What to look for, what to avoid, and how to get the most out of public records searches.
Obviously, "free" is the best price for anything. Name it: free samples at the supermarket, free seat upgrades at the airport, and free beer at holiday Christmas parties are some of the best things in life.
But if you ever see a "free" background check, close your browser and never return to the site. These sites claim that they don't want your money. But they're often being tricky or offering you far more hassle than you're willing to tolerate.
In fact, all background check services that claim to be "Free" fall into one of three categories — and all of them are bad.
On some background check sites, the "free" data you see is worth every penny you spend on it. Maybe there will be some social media profiles or even a birth date. But you won't gain access to anything that isn't available faster with a quick Google search. Data from these sites never comes from actual public records, so they won't help you find something significant like a phone number or criminal & traffic records.
Some background check services will tease you with "free" data just to get you to sign up for an account. But once you see the free data, you'll quickly realize it's essentially worthless. On every report, you'll be pushed to sign up for a monthly subscription or pay per report. It's better to choose services that are upfront about their pricing.
The third type simply lies about being free. These are less common nowadays since Google and other platforms crack down on deceptive advertising, but they're still out there.
Getting quality public records data requires real resources — good data vendors, smart developers, and terabytes of server space. Any site that claims to offer truly "free" background checks shouldn't be trusted.
Try Our #1 Pick →There are literally dozens of online background check sites crowding the internet. Most are fly-by-night operations that count on people not knowing the difference between a service that actually delivers and one that only pretends to. Here are the key signs of a quality background check site.
If the data isn't good, nothing else matters. Some lower-quality sites will scrape data from unreliable sources and dump them into reports haphazardly. Basic info like birthdates, addresses, or criminal & traffic records can be outright wrong. A good clue: if someone's age is obviously incorrect in a report, there's probably data contamination. Stay far away.
Some sites try to nickel-and-dime you, charging for every single report — or worse, every single section of a report. Honest background check sites keep it simple: a flat monthly fee for unlimited searches, with optional upgrades for premium reports. That gives you access to a ton of data at an affordable rate.
Some more advanced background check sites offer this feature, and it's incredibly useful. If you want to be notified whenever new information is added to a report — new addresses, new criminal & traffic records — you can switch on data monitoring and receive email updates automatically.
Good background check sites present all their data on a single page. Some older sites spread everything across multiple separate searches — one for background checks, one for arrests, one for court records. This creates more frustration than necessary. Quality services make it simple.
Try Our #1 Pick →Background checks are useful for learning about other people — neighbors, dates, old friends. But you should also be running one on yourself. Here are a few reasons why self-background checks can protect your reputation and improve your relationships.
People you've met may have already run a background check on you. With the rise in popularity of these services, pulling someone's report has become as common as Googling their name. Do you know what comes up when someone searches your criminal & traffic records? Running a check on yourself lets you know ahead of time — and gives you a chance to prepare if anyone asks about something you didn't expect to see.
Checking your own background can be the first step in monitoring your identity's security. If someone assumed your name, it might show up as unfamiliar addresses in your report. People might even assume your identity in less obviously harmful ways, like creating social media accounts in your name. Since most top background check services surface social media profiles, fraudulent accounts could show up in a report.
Bad data isn't always caused by identity theft — it can also result from data entry errors or record contamination. Fortunately, most background check services allow you to report inaccuracies. If you see something on your report that shouldn't be there, you can notify the service and request its removal. That ensures anyone who searches for you gets an accurate picture.
It only takes a few minutes. But it can save you money, headaches, and unexpected conversations down the line.
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