Comparison
Settl vs Portable Tenant
Both are renter-owned, portable screening profiles. But the verification methods are fundamentally different, and that difference matters for fraud resistance, legal safety, and landlord confidence.
Get your Settl profileThe core difference
Portable Tenant verifies who you were: credit history, criminal records, eviction filings. Settl verifies who you are right now: live bank income, current cash reserves, actual rent payments made. One looks backward. One looks at the present. For landlords trying to predict whether rent will get paid, the present matters more.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | Settl | Portable Tenant |
|---|---|---|
Price One-time renter-paid fee. Share with as many landlords as you want. | $99 (one-time) | $56–$89 (one-time) |
Bank-verified income Income read directly from your bank account via Plaid, not a pay stub you submit. 84% of landlords regularly see fake pay stubs (NMHC 2024). Bank-direct cannot be faked. | Yes | No |
Debt-to-Income (DTI) ratio Settl calculates monthly debt obligations as a percentage of gross income and displays it on the report, color-coded from Excellent to Elevated. Tenant-controlled opt-in only. No other portable screening tool offers this layer. Subsidy holders are automatically excluded per source-of-income law. | Yes | No |
Verified cash reserves Shows how many months of rent you have saved. A tenant with 3–5 months of reserves can absorb a job change or emergency without missing rent. Portable Tenant does not surface savings at all. | Yes | No |
Rent payment history from bank 12 months of actual bank transactions showing payments made to landlords, proof you paid, confirmed from the source. More reliable than eviction records, which include dismissed cases. | Yes | No |
Biometric identity + liveness check Your government ID is matched to your face in real time. Synthetic identities and fraudsters using borrowed documents cannot pass this step. Portable Tenant only collects an ID upload. No liveness match.. | Yes | No |
Credit report Settl includes a VantageScore 4.0 soft pull via TransUnion. Zero score impact. The credit tier and range are shown on your report (not the raw numeric score). Portable Tenant includes a credit report as well. | VantageScore 4.0 (soft pull, no score impact) | Yes |
Criminal background check Settl includes national + county criminal background checks via CIC. State-specific lookbacks enforced (3–10 years depending on state). Arrest records never shown. Fair Housing Act individualized assessment notice included. | Yes | Yes |
Eviction history check Settl includes 7-year eviction history via CIC. Dismissed and withdrawn filings are suppressed per FCRA. Portable Tenant also includes eviction records. | Yes | Yes |
Share with unlimited landlords One report, unlimited sharing. Portable Tenant's Silver tier limits you to 2 shares. You need Gold or Platinum for unlimited. | Yes | Gold/Platinum only |
Fake pay stub resistant Because Settl connects directly to your bank, there is no document to forge. Portable Tenant's document upload process cannot verify whether submitted pay stubs are real or fabricated. | Yes | No |
Fair Housing Act safe Settl applies consistent, FCRA-compliant criteria to every applicant. Criminal checks include Fair Housing individualized assessment notices and state lookback limits. Portable Tenant also runs criminal and eviction checks with similar fair housing obligations. | Yes | Exposure risk |
FCRA compliance required Settl is a registered Consumer Reporting Agency (CRA) under FCRA §1681a(f). Compliance is built in — dispute rights, adverse action guidance, and required disclosures are all included in the Settl report. Landlords receive adverse action notice guidance directly in the report. | Yes | Yes |
SSN required Portable Tenant's credit pull requires your Social Security Number and exposes it to landlords. Settl uses SSN internally for its soft pull credit check only. Your SSN is never shared with landlords. | No | Yes |
Verified rent ceiling You choose what income range to display , landlords see "Verified for rent up to $X/mo" rather than your exact income. Protects your financial privacy while giving landlords the number they need. | Yes | No |
Household / co-applicant reports Settl combines multiple applicants (roommates, couples) into one Household Report with weighted combined income and a single shareable code. Portable Tenant is individual only. | Yes | No |
Turnaround How long from starting verification to having a shareable profile. | < 10 minutes | 10–15 minutes |
Free to landlords Both platforms are free for landlords to receive and review reports. All costs are paid by the renter. | Yes | Yes |
The Real Differences
🏦 Bank-direct vs document-based income
Portable Tenant accepts pay stubs and income documents uploaded by the renter. 84% of landlords regularly see fake pay stubs (NMHC 2024). Documents uploaded by applicants can be fabricated in minutes. Settl connects directly to your bank via Plaid. The income figure comes from your bank's own records. There is no document to forge.
