Best Background Check Companies for Employers 2024

Best Background Check Companies for Employers 2024

Updated 12/1/2023 | In today's professional landscape, pre-employment background checks are a crucial component for many companies. These screenings ensure the integrity, qualifications, and history of prospective employees. While some companies may choose to handle these background checks in-house, a growing number of firms are opting for the expertise and efficiency of consumer reporting agencies (CRA). To aid your search in finding the ideal partner tailored to your organization's needs and budget, we've compiled a list of the leading background check service providers this year.

Benefits of Partnering with a Top Provider of Background Checks

Employers who ally with a CRA to undertake employee background checks stand to benefit in various ways:

  • Efficiency: A partnership with a CRA often means quicker turnaround times, thanks to specialized processes and advanced technology.
  • Cost-Effective: With customizable workflows and analytical tools, CRAs can provide services tailored to an organization's needs, potentially leading to cost savings.
  • Accuracy: CRAs are typically more adept at offering comprehensive and accurate background check reports, reducing the chances of overlooking vital details.
  • Compliance: Adhering to federal, state, and local fair hiring laws, especially the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), is essential. Partnering with an FCRA-compliant CRA ensures that employers remain within legal boundaries.

Top Background Check Companies for Employers in 2023

1. DISA Global Solutions:

Standing out in the background check industry, DISA Global Solutions is the only TPA/CRA that owns their full supply chain, ensuring unparalleled turnaround times. Moreover, their emphasis on being a single source provider for all services makes them an attractive choice for businesses who want to reduce the burden of multiple platforms for multiple services.

Particularly for safety-sensitive companies and enterprise-size customers, DISA emerges as the best option, ensuring comprehensive checks without any compromises. DISA's offerings are not just about breadth; they also excel in terms of quality and efficiency. Their advanced technology and process integration lead to faster turnaround times, which is crucial in today's fast-paced business environment. Employers can make quicker hiring decisions without compromising on the depth or accuracy of the background checks.

Note: DISA has also been ranked as #1 and #2 for Enterprise Pre-Employment Screening Leaders over the last two years by HRO Today in their annual Baker’s Dozen Report.

2. Checkr/GoodHire:

Widely recognized for their efficient services, Checkr offers streamlined background checks, ensuring thorough screenings and prompt results. In April 2022, Checkr expanded its capabilities by acquiring GoodHire, enhancing its position as a provider of criminal background checks. This merger offers scalable screening solutions tailored for both businesses and individuals. Checkr, compliant with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and accredited by the Professional Background Screeners Association (PBSA), provides an extensive range of services.

3. First Advantage

Beyond traditional pre-employment checks, First Advantage extends its services to include background screenings for contractors, freelancers, and vendors. They emphasize an "applicant-first experience," facilitated by a user-friendly mobile app, and they provide data analytics and diagnostic dashboards, which are key tools for employers seeking to streamline their background check processes.

4. AccurateNow 

AccurateNow stands out in the realm of background check services, especially for small and mid-sized businesses, with its flexible and cost-saving pay-as-you-go plan. This service aligns with FCRA guidelines and adheres to state and local regulations, making it a reliable choice for smaller companies seeking compliance assurance. They offer entry-level packages to premium packages for businesses seeking a more comprehensive search with essential components like an SSN Trace, address history, a national criminal check with county verification, and a search of the national sex offender registry.

5. Veremark 

Veremark stands at the forefront of background checking solutions, offering a digital, globally accessible service that enhances the quality of hiring while ensuring an exceptional experience for candidates. Their innovative methodology in background screening combines speed, accuracy, security, and scalability, effectively addressing the unique challenges and risks prevalent in various industries and sectors in today's global employment landscape. This approach not only streamlines the hiring process but also maintains a high standard of efficiency and accuracy, catering to the evolving needs of employers worldwide.

