Saturday, November 7, 2026 · Customer reviews of US businesses
The Fair Hearing score
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3,953 reviews
Sterling, A First Advantage CompanySelect a line to read only those reviews.
Honesty, pricing, process and quality scores appear once 5 customers have rated them.
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 The Fair Hearing, with an average rating of 4.1 out of 5.
3,953 approved reviews, newest moderated first
Absolutely absurdly invasive and time consuming. I don’t understand what their job is when they make you provide every single detail of your life for them. No common sense used, just invasive, time consuming and aggravating
By Nicco
Not sure how they win contracts from large multinationals. 1. Their IT application, systems and procedure do not use correct terminology for their respective country. eg: Police clearance certificate is required in one country, different term is used else where, staff may or may not know this!! 2. Staff are very poorly trained , they ask for mark list of passed certificate for PhD ( doctorate) and put process on hold! And many other and difficult to list
By Krishna
The worst company in the world.
By Janusz
Phone message was almost inaudible both in terms of the volume being too low and speaking too fast. When I called back the same issue existed, the person was almost whispering and I could barely hear them. Accent was very heavy and hard to understand. Absolute terrible experience
By Terry S.
This company has been extremely disappointing to work with. Their background check process is poorly managed, and the employees seem untrained to handle even basic tasks. They initially provided a timeline of 1-3 days, which has repeatedly shifted—from 11/21 to 11/27, then 12/5 (after claiming it was expedited), and now 12/17. I was hired on 11/15 and promptly completed all required steps the same day, yet this prolonged process has jeopardized my livelihood. Their lack of accountability and care for the people relying on their services is deeply frustrating.
By Joshua D.
Response from Sterling, A First Advantage Company· Dec 11, 2024
Hello, our team confirmed that your county criminal record check is complete as of December 10 and sent you a status update. Unfortunately, we are subject to county turnaround times, even after submitting multiple expedite requests. A representative attempted to contact you by phone twice, but was routed to voicemail. We understand this is frustrating as we strive to provide the best candidate experience possible.
I just completed my background check with Sterling and it took them nearly three weeks to complete it. My start date was pushed back. Additionally, they asked me for all the W-2 forms which they were unable to verify for whatever reason. I had to practically do their job for them. I was constantly scanning pay stubs and W-2 forms to them. Worst part of it all is that their crappy website times out without warning and you will lose all your information you had inputted. There is no save button. What a horrific experience just inputting the information was. I really don't understand how this company is still in business.
By Benjamin S.
A hideous company to deal with. I have been a contractor for many years and have been through numerous back/screening checks for tier 1 investment banks. However this company are absolutely useless, the level of detail required is beyond baffling and the sheer number of e-mails is obsurd. The lack of common sense used by their is frankly quite worrying and the process takes much longer than it should. I would think twice about accepting a job in the future if these clowns are involved in the onboarding process
By Richard N.
Total invasion of privacy. Had to go through Sterling background checks for a new job. The amount of emails was insane and highly stressful. Requests for document after document and then having to resend/reclarify because they can't use their inteligence to work with documents sent and don't read them properly. Absolute nightmare of a company.
By Anna
