Frequently asked questions
Everything people ask about CoverFi's identity checks, record search, pricing, API, and data practices. For term definitions, see the glossary.
Is the quick check free?
Yes. Instant identity checks are free — no credit card required. The homepage check needs no account at all (one check per hour); signed-in users can run identity checks without limit, and they never consume credits.
Do I need to upload an ID?
No. A quick check only uses the details you type in — name, date of birth, and an email or phone. There is no document upload, no selfie, and no biometric capture anywhere in the product.
What does a match mean?
A match means the details you submitted are consistent with a person in our identity database. It is a database match, not a government ID verification. A match requires a strong locator — the email, phone, or date of birth — plus name agreement; a name alone is never enough.
What data do you check against?
Consumer identity attributes such as name, date of birth, address history, phone, and email — covering 250M+ people, built from lawfully sourced consumer marketing files. The complete field-by-field layout is published in our data dictionary.
How current is the data?
Every phone, email, and address in a profile carries first-seen and last-seen dates from the source data, so you can judge recency per field instead of trusting a blanket claim. Datasets are refreshed on a rolling basis as new deliveries land.
What do searches and profiles cost?
Identity checks are free. A record search costs 1 credit, opening a full profile costs 1 credit, and a people-at-address lookup costs 2 credits. Credit packs start at $25 for 50 credits — see pricing.
Do credits expire? Is there a subscription?
No and no. There are no subscriptions and no per-seat fees; you buy a credit pack once, it is shared by your whole organization, and it never expires.
What happens if my search finds nothing?
The credit is refunded automatically. You also get a diagnosis of why the search found nothing and what to broaden, rather than a bare empty list.
Am I charged twice for retrying?
No. Re-running the same search is free, and re-fetching a profile within ten minutes of paying for it is free — retries and page refreshes don't double-bill.
What are masked results?
With zero credits you still get real responses: the same rows and profiles with values masked. Masked search rows are echo-only — they never reveal more about a person than you already typed in. Buying credits unmasks; nothing about your query is lost.
Is there an API?
Yes — the same search, profile, identity-check, and people-at-address pipeline is available as a REST API with sk_live_ keys, credit metering, and labeled match tiers. Start with the API documentation or the skip tracing API overview; the docs also ship as raw markdown at /docs/api.md for coding agents.
Can I use CoverFi for hiring or tenant decisions?
No. CoverFi is not a consumer reporting agency, and using it to determine eligibility for credit, employment, insurance, housing, or similar purposes is prohibited by the Terms of Service. Every account and API key requires certifying non-FCRA use. The FCRA vs non-FCRA explainer covers where the line sits and what CoverFi is actually for: locating people you're entitled to contact, verifying details you already hold, and fraud-awareness research.
How is my search handled?
Submitted details are used only to run the check and operate the service — they are never sold. Searches over records are logged for audit and abuse prevention. See the Privacy Policy for the full picture.
I found my own record. Can I have it removed?
Yes. Anyone — customer or not — can request access to or suppression of their records through the privacy request page. Suppressed records stop being served to all users.
Why did my search find someone in a different state?
When an exact search finds nothing, CoverFi widens one criterion at a time — former names, nicknames, nearby areas, other states — and labels every widened row with how it matched, so you always know the difference between an exact hit and a broadened lead. The glossary defines every match tier.