There are many reasons why someone would want to learn more about someone, and there are equally the same solutions to this need.
Background check services have been in our lives for a very long time now, and using them makes everything easy if you want to learn about someone.
They help to gather all the public information in just one report for a fee.
These reports might include more or fewer things depending on which service you choose to use.
Spokeo and Instant Checkmate are two of the most popular options, with some differences.
They have their ups and downs, and choosing between these two popular services might be hard. In this article, we will compare these two services in detail.
Table
| Spokeo | Instant Checkmate | |
| Pricing | $19.95/mo ($14.95/mo for 3-month membership) | $35.12/mo ($28.09/mo for 3-month membership) |
| Reports | Address, phone number, email lookup, city, state, criminal record, sex offenses, birth records, genealogy records, social media profiles, marriage & divorces | Birth information, photos, phone numbers, social media profiles, email addresses, address history, employment past, educational past, assets the person owns, business ownership if there’s any, criminal records, traffic records |
| Payment Method | Visa, PayPal, Mastercard, American Express, Discover | Paypal, Visa, Mastercard |
| Features | Mobile-friendly website, iOS & Android app | Mobile-friendly website, Android app |
| Customer Support | Email, virtual chat assistant, on-call, Twitter, Facebook | Email, on-call, Facebook & Twitter, physical address |
Why Choose Spokeo?
Spokeo first started as a social media aggregator in around 2006, but it later evolved into a full-fledged background check service.
Spokeo focuses on an insanely user-friendly design, making their entire service very easy to use for tens of millions of users they have.
However, They do not offer as many different reports as Instant Checkmate or other similar background check services.
The report you get looks much like a CV, with an aim to make it easy to read, and they include everything there.
In addition, if you use their mobile app, they have a feature where they prevent unknown callers after scanning their database for the number calling.
Their pricing is also very attractive as they are extremely low-end compared to other services.
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Why Choose Instant Checkmate?
Instant Checkmate has been providing comprehensive full-fledged background check reports to millions of its users for over a decade.
Their reports are way more in-depth than many other background check services out there, making them stand out in the crowd.
You can get several levels of background checks, and the most premium level is able to search for even the slightest detail, such as if the person owns a gun, a hunting license, or something similar.
All these services come with a price because their fees are extremely high, probably one of the most expensive background check services out there.
If you would like to go deeper with your reports, it even gets more expensive as you advance.
This is not too surprising considering the depth of all of their reports, but it doesn’t make it a good fit for everyone.
They also have very quality customer support via telephone or email during business hours.
Comparison & Winner Based On:
Features
– Spokeo’s background check reports are actually somewhat limited compared to many other background check services.
They don’t offer bankruptcy, court judgments, tax liens, assets, age, and report clarification, but they offer most other types of reports that Instant Checkmate offers.
They have a mobile-friendly website and a mobile app for Android and iOS. They also offer functioning and well-organized customer support.
– Instant Checkmate offers almost all types of reports with their main service. Criminal records, sex offenses, hunting licenses, assets, tax liens, birth records, and many others.
They have a mobile app for both Android and iOS, and their website is also mobile-friendly. On top of that, they offer customer support with fast response rates.
Winner – Instant Checkmate. They offer way more comprehensive reports with better depth in their reports. Spokeo is missing quite a lot of important details.
Usability
– Spokeo’s usability is extremely high, and its design is very clean, making its aim to make all the steps to your background check easy.
You can make a background check on anyone with just one click after you enter the website.
– Everything is extremely simple when you want to use Instant Checkmate to perform a search or find an answer to your question.
Its modern and robust design makes the website easy to navigate and find what you are looking for right away.
Winner – Instant Checkmate. They both are very easy to use, and their usability is high. However, Instant Checkmate took one more extra step to inform their users to answer their questions and compiled a very detailed page about the most frequent problems and questions.
Sign Up Process
– When you enter Spokeo’s website, you must click on the sign-up button in the top right corner.
Then, you’ll have to choose the membership you want, make the payment, and create your account.
– Instant Checkmate doesn’t have a direct sign-up process. You first need to start a search on someone or yourself. Once you do the research, you will get the option to “view reports.”
After clicking on it, you will go to the payment page to make the payment for your subscription package and open your account.
Winner – Spokeo. They have a dedicated sign-up page to make it faster and smoother than Instant Checkmate.
Opt-Out Process
– When you want to cancel your Spokeo account, all you need to do is to go to their website and cancel it there.
You can find the option to cancel on your account settings and finalize the process by clicking on “cancel.” It will be canceled right away without anything else.
