Rebecca Z.

Talent Acquisition Team Leader

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

10/28/2021

"Easiest Reference Check Service Out There"

5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

XRef makes it easy to request and receive references back quickly. Their interface is intuitive and straightforward. The reports generated are beneficial to our hiring managers to see if the reference was positive or not quickly. The AI is highly accurate. I would recommend XRef to any HR/TA team who has a high volume of reference checks to complete. As an added bonus, XRef can be used anywhere in the world so we have been able to use it for positions outside of Canada without any issues. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

I wish there were an easy, in-app way to request more credits. Currently, we have to email our account manager every time we need new credits. This is fine but unnecessary - we don't need an interaction with a sales person when we have already committed to using XRef.

I would also like to see more "standard templates" for reference check questions - this would make it easier for us to quickly modify/adapt a new set of questions instead of having to design them from scratch. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Recommendations to others considering Xref:

If you are a Canadian company, don't think twice about using XRef. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Xref solving and how is that benefiting you?

We have significantly cut down on time it takes to complete references. In just the first two months of use, we saved 18 hours as a team. XRef references take, on average, 2 minutes to complete. This is compared to 20 minutes per reference previously. As a Continuous Improvement project, XRef easily made it worth our time invested up front to get the system up and running. We looked at other providers but none that were based in Canada and therefore understood our needs as a Canadian business. Other reference check providers that are based in the US or Australia store their data there and often do not have the capability to be fully bilingual in French and English. This is necessary for us as we operate an office in Montreal.

We have also found that the systems ability to follow up with references and ping them until the refernece is filled out to be effective and helpful. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Shieanne Dcruz of Xref

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Thanks for taking the time to leave such a detailed review, Rebecca. We’re glad you’re enjoying the many benefits of our simple, convenient, multi-lingual platform for your hiring.

Regarding your comment on requesting credits, we are always looking for ways to improve the service to our customers, you can expect some updates to the billing system soon.

With regards to your comment on standard templates for reference check questions, our ‘template builder’ tool can help you create customisable questionnaires that are compliant, role-specific and unbiased. If you feel you’d like assistance in this area, our customer support team would be more than happy to help. Please feel free to contact them at support@xref.com.

Xref is passionate about ensuring the right people are recruited into the right roles so we’re pleased to hear that you’ve been able to experience the benefits of an automated platform, especially when it comes to international hiring.

Thanks again for your review!

See how Xref improved

Xref Reviews & Product Details

Simplify your talent journey and make confident, people-focused decisions with Xref. Xref is a best-in-class, global solution that services HR professionals across all industries. Since 2010, Xref has been trusted by businesses all over the world to empower great people decisions. Our vision is to bring data-informed feedback to the talent lifecycle. Catering for the niche needs of the HR industry, Xref automates reference, pulse and exit surveys, for data-driven, actionable insights. Accessible from any device, and with multi-language capabilities, Xref integrates with multiple leading HR tools and ATS platforms to offer seamless, end-to-end workflows to recruit, retain and remember your talent with ease. Popular features: Templates and custom surveys - Using a template, you can create a survey request in 30 seconds. By using our library of best-practice survey questions, you can reduce unconscious bias. Or create your own customised survey for any role. Talent Pool - Candidates, referees and departing employees can opt-in to to a talent pool to be hired by your organisation. On average, our customers have a 60% opt-in rate. The talent pool automatically collates skills, competencies and preferred roles to reduce recruitment spend and make filling your next open role easier. Suspicious activity detection- Xref's unique algorithm monitors for unusual activity during a reference and raises a red flag if anything suspicious is detected, like a fraudulent reference, helping give you confidence in your hires.

Product Website

Seller

Xref

Languages Supported

Danish, German, English, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish, Chinese (Simplified)

Product Description

Xref is trusted by businesses globally to offer reference, background and ID checks that are fast, simple and secure.

Overview by

Xref IT

Pricing

Pricing provided by Xref.

Starter

$840.00

25 employee turnover cap Per Year

View More Pricing Information

Xref Media

Since 2010, our # 1 - rated automated reference checks , comprehensive background checks, a n d robust talent pool features have processed over 100 million questions across 195 countries, generating $90M+ i n revenue. These core features enable confident hiring and underpin our Employer Inte...

Empower your organisation with actionable insights into employee engagement, satisfaction, and workplace culture. ref 's feedback tools and analytics reveal what drives your people, helping you strengthen leadership, boost retention, and create an environment where talent thrives.

