Productivity & Business · Security, Privacy & Backup

Checkr

Checkr sells employer background checks per report, from $29.99 for Basic, with court and database fees passed through at cost.

Our take: Per-report prices are public, from $29.99 for Basic to $94.99 for Complete, and Checkr states that court and database fees are passed through at cost.

Best forEmployer background checks

ReviewedOct 2026Paid

7.45 criteria · see breakdown

Try CheckrFrom $29.99 per report (Basic)

Checkr is a San Francisco background-check company that employers hire to screen candidates, and it describes itself as a consumer reporting agency under the US Fair Credit Reporting Act. The company that hires you orders the check and decides whether to hire; Checkr's own help pages say it makes no employment decisions. Employers pay per report, from $29.99 for Basic to $94.99 for Complete, plus court and database fees passed through at cost (checked 29 October 2026).

The bottom line

A fit for employers that want published per-report prices and can accept pass-through fees that vary by candidate; candidates should treat Checkr as the employer's vendor, not the decision-maker.

Our score

Reviewed by the Conversion Gems editorial team. Hover a facet to focus it; click to pin.Tap a facet to focus it.

What it is, and why we rate it

One line each. Open a row for detail.

What it really isA San Francisco background-check company that employers and platforms hire, sold per report with published package prices.

Our takePer-report prices are public, from $29.99 for Basic to $94.99 for Complete, and Checkr states that court and database fees are passed through at cost.

The total only becomes known once the SSN trace runs, so the headline price is a floor. For candidates, Checkr documents the invitation steps, the portal and a dispute process with stated time limits.

Why we rate itPrices, add-ons and a fee estimator are public.

The help center documents candidate disputes (30 days, up to 45 with documents), delays and report copies, and the CFPB lists Checkr and gives a contact for report requests.

The catchThe advertised price is a starting price per report: a $95 New York state fee (passed through at cost) or an automatic $15 County Level Verification (a Checkr service fee) can add to it, and Checkr says the total cannot be known before the search runs.

Best / not good for

Best for

Employers that want published per-report prices
Platforms and landlords that need screening through an API or ATS integration
Teams that want a documented candidate dispute process

Not good for

Buyers who need one fixed all-in price per candidate
Candidates hoping to speed up a check, since Checkr says it cannot speed up court searches

Trade-offs

Friction report

Trade-offs to know before signing up.

Time to value
Employers can sign up online; Checkr says a check usually takes three to five business days for companies (candidate help says 3 to 7), and candidates have seven days to complete the invitation.
Scale breakpoint
Enterprise pricing is quote-based; Checkr's pricing page sends custom hiring requirements to sales.
Walled garden
Candidates and employers work inside Checkr's own portal and dashboard. Wrong personal details are fixed by updating your information rather than by dispute; when Checkr cannot update them, the employer must order a new report.

Still a fit?

If none of these block you, try it on the official site.

Try Checkr

What you can check about Checkr

Question	What is documented	Source and date
What is it?	Checkr, Inc., a background-check and verification company. Its careers page lists it as established in 2014 in San Francisco and says it has 140,000+ customers (a company claim).	checkr.com/company/careers, 29 Oct 2026
Is it a reporting company under the FCRA?	Checkr's help center describes it as a consumer reporting agency. The CFPB lists Checkr under employment screening (list current as of January 2025) and notes that entries repeat each company's self-description and do not decide whether the FCRA covers it.	help.checkr.com, 12 Aug 2026; consumerfinance.gov, page modified 30 Jan 2025
Who makes the hiring decision?	The company that ordered the check. Checkr says it does not review reports or make employment decisions.	help.checkr.com, 12 Aug 2026
Who is billed?	The ordering company, on a monthly invoice, for reports that finish as Clear, Complete, Review/Consider, Canceled or Suspended, plus any add-on, service and pass-through fees.	help.checkr.com, 11 Oct 2026
What does it ask a candidate for?	Full name, birth date, email, phone number and Social Security number, plus a driver's license number for driving-record reports. Candidates also acknowledge the FCRA Summary of Your Rights, choose whether to receive a copy and authorize the check.	help.checkr.com, 17 Jul 2026
Turnaround time	Candidate help says most checks finish in 3 to 7 business days; the company-facing article says usually three to five. Checkr says it cannot speed up court or third-party searches.	help.checkr.com, 16 Jul 2025 and 17 Jul 2026
How do I ask for my report?	The CFPB listing says Checkr provides a free report on request if one of its clients previously ordered it, and gives (844) 824-3257 and a San Francisco mailing address for requests. The candidate portal also offers a copy of a completed report.	consumerfinance.gov, page modified 30 Jan 2025; help.checkr.com, 17 Jul 2026

