The Certn Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Certn in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Certn
The Insider’s Guide
Self-serve background checks billed per check, US and Canada
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among hiring and applicant tracking tools, read from Certn’s own pages.
Made by Certn · checked Nov 13, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Certn’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Certn’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Nov 13, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
1.8
GPA, above 30 of the 101 other hiring and applicant tracking tools we grade
Certn sells employment background checks that can be ordered online and are billed per check, in US dollars on its US pricing page. Criminal packages, identity verification, credit, social media, reference and driver checks are priced one by one, and enterprise buyers get custom packages, an API and ATS integrations.
To get you started, here are 8 things to know about Certn, taken from its own pages and our grades.
Order online, but consent flows, packages and any API or ATS link are yours to set up.
- 1
Best for online checks priced one by one
Employment and education checks show Price Varies, and there is no free way to try it.
- 2
What it costs
Paid plans start at $13.99 per check, plus county and pass-through fees.
- 3
It runs on Web
Web.
- 4
US criminal packages
Three US packages combine an SSN trace, national database, sex offender registry and watchlist search with county searches.
- 5
Identity verification
OneID compares a live selfie with a government ID and is listed at $3.50 on the US pricing page.
- 6
Verification checks
Employment, education and credential checks are quoted per request; reference checks are $29.99 and run by phone, email or SMS.
- 7
A 1.8 GPA, above 30 of 101
That is against the other hiring and applicant tracking tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 8
Keep it
To replace Certn you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
Certn at a glance
- Pricing
- Paid, from $13.99 per check, plus county and pass-through fees
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- Certn
- Category
- Hiring & Applicant Tracking
- Our grade
- 1.8 GPA, weak
The report card
Best for online checks priced one by one
Certn lists US checks from $13.99 for a core criminal check up to $79.99 for the most complete one, with county fees of $9.99 and pass-through fees extra. Employment and education checks show Price Varies, and there is no free way to try it.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | $13.99, $49.99 and $79.99 a check are not monthly prices, so they cannot be set against this category's $95 middle subscription. County searches add $9.99 and pass-through fees come on top. |
| Free plan and trial | F | No free plan or trial on the US pricing page. |
| Features | C | US criminal packages, identity, credit, social media, reference and driver checks, plus an API. Employment, education and credential checks show Price Varies on the page, and prices differ by country. |
| Ease of use | C | Order online, but consent flows, packages and any API or ATS link are yours to set up. No store rating is on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web only, with an API and ATS integrations for enterprise buyers. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Certn is for
- Fits if you want to order a basic US criminal check online at a published price
- Works for small firms that need identity or reference checks one at a time
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you want to try before paying, as there is no free plan or trial
- Watch out: the $13.99 core check excludes $9.99 county searches and pass-through fees
- Watch out: employment, education and credential checks show Price Varies, not a figure
- Skip it if you hire outside the US, since Canada, UK and other regions have separate pages and prices
- Tight if you need the API or ATS links, because those sit with enterprise buying
Good to know
Good for
- Small employers wanting to order a check online with no contract
- Teams hiring in Canada and the US, with country-specific pricing pages
- Platforms that want screening through an API
Worth knowing
- Pricing is separate for the US, Canada, UK and other regions; this entry reads the US page.
- The US Core price excludes county searches, charged at $9.99 where applicable, plus pass-through fees.
- Employment, education and credential verification show Price Varies on the US page.
- The Canada-region page shows CAD prices and an expired promotion; this entry uses only the US page.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$13.99
To start
Certn is a paid product, starting at $13.99 per check, plus county and pass-through fees.
No free plan or trial on the US pricing page.
US Core Criminal Check
$13.99
per check, plus county and pass-through fees
SSN trace, national criminal database, sex offender registry, watchlist and contingent county search.
US Complete Criminal Check
$49.99
per check, plus pass-through fees
The same searches with a county criminal search across 7 years of addresses.
