Workforce Background Check Cost 2026: Checkr and GoodHire $29.99 Basic, 4 Vendors Quote-Only
Per-check pricing across the six US workforce background-check vendors most HR teams consider. Checkr and GoodHire publish identical $29.99 / $54.99 / $89.99 tiers. Sterling (now First Advantage), HireRight, Accurate Background, and First Advantage proper are quote-only. No setup fees disclosed publicly.
The four quote-only enterprise vendors collectively dominate Fortune 500 background-check spend; the two published-price vendors (Checkr / GoodHire) dominate SMB and tech-sector hiring. The published-rate gap is zero between Checkr and GoodHire because GoodHire was acquired by Checkr in April 2022 and now runs on aligned price cards.
Vendor comparison
| Vendor | Basic | Mid tier | Top tier | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Checkr | $29.99 Basic | $54.99 Essential | $89.99 Complete | Published |
| GoodHire | $29.99 Basic | $54.99 Essential | $89.99 Complete | Published |
| Sterling | ---- Enterprise | ---- | ---- | Quote only |
| HireRight | ---- Enterprise | ---- | ---- | Quote only |
| Accurate Background | ---- Enterprise | ---- | ---- | Quote only |
| First Advantage | ---- Enterprise Advantage | ---- | ---- | Quote only |
How to pick
If you hire 1 to 50 people per year
GoodHire's self-serve account creation and SMB UX is the lowest-friction path; Basic $29.99 per check covers SSN trace + sex offender + national criminal + global watchlist, which is the standard package for non-regulated US hiring. Checkr Basic is identical in price and content; pick GoodHire for ease, Checkr for an API.
If you hire 50 to 500 people per year
Either Checkr or GoodHire at Essential $54.99 per check (adds county criminal) covers most non-regulated hiring. At this volume, the published-price vendors are typically cheaper than quote-only enterprise vendors even before negotiation, because the enterprise vendors price in setup, annual minimums, and account-management overhead.
If you hire 500+ people per year or operate internationally
Quote-only enterprise vendors (Sterling, HireRight, Accurate Background, First Advantage) become the default consideration set. Checkr offers international packages starting at $32 per check covering 200+ countries but the enterprise vendors have deeper experience with healthcare, financial-services, and regulated-industry packages. The trade-off is procurement timeline: enterprise vendor sales cycles run 4 to 12 weeks.
Hidden costs to budget for
- Pass-through county / state court access fees: $5 to $40 per check, not in the published rate.
- MVR add-on: $9.50 per check (Checkr published); useful for any role driving a vehicle on company business.
- Drug screening: $60 per clinic-based test or $37 per onsite test (Checkr published).
- Employment verification: included in Checkr / GoodHire Complete tier at $89.99; priced separately by quote-only vendors.
- Setup and annual minimum fees on enterprise contracts: not vendor-confirmed but third-party listings cite $175 (First Advantage) to $5,000 (HireRight) setup fees.
Regulatory backdrop
- FCRA disclosure. Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires written disclosure to candidates that a background check will be run and written authorisation.
- EEOC consideration of conviction records. Federal EEOC guidance limits how arrest and conviction records can be used in employment decisions.
- State ban-the-box rules. Roughly 35 US states and 150 cities restrict when a background check can be run relative to a conditional offer.
Where to go next
- Open a per-vendor dossier: Checkr, GoodHire, Sterling, HireRight, Accurate Background, First Advantage.
- Run the multi-vendor calculator at your hiring volume.
- Read quote-only vendors for the operational consequences of vendor pricing opacity.