Checked 29 October 2026 on Checkr's own pages and the CFPB's page for Checkr. Review-site scores and complaints are not used.

Checking a message that says it is from Checkr

Checkr's help center says an email from the company or organization you applied to prompts you to start your background check, and that you select Start Background Check in that email. If you cannot find the email, the help center says to check your Spam and Junk folders before contacting the company you applied to.

Checkr says the invitation link expires after seven days and that it sends daily automated reminders until you finish, so a repeat email is documented behavior (candidate experience overview, 17 July 2026). Checkr's privacy policy describes the form you reach as a Checkr-hosted flow.

The FTC's job-scam guidance says honest employers never ask you to pay to get a job, and its background-check page says a company asking for your Social Security number before you even interview is probably a job scam. If something feels off, type candidate.checkr.com into your browser yourself or contact the employer using details you already have. The FTC takes reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov about a background report obtained without your permission or about a reporting company's errors.

Checkr package prices for employers

Package	Price per report	What it includes
Basic	From $29.99	SSN trace, sex offender registry, global watchlist search, national criminal search
Essential	From $59.99	Everything in Basic, plus identity verification and unlimited county criminal search
Complete	From $94.99	Everything in Essential, plus unlimited state criminal search and federal criminal search
Enterprise	Contact sales	Custom solutions for specific hiring requirements

From Checkr's pricing page, checked 29 October 2026. Each price is shown as 'Starting from' per report with a note that standard third-party court and database access fees may apply and are passed through at cost with no markup. Checkr's help center says the final cost cannot be determined in advance because the SSN trace must run first. Monthly invoicing; no monthly or annual service fee for standard background check orders.

Add-ons and fees on top of the package price

Item	Amount	Notes
Motor vehicle record (MVR) add-on	$9.50 per check	DMVs charge a fee to retrieve driving records, passed through at cost.
Identity verification add-on	$4.99 per check	Listed under most popular add-ons.
Drug screening	From $10 per test	A $90 after-hours fee (Monday to Friday 7pm to 7am, or weekends) and a $10 random-selection fee are passed through when they apply.
FACIS search	From $6 per check	Fraud Abuse Control Information System search.
Employment verification	From $12.50 per check	Passthrough: a $58 Direct Match fee once per candidate when Direct Match finds a result; otherwise third-party database fees of $17.95 to $119.95.
Education verification	$3.95 to $50.00 passthrough	Set by each institution or database used.
County Level Verification	$15	A Checkr service fee, charged automatically when a national criminal search finds possible records; court fees may also apply.
New York state search	$95 per name	Set by New York State; applies when a check includes any of the 13 counties on its statewide system.
Pennsylvania PATCH database	$22	Charged by the Pennsylvania State Police.
Tenant screening packages	Starter $24.99, Essential $34.99, Complete $44.99 per report	Listed under Tenant on the same pricing page.
Checkr Profile and personal checks	Profile free; personal checks from $49.99	Products for individuals, listed under Personal.

From Checkr's pricing page, passthrough fees page and the help article 'FAQs about Checkr charges & fees' (updated 11 October 2026), checked 29 October 2026. Checkr says pass-through fees are charged only when it needs to access that source, at cost and with no markup.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Checkr legit?

Checkr, Inc. is a San Francisco background-check company that describes itself as a consumer reporting agency, and the CFPB's list of consumer reporting companies, current as of January 2025, files it under employment screening. Checkr's careers page lists it as established in 2014 in San Francisco, and the CFPB's list gives it a San Francisco mailing address. Checkr's help center says it provides reports for the companies that request them and makes no employment decisions. The CFPB adds a caveat: its list repeats companies' self-descriptions and is not a ruling on who the FCRA covers. None of these pages can tell you whether one particular text or email came from Checkr; the answers on Social Security numbers and sign-in cover that.

