Sterling was acquired by First Advantage on October 31st, 2024. First Advantage (NASDAQ: FA) is a leading provider of employment background screening, identity, and verification solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, First Advantage performs screens in over 200 countries and territories. Visit the Company’s website at https://fadv.com/.
Sterling, A First Advantage Company (sterlingcheck.com) has 3,953 customer reviews on Five Star Index, with an average rating of 4.1 out of 5.
Also known as
sterlingcheck.com
Website
sterlingcheck.com
Category
HR & Recruiting
Location
New York, New York
Listed on Five Star Index
2026
About these reviews
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The company replied to 18% of reviews.
Latest
Most recent review: September 2026.
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Reviews are shown as their authors wrote them. The company can reply, but cannot edit them.
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This company does not provide accurate and reliable information about a job applicant and candidate. Even if a dispute if filed with Sterling Background Check, it does not help or change anything. It is unable to validate the information contained in the background screening report it provides. In order to get a job through an employer who uses this particular background screening firm, one has to have his report reviewed by the perspective employer on a case by case basis. Sterling Background Check is known to be one of the most undependable source of information about any particular individual.
JD
JDH
Rude and Clueless Customer Service if that’s what you call Service!!💩
Your company has the worst support and Customer Service ever!
everyone I talked to was rude and acted like they were too busy texting to listen to what I had to say would never recommend you to anyone, clueless.
Your company told me one thing the company I was trying to get the job for told me another thing nobody knows what the hell they’re talking about and here I am just trying to get a job.
AK
Abdul K.
Now Iam forced again to write a few…
Now Iam forced again to write a few lines so l have given a 1 star.
CL
Chantelle L.
If I could give zero stars I would
If I could give zero stars I would. Completely incompetent company who've caused me alot of unnecessary stress. Applied for an international police check, as required by the Queensland College of Teachers early November to start the school year end of January. It's now mid January, I'm supposed to be starting my new role and the results still haven't come through. Their call centre are clueless, a few times I called and they couldn't even find me on the system. I was then told to email a generic help mailbox. Their responses have taken weeks at a time and I'm now being told the check has been prioritised and is expected end of January (still 3 weeks away)! For a process that's supposed to take a matter of days, I've waited over 2 months. This company shouldn't be in business, avoid them like the plague.
SA
Sam
A trash tier service
A trash tier service. Okay that's a little inaccurate, some people derive value from other people's trash, I sat a couch out to the curb a few years back and someone scooped it up before the garbage man because they had found higher value in it than I did. Trash can be composted, recycled, or upcycled, it's possible to get another use out of trash. So by that logic Sterling doesn't get the distinction of containing the potential usefulness of trash. The employment verification may as well be DIY. A job I left 4 years ago can't be verified when it went fine 2 years ago, they said the number I gave them wasn't working, I called that number and got their employment verification area contact info by simply asking the person who answered and passed that back to Sterling. They still couldn't verify that employer and needed documentation. They couldn't verify my then current employer, who they did the background check for when I got hired, and needed check stubs. They have a relationship with that company as they do their new hire background checks... After that they couldn't verify my diploma. Again, 2 years ago they found all this just fine. Despite the fact they keep scooping up the competition, they apparently don't apply process improvements internally to cut down on duplicated work. I'm really glad I only gave them 5 years of employment history, I checked a box allowing them to look deeper but they don't really look into much of anything as far as I can tell. Fun fact, you don't have a dedicated rep, it appears that tasks are assigned as they come in to members of their offshore team. I was prepared to call my local Sherrif's office because I didn't have faith that they'd be able to do the criminal background check either, but I'm guessing whatever data broker they use for that portion is less terrible at their job. I felt stuck in a Kafka story without the grim humor. I ended up getting the job, no thanks to the dozen or so people who touched my background check there who couln't do their's.
They have no accountability to prospective employees to provide good services. Through the casual institutional laziness they apply to their role, they increase the stress levels in the already fraught experience of switching jobs.
So, my advice prospective employees is don't assume because the last time went well that things will go well in the future. Another thing to consider is another employer who is more selective about the quality of their partners.
My advice to employers is use a different service or have the employee do their own employment and education verification, Sterling will make them do it themselves anyway, just cut the middle man. Your prospective employees should be excited to work with you, the Sterling experience definitely serves to start the relationship with a bad impression. This experience has nearly pushed me to add this to the questions I have for recruiters to eliminate companies I'd consider working for, if their organization considers Sterling a company that provides an acceptable level of service.
DW
David W.
Useless Provided my UK passport
Useless Provided my UK passport
My UK Driving licence
A letter from the Inland revenue
Not good enough for there system
GB
Giuseppe B.
*** don’t use this company should you wish to have a certified and legitimate check performed***
This company is by far the most useless company I have ever had to deal with.
Wasn't capable at all to perform a basic DBS check in 7 weeks! Wasn't able to verify my degree/diploma due to lack of due diligence and actual understanding of the European degrees and the Regulated Profession Database, created to set the equivalence between different education systems. They even won't recognize my identity having a copy of my passport and UK driver license!!! Also, my NI number has a 'mismatch' despite they had a copy of my NI letter and my last employer payslips.
They even sent me an email stating "we do not need any further document'.
Numerous emails and calls have drawn a blank. This company clearly has no expertise in verifying documents and understanding how they work. Their pure arrogance when they think they are correct is disgusting. So if you are wanting factual information I suggest you use a different company that is accurate and thorough in their findings. if I could give minus stars I would.
BI
Bill
I can't give a good review it's not due…
I can't give a good review it's not due to you guys it's due to Swedish hospital sorry I just can't give you something that They screwed up