Background Check Colorado: What You Need to Know

Richard Grey - May 1, 2025

Background checks are one of the most important parts of the application process. It doesn’t matter if you’re applying for a job working in the kitchen of a McDonald’s or for a corporate job in finance, there’s a good chance you’ll have to pass a background check.

In Colorado, the background check process tends to be the same as it is elsewhere in the United States. Essentially, applicants have to submit some information, consent to the check, and wait to hear back based on the results.

That said, there’s a lot more to background checks than submitting information and waiting around. In fact, what if you could know how your background check would turn out before you even applied? In this article, we take you through everything you need to know about background checks in Colorado.

What Is a Background Check in Colorado?

A background check is a process that companies use to learn more about applicants. When you apply for a job, you have to go through this process because it helps companies determine if you’re a good candidate for the job. For example, a background check may pull someone’s criminal records to check for any red flags. That said, most background checks will begin with identity verification using an applicant’s Social Security number (SSN) to ensure that they are who they claim to be.

This verification process also tends to include education history, employment history, social media accounts, and much more. Overall, background checks are an intensive process, and every company, school, and government agency has its own background check process in Colorado.

What Shows Up on a Background Check in Colorado?

A background check in Colorado will reveal a lot of information. In fact, anything that’s available to the public will show up on a background check. Some of the most common records that show up on a background check include:

• Identify verification 
• Address 
• Phone number 
• Email address 
• Social media accounts 
• Criminal records 
• Sex offender status 
• Civil court records 
• Education history 
• Work history 
• Financial records 
• Professional license verification 
• Motor vehicle records 

It’s also important to note that some background checks may search for different information. For example, an apartment background check in Colorado may focus more on sex offender records and a credit check compared to a more basic background check.

How Far Back Do Background Checks Go in Colorado?

Background checks in Colorado tend to go back seven years for any non-conviction records, which is in accordance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Financial records also follow these guidelines, along with violations and some misdemeanors. It’s important to note that these guidelines are for positions that pay less than $75,000 in Colorado, so if a job is offering more than that, these rules don’t apply.

How Long Does a Background Check Take in Colorado?

A background check in Colorado usually takes a few business days to around two business weeks. More basic background checks, like an SSN trace, only take a couple of days. 

On the other hand, looking through criminal records can take longer. Also, if you add fingerprinting into the mix, the process can take even longer.

That said, felony criminal records and crimes that lead to more serious misdemeanor convictions may show up on a background check in Colorado for more than seven years. To prevent these records from appearing, you’ll have to have them sealed or expunged.

How to Run a Background Check in Colorado 

Running a background check in Colorado has never been easier. Plus, plenty of online tools will help you run a basic background check without having to get off the couch. Learn more about how to run a background check in Colorado below.

1. CheckPeople.com 

Whether you want to run a background check on people applying to a position or you want to run a personal background check on a potential love interest, CheckPeople.com has you covered. 

Our background check tool is easy to use and only requires some basic information about someone. If they’re applying for a position in your company, you’ll already have access to this information anyway. For more personal background checks, however, you can use a phone number or address if that’s all you have.

When you run a background check with CheckPeople.com, you can discover a lot of information about someone – anything that’s public record. Some examples of information you can find with our search tool are:

• Marriage and divorce records 
• Criminal court records 
• Information about warrants
• Civil court records 
• Social media accounts 
• Websites 
• Business information 
• Previous employment records 
• Education background 
• Sex offender status 
• Contact information 
• Relatives and family members 
• Known associates 

This list is not exhaustive, but within our comprehensive full report, this is the type of information you can expect to find. The level of detail and accuracy is also second-to-none, and we’ll even notify you if we notice any changes to someone’s records.

2. Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CIB) Vendors 

While our platform is great for gathering public records, if you need to gather fingerprints, you’ll need to work with another vendor. According to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the only two vendors you can work with are IDENTOGO and COLORADO FINGERPRINTING.

You can contact both vendors by phone or visit their websites to get started. To begin, you’ll need to fill out the necessary paperwork, obtain consent from the applicant, and send them off to get fingerprinted. We only recommend going this route for employment background checks because you’re better off just pulling records for personal matters.

3. Internet Criminal History Check System (ICHC)

If you just want to find criminal records, you can use the Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s online search tool. This tool is the Internet Criminal History Check System (ICHC), and it contains detailed information about arrest records.

While we love this tool, it’s a bit clunky to use, especially on mobile devices. Plus, you can find similar results with our background check tool, so we recommend starting there instead. If you need more specific details, you can always use what you find to make searching within the system easier.

4. Hiring Background Check Companies 

If you don’t mind spending a little extra money to outsource the entire process, you can always hire a background check company. These are companies that will handle the entire process for you from start to finish. We recommend this route for big companies that need to save time and have hundreds of applicants or background checks to run annually.

On the other hand, for small businesses and smaller corporations, a simple background check tool like the one we offer at CheckPeople.com is a better option.

How to Prepare for a Background Check in Colorado 

Preparing for a background check in Colorado is easier than you may think. It comes down to knowing what will show up during the check so that you can get ahead of it. Below are some tips to help you prepare for a Colorado background check.

Check Your Records 

The best thing you can do to prepare for a background check is to run one on yourself. Use one of our people search tools to pull available public records on yourself to see what shows up. If it shows up in the full report, there’s a good chance that it will show up on a background check. 

You can also check the Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s database of criminal records to see if anything shows up. Once you know what will show up, you can be open and upfront about any potential red flags.

Check Your Social Media Profiles 

Checking your social media profiles is a great way to prepare for a background check in Colorado. While the Social Media and the Workplace Law (C.R.S. § 8-2-127) protects people who keep their accounts private, anything set to public is fair game. 

There are also lots of exceptions to this rule, especially if you’re applying for government work. Therefore, it’s best to set any social media profiles to private before applying, or you should remove any content that may be a red flag.

This also applies to websites and your overall online presence in general.

Know Your Rights 

When it comes to background checks, knowing your rights is essential. Colorado has a lot of laws regarding the background check process, and you can learn more about most of them below:

• The Fair Credit Report Act (FCRA): Limits how far back a background check in Colorado can go.
• Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act: Prohibits contractors and federal agencies from requesting criminal records on an application.
• Colorado Chance to Compete Act: A ban-the-box law for the private sector in Colorado.
• Colorado Clean Slate Act: Ensures that arrest records that don’t result in a conviction are sealed automatically.
• Civil Rights Act of 1964: Prevents employers from discriminating against applicants based on race and color.

These are the background check laws that tend to come up the most in Colorado. Still, these are only a handful of background check laws in Colorado, so make sure you read up on all of them to ensure that you’re prepared. 

Background Checks Colorado: Our Final Thoughts 

The background check process can be extensive. Companies, government agencies, and educational institutions will look through just about everything to verify your identity. In the past, you would have to just wait to see the results of a background check, but it doesn’t have to be that way anymore. 

Instead of being nervous about the background check process, you can use any of our people search tools to view your public records. Plus, we can help you find information about yourself online as well, so you can remove or delete anything problematic.

On the other hand, if you have to run a background check, we have you covered as well. We offer a comprehensive background check tool that will help you find everything you need.