– Instant Checkmate offers three different methods to opt out of your subscription. The easiest method is through their website by going to your account settings and clicking on the “cancel subscription” button.
Your membership will be instantly canceled, and you don’t have to do anything else.
Alternatively, you can also call them or send them an email with your name and email, and they will handle it for you.
Winner – Instant Checkmate. They both offer the most important one, the online version, but Instant Checkmate gives you two other options if you feel like it. This makes it more flexible for its users.
Ease Of Use
– Spokeo’s website design aims to make it like a search engine. This means that you can make a search for someone simply like using Google. That’s why their website is very easy to use and not complicated at any level.
– When you enter Instant Checkmate’s website, you can directly make your search without doing anything else on the website.
They offer very good ease of use from the very beginning to the end when you are getting your report.
If you need answers to your questions about the service, you can also get those answers through their detailed help page, where they answer all questions shortly and direct.
Winner – It’s a draw. Both services are extremely easy to use, and you can make a search with just one simple click after you write down all the information.
Accuracy
– Just like any other background check service, Spokeo doesn’t also offer 100% accuracy. Most of the users who used their services state that the information they provided was accurate, but there are also some reviews that state the contrary.
Because they use social networks and other public information, it’s possible that some information is wrong or outdated, but it doesn’t happen very frequently.
– Instant Checkmate uses public information to present in their reports. This means that the information you receive comes from legitimate authorities and is mostly accurate.
However, some reviews state that there are some cases where the information could be outdated or inaccurate.
Winner – Draw. Both have similar accuracy rates as they use similar resources to come up with their reports.
They don’t offer 100% accuracy, but the accuracy rates are also not extremely low and, in fact, very high.
Pricing
– Instant Checkmate costs $35.12/mo. However, if you pay in advance and opt for a 3-month membership, it costs $28.09/mo.
– Spokeo’s price is $19.95/mo. But, similar to Instant Checkmate, if you opt for a 3-month membership and pay in advance, you can get it for $14.95/mo.
Winner – Spokeo. Instant Checkmate is known for its hefty fees. Spokeo is clearly way cheaper than Instant Checkmate and is the obvious choice if you are not looking for an extra-deep background check.
Customer Support
– Instant Checkmate doesn’t offer 7/24 customer support, but they do have other ways to service their customers.
You can call them by phone or go to their offices during work hours to solve your problem immediately.
You also have the option to send an email whenever you want, and you will get a response as soon as possible.
– Like Instant Checkmate, Spokeo also doesn’t have 7/24 live customer support.
However, you can also give them a call during work hours, use their virtual chat assistant on their website, send an email, or reach out on Twitter & Facebook.
Winner – Spokeo. They both offer almost the same, but Spokeo has a virtual chat assistant that might be able to solve simple issues anytime.
With Instant Checkmate, even if you have a small problem, you still need to wait for them to get back to you to resolve the issue.
Verdict
Both background services are undoubtedly quality and legitimate and have been helping millions of people for years.
However, it’s clear that they both serve two very different purposes and a client base.
Instant Checkmate is a very detailed and professional background check service that can provide you with literally every piece of information you need on a higher price scale.
On the other hand, Spokeo is a more basic service that doesn’t provide as much information as Instant Checkmate but has a lower price tag.
In the end, if you are looking for a simple service to get some sort of idea about the people you are going to search for, Spokeo is a great choice.
However, if you need something professional to learn about all the details, then you have to go with Instant Checkmate, even if it’s way more expensive than Spokeo.
FAQ
Are Spokeo and Instant Checkmate safe to use?
Both of these services use public information available to everyone to compile their report.
They don’t dive into anything illegal and only use what’s available to the public. This makes them safe both for you and for the person you are searching for.
Are there other background check services to use other than Spokeo and Instant Checkmate?
Yes, there are many popular and legitimate background check services to use. Spokeo and Instant Checkmate are just two of the most popular services.
How legit are Spokeo and Instant Checkmate?
Both of these services have been providing millions of users with background reports for years. They are legitimate and have no safety issues at all.
Sources
Shefali Jain is a Content Writer & Editor at USWorkforce.org
After completing her graduation in hospitality, Shefali decided to follow her passion and started writing. Shefali has been writing for two years now and contributes to our website as a skilled editor and content writer with strong research skills. Writing product and service reviews, biographies, and book reviews are some of her key areas, among many others in which she specializes. In her time at the organization, she has written and edited content on a range of topics, including employment law, human resources, and business management.
