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Sterlingcheck Review

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Should I use Sterlingcheck?

Sterling Background Check Solutions is now First Advantage - sterlingcheck.com

· 23 hours ago

Buy if you are a large employer screening thousands of candidates across jurisdictions and need compliance-grade coverage. Small teams should skip it: opaque quote-only pricing and a 2.4/5 Trustpilot make lighter self-serve tools a better fit.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 10 public sources: Trustpilot, Gartner, Tekpon, acquisition news, official pages, and Reddit. Many review snippets truncated.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

Not disclosed

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed

Best for

  • High-volume enterprise hiring
  • Regulated industries needing auditable checks
  • Global, multi-country screening programs
  • Staffing agencies screening contingent workers

Not for

  • Small teams hiring a few people a year
  • Startups wanting self-serve, published per-check pricing
  • Anyone needing instant, cheap, one-off checks
  • Budget buyers without a procurement process

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

2.4/5 Trustpilot; candidate complaints about waiting on results are common

medium

Pricing is quote-based; expect per-check fees negotiated by hiring volume

medium

Rebranding to First Advantage means shifting logins and support contacts

medium

FCRA disclosure and authorization duties fall on the employer, not Sterling

Pros and cons

Pros

  • First Advantage acquired Sterling for $2.2B, adding global scale
  • partnership earned Kantara IAL2 identity-assurance trustmark
  • Broad checks: I-9, social media, clinical, BPSS, identity
  • Homepage claims ~2/3 of Fortune 100 screened annually
  • Public API exists for integrations

Cons

  • 2.4/5 Trustpilot rating across roughly 4,000 reviews
  • No published pricing; quote-based sales only
  • Brand consolidation into First Advantage creates confusion
  • Candidates on Reddit question verification scope and turnaround

Sources & method

- 10 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x2review x5security x1news x2

Key stats

  • Value for money: 2/5

    Rating

  • Not disclosed

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 2/5. No published pricing; low review scores
  • Ease of use: 2/5. 2.4/5 across ~4,000 reviews
  • Feature depth: 4/5. I-9, identity, social, clinical, global checks
  • Support quality: 2/5. Low Trustpilot scores suggest friction
  • Security posture: 3/5. Published security page; IAL2 identity checks
  • 2.4/5 Trustpilot rating ~4,000 reviews across regions
  • $2.2B Acquisition price First Advantage, Feb 2024
  • ~2/3 Fortune 100 reach Per Sterling homepage claim

Pricing

Not disclosed

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

Trustpilot averages 2.4/5 across ~4,000 reviews, with candidates on Reddit asking about verification scope and turnaround times.

“what exactly do they verify for employment history?”
Reddit, r/Employment

Alternatives

Compare Sterlingcheck with each alternative.

  • Checkr

    Startup-friendly, self-serve checks with a modern API

  • HireRight

    Enterprise rival frequently compared head-to-head with Sterling

  • Accurate Background

    Mid-market screening alternative ranked alongside Sterling

Companies that use it

Full analysis

Based on 10 public sources: Trustpilot, Gartner, Tekpon, acquisition news, official pages, and Reddit. Many review snippets truncated.

Enterprise background screening with scale; overkill for small teams, opaque pricing, weak 2.4/5 reviews.

Methodology

Based on 10 public sources: Trustpilot, Gartner, Tekpon, acquisition news, official pages, and Reddit. Many review snippets truncated.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. Sterling Reviews (Trustpilot NZ, 2.4)nz.trustpilot.com
    review
  2. Sterling Reviews & Ratings | Gartner Peer Insightsgartner.com
    review
  3. Sterling Reviews 2026: Pricing & Features (Tekpon)tekpon.com
    review
  4. First Advantage To Acquire Sterling Check For $2.2 Billioncitybiz.co
    news
  5. Sterling Background Check Solutions is now First Advantagesterlingcheck.com
    official
  6. Sterling self-service screening for Chick-fil-Asterlingnow.io
    official
  7. ID.me and Sterling IAL2 identity verificationmarkets.chroniclejournal.com
    news
  8. Background check through Sterling Backcheck (Reddit)reddit.com
    review
  9. Sterling product security pagesterlingcheck.com
    security
  10. HireRight Vs Sterling: Background Check Comparisonfacebook.com
    review

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