Which is Better for Face Search:
FaceCheck or Yandex?

Extensive Testing of the Top Reverse Image Search Engines

Disclaimer: This is not an independent review. These tests were conducted in May 2024 as part of internal competitive analysis by an expert paid by FaceCheck.ID.

Below tests evaluate the effectiveness of FaceCheck and Yandex for searching the Internet using a photo of someone's face. We used various criteria to match different practical use cases. You should test the search engines yourself to see which one works best for your needs. Each search test is awarded 0 to 5 score points based on how well the search performed. Points are summarized and charted at the end.;

FaceCheck

Yandex

16 Search by Face Tests

Explore the Best Alternative to Yandex for Image Searching

Best Alternative to Yandex Reverse Image Search - FaceCheck.ID

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FaceCheck vs Yandex

FaceCheck.ID and Yandex both provide reverse image search capabilities but focus on different aspects of image identification. FaceCheck.ID excels in detecting fraud and safety concerns, flagging fake social media profiles and scam reports with red flags like "Scam Alert" and "Sex Offender." It successfully recognizes individuals across various contexts, including poor-quality images, and identifies faces from news websites to social media platforms, even capturing subtle age variations in subjects.

Yandex, meanwhile, offers broader search capabilities but with a regional focus. It finds multiple images of the same individuals from different settings, particularly strong in Russian and Eastern European contexts. However, Yandex struggles with facial recognition and does not consistently index images from Western websites, limiting its usefulness outside its primary geographic focus. While FaceCheck.ID is proactive in user safety and fraud detection, Yandex provides a fast and user-friendly interface but lacks the specialized alert system that makes FaceCheck.ID stand out in security-focused searches. Both engines have their strengths, with FaceCheck.ID focusing on detailed, safety-oriented searches and Yandex offering broader but regionally focused image search capabilities.

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Recognize a Side Facial Profile?

Side Facial Profile

This screenshot from a recent video interview shows the side profile of a famous person. The goal is to test the search engine to see if it can recognize the person and find front-facing photos of them.

FaceCheck.ID easily recognized this side profile and found plenty of front-view matches of the person. Score: +5 Points

Yandex displayed many men in suits on TV matching the overall setting, but none of them matched the celebrity in the original picture, confirming the lack of facial recognition. Score: 0 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Romance Scammers?

Romance Scam Photo Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Romance Scammers?

This picture of a handsome unsuspecting doctor has been stolen by scammers and published on dating apps and used in many online romance scams. The goal of this test is to see if the search engine can help the user uncover that this pic is associated with a scam operation. The doctor is innocent!

FaceCheck.ID found many fake social media profiles and scam reports and warned the user with red flags: Scam Alert, Scam Reports, and Many Accounts. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found several images of the doctor in different settings. Score: +5 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Work with Poor Quality Photos?

Bad Photo of a Killer Can FaceCheck and Yandex Work with Poor Quality Photos?

A low-quality photo of a serial rapist, murderer, and ex-colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force. The goal is to test the search engine's ability with a bad quality image with .jpeg artifacts where the person isn't facing the camera directly.

Even though the source image quality is very poor, FaceCheck.ID found lots of matching photos of this smiling convicted killer from various angles. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found a few exact matches, but due to the extensive presence of the killer's images on the internet, we consider these results poor. Score: +2 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Child Abusers?

Child Molester on the Run Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Child Abusers?

This is a photo of someone on the offender list for molesting kids. His status is 'Absconded,' meaning he ran away from his registered address without telling the authorities. The goal is to see if the search engine is able to find high-risk offenders.

FaceCheck.ID found many matching photos of this child predator in offender databases as well as on news websites. It warned the user with a red flag icon: Sex Offender. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found one image of the predator on a Russian language website. It appears Yandex did not index any of his images from Western websites. Score: +2 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Recent News?

Recently Arrested Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Recent News?

A photo of a serious sexual offender involving a child, who fled from the police and was hunted down and arrested, was all over the Australian news two weeks ago. The goal is to check if the search engine can find recently published images in its database.

FaceCheck.ID found many matching photos of this perpetrator on news websites, confirming that FaceCheck is continuously indexing new content. Score: +5 Points

Yandex did not find any image of this Australian man. Most of the image results are from Russian language websites. Score: 0 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Recognize a Person wearing a Mask?

Masked Celebrity Actress Can FaceCheck and Yandex Recognize a Person wearing a Mask?

This is a B-list celebrity wearing a face mask, only showing her eyes and forehead. The test is to see if the search engine can recognize faces even when they're covered by a mask. There is thousands of images of this celebrity all over the Internet, so finding a few matches should not be a problem.

FaceCheck.ID was able to easily recognize this actress just by her eyes and forehead and found many matching pictures of her. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found many women in black masks, but none of them are the actress. This proves that Yandex does not use facial recognition. Score: 0 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Obscure Foreign Celebrities?

Unknown Singer from Laos Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Obscure Foreign Celebrities?

A picture of a not-so-famous singer from the country of Laos. Hardly anyone outside of Laos knows her. The goal of this test is to see if the search engine can find info on obscure public figures from other countries.