Xref Demo - Turn Attrition into Retention

Transform employee departures into opportunities for growth. Xref's Exit Surveys automatically capture feedback and data from every departing employee. Understand why people leave, identify trends in turnover, and uncover opportunities to improve retention. Maintain a strong talent pipeline ...

How to navigate Xref - discover how to view and manage requests, surveys, and people, find organisation insights, access settings, and locate product guides and tutorials.

Send an Exit Survey request - easily send an Exit Survey request to up to 5,000 departing employees at once. Uncover key reasons for leaving and gain insights into your organisation’s eNPS score.

How to use Xref’s Pulse Surveys - you can view and customise your survey results with advanced filtering and sorting and see participation levels, organisational strengths, and areas for improvement

How to read a Reference Report - this video includes how to identify unusual activity flags and where to review key information like sentiment, word count, and feedback coverage

How to request a Reference Survey - this video shows you how to request a reference on Xref, including adding background checks and setting up your reference requirements or language options.

Xref Reviews (481)

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Vanessa A.

10/30/2025

"User friendliness could be improved"

3/5

What do you like best about Xref?

I like the reminder emails that go to candidates and referees. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

When I click on the candidate the cancel button is on the right hand side. When I click on export and want to exit screen, the cancel button is now on the left hand side. It would be good to have consistency and have the cancel button on the same side of the screen irrespective of the page.

I've shared this feedback already. Would be good to review the survey questions when selecting the survey. It's difficult to view them on a different page and then make the selection on a different page, especially when templates have similar titles.

There's a bit of troubleshooting needed every now and then as referees see error messages when they click on the link to answer survey questions. would be nice to resolve this and make it seamless. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Lee Seymour of Xref

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Thanks so much for your feedback. Reviewing survey data during selection is on the roadmap. Depending on whether a Call To Action (CTA) button is required, we will shift the "Cancel" button slightly to the left so the CTA becomes more prominent. Rest assured that all feedback on user experience is discussed and prioritised. Please keep providing your thoughts via support or your account manager as we always action great ideas for improvement.

Verified User in Primary/Secondary Education

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

9/23/2025

"Easy to set and forget"

4.5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

The process of entering the information is very simple, and the system is extremely reliable.

Not having to manage the process when you can't get in touch with a referee - We all know how time consuming it can be to get hold of a busy person! Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

That the completed references don't get sorted in the order they are completed (they are ordered by when they were sent out) which makes it more difficult to find slow returning references.

One other improvement would be to have the ability to give the referee a reminder on those occasions when they forget to complete.

It would also be good if the 'customisable wording' to the applicant and the referees could be saved by survey. For example we often use XRef for volunteers - and this requires different wording as the standard is obviously employee centric, and we have to go in and change both sections (note to candidate, and note to referee) every single time. It would be great if the Volunteer Survey could be saved with that different wording. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Lee Seymour of Xref

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Thank you for sharing your detailed feedback on your experience with Xref. We're thrilled to hear that you find the system simple to use and reliable, making it easier to manage the reference process. We appreciate your suggestions for improvements, such as sorting completed references and saving customisable wording for different types of surveys. Your insights are valuable to us as we strive to enhance our platform. We will definitely consider these suggestions for future updates. If you have any further feedback or need assistance, please feel free to reach out to us. Thank you for choosing Xref to streamline your reference checks!

Sandra H.

Talent Acquisition Lead

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

9/15/2025

"Xref Review – Great Experience!"

4.5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

I’ve had a really positive experience using Xref. The platform is very easy to use and streamlines our reference checking process significantly. What used to take days now takes just hours and the automated system ensures everything is compliant and trackable.

Candidates and referees have also responded well to it, often commenting on how simple and convenient it is to complete references.

Overall, it’s been a great tool for our recruitment workflow, and I’d definitely recommend it to other talent teams looking to save time and improve consistency in their hiring process. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

One area that could use improvement is the scoring system. While the platform provides a numerical score based on referee responses, we’ve found that it can be misleading for hiring managers. The score often appears to be based more on word count or response length rather than the actual quality of the feedback. This can create confusion, especially when a candidate receives a high score despite vague comments.

We’ve had to remind our team to look beyond the score and read the full responses to get a true sense of the referee’s feedback. A more nuanced or sentiment-based scoring system would be much more helpful in guiding hiring decisions. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Xref solving and how is that benefiting you?

Xref has significantly improved our time management during the recruitment process. Reference checking used to be a manual, time-consuming task that often involved chasing referees and coordinating calls. With Xref, the process is automated, fast, and trackable, freeing up valuable time for our team to focus on more strategic parts of hiring.

