This content is currently locked.

Your current McLean & Company subscription does not include access to this content. Contact your account representative to gain access to Premium SoftwareReviews.

Contact Your Representative
Or Call Us:
1-877-281-0480 (US/CAN) or
+1-703-544-9513 (International)
Xref Reference Logo Award Winner Product Badge
Xref Reference Logo Award Winner Product Badge
Xref

Xref Reference

Composite Score
7.0 /10
CX Score
7.4 /10
Category
Xref Reference
7.0 /10

What is Xref Reference?

Collect fast, reliable reference checks. Xref is an online reference checking tool trusted by organizations across Canada and the United States to enable fast, data-driven hiring decisions. The fully automated solution turns a slow and inconsistent task into an efficient and valuable stage of the recruitment journey.

Company Details


Need Assistance?

We're here to help you with understanding our reports and the data inside to help you make decisions.

Get Assistance

Awards & Recognition

Xref Reference won the following awards in the Reference Checking category

Filter By

Xref Reference Ratings

Real user data aggregated to summarize the product performance and customer experience.
Download the entire Product Scorecard to access more information on Xref Reference.

Product scores listed below represent current data. This may be different from data contained in reports and awards, which express data as of their publication date.

76 Likeliness to Recommend

2
Since last award

93 Plan to Renew

4
Since last award

80 Satisfaction of Cost Relative to Value

5
Since last award


{y}
{name}

Emotional Footprint Overview

Product scores listed below represent current data. This may be different from data contained in reports and awards, which express data as of their publication date.

+86 Net Emotional Footprint

The emotional sentiment held by end users of the software based on their experience with the vendor. Responses are captured on an eight-point scale.

How much do users love Xref Reference?

5% Negative
11% Neutral
84% Positive

Pros

  • Unique Features
  • Respectful
  • Acts with Integrity
  • Continually Improving Product

Feature Ratings

Average 81

Automated Survey Distribution

85

Templated Communications

84

Reference Referee Portal

83

Job Board Integration

82

Candidate Pools

82

Survey Based Reference Checks

81

Metrics and Analytics

81

Secure Candidate Data Storage

79

3rd Party Integration

79

Dashboards Reporting

73

Vendor Capability Ratings

Average 80

Ease of Data Integration

83

Quality of Features

83

Usability and Intuitiveness

82

Availability and Quality of Training

81

Ease of Implementation

80

Product Strategy and Rate of Improvement

80

Ease of Customization

80

Vendor Support

80

Breadth of Features

80

Business Value Created

79

Ease of IT Administration

75

Xref Reference Reviews

Colwill G.

  • Role: Human Resources
  • Industry: Other
  • Involvement: End User of Application
Validated Review
Verified Reviewer

Submitted Aug 2025

Reference Checks Without the Cat-and-Mouse

Likeliness to Recommend

8 /10

What differentiates Xref Reference from other similar products?

No more chasing references. No more awkward cold calls or waiting days for a reply. Xref automates the entire thing — and in our agency, where creatives and freelancers often rotate fast, that’s golden

What is your favorite aspect of this product?

It timestamps every stage — when the candidate submitted, when the reference started, when they completed it. For compliance and audit purposes, that level of tracking is helpful, especially when hiring for government clients who need proof of diligence

What do you dislike most about this product?

You’re limited to their question templates unless you go in and build your own — which can take a while. Also, some references don’t respond well to email-only approaches. I had to nudge a few manually

What recommendations would you give to someone considering this product?

Build reference flows for each role type - junior, mid, freelance - and save them as templates. It saves a ton of time. Also, check if your background check provider integrates with Xref , you can build a pretty tight end-to-end verification process.

Pros

  • Effective Service
  • Inspires Innovation
  • Saves Time
  • Transparent

Reinaldo M.

  • Role: Consultant
  • Industry: Consulting
  • Involvement: End User of Application
Validated Review
Verified Reviewer

Submitted May 2023

Detailed background with Xref .

Likeliness to Recommend

9 /10

What differentiates Xref Reference from other similar products?

I can easily integrate with other security products. This allows me to collect and verify all the necessary information from a single source.

What is your favorite aspect of this product?

I can easily integrate with other security products like Bullhorn ATS and CRM, SmartRecruiters, and iCIMS Talent Cloud.

What do you dislike most about this product?

It takes a long time to check.

What recommendations would you give to someone considering this product?

Xref offers many benefits to businesses. It allows us to collect detailed information about candidates and helps us recruit suitable candidates and avoid risks.

Pros

  • Helps Innovate
  • Continually Improving Product
  • Reliable
  • Performance Enhancing

Abdoul O.

  • Role: Human Resources
  • Industry: Other
  • Involvement: End User of Application
Validated Review
Verified Reviewer

Submitted Oct 2022

Reference Checks made easy and enjoyable!

Likeliness to Recommend

9 /10

What differentiates Xref Reference from other similar products?

The integration to the ATS was seamless, the implementation time was fast, and the support received was terrific.

What is your favorite aspect of this product?

XRef is reliable and easy to use with a user friendly interface. The references received were highly accurate and the data integrity of users were all preserved.

What do you dislike most about this product?

I did not come across something I disliked about using the system. Candidates praised us for its efficiency and ease to use.

What recommendations would you give to someone considering this product?

No recommendations at t his time.

Pros

  • Reliable
  • Enables Productivity
  • Caring
  • Saves Time