How to Run a Free Background Check with No Credit Card: Your Guide

Evelyn Sanderson - June 17, 2025

Background checks are one of the most important parts of the hiring process in corporate America, and this practice has even started to blend into other fields, including the trades, entry-level jobs, and even internships. Therefore, there’s a good chance that the next job you want will require some background check before you can get hired.

That said, background checks don’t just apply to the workplace. You’ll find that background checks are run before the purchase of firearms when applying for government contracts, and sometimes, personal background checks to catch catfish are necessary to see if the person you’re talking to is who they claim to be.

Regardless of why you need a background check, we’re here to help you run one for free. Read on to learn how to run a free background check with no credit card.

What Is a Background Check?

A background check is more of a process than any single thing. Ultimately, it’s the process of finding information about someone by checking their public records. Most background checks will verify someone’s identity, check with references, and look for any criminal records. 

Background checks can also be more personal. People may use them to learn more about who they’re speaking to or check for catfish or scams. Drug screenings and other background checks for specific government clearance are also common, so a background check is really a catch-all term for finding someone’s public information.

Who Runs Background Checks? 

Background checks tend to be run by employers who want to screen potential employees. Employers tend to run the most background checks because people need to meet company standards and be deemed safe enough to work with. 

That said, individuals can run background checks, the government runs them, and you may even have to pass one to purchase a firearm. For these reasons, background checks have become popular in all areas of life, and you should expect them if you’re applying for any type of employment or even volunteer work.

At the end of the day, people want to know more about you before they deal with you in any way.

What Information Shows Up on a Background Check? 

Lots of information shows up on a background check. While it can vary based on the type of background check, you’ll typically find the following information: 

• First and last name verification 
• SSN verification 
• Employment history 
• Education history 
• Social media check 
• Online presence check 
• Financial records 
• Contact information 
• Criminal records 
• Court records 
• Email addresses 
• Dating profiles 
• Sex offender status 

Depending on the type of background check, some or all of this information will show up. There are also more expensive background checks that will look through driving records or someone’s status on government exclusion lists.

How Long Does a Background Check Take?

Background checks don’t take a long time. On average, expect a background check to take around five business days. However, some background check companies can expedite the process and help you get it done within a few days.

It’s also important to note that some background checks may take longer than others. If you’re going through a level 2 background check, for example, the criminal records search might be more extensive than traditional background checks. Plus, when companies find red flags on background checks, the entire process may take more time. 

We also have additional resources to help you learn about why your background check is taking so long.

How to Run a Free Background Check Without a Credit Card 

Running a background check for free without a credit card has never been easier. With the right tools, you shouldn’t have any issues running a background check without having to spend a dime. That said, you’ll find that, in some cases, doing a deeper dive is worth the money. 

Learn more about your options below.

1. Information.com 

When you need to run a background check without a credit card, you can always turn to Information.com. Our background check tool is one of the best options if you want to go the online route, and we never ask you for your credit card information unless you want to open the full report. 

That said, even without opening the full report, you can verify parts of someone’s identity, which is more than enough to go off of if you’re checking someone’s background for online dating or something similar.

However, if you want to run a full comprehensive background check, we can also help. Simply enter someone’s information into any of our people search tools and open the full report to find all available public records. When you search with Information.com, you can find the following information:

• Full name 
• Date of birth 
• Social media accounts 
• Dating profiles 
• Email addresses 
• Phone number 
• Address 
• Criminal records 
• Civil court records 
• Driving records 
• Financial records 
• Marriage and divorce records 

Depending on the person’s background, some or all of this information will show up when you run a search with Information.com. In fact, you can even run a background check on yourself to test it out.

2. Check Credit Reports 

If you want to run a financial background check, you can check someone’s credit history. This will help you run a background check without a credit card, and you can reveal a lot of information when you check someone’s credit report. 

You can find their credit score, current and past addresses, and information about their Social Security number (SSN). Therefore, it’s a good place to start if financial records and ID verification are the most important things on your list.

The only drawback to a credit report is that you won’t find everything that’s public record. For example, criminal records and non-financial civil court records won’t show up on someone’s credit report. Therefore, it’s a good idea to run this type of check alongside a more traditional background check.

3. Google 

Google is your best friend when you want to run a background check without providing credit card information or spending money. Google is one of the largest search engines in the world, so there’s a good chance that it can help you find someone’s public records. All you need is their name to get started, along with some other keywords to narrow down the search results.

While Google can provide information about someone’s background, it’s a mile wide and an inch deep. Essentially, you may find social media accounts, employment history, and other records, but a lot will be missing unless you find the right criminal databases. Thankfully, Google can help you find the right websites, but you might have to spend some money to view the information.

4. Social Media 

Social media is a helpful tool if you want to run a background check, but only if you need to verify personal details. For example, if you’re a business that needs to work with people who are reserved on social media, you’ll want to check their accounts to ensure that their content matches your brand’s identity and vision.

Social media can also help you verify someone’s work history, depending on the platform you’re searching on. For example, people tend to include their work history on LinkedIn so you can see where they used to work. Facebook and Instagram are also good candidates if you need to learn more about someone’s social or business circles.

5. Public Databases 

Another great place to run a background check for free without a credit card is a public database. Now, some of these databases will cost money to use, but others are free and work great if you have niche hiring needs. For example, you can check the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) exclusion list for free.

Plenty of other free databases are also available for you to search through, but your results will vary based on the specific database. While exploring these databases is helpful, you may have to bounce around to different ones to find everything you’re looking for. This is why we recommend starting with our background check tool first. If anything, we’ll at least point you in the right direction.

Run a Background Check for Free Without a Credit Card Today!

It’s never been easier to run a background check, even if you don’t want to pay. Plenty of online tools make it possible to run a background check without a credit card, and you can even leverage Google or social media to run background checks on your own.

That said, we always recommend starting with Information.com. When you want to run a background check, we offer one of the most reliable tools around, and you never have to provide your credit card information unless you want to open the full report.