Bulk Background Checks: Full List of Screening Options (Bulk Discounts)

Jayson Baxter

August 3, 2022

Bulk background checks are a standard business practice for not just large corporations, but small and mid-sized business as well. Understanding the full list of bulk screening options can help organizations and individuals find the best-suited candidates for their business, property or project while saving time and money through taking advantage of deep discounts by running multiple candidates at once.

Furthermore, some bulk services even offer subscriptions to increase savings even further.

There are several methods for conducting large-scale background checks, yet not all programs or products offer the same level of quality. DIY background checks can be expensive and time-consuming, while free background checks may lack reliability. Therefore, engaging a screening agency can be advantageous for nearly any business.

Don’t run a single bulk background check until you understand how to take advantage of bulk discounts, as explained below.

Benefits of Bulk Background Checks for Employers, Landlords, Property Managers & Agencies

Employers, landlords, property managers, organizations, and agencies perform background checks every day because they help screen out individuals who are unsuitable for positions due to criminal convictions.

For example, when an individual applies for a job in a daycare center or school setting, but the background check reveals a conviction for child abuse or other forms of abuse.

Background checks can also be used in rental applications while most employers use county criminal history background checks on potential employees. Ultimately, when conducting extensive background checks, having a comprehensive list of screening options aids in selecting the right screening company.

Non-personal background checks (checks conducted for business purposes: employee background checks, leasing applications, or credit applications) must comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act or FCRA – as well as local and other federal statutes.

This means the person undergoing the background check must provide their written permission to have the screening done, the screenee may ask for a copy of the background check report and dispute any inaccuracies, and they can not be discriminated against if the charges don’t interfere with the position.

On the other hand, someone can run a background check on another person without their permission if it’s done for personal reasons such as checking if a friend or family member has a criminal history. But personal background checks still have safeguards and cannot be used to harass, stalk, or intimidate another person.

Or in other words, businesses that provide background screening services must comply with additional guidelines such as verifying that non-personal clients are making legally compliant requests and informing clients of FRCA guidelines.¹

How To Run Multiple Background Checks Simultaneously & Get a Bulk Discount

With the ease of accessing public records online, conducting individual background checks has become straightforward through agency portals. However, managing numerous screenings can be highly demanding for businesses, especially smaller or medium-sized ones attempting to handle them internally.

Engaging a screening agency proves beneficial as it ensures swift processing of checks, offers cost savings through bulk discounts, and allows employees to concentrate on core responsibilities and candidate selection.

Narrowing down the right company for each business can be difficult, so below is a list of the best background check services to meet any agency’s needs.

Best Background Check Providers & Sources for Bulk Packages

Identifying optimal solutions for extensive background checks can be challenging, as each agency offers unique services. Below are options that can meet any agency’s, organization’s or individual’s needs.

First Advantage

Established in 2003, First Advantage provides the following services:

• ACA Compliance
• Background Checks
• Post-Hire Criminal Record Monitoring
• Drug and Alcohol Screening
• Extended Workforce Screening
• Form I-9 Screening/Compliance
• ID Fraud Detection Services
• Occupational Health Testing/Screening
• Income Verification for Resident Applications
• Vehicle Compliance (Licensing, Title, Tax)
• Analytics and Reports
• Case Management Services
• Fleet/Driver Compliance
• Executive Screening
• FBI Fingerprinting Services
• Franchise Application Screening
• Instant Substance Abuse Oral Fluid Screenings
• Leasing/Resident Screening
• Tax Incentives and Credits

First Advantage’s biggest plus is providing clients with a single sign-on, multilingual user interface that works with all of its programs regardless of client location. Subject matter experts are assigned for all international business solutions to ensure the best support and ensure compliance with all laws and regulations in the client’s region of the globe.

Most screenings (90%) are returned within 24 hours. First Advantage can also be used on mobile devices making it excellent for today’s fast-paced world and clients can check the status of reports from any location and at any time.²

First Advantage charges a $175 setup fee, and background checks start at $25 per screening; however, promotional discounts can be applied. There are three packages to choose from:

• Basic: $25 per screening
• Basic Plus: $40 per screening
• Advanced: $60 per screening³

Rentberry

Established in August 2015, Rentberry provides landlords with credit reporting or background check services on potential tenants. It also provides rent payment processing for property managers in addition to background check support.

Rentberry does not store PII (Personally-Identifying Information) in its system and is powered by Experian for credit checks.