⚖️ FCRA compliance handled for you
Settl includes FCRA-compliant criminal background checks (national + county via CIC, state lookbacks enforced, no arrests shown) and 7-year eviction history. Fair Housing Act individualized assessment notices are built into the report. As a registered CRA under FCRA, Settl handles the compliance framework — the required disclosures and adverse action guidance are included in every report.
💰 Cash reserves: the signal Portable Tenant misses
Portable Tenant shows income and credit. It does not show savings. A tenant with 3–5 months of cash reserves can absorb a job loss, medical bill, or slow month without missing rent. That financial buffer is what keeps tenancies stable. It’s invisible to Portable Tenant's report. Settl surfaces it directly.
📊 12 months of actual rent payments
Portable Tenant checks eviction records. Court filings that include dismissed cases, pandemic-era filings, and disputes that never went to judgement. Settl shows 12 months of bank-verified transactions to landlords: actual proof that rent was paid, on time, from a real account. One is backward-looking and noisy. The other is behavioral evidence.
🧬 Biometric identity: Portable Tenant has none
Portable Tenant collects a government ID upload, which can be a photo of someone else's document. Settl pairs the government ID with a biometric liveness check: the person completing verification must match the document in real time. Synthetic identities and fraudsters using borrowed credentials cannot pass Settl's identity step.
🏠 Household reports for co-applicants
Portable Tenant is individual-only. If roommates apply together, landlords get separate reports and have to compare them manually. Settl's Household Report combines multiple applicants into one view: weighted combined income, total cash reserves, and a single shareable code starting with H-.
✅ Fair Housing guardrails built in
Settl’s criminal background check enforces state-specific lookback periods and never shows arrest records. The individualized assessment notice required by the Fair Housing Act is built into every report. Financial behavior — income stability, savings, and actual payment history — is always the primary signal.
📋 Payroll-verified directly from your employer
Settl connects directly to payroll providers like ADP, Gusto, Paychex, and thousands more, covering 170M+ U.S. workers. Employment and income are confirmed from two independent sources: your bank account and your employer's own payroll system. No pay stub required. No document to forge. Two data streams that must agree.
Pricing Side by Side
Settl
Settl Verified Passport: $99
Biometric identity (KYC), bank-verified income ceiling, employer payroll + tenure (Argyle), rent payment history, VantageScore 4.0 soft pull credit check (zero score impact), criminal + eviction background check. Share with unlimited landlords. Valid 30 days.
30-Day Renewal: $39
Already verified? Extend your acceptance window by 30 more days. Same code, no re-verification needed.
Portable Tenant
Silver: $56
Credit + criminal + eviction. 2 shares only. 30-day window.
Gold: $59
Same as Silver + unlimited shares + landlord notifications. 30-day window.
Platinum: $89
Gold + 60-day window + approval guarantee certificate + $10 credit.
Portable Tenant pricing as of March 2026. Subject to change.
Which Is Right for You?
Choose Settl if…
- Your income is bank-deposited and verifiable
- You have savings and want that to count
- You want landlords to see real payment history, not court records
- You don't want to share your SSN
- You are applying with roommates (Household Report)
- Your landlord is in a city with criminal background check bans
- You want the most fraud-resistant profile possible
Portable Tenant might work if…
- Your landlord specifically requests a credit + criminal report
- You are in Colorado or Illinois where PTSR laws apply
- You have a strong credit score you want to lead with
- Your income is not easily verifiable via bank deposits
Ready to build a fraud-proof renter profile?
Bank-verified income. Cash reserves. Biometric identity. One code. Works with any landlord.
Get Settl Verified Passport