instant results

Intelius

Editor's rating:
Starting price: $21.13/mo
Main features
  • User-friendly layout
  • Organized reports
  • Versatile search options
  • Criminal and financial records
  • User-friendly layout
  • Organized reports
  • Versatile search options
  • Criminal and financial records
  • Expensive
  • Additional fee for downloads
  • No single report purchase option
Summary
View summary

Staying relevant as a background check service with so many competitors on the market is no easy task. Nevertheless, Intelius has remained in the spotlight since its foundation in 2003. The company provides a highly refined search engine that returns several types of personal data, such as birth dates, criminal records, financial information, and more. Users can look up a long-lost friend or family member, or check the background of a new neighbor with ease. Intelius isn’t restricted to just the browser, as the smartphone app makes searching for people on the go straightforward. Although it’s not a free service, the cheapest subscription is charged every two months and costs $21.13 per month ($42.26 in total).

Special offers
View offers
15% Off Intelius*
Criminal history

Instant Checkmate

Editor's rating:
Starting price: $5.99/mo
Main features
  • Wide variety of information
  • Reverse phone lookup
  • Financial data included
  • No cancellation fees
  • Wide variety of information
  • Reverse phone lookup
  • Financial data included
  • No cancellation fees
  • No iOS app
  • No individual reports
  • Expensive
Summary
View summary

A name can be important. It’s how we recognize people, how a business stands out from the crowd, and in the world of background check services, it’s used to find a person. But what if the person’s name is what you are trying to discover? With Instant Checkmate, people can also be tracked by their phone number, email, or address. The California-based company’s ability to instantly check criminal records, social media pages, and financial statuses, and convert this information into professional reports, is commendable. Prices start at $28.09 per month* for person reports and $5.99 per month for phone reports.

Special offers
View offers
20% off instant Checkmate
Online dating

Social Catfish

Editor's rating:
Starting price: $27.48/mo
Main features
  • Multiple reverse searching options
  • Detailed reports
  • Report monitoring
  • Excellent for catfish prevention
  • Reverse image search
  • Detailed reports
  • AI chat checker
  • Report monitoring
  • No mobile app
  • Hidden pricing
  • Paid 3-day trial
Summary
View summary

is a web-based online platform specializing in verification and background check reports. With a database of over 300 million records, it provides thorough reverse search capabilities via names, usernames, addresses, phone numbers, and photos.

The reports include extensive information, from personal details like usernames and relatives to property and business information. It has plenty of plans, with prices starting at $5.73 for the first 3 days and 27.48 after that. Plus, its Social Media Pro plans all include a 20% discount.

Special offers
View offers
20% off Social Catfish
Schedule a 10-minute consultation with a professional online investigator

Other background check sites

Dating background checks 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

Everyone knows that dating can be a minefield and you need to be cautious. This is especially true for online dating, as studies have shown that remarkably 53% of people lie on their online dating profiles. Find the best background check services for online dating.

Landlord background checks 🏘️

Many landlords run background checks on their tenants. In fact, it’s become such a common practice that is has spawned an entire industry of specialist background services. Learn more about the best background check services for landlords.

Nanny background checks 👵🏼

There are plenty of background check services that specialize in checking nannies, babysitters, and other caregivers. These services will tell you if your nanny has impeccable references, the right qualifications, no criminal history, and the perfect personality to fit your family. Learn more about the best background check services for nannies.

Employer background checks 👨🏾‍💼

It’s a natural instinct for humans to lie, but it’s always better to tell the truth – that extends to resumes, where lying is incredibly common. One survey estimated around 78% of people lie on their CV. Check which are the best background check services for employers.

Background checks 101

The best background check sites incorporate a refined search algorithm that pulls data from various public record archives. Court documents and sex offender registries are just some of the sources that you yourself could legally access. The point of using such screening tools is to save yourself time, money, and energy as you don’t need to visit the government offices in person to have a look into the files.

Though background check reports tend to differ from one another, there is some common ground to be found between them. The associated network of friends and family members is one such category, as is the location history that displays the subject’s past and present residences. Arrest records are also available across the board and typically come with court rulings, any sex offenses, bankruptcies or outstanding liens. Some will even include the subject’s social media accounts or weapon licenses and permits.

It’s important to mention that the non-commercial use of background check sites isn’t without limits. They aren’t suitable for background screening potential employees or tenants based on the information found in the reports. Similarly, the results aren’t verified and therefore not valid for judging someone’s eligibility for insurance.

Background checks FAQ

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Reddit's preferred background checks

Naturally, there are a lot of companies stepping up to the plate by providing services that help their users run thorough background checks. But how do you choose just one? We took to Reddit to find out which services its users recommend most and to see what experiences Redditors have had with background check services. Find out which background check services are best according to Reddit.

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