US Complete+ Criminal Check
$79.99
per check, plus pass-through fees
Listed with the same components as Complete; the page does not say what the extra $30 adds.
Enterprise
Custom
Larger-scale implementation, bundled packages and tailored solutions, arranged through the sales team.
Read from certn.co on Nov 13, 2026.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
Self-serve background checks billed per check, US and Canada. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, workflow automation, applicant tracking, employee records.
US criminal packages, identity, credit, social media, reference and driver checks, plus an API.
- US criminal packages
- Three US packages combine an SSN trace, national database, sex offender registry and watchlist search with county searches.
- Identity verification
- OneID compares a live selfie with a government ID and is listed at $3.50 on the US pricing page.
- Verification checks
- Employment, education and credential checks are quoted per request; reference checks are $29.99 and run by phone, email or SMS.
- Other check types
- Credit report ($9.50), social media check ($42.99) and motor vehicle records ($25.99) are sold as single checks.
- API and integrations
- The site lists a background screening API, ATS and HR tool integrations with no or low code, and continuous monitoring.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
Its own pages name no integrations.
Certn is made by Certn.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
30/101
Other hiring and applicant tracking tools it is graded above
Certn's GPA of 1.8 is higher than 30 of the 101 other hiring and applicant tracking tools we grade, and level with 23.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (B, above 39 of 101) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 102 hiring and applicant tracking tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Certn’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 12 of 101
- FFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 101
- CFeaturesAbove 3 of 101
- CEase of useAbove 1 of 101
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 39 of 101
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace Certn you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 48 of the 101 other hiring and applicant tracking tools grade higher.
What you could make
- Applicant tracking and employee records: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
What this rests on. Certn’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Checkr, GoodHire, HireRight, First Advantage and Accurate
The 5 tools Certn is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 1.8GPA
Checkr
From $29.99
- 1.6GPA
GoodHire
From $29.99
Employment background checks priced per check, with custom quotes.
- 2.0GPA
HireRight
Paid
- 2.0GPA
First Advantage
Paid
- 2.0GPA
Accurate
Paid
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
11
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Certn free?
No. Certn is a paid product, starting at $13.99 per check, plus county and pass-through fees.
How much does Certn cost?
Certn lists 4 plans. US Core Criminal Check: $13.99 per check, plus county and pass-through fees.
What platforms does Certn work on?
Certn is available on Web.
Does Certn have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Certn is listed for Web.
Does Certn have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Certn is listed for Web.
Is Certn open source?
Certn is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 13, 2026.
Does Certn have an API?
Yes. Certn offers a public API, according to its own site.
Who makes Certn?
Certn is made by a company of the same name.
What are the alternatives to Certn?
The closest alternatives to Certn in our directory are Checkr, GoodHire, HireRight, First Advantage and Accurate.
How does Certn compare with other hiring and applicant tracking tools?
Certn's GPA of 1.8 is higher than 30 of the 101 other hiring and applicant tracking tools we grade, and level with 23.
Could I make my own version of Certn?
To replace Certn you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Certn’s own pages on Nov 13, 2026, and the grades were given on Nov 13, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Certn's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Certn. Prices change, so check certn.co before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
7,721
Tools graded, in 95 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
7,721
tools graded
95
categories
739
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Certn, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/certn
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Certn: The Insider's Guide", checked Nov 13, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/certn
Know someone choosing between hiring and applicant tracking tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/certn/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded hiring and applicant tracking tools after Certn, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Hiring & Applicant Tracking Insider's GuideEvery one of the 102 hiring and applicant tracking tools we grade, compared
- Manatal Insider's GuideLow-cost per-user ATS and recruitment CRM with AI candidate matching2.8 GPA
- Breezy HR Insider's GuideFlat-priced applicant tracking with a free one-job plan2.6 GPA
- JOIN Insider's GuideMultiposting and applicant management priced per open job2.6 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Certn’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Certn is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Certn. Prices and plans change: check certn.co before you buy.