Verified First vs Sterling
One of fourteen models named Verified First first on the direct prompt; one named Sterling. Verified First was named by ten of the fourteen models and Sterling by thirteen and Verified First carries 14 labels and Sterling 25, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in one category this edition.
Named in one category this edition.
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the background screening page.
By framing
Verified FirstFirst choices, of fourteen modelsSterling
Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, Verified First and Sterling were named in the same answer twelve times, of the 33 answers naming Verified First and the 93 naming Sterling. In those answers Sterling took the first choice one time and Verified First two.
Every model, every framing
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | ||||
| GPT-5.4 mini | ||||||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | | | |||
| Perplexity Sonar | | |||||
| Grok 4.1 Fast | | | ||||
| Mistral Small | | | ||||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | | ||
| Llama 4 Maverick | ||||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | | ||||
| Kimi K2 | | |||||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | ||||
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | | |||
| GPT-6 Luna | ||||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | |
Verified First Sterling first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Verified First on the left and Sterling on the right.The direct prompt
Verified First first, Sterling not the choice
1 of 14 modelsSterling was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Sterling first, Verified First not the choice
1 of 14 modelsVerified First was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Neither was the first choice, one was named
3 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Neither was named
9 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
Verified First0%#– of 8Sterling0%#7 of 8Verified First7%#5 of 12Sterling2%#8 of 12Sterling13%#4 of 10Verified First2%#7 of 10What the models said about Verified First
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Three of four in this category shown.
“Verified First is the top choice for mid-market and enterprise teams prioritizing integrated efficiency, support, and partnership.” Muse Glimmer 30B · direct prompt · first choice
“For mid-market domestic companies (50–2,500 employees), Bchex and Verified First are specifically built for this category” Claude Haiku 4.5 · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“I'd recommend Verified First as the top choice for a mid-sized B2B company” GLM 4.7 FlashX · paraphrase prompt · first choice
What the models said about Sterling
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“Trustpilot reviews highlight disorganization, incompetence, extremely slow turnaround times (weeks/months), poor customer support” GLM 4.7 FlashX · negative prompt · hard negative
“$4.75 million FCRA class action settlement for providing outdated information to employers” DeepSeek V4 Flash · negative prompt · hard negative
“Recently sued in 2024 for allegedly falsely reporting criminal history and arrest warrants” MiniMax M2.5 · negative prompt · hard negative
“Stick with well-established, accredited providers like Sterling, HireRight, GoodHire, or TransUnion SmartMove” Mistral Small · negative prompt · first choice
“Sterling (now part of First Advantage) \u2013 Strongest fit for mid-market B2B.” Grok 4.1 Fast · direct prompt · first choice
“Best for: Large enterprises needing comprehensive health screenings - Limitations: Quote-based pricing” Kimi K2 · comparative prompt · alternative
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.