The Checkr Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Checkr 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.
Checkr
The Insider’s Guide
Pay-per-report background checks for hiring, with an API
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among hiring and applicant tracking tools, read from Checkr’s own pages.
Made by Checkr · 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 Checkr’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Checkr’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
Checkr runs background checks on job candidates and bills per report, with three packages that differ in how deep the criminal search goes. Add-ons cover motor vehicle records, drug screening, identity, education and employment verification. Larger employers get custom pricing and ATS integrations, and the vendor also sells tenant, mortgage and insurance screening.
To get you started, here are 8 things to know about Checkr, taken from its own pages and our grades.
An employer account, candidate consent flows and often an applicant tracking system link to set up.
- 1
Best for background checks sold per report
Checkr bills per report in three packages, from $29.99 to $94.99, with extras like drug tests and driving records on top.
- 2
What it costs
Paid plans start at $29.99 per report, plus pass-through fees.
- 3
It runs on Web
Web.
- 4
Tiered criminal searches
Packages step up from a national criminal search to unlimited county and state searches and a federal search on the Complete package.
- 5
Add-on verifications
Priced separately: motor vehicle records ($9.50 per check plus state fees), identity verification ($4.99), education from $12.50 and drug screening from $10.
- 6
Continuous monitoring
Continuous MVR monitoring is $2.50 per enrolled driver per month and alerts the employer to new violations or license status changes.
- 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 Checkr 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.
Checkr at a glance
- Pricing
- Paid, from $29.99 per report, plus pass-through fees
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- Checkr
- Category
- Hiring & Applicant Tracking
- Our grade
- 1.8 GPA, weak
The report card
Best for background checks sold per report
Checkr bills per report in three packages, from $29.99 to $94.99, with extras like drug tests and driving records on top. Court and database fees are passed on at cost, the cheapest package has no county or state criminal search, and there is no free way to try it.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | $29.99 to $94.99 a report is not a monthly price, so it cannot be set against this category's $95 middle subscription. Pass-through fees and add-ons come on top, so we leave it at the ordinary grade. |
| Free plan and trial | F | Nothing free and no trial on the pricing page. The free profile it mentions is for candidates, not for the employer who is paying. |
| Features | C | Tiered criminal searches plus add-ons for driving records, drug tests, identity, education and employment. Basic has no county or state criminal search, and a federal search is only on Complete. |
| Ease of use | C | An employer account, candidate consent flows and often an applicant tracking system link to set up. No store rating is on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web only, with links to 200+ applicant tracking systems and an enterprise tier. There is no app to install. |
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 Checkr is for
- Fits if you hire a handful of people a year and want to pay per report
- Makes sense if your applicant tracking system is one of the 200+ it connects to
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you want to try it first, as there is no free plan or trial
- Watch out: court and database access fees are added at cost on top of every package
- Watch out: Basic has no county or state criminal search, and federal search is only on Complete
- Pricey if you add drug, driving, education or employment checks, because each is billed on top of the package
- Not for you if you need a published price at volume, since Enterprise is quoted
Good to know
Good for
- Employers that run background checks in small volumes without a contract
- Companies that need driver checks and ongoing MVR monitoring
- Large employers that want ATS-connected screening on a custom quote
Worth knowing
- Prices exclude pass-through court and database access fees, passed on at cost.
- Basic has no county or state criminal search; federal search is only on Complete.
- Drug screening, MVR, education and other checks are billed on top of the package price.
- Enterprise pricing is not published; the other tiers are sold per report.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$29.99
To start
Checkr is a paid product, starting at $29.99 per report, plus pass-through fees.
Pass-through fees and add-ons come on top, so we leave it at the ordinary grade.
Basic
$29.99
per report, plus pass-through fees
SSN trace, sex offender registry, global watchlist and national criminal search. No county or state searches.
Essential
$59.99
per report, plus pass-through fees
Adds identity verification and unlimited county criminal searches to the Basic checks.
Complete
$94.99
per report, plus pass-through fees
Adds unlimited state and federal criminal searches to the Essential checks.
Enterprise
Custom
Quote from sales: automated adjudication, 200+ ATS integrations and customized workflows.
Read from checkr.com 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
Pay-per-report background checks for hiring, with an API. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, workflow automation, applicant tracking, employee records.
Tiered criminal searches plus add-ons for driving records, drug tests, identity, education and employment.
- Tiered criminal searches
- Packages step up from a national criminal search to unlimited county and state searches and a federal search on the Complete package.
- Add-on verifications
- Priced separately: motor vehicle records ($9.50 per check plus state fees), identity verification ($4.99), education from $12.50 and drug screening from $10.
- Continuous monitoring
- Continuous MVR monitoring is $2.50 per enrolled driver per month and alerts the employer to new violations or license status changes.
- Automated adjudication and ATS links
- Enterprise customers get rule-based adjudication, customized workflows and 200+ applicant tracking system integrations, per the pricing page.
- Other screening lines
- Separate tenant, mortgage income and employment, insurance and platform-trust products are listed on the same pricing page.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- 200+ ATS platforms
Checkr is made by Checkr.
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
Checkr'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. Checkr’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 Checkr 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. Checkr’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
HireRight, GoodHire, First Advantage and Accurate
The 4 tools Checkr is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.0GPA
HireRight
Paid
- 1.6GPA
GoodHire
From $29.99
Employment background checks priced per check, with custom quotes.
- 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
12
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 Checkr free?
No. Checkr is a paid product, starting at $29.99 per report, plus pass-through fees.
How much does Checkr cost?
Checkr lists 4 plans. Basic: $29.99 per report, plus pass-through fees.
What platforms does Checkr work on?
Checkr is available on Web.
Does Checkr have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Checkr is listed for Web.
Does Checkr have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Checkr is listed for Web.
Is Checkr open source?
Checkr is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 13, 2026.
Does Checkr have an API?
Yes. Checkr offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Checkr integrate with?
Checkr's listing names 200+ ATS platforms. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Who makes Checkr?
Checkr is made by a company of the same name.
What are the alternatives to Checkr?
The closest alternatives to Checkr in our directory are HireRight, GoodHire, First Advantage and Accurate.
How does Checkr compare with other hiring and applicant tracking tools?
Checkr'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 Checkr?
To replace Checkr 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 Checkr’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 Checkr'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 Checkr. Prices change, so check checkr.com 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
- Checkr, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/checkr
- 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, "Checkr: The Insider's Guide", checked Nov 13, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/checkr
Know someone choosing between hiring and applicant tracking tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/checkr/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded hiring and applicant tracking tools after Checkr, 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 Checkr’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. Checkr is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Checkr. Prices and plans change: check checkr.com before you buy.