FaceCheck.ID found many matching pictures on social media of this obscure beauty influencer from Laos. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found similar-looking Asian women with smooth skin and bright red lips, but none of them are the singer from Laos we are searching for. Score: 0 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find an OnlyFans Model?

Random OnlyFans Model Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find an OnlyFans Model?

A photo of a random woman on OnlyFans who lives in Vietnam. The goal is to see if the search engine can find OnlyFans profiles.

FaceCheck.ID found her OnlyFans profile as well as many social media profiles. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found many women in glasses with open mouths, but none of them are the OnlyFans model we are looking for. Score: 0 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find an Adult Actress by Low-Res Pic?

Low-Res Pic of Adult Actress

A low-resolution picture of an obscure Japanese adult film actress. The goal is to see if the search engine can find Asian adult film stars using low-resolution photos.

FaceCheck.ID found several matching photos of this Japanese adult performer. We were able to find positive matches with even smaller test picture (65x65) where her face is measuring only 23x29 pixels! Score: +4 Points

Yandex found one exact match of this Asian adult star, leading to two websites. Score: +3 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find an Old Person by Their Young Pic?

Find Old Person by Young Pic Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find an Old Person by Their Young Pic?

This photo is from 1976, showing a woman who was 27 years old at the time. The goal is to see if the search engine can find a more recent photo of the same person.

FaceCheck.ID found many matching photos of this person in her older years. One of the photo is when the subject was 65 years old prooving FaceCheck's ability to find an older face by a young face. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found an exact match of this woman but failed to find any pictures from her older years. Score: +1 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find a Profile of a War Criminal?

War Criminal Soldier Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find a Profile of a War Criminal?

A picture of a Russian soldier who filmed himself committing terrible war crimes. The goal is to see if the search engine can find this soldier's social media profiles.

FaceCheck.ID found many matching photos of this soldier, including social media profiles. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found one exact match of this war criminal, leading to several websites. Score: +4 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Escort Ads?

Brazilian Escort Ad Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Escort Ads?

A photo from a Brazilian escort ad. We blurred it on this page for privacy. The goal is to see if the search engine can find images on escort ads websites.

FaceCheck.ID found many matching photos of this person on escort sites as well as social media. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found many red-haired women, but none of them are the person we are looking for. Score: 0 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Handle Facial Expressions?

Exaggerated Expression Can FaceCheck and Yandex Handle Facial Expressions?

The camera captured a soccer player with a funny facial expression in this photo. The goal is to see if the search engine is robust enough to find images of the same person with a normal facial expression.

FaceCheck.ID found many photos of the soccer player with various facial expressions, demonstrating its robustness and reliability in recognizing the person despite variations in their appearance. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found the soccer player with many different facial expressions and delivered useful results. Score: +5 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find AI Generated Images?

AI Generated Girl Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find AI Generated Images?

This image was generated by an artificial intelligence app. The goal is to test if the search engine can find similar AI images.

FaceCheck.ID found many similar images of AI-generated women. FaceCheck also raised a red flag: "AI-Generated Face" to alert the user that AI face was detected. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found similar-looking photos, but none of them seem to be AI-generated or match the original picture. Score: +1 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Work with Blurred Photos?

Blurred Photo Can FaceCheck and Yandex Work with Blurred Photos?

Even though this photo is heavily blurred, almost anyone would recognize the iconic president in the photo. A good reverse image search engine should be able to recognize this person too.

FaceCheck.ID had no problem with this blurred photo and found many matches of the president. Score: +5 Points

Yandex had no problem with this blurred photo and found many images of the president. Score: +5 Points

Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Social Media Profiles?

Social Media Model Can FaceCheck and Yandex Find Social Media Profiles?

This person is a social media fitness model from Iraq. The test is: can the reverse image search engine find social media profiles of a person from an Islamic country?

FaceCheck.ID found many social media accounts of this Iraqi fitness model such as TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Clubhouse and more. Score: +5 Points

Yandex found many brunettes with similar face shapes, but none of them are the Iraqi fitness model. Score: 0 Points

FaceCheck and Yandex - Bottom Line Comparison

Pros

Searches Social Media Profiles

Red Flag Warnings

Indexes Lots of Quality Websites

Cons

Slower than Other Sites

Less Indexed Images than Others

Not as Many Explicit Adult Images

Bottom Line Although FaceCheck.ID is relatively new and has a smaller image database than its competitors, it excels thanks to its state-of-the-art face search algorithm and indexing of images from high-quality websites. FaceCheck.ID shines in matching low-quality, blurred images and recognizing people in masks, and faces from various angles, not just frontal views. Focused on user safety, it’s particularly effective at uncovering catfishing and identity theft. It also detects photos used by scammers, searches social media profiles, and identifies mugshots and suspects mentioned in the news.

FaceCheck

Total Score: 79 Points

Pros

Allows Face Search

Good User Interface

Fast Search

Cons

No Face Recognition

Focused on Russian Websites

Annoying Captcha

Bottom Line Yandex primarily indexes images from Russian and Eastern European websites. Since it doesn't use facial recognition algorithms and has limited indexing of Western and Asian websites, it didn't perform well in our tests. However, unlike Google and Bing, Yandex doesn't block face searches, which is a plus. If you're looking for images specific to Russian-speaking countries or Eastern Europe, Yandex could be a useful tool.