Advantages of using Rentberry include rapid turnaround on checks (usually within 24 hours), Rentberry tenant screening is free for landlords, and tenants only pay $19.99 for screenings that include both credit and background reports. Rentberry’s website is easy to navigate and user-friendly.⁴

Goodhire

Goodhire, established in 2013, provides over 100 screening services for businesses including the following:

• Criminal Background Checks
• DMV Records
• Drug and Alcohol Screenings
• Credit Reports
• Verifying Education
• Civil Court Reports
• Verifying Employment
• Identity Verification
• Reference Checks
• Healthcare Sanction (such as Medical Board) Screenings
• International Background Screenings

Goodhire is an excellent solution for small or medium-sized businesses due to its pricing plans. Larger businesses or agencies can get a customized quote based on their needs from Goodhire.

Pricing for screenings depends on the package the client purchases. There is a $49.99 setup fee for all three packages. Pricing for small businesses that run fewer than 10 record checks a year are:

• Basic Plan: $29.99 per month (SSN trace, national criminal and sex offender registry check). Turnaround is usually 24 hours.
• Standard Plan: $54.99 per month (basic screenings plus domestic watchlist and county-level criminal court). Turnaround is usually 48 hours.
• Premium Plan: $79.99 per month (standard plan screenings plus verification of education and employment). Turnaround is usually 48-96 hours.⁵

Checkr

Established in 2014, Checkr is a known name in the background screening industry. Its mission is dedicated to fair chance employment opportunities, meaning its screenings are designed to help give individuals with a criminal history a fair shot at employment with a motto of “Background Checks for a Fairer Future.”

Its “People Trust Platform” uses both AI and machine learning to conduct screenings for the best results.

Checkr provides the following services:

• Criminal Background History
• DMV/Driving Records
• Verification of Employment History
• Verification of Educational Credentials
• Substance Abuse and Health Screenings
• International/Multinational Background Checks
• Civil Case Record Searches

Checkr’s website is easy to navigate; however, its chatbot is somewhat limited in that it only has pre-programmed Q/A’s instead of the ability to type in a question. Basic inquiries can come back in minutes with more extensive checks taking longer.

Pricing plans are:

• Basic Plan: $29.99 per check (SSN, Global watchlist, national criminal record check, sex offender registry)
• Essential Plan: $54.99 per check (basic search plus unlimited country criminal search).
• Professional Plan: $79.99 per check (essential plus education and employment verification).

Each plan can include up to $40 off on the first search giving users a free trial run before deciding on continued searches through Checkr making it the cheapest background check site.⁶

Apartments.com Tenant Screener

Property managers who list with Apartments.com can use their tenant screener at no cost to the landlord for prospective renters. The prospective tenant pays the cost ($29 plus tax) but can share the application with up to 10 landlords on the platform.

Apartment.com provides background and credit checks for property managers to use in basing rental decisions.

The biggest pro is this tool is free for landlords/property managers. Reports include credit, eviction, and criminal history of the applicant and are usually returned within 24-48 hours of the applicant submitting it. Reports can only be viewed by verified landlords with the applicant’s permission.⁷

Intelius

Leading the way since 2003 in personal background checks, Intelius is the go-to site for non-consumer searches or basic background checks. This site is not to be used for employment, property rentals, or other commercial uses and is not a consumer reporting agency as outlined in the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Services include:

• Reverse Phone Lookup
• People Search
• Background Check
• Public Records Search
• Criminal Records Search
• Reverse Address Search

Because it is a non-FCRA agency, searches are anonymous, meaning the individual searching does not have to get consent of the subject to conduct a background check; however, the information obtained cannot be used for employment, leasing or other commercial purposes.

Individuals doing a background search for someone other than themselves have to read and agree to the notice regarding FCRA guidelines. This site is beneficial because it gives the applicant an idea of what may show up on a background check run by a potential landlord or employer. Intelius also provides instant background checks for individuals eliminating wait times in most cases.

Pricing for Intelius depends on whether it is a one-time search or if the individual gets a monthly subscription. One-time searches are under $1 for a general people search. Background checks are $39.95 per person. Intelius does offer a seven-day free trial subscription when searchers purchase a qualifying basic product. Subscription plans are as follows:

• Intelius Premier: unlimited people searches for $19.95 per month.
• Intelius Premier Plus: unlimited people searches and one background check per month for $29.95

These can only be purchased if the person purchases a qualifying basic product and agrees to the seven-day free trial.⁸

Certn Lime

Certn Lime promotes the quickest turn-around time for employment background checks with instant ID, employment, and educational verification. It is also user-friendly, allowing candidates to verify ID on a device of their choice, set up a self-service account at no additional cost, and customizable screening packages.

Candidates can also provide consent for background checks from their mobile devices, so Certn Lime can be used by anyone, anywhere.

