FaceCheck.ID is one of the most searched face search engines, and it's good at what it was built for: checking whether a stranger online is who they say they are. People start looking for an alternative for a few practical reasons. It only takes cryptocurrency, it doesn't refund, its credits expire, and it's designed for looking up other people rather than finding and removing your own photos. This guide covers what FaceCheck.ID actually offers, then five alternatives and when each one is the better pick.
FaceCheck.ID in short
FaceCheck.ID searches social media, news and blogs, videos, mugshot sites, sex-offender registries and sites it labels as scammers. Every result gets a match score, and the site warns in its own words: "Many unrelated people look alike. Never rely solely on a face search alone." It's run by Tech Solutions, a company registered in Belize.
You pay with credits. One search costs 3 credits, and the packages look like this:
| Package | Price | Searches | Credits expire after |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rookie Sleuth | $19 | 50 | 14 days |
| Private Eye | $47 | 133 | 2 months |
| Deep Investigator | $197 | 666 | 6 months |
| The Professional | $597 | 3,333 | 1 year |
Payment is Bitcoin or Litecoin. If you don't hold crypto, FaceCheck.ID points you to PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, Coinbase, Kraken or Binance to buy some first and send it on. Network fees are yours, and credits only show up after the blockchain confirms the payment, which can take from a couple of minutes to several hours. Its buy page states: "We do not issue refunds. All sales are final."
Is FaceCheck.ID free?
Partly. You can run a search without paying, but you see fewer results. FaceCheck.ID says buying credits lets you "view up to 3x more per search". So the free search works as a preview, and the full result list costs credits.
If free is what you're after, two options go further: Protevio gives 10 full searches a day with no credit card, and Google Lens, Bing Visual Search and TinEye are free for finding copies of one specific photo.
FaceCheck.ID vs the alternatives
| Tool | Searches social media | Free use | Payment | Removal help |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FaceCheck.ID | Yes | Preview with fewer results | Bitcoin or Litecoin only; no refunds; credits expire | Removal from its own index |
| Protevio | No | 10 searches a day, no card | Card, SEPA, iDEAL, Bancontact; monthly, cancel any time | Takedown requests, PDF evidence reports, face alerts |
| PimEyes | No | Limited searches, source links locked | Subscription | On higher paid tiers |
| Social Catfish | Yes, plus name, email, phone and username lookups | Short trial | Subscription | No |
| Lenso.ai | People category, but not in the EU | Free searches; some results need credits | Subscription | DMCA template helper (Professional plan) |
| Google Lens, Bing, TinEye | Partly, through the open web | Free | Free | No |
5 FaceCheck.ID alternatives
1. Protevio
Pick it over FaceCheck.ID if: you want to find your own photos and get them removed, and you'd rather pay by card or bank.
Protevio is a face search engine built in the EU. It searches public websites such as forums, blogs, news sites, archives and adult platforms, and the tools for acting on a match are in the same account: PDF evidence reports, takedown requests and face alerts when a new match appears. The free plan gives 10 searches a day with no credit card. Paid plans start at €24.99 a month, are billed in euros and can be cancelled from the dashboard at any time. Uploaded photos are processed temporarily, not stored permanently.
Where FaceCheck.ID is stronger: Protevio doesn't search social networks, dating apps or mugshot sites, so it's the wrong tool for checking who a dating match really is. Its index is also younger than engines that have crawled for years. Takedown requests need a Vio Shield plan (from €34.99 a month).
2. PimEyes
Pick it over FaceCheck.ID if: you want a broad search of the open web and long-term monitoring of your own face.
PimEyes is the best-known consumer face search engine. Like Protevio, it searches public websites rather than social networks. Free users can run a limited number of searches, but the source links stay hidden until you subscribe. Alerts, reports and takedown help come with the higher tiers. Our PimEyes pricing breakdown and PimEyes safety review cover the details.
3. Social Catfish
Pick it over FaceCheck.ID if: you're checking an online romance or a new contact and want more than a face match.
This is the closest match to what FaceCheck.ID does. Social Catfish combines reverse image search with lookups by name, email address, phone number, username and home address, so you can cross-check what someone has told you. It works on a subscription, with a short trial. It isn't built for finding and removing your own photos.
4. Lenso.ai
Pick it over FaceCheck.ID if: you're outside the EU and want faces, places and duplicate images in one tool.
Lenso.ai sorts results into People, Places, Duplicates, Similar and Related. Its Professional plan adds research filters and a DMCA Assist feature that turns selected links into a takedown email. According to Lenso itself, face search (the People category) is switched off in the EU, so European users only get the other categories.
5. Google Lens, Bing Visual Search and TinEye
Pick them over FaceCheck.ID if: you're tracking one specific photo and don't want to pay anything.
These tools match the image, not the face. They find the same picture, including cropped or edited copies, across the indexed web, which is often enough to catch a profile photo that someone copied. They won't find a different photo of the same person. Our guide to reverse image search vs face recognition explains the difference, and this one shows how to do it on a phone.
Which one should you use?
- "I want to know if a dating match is real." Start free: run their photos through Google Lens and TinEye and follow our catfish check steps. If you need more, FaceCheck.ID or Social Catfish search social media. Social Catfish is the option if you'd rather not pay in crypto.
- "I want to find where my own photos are and get them taken down." Protevio or PimEyes. Protevio is free to start and handles takedowns from the same account.
- "Someone copied one photo of me." Google Lens or TinEye first. They're free and good at exact copies.
- "I want the widest net." Use more than one engine. Each indexes a different part of the web, so a miss on one doesn't mean the photo isn't out there.
Search for your own face, or someone else's with their consent. Looking up strangers can be unlawful depending on where you are, and a similar-looking face is not proof of identity.
How to remove your photos from FaceCheck.ID
Removal from FaceCheck.ID is free and doesn't need credits. You search for your own face, select the images, and verify it's you with a selfie or an anonymized ID document. It only hides the results inside FaceCheck.ID. The photos stay on the original websites, and other engines index them separately. Our opt-out guide for PimEyes, FaceCheck.ID, Lenso.ai and Protevio covers each form. To take a photo down at the source, use a DMCA notice if you own the photo (our free DMCA templates help) or a GDPR erasure request if you're in the EU.
Sources: FaceCheck.ID credit packages and payment terms; FaceCheck.ID homepage; Protevio pricing; PimEyes plans; Lenso.ai plans and its EU statement on Trustpilot. Checked October 2026.
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