6. ShareAble 

Owned by the renowned credit bureau TransUnion, ShareAble offers FCRA-compliant background check services tailored for small businesses. The process of signing up is quick for smaller companies, with three distinct package options available to suit various needs. However, ShareAble's offerings do not extend to certain types of screenings commonly used in hiring processes, like motor vehicle reports, employment verification, and drug testing, which limits the breadth of their reports. They also don’t offer a candidate platform, API integrations, or any form of analytics data, focusing instead on delivering a straightforward and efficient screening service. One of the key advantages for smaller companies is ShareAble’s lack of membership subscriptions or monthly fees, and the ability to deliver reports swiftly, often minutes after a candidate confirms their identity.

7. Certn 

Certn, a Canadian firm, specializes in providing FCRA- and GDPR-compliant pre-employment background checks, catering to both global enterprises and property management companies. Unique to Certn is their Sofcheck technology, a proprietary tool for real-time public records searches. For smaller businesses, they offer CertnLime, a self-service platform designed for ease of use and efficiency. This company is adept at serving large enterprises with swift turnaround times and seamless integration with numerous Applicant Tracking System (ATS) providers.

8. SpringVerify

SpringVerify introduces an innovative approach to addressing the traditionally expensive, cumbersome, and often inaccessible process of background verification, especially for small businesses. This platform simplifies the verification process, making it effortless for both employers and potential employees. By streamlining these checks, SpringVerify opens the door for businesses of all sizes to conduct thorough background screenings without the usual hassle.

9. Sterling

Established in 1975, Sterling’s array of services encompasses essential checks such as criminal histories and motor vehicle reports, as well as specialized offerings like credit checks and continuous monitoring of medical licenses. With a global outreach, they cater to diverse sectors including education, construction, finance, energy, utilities, and transportation. Sterling's API, known for its wide-ranging integrations with leading HR systems, offers scalability and customization, enabling employers to streamline their background check process.

10. HireRight

The spectrum of HireRight's background screenings is broad, encompassing criminal history searches, drug testing, DOT employment verifications, and healthcare sanctions checks. Alongside these services, HireRight equips companies with tools for compliance management and analytics, essential for enhancing the efficiency of hiring processes. The company further streamlines these processes with API integration capabilities and a user-friendly mobile app, featuring a candidate portal that simplifies the submission and tracking of background checks.

The Best Background Check Provider - Why Choose DISA?

In the competitive landscape of CRAs, DISA Global Solutions emerges as a standout choice for employers seeking comprehensive, reliable, and efficient background check services. What sets DISA apart is not just the breadth of their offerings but their unique position as owners of the entire supply chain. This ownership translates into a level of control and coordination across various stages of the background check process, ensuring both speed and accuracy that is hard to match. DISA's commitment to being a single source provider is particularly beneficial for businesses. This approach means that employers can access a wide array of services under one roof, from drug testing and background checks to occupational health services and compliance tracking. Such a consolidated service model not only simplifies the administrative process for employers but also provides a more cohesive and integrated approach to employee screening and safety.

For companies that place a high premium on safety and compliance, DISA's focus on thorough and stringent screening processes is invaluable. Our services are designed to rigorously vet candidates, ensuring that only the most qualified and reliable individuals are chosen, thereby upholding high safety standards.

DISA Global Solutions offers a unique combination of comprehensive services, full supply chain control, and a focus on being a single source provider. This blend makes them an ideal partner for businesses that are serious about safety, efficiency, and comprehensive, thorough background checks.

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About DISA Global Solutions

Founded in 1986, DISA is the industry-leading provider of employee screening and compliance services. Headquartered in Houston, with more than 35 offices throughout North America and Europe, DISA’s comprehensive scope of services includes drug and alcohol testing, background screening, occupational health, and transportation compliance. DISA assists employers in making informed staffing decisions while building a culture of safety in their workplace.

DISA Global Solutions aims to provide accurate and informative content for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The reader retains full responsibility for the use of the information contained herein. Always consult with a professional or legal expert.