Services provided include:

• Criminal Record Checks
• Education Verification
• Employment Verification
• Credit Checks
• Identification Verification

Pricing for Certn Lime depends on the type of check (US domestic or global criminal record check, verification services requested, and any add-ons included). Prices are:

• Basic US Criminal Record Check: $20 plus any local fees (SSN, national criminal record check, sex offender registry, and global sanctions/terrorist watchlists).
• Single County US Criminal Check: $35 plus state/county fees (Basic search plus county level search for current address listed and federal statewide search).
• Unlimited County US Criminal Record Check: $45 plus any state/local fees (Basic search plus county level check of the applicant’s address history, and federal statewide search of applicant’s address history).
• Global Checks: Vary depending on whether the search is limited to Canada or other international locations.
• Identification Verification: $5 per ID.⁹

Good Egg

Good Egg was launched in 2017 as an extension of Foley Services. This expanded the already established driver regulation and compliance screening to other aspects of employment. Good Egg’s platform uses a screening continuum for a more complete picture of a candidate’s past, present, and future.

Past and present include searches that most companies currently provide. What sets Good Egg apart is the “future” data that looks at social media, and handles professional references, pre-employment substance abuse screenings, and web screenings. Good Egg offers services to continue monitoring individuals long after they are hired.

Services provided by Good Egg include:

• Background checks pre-employment
• Background checks post-employment
• Verifications
• Substance Abuse Screenings
• Health Screenings
• Criminal Background Checks
• Social media checks
• Motor Vehicle Background Checks
• Department of Transportation Background Checks

Customers enjoy the easy to use system and the rapid turn-around on background checks. Each customer is assigned their own dedicated customer service rep to help them navigate GoodEgg giving it a personal touch. One con is Good Egg doesn’t publish pricing.

Each client must request a quote and pricing is determined by what the client requests. Another con is by looking at “future” behaviors, otherwise qualified applicants may be unfairly screened out because of one-time events that do not bear on job performance.¹⁰

Verified Credentials

Verified Credentials is one of the oldest background screening agencies in the business. Established in 1984, it has provided background checks, verifications and screenings for thousands of businesses, organizations and agencies.

The majority of reports are returned within 3 business days and Verified Credentials specializes in bulk screening projects. It is at the top of bulk background checks: full list of screening options.

Services provided by Verified Credentials include:

• Criminal Record Checks
• Public Record Checks
• ID Searches
• Education Verification
• Verification of Employment
• Credit Reports
• Healthcare Specific Screenings
• E-Verify/I-9 Verification
• Substance Abuse Screenings
• International Background Checks

Clients complete a template with all candidate information included and submit it to Verified Credentials. Verified Credentials uses the template to run multiple background checks simultaneously saving time and money. Pricing is provided upon quote request only.¹¹

Been Verified

Another highly popular non-consumer search site is Been Verified, founded in 2007. As a personal, non-consumer site, Been Verified results cannot be used for employment, leasing or other commercial uses. Been Verified rose in popularity after being featured on MTV’s “Catfish.”

Search services provided by Been Verified include:

• People Searches
• Phone Searches
• Address Searches
• Email Searches
• Vehicle Searches

Been Verified has been used by over 1 million customers, and reports are generated based on public records from across the country. Benefits include verifying identity of individuals met via social media and learning the backgrounds of interpersonal relations.

Searchers must read and accept the FCRA statement indicating the search will not be used for anything other than personal use.

Pricing for Been Verified is $26.89 a month for month-by-month subscriptions or $17.48 a month with a three-month commitment.¹²

Scout Logic

Founded in 2017, Scout Logic also provides easy-to-use bulk background screenings with a dedicated “scout” or customer service representative to accounts based on the type of industry or the client’s needs.

Services provided by Scout Logic include:

• Criminal Background Checks
• Employment Verification
• Education Verification
• Substance Abuse Screening
• DMV Records
• Industry Specific (Ad Hoc) Screenings

Running multiple background checks with Scout Logic is straightforward. Organizations add data to an Excel spreadsheet that is then uploaded into the Scout Logic system. Multiple searches are completed simultaneously and the client is provided a comprehensive report on each candidate

Pricing for Scout Logic bulk packages depends on the overall number of candidates and information requested, but overall it is 20-30% cheaper than other search companies. Organizations or individuals that conduct more than 100 searches a year can reach out for a price quote on the bulk rate. There are three package types:

• Basic: $20 per check (SSN, national criminal record, and sex offender search).
• Standard: $40 per check (Basic search plus domestic watchlist and county criminal search up to 3 counties).
• Premium: $70 per check (Standard search plus 1 education and 1 employment verification check).¹³

Comparison of Bulk Background Checks & Discounts (Side by Side View)

Each of the screening companies listed below can be used to meet your individual or organizational needs. Whether it is a personal background check, tenant screening or employment background check, there is a product and company for every need.

For extensive background checks, a comprehensive list of screening options outlines the key features of each agency below.

Conducting background checks can take a great deal of time and resources but luckily a background screening agency can alleviate the issues surrounding candidate screening.

In the end, bulk background checks and having a full list of screening options alongside bulk discounts can help narrow down the agencies that can best meet the needs of any size organization or agency.