Is it safe to give Checkr my Social Security number?

Checkr's form asks for your Social Security number, and it reaches you through an invitation from the company you applied to. After you select Start Background Check in that invitation, the form asks for your full name, birth date, email, phone number and Social Security number, plus a driver's license number if the check includes a driving record. The link expires after seven days. Checkr's privacy policy (updated 10 September 2026) says candidates are taken to a Checkr-hosted flow and that Checkr does not sell or share what they enter for cross-context behavioral advertising or targeted advertising by social media platforms and similar third parties. Checkr's trust page lists encryption among its security policies, says its systems and controls are assessed through regular independent third-party audits, and names the International Organization for Standardization and Service Organization Controls. The FTC says employers may ask for your Social Security number during the interview process to run a background check, but a company that asks before you even interview is probably running a job scam. If a message surprises you, contact the employer using details you already have instead of the message's links.

Does Checkr charge job candidates?

For a check an employer orders, Checkr's help articles for companies say the charges go on the ordering company's monthly invoice: Checkr fees, service fees and pass-through court and database fees. No Checkr page read for this review says candidates are never charged, so this page does not make that claim. Checkr does sell products to individuals: its pricing page lists a free Checkr Profile and personal checks from $49.99. Separately, the FTC says honest employers will never ask you to pay to get a job (checked 29 October 2026).

What can I do if my Checkr report is wrong?

You can file a dispute when a record on your Checkr report is not yours or has wrong details, but not when your own name, birth date, Social Security number, email or phone number is wrong. For those, update your information or ask the company you applied to for a new report. To dispute a record, log in to the candidate portal, open the report, select File a dispute at the bottom and attach supporting documents, or mail a dispute to Checkr, Inc., 1 Montgomery St., Suite 2400, San Francisco, CA 94104. The File a dispute button does not appear for reports still in progress, reports with a Clear result or reports older than 12 months. Checkr says an FCRA reinvestigation typically takes 30 days, and up to 45 days when documents are supplied. The CFPB says the reporting company must investigate a dispute free of charge, and the FTC says a candidate turned down over a report can ask the reporting company for one more free copy, but only within 60 days of the decision (checked 29 October 2026).

How much does Checkr cost employers?

Checkr's pricing page lists three packages per report: Basic from $29.99, Essential from $59.99 and Complete from $94.99, with Enterprise priced on request. Each price carries a note that third-party court and database access fees may apply and are passed through at cost with no markup. Checkr's help center says the final cost cannot be known in advance because the SSN trace has to run first to show which counties and databases to search. Add-ons are priced separately, for example driving records at $9.50 a check and drug screening from $10 a test. Tenant screening has its own packages from $24.99 a report (checked 29 October 2026).

Where do I log in to Checkr?

Conversion Gems only reviews software, so it has no sign-in and cannot see anyone's background check. Checkr's own site links three sign-in pages: candidates use https://candidate.checkr.com/login, companies use https://dashboard.checkr.com/login, and Checkr Profile holders use https://personal.checkr.com/auth/sign-in. Type the address yourself instead of following a link in a message you were not expecting (checked 29 October 2026).

Checkr alternatives

Other background-screening tools from our reviews:

Certn
Employment background checks and identity verification, sold per check and reached through an API, an ATS connection or a standalone dashboard.
See review

Showing 1–1 of 1

Sources checked October 29, 2026: Checkr pricing, Checkr passthrough fees, Checkr help: FAQs about Checkr charges & fees, Checkr help: My background report is complete. What happens next?, Checkr help: Checkr candidate experience overview, Checkr help: Something on my background check report is wrong, Checkr help: Candidate disputes, Checkr help: Why is my background check taking so long?, Checkr help: How do I start my background check?, Checkr trust and security, Checkr privacy policy, Checkr careers, CFPB: Checkr in the consumer reporting companies list, FTC: Employer Background Checks and Your Rights, FTC: Looking for a job? Spot the scams, Certn.

Conversion Gems independently reviews every tool.