IT Pro Verdict
Pros
- +
Intuitive to use
- +
Comprehensive list of records
- +
Easy to sign up
Cons
- -
Slightly time-consuming
PeopleFinders is a search engine that’s dedicated to public records. If you’re looking to conduct a background check or criminal record search on a potential candidate, then this tool can help you.
PeopleFinders offers one of the best people site searches available. It’s intuitive and easy to use, and you can get the results you need in a matter of minutes. The solution works by sifting through public databases to identify the person in question, based on simple details like their name, address, or phone number.
With access to over 43 billion public records in the US, PeopleFinders can make your pre-employment checks much quicker.
PeopleFinders: Plans and pricing
PeopleFinders offers a variety of pricing options. Its basic searches appear for free when you first type in a name, but you will need to pay to access your results.
A standard PeopleFinders membership costs $24.95 a month. This gives you access to reports that include basic details like contact information and addresses.
The company also offers a premium membership at $29.95 a month, giving you access to more granular details like business records, criminal records, and bankruptcy declarations. This plan is more suitable for HR personnel.
As well as this, PeopleFinders has enterprise-designed plans created for larger companies that need to conduct a high number of people checks regularly. For $72 a month, you receive 1,000 searches, including the details found in a premium membership. For $150 a month, you receive 5,000 searches.
If you’re only looking to conduct a one-off background check, then you could consider buying a single report, which will cost you $1.95.
| $24.95 a month plan | $29.95 a month plan | $72 a month plan | $150 a month plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access to basic details like contact information and relatives | Access to details like business records, criminal records, and declarations of bankruptcy | ||
| Limited number of searches per month— amount not specified | 1,000 searches per month | 5,000 searches per month |
PeopleFinders: Features
PeopleFinders offers a variety of ways to find the person you’re looking for, either through their name, phone, email address, or home address. The phone functionality is particularly good for combatting nuisance calls if this is an issue in your business.
Basic searches
If you’re looking to contact a former employee or need to locate details related to a reference, you should use the primary search function.
After you enter the details you have—such as a person’s name and location—you’ll be asked if you can give any more information to narrow down the search, such as the person’s middle name and age.
PeopleFinders’ search engine will then get to work, scanning public databases for identities that match your search criteria. If the name you’ve searched for is very common, then PeopleFinders may generate a few possible results.
To help you narrow down your search, it will also include granular details about each individual so you can identify the person you’re looking for.
Background checks
With a premium plan, you can conduct deeper searches on individuals and discover information relating to court records and criminal history.
Like the basic checks, you start this process by entering your information about the individual in question. The more information you have, the quicker PeopleFinders will identify the person.
The reports are comprehensive and detailed. One thing to note is that the data is not listed chronologically. For example, past addresses are listed in numerical order, but it’s not clear if this is the newest to last address or the opposite.
The reports also don’t include social media information, so you will need to find this manually if needed.
You’ll notice that PeopleFinders has multiple web pages for background checks and criminal record checks, but we found that these search tools showed us the same results.
Mobile application
PeopleFinders mobile application is called IdentityWatch. It is available on both Android and iPhone devices. The mobile app has additional functionality that isn’t available with the web version.
For example, if you receive a phone number from an unknown person, PeopleFinders will automatically run a reverse search of the number in its database to provide you with background information. If it identifies the number as a nuisance call, it can block the call for you.
PeopleFinders: Interface and in-use
PeopleFinders is straightforward and intuitive to use. Even if you aren’t tech-savvy, you will find PeopleFinders easy to navigate. The user interface is similar to that of standard search engines, and the website signposts the details you should enter at each point.
Once you’ve entered your search, it can take a little time for PeopleFinders to generate names. For us, it took about 3 minutes for the final list of individuals to load. While this is a little lengthy, PeopleFinders becomes quicker and more accurate if you provide further details, so we anticipate some searches will be much faster.
While it loads results, PeopleFinders updates you on the status of the search via a percentage dial so you have a rough idea of how close you are to receiving your information.
PeopleFinders: Support
PeopleFinders has a dedicated knowledge base filled with step-by-step articles that answer common questions about how to use the site, your membership, and how PeopleFinders collects its information.
The articles are on the shorter side, but they’re written in straightforward language and get quickly to the detail.
PeopleFinders also answers customer queries by phone and email. You can contact PeopleFinders by phone any day of the week, but note that Saturday and Sunday hours are limited to 7am-3:30pm PST.
Via email, PeopleFinders promises to reply to customer queries within one working day. There is currently no online chat function.
PeopleFinders: Security
PeopleFinders uses encryption to store your account information and credit card details. Encryption is also used to secure searches, meaning that the person you searched for won’t know you’ve looked them up.
The platform also gives you the option to opt-out of its searches, so that your personal details don’t appear amongst these records. However, because PeopleFinders also includes details from third-party websites, this doesn’t guarantee that you won’t appear in its search engine.
Alternatives to PeopleFinders
There are plenty of people search engines on the market with similar functionality to PeopleFinders. The other major players in this space are BeenVerified, Instant Checkmate, and TruthFinder.
PeopleFinders has a slight edge on these platforms due to extra functionality. Namely, the mobile app is a unique differentiator, as is the ability to purchase a one-off report rather than pay for a membership.
PeopleFinders: Final verdict
Ultimately, PeopleFinders is an easy way to gather data about potential candidates and employees. No matter your level of technical knowledge, you will likely find the platform easy to use. While the background checks take a couple of minutes to load, the platform is undoubtedly faster than scouring the internet for this information yourself.
Further reading on people search software
Take a look at our top provider picks for the best people search websites, and if you're on a tight budget, the best free people search sites. Discover how to find someone for free on the internet in our step-by-step guide, and discover what a background check entails.