It also helps ensure consistency and compliance, which gives us peace of mind and saves time on follow-ups or corrections. Overall, it’s made our workflow more efficient and reliable. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Staffing and Recruiting

10/30/2025

"Easy to use, clear, quick results, minimal effort, automation"

4.5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

It connects with the references for you. No worrying about managing your time, schedule and whatnot to meet their availability. No back and forth. Xref takes care of all that for you. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

I wish it could perhaps not send as many automated reminders out to the candidates and/or references, especially on the weekend, it feels slightly invasive and some find it tedious. I wish we could control the frequency of the reminders. Also, I wish we could perhaps have a minimum number of words for some responses. Yes or No answers from references is not very helpful, we need elaboration. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Lee Seymour of Xref

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Thanks so much for taking the time to complete this review. Although reminders help us achieve the best turnaround times, they are only sent 24, 36, and 48 hours following the request. If a candidate or referee simply clicks the link and agrees to provide the reference, the system will stop sending reminders and wait for them to complete the process. In this case, we change the status to 'Saved' and allow time for the feedback to be provided.

See how Xref improved

Natasha A.

Recruitment Advisor

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

9/15/2025

"Faster than completing references manually with more insights to ensure accurate and factual results"

5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

References are completed quicker

Customer service team has been able to assist understanding life cycle if needed

Xref continually notifies candidates and references until completion. This assists as people may forget it one day but see the next days notificaion Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

In previous update it was able to how specific pages on the main page. Now indicators say 'In progress', 'completed', requested. Personally I found the symbols of the last version easier to understand at a glance. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Lee Seymour of Xref

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Thank you for sharing your positive experience with Xref. We understand your preference for the symbols in the previous version and will take that into account for future updates. We're pleased that Xref's IP tracking has been beneficial in ensuring accurate references and reducing the need for manual follow-up.

Verified User in Non-Profit Organization Management

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

9/15/2025

"Xref -"

4.5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

We have found Xref to be very easy to implement and use, a huge time saver in our recruitment process. The platform streamlines reference checking, speeds up turnaround times and the overall experience more efficient for both our team and the referees, It has definitely helped us move candidates through the process faster and more confidence. Highly recommend for anyone looking to simplify and modernise their recruitment.

Their customer support has also been excellent, responsive, helpful and quick to resolve queries. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

Honestly, we can't think of anything to dislike, it has been a smooth and positive experience from start to finish. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Lee Seymour of Xref

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We're thrilled to hear that Xref has been a time-saving and efficient solution for your recruitment process. Thank you for recommending us and for your kind words about our customer support. We're here to help anytime!

Verified User in Staffing and Recruiting

12/1/2025

"I was skeptical at first, but Xref is convenient, time-saving, and adaptable to what I need."

5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

its easy to navigate through, and a thorough screening for candidate alerts etc. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

The only think I can say, and its really not a problem is that you dont get the opportunity to actually talk to the person on the other end. But this is a part of the time saving attributes, so i would't want to change that Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Shannon G.

Recruitment Consultant

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

9/17/2025

"XRef is fantastic- convenient and saving the team heaps of time on chasing up references"

5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

I like the ease of use on both sides- as an employer and as a candidate. I have had the opportunity to experience both and have been very impressed. I have also heard from reviewers that it was a good tool and convenient rather than playing phone tag. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

I cannot think of any at this stage- has been efficient and commercial in how we use it. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Mechanical or Industrial Engineering

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

11/11/2020

"Quick simple easy"

4/5

What do you like best about Xref?

I appreciate being able to request all background checks at once. This feature makes the process much more efficient and saves time compared to handling each check separately. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

In my opinion, we might have included a few more reference surveys than necessary, but that's an aspect we can adjust if needed. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Josie Westerlund of Xref

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Thanks for your review!

We are happy to hear that you have been able to benefit from the simplicity that comes through using the Xref platform for online referencing.

thanks again for your review.

Kerry M.

Payroll and HR Officer

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

9/16/2025

"Using XRef has been very positive for our organisation"

5/5

What do you like best about Xref?

The referee checking process is a lot faster and not as time consuming as you are not wasting time phoning the referee when they weren't available Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Xref?

There is nothing I don't like about using XRef Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Response from Lee Seymour of Xref

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We're glad to hear that you find Xref helpful for volume recruitment and appreciate the speed of turnaround and AI summary for each candidate. We understand your concern about the reminders. We believe frequent reminder emails are highly effective in improving turnaround times, which helps organisations make quick, confident hiring decisions. However, each organisation can tailor their processes to suit them.