What the ATS check looks at
An applicant tracking system, or ATS, is the software companies use to collect job applications. It reads your resume file and turns it into fields such as your name, job titles, dates and skills. Recruiters then search and filter on those fields. We can’t see inside any one company’s system, so we don’t promise a pass or a fail. We check the part you control.
- Keywords
- Recruiters search their applicant tracking system for skills and job titles. Add a job title or paste a posting and we compare your resume with the words it uses, then list which ones you have and which are missing.
- Impact
- Bullets that open with an action verb and include a real number read as results, not duties. We count how many of yours do and point out the weak ones.
- ATS format
- The basics a parser needs: contact details in the body of the page, standard section titles, enough readable text, and no tables or images that scramble the reading order.
- Wording
- If you come from a field with its own jargon, such as teaching, we flag terms recruiters elsewhere may not know and suggest plainer ones. This only appears when your resume needs it.
Why a resume gets misread
Two things can go wrong. The software can fail to read your file properly, or the words a recruiter searches for aren’t on your page. These are the most common causes of the first one.
Two columns and tables
Software may read across the columns instead of down them, mixing up your jobs and dates.
Contact details in the page header
Many parsers skip headers and footers, so your email and phone can go missing.
Icons, photos and skill bars
A bar showing “Excel: 80%” is a picture, not a word. Write the skill as text.
A scanned PDF
A scan is a photo of text. Export a real PDF from your editor so the words can be read.
Creative section titles
Use “Experience”, “Education” and “Skills”. “My journey” may not be recognized.
Very little text
A resume that is mostly design gives software little to read. Say what you did, in words.
How to raise your score honestly
- Start every bullet with a verb, such as Led, Built, Trained or Reduced.
- Add a number wherever you honestly have one: how many people, how much, how often.
- Use the posting’s wording for the skills you really have, and leave out the ones you don’t.
- Keep to one column, standard headings and a plain font such as Arial, Calibri or Times.
- Put a short summary at the top that names the role you want.
- Save as PDF unless the posting asks for Word, and name the file with your name.
Don’t add skills you don’t have. Interviewers ask about them, and a keyword you can’t discuss costs you more than it helps.
What this checker is, and isn’t
- It runs in your browser. The free check doesn’t upload your resume.
- It uses clear rules, so the same resume gets the same score every time and you can see why.
- It isn’t any particular company’s ATS. Treat the score as a guide, not a prediction.
Questions about the ATS checker
What is an ATS resume checker?
It’s a tool that reads your resume the way applicant tracking software might, then tells you what could go wrong: text that can’t be read, missing keywords, and weak wording. CVali’s checker gives you a score out of 100 and a short list of fixes.
Is the checker really free?
Yes. The check, your score, your top fixes and a preview of rewritten bullets are free, with no sign-up. Downloading a finished resume and the other tools need a pass, which is $12 for 30 days.
Is my resume uploaded or stored?
Not by the free check. It runs in your browser, so your resume stays on your device.
Do I have to add a job posting?
No. Without one you still get your score and fixes, plus a list of the skills we found. Add a job title or paste a posting to see which keywords you’re missing.
What score should I aim for?
On our 0 to 100 scale, 75 or more means only small fixes are left, and below 50 usually means big gaps. A high score doesn’t guarantee an interview. It means fewer obvious problems.
Is this the same system employers use?
No. Companies use many different systems and none of them publish how they work, so no outside tool can copy them exactly. Treat the score as a guide to fixing obvious problems, not a prediction of a pass or fail.
Does it work for any job or industry?
Yes. It has keyword lists for common roles such as software engineer, data analyst, product manager and marketing manager, and it reads keywords straight from any job posting you paste in.
Will it guarantee me interviews?
No, and no honest tool can. It finds problems you can fix. Whether you get an interview also depends on your experience, the job and the employer.
Fixed the problems? Build the new version.
Use the free resume builder with a live preview, then download ATS-safe PDF and Word files.
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