ClearStar

Overview

Founded in 1995 and based in Alpharetta, Georgia, ClearStar serves employers across industries including healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, retail, hospitality, and staffing. Its offering spans pre-employment checks, ongoing employee monitoring, drug and occupational health screening, and social media screening. That range can consolidate screening needs, but organizations seeking a simple, fixed-price check may prefer a provider with clearer per-report pricing.

Key features

Screening and hiring workflows

ClearStar supports criminal-record, identity, employment, education, and driving-history checks, plus adverse-action workflows. Its Standard package combines an NCD search, the first three county court criminal checks (pass-through fees apply), one highest-degree education verification, and two employment verifications. Professional adds two professional reference verifications; Basic includes only the NCD search and first three county checks. These packages give buyers a starting point for comparing screening mixes, but county fees can add to costs.

Candidate invitations can be sent by text and email in a single invite covering all services. That can reduce friction when coordinating multiple checks. ClearStar also connects with ATS platforms including SAP, Paycor, Workday, Eightfold.ai, Dayforce, SmartRecruiters, and Employ, and describes its partner integration architecture as API-driven. The breadth is useful for teams tying screening into existing hiring systems; buyers should confirm that their specific workflow is covered.

Coverage, compliance, and service

ClearStar says its global searches cover more than 230 countries. It lists FCRA and EEOC expertise, GDPR readiness, and participation in the EU-U.S., UK, and Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Frameworks. Its security credentials include ISO 27001:2013, ISO 27018:2019, and ISO 27701:2019 certifications, plus a SOC 2 Type 2 report. This compliance and security focus may matter to employers handling sensitive candidate data, particularly across jurisdictions.

Social media screening uses AI-enhanced analysis to flag risk patterns in social content. That adds a distinct screening option, but employers should consider whether it fits their policies and compliance requirements. ClearStar says it provides dedicated, US-based client service teams. It also reports more than 6 million screenings annually, a first human touch in less than four hours, and 95%+ service quality.

Pricing

ClearStar has custom pricing, with quotes shaped around screening mix and compliance requirements. There is no free plan or free trial. Basic, Standard, and Professional are priced on request, so teams must request a quote to compare total costs.

Basic covers an NCD search and the first three county court criminal checks, with pass-through fees applying to the county checks. Standard adds one highest-degree education verification and two employment verifications. Professional adds two professional reference verifications on top of Standard. Basic suits narrower criminal-screening needs; Standard fits employers adding education and employment checks; Professional is the most complete of the three packages for teams that also need references. The packages' scope is clear, but county fees and customized pricing mean buyers should compare quotes against their expected screening volume and mix.

Platforms

ClearStar supports Android, iOS, web, and API access. The mix accommodates mobile and browser use as well as system integrations, although organizations should confirm how the mobile apps fit their particular hiring process.

Who it's for

ClearStar is a strong candidate for employers and staffing organizations that need several kinds of screening, ATS connections, and regulatory support in one service. Its stated industry coverage includes aerospace and defense, healthcare, nonprofits, and transportation as well as retail, hospitality, and manufacturing. It is less compelling for buyers prioritizing a published price, a free trial, or a narrowly defined, low-cost report.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Broad coverage combines criminal, identity, employment, education, driving, health, and other screening options, helping employers address varied needs through one provider.
• Pro: ATS connections, API-driven partner integration, and combined text-and-email candidate invitations support screening within hiring workflows.
• Pro: Global search coverage and stated regulatory and security credentials are relevant for organizations handling cross-border screening and candidate data.
• Con: Custom pricing and no free trial make it harder to evaluate costs before speaking with sales.
• Con: Pass-through county fees apply to the first three county checks in the listed packages, so package scope alone does not establish total cost.
• Con: AI-enhanced social media screening may not suit employers whose policies or compliance approach exclude that kind of review.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison, see Background Check Software.

• Accurate Background is another paid option with API and web platforms; its Basic Package is 155.00 USD per once, billed Inc GST, and includes police check and identity verification, reference check, and employment history verification.
• Asurint suits buyers seeking customized screening services priced through a demo or sales inquiry.
• AuthBridge is another paid, API- and web-based option with pricing discussed through sales.
• BackgroundChecks.com may suit organizations that want pay-per-report billing with no monthly fee or minimum orders; its Business plan also has no contracts or setup fees and offers volume discounts from 100 reports per month.
• Intelifi offers a web-based Snapshot package at 19.95 USD per once for PS, NCR, and CCR, and a Basic package at 29.00 USD per once with address history, SSN verification, national criminal database, national sex offender, and OFAC watchlist checks.
• Backgrounds Online is a paid, web- and API-based alternative with a Basic package at 29.95 USD per once covering an SSN trace, county criminal court search, national criminal database, sex offender registry, and global watchlist.
• Verified First is a paid web-based alternative with a Basic package at 29.99 USD per once covering a nationwide criminal search, national sex offender registry, Social Security address trace, and global security watch list.
• Justifacts is another paid, web-based alternative.

Verdict

Choose ClearStar if your organization needs a flexible mix of employment and health screening, ATS or API connections, and support for regulatory requirements. Its breadth and workflow options are the strongest reasons to shortlist it; custom pricing, no trial, and possible county pass-through fees are reasons to compare quotes carefully or look elsewhere if predictable per-check costs matter most.