How Our ATS Resume Checker Works
We believe you deserve to understand exactly how your resume is scored — not just a number. This page documents our methodology, what we check, how accurate we are, and how we handle your data.
Try the checker freeOur Scoring Methodology
Every resume receives a composite ATS score built from four independently weighted pillars. The weights are calibrated against outcomes from real ATS platforms.
Keyword Match
Compares resume skills, job titles, and technologies against job description requirements. Uses NLP to detect synonyms and variants — "JavaScript" = "JS", "Machine Learning" = "ML" — so surface-level wording differences do not penalize strong candidates.
Formatting Compliance
Checks for ATS-safe formatting: standard fonts, no tables or columns or text boxes, proper section headings, and a parseable file format. Many qualified resumes are auto-rejected simply because the ATS cannot read them.
Section Completeness
Verifies the presence of Contact Info, Professional Summary, Work Experience, Education, and Skills. Also checks for quantifiable achievements — numbers, percentages, and outcomes that help both ATS filters and human reviewers.
Readability Score
Evaluates sentence length, action verb usage, bullet point structure, and resume length (1–2 pages is the target range). A readable resume improves recruiter conversion after the ATS passes it through.
Step-by-Step: What Happens When You Upload
From file upload to final score in under ten seconds. Here is every stage of the pipeline.
- 1
Document Parsing
Your PDF or DOCX file is converted to clean plain text. We strip formatting metadata, extract embedded fonts, and normalise whitespace so the underlying content is readable by our analysis engine.
- 2
Section Detection
Our AI model identifies the major sections of your resume — Summary, Experience, Education, Skills, Certifications, and others — even when headings are non-standard or in mixed case.
- 3
Job Description NLP Analysis
The job description you paste is parsed to extract required skills, preferred qualifications, seniority signals, and industry-specific keywords. Synonyms and abbreviations are expanded at this stage.
- 4
Match Scoring
Each pillar score is computed independently, then weighted and combined into a single 0–100 ATS score. Skills are cross-referenced using semantic similarity, not just exact string matching.
- 5
Recommendations Generated
Missing keywords, formatting issues, and weak sections are surfaced as prioritised, actionable items. Every suggestion links back to a specific finding so you know exactly what to fix.
What We Check For
Two distinct dimensions are evaluated independently and then combined into your overall score.
ATS Compatibility
- File format (PDF, DOCX, plain text)
- Font legibility and standard typefaces
- Absence of tables and multi-column layouts
- No headers, footers, or text boxes
- No embedded graphics or charts in body
- No special characters or Unicode symbols
Content Quality
- Keyword density relative to job description
- Action verb usage at bullet-point start
- Quantified results and metrics
- Skills alignment with required and preferred skills
- Job title match and seniority signal
- Education match for degree-gated roles
Our Accuracy
Our checker simulates how the most common ATS platforms — Workday, Greenhouse, Lever, and iCIMS — parse and score resumes. We achieve approximately 85% correlation with real ATS scores in our internal testing.
We want to be honest: no ATS checker is 100% accurate. Different companies configure their ATS differently — custom keyword weights, role-specific filters, and internal scoring rules that are never publicly disclosed. Our score is a strong directional signal, not a guarantee.
Where we know our model is weakest (highly specialised technical roles, non-US resume conventions) we flag that uncertainty in your results rather than presenting false confidence.
Privacy & Data
Your resume contains personal information. Here is exactly how we treat it.
Resumes not stored after analysis
Your uploaded file and extracted text are processed in memory and discarded immediately after your results are generated. We do not persist resume content to any database.
Never shared with employers
We are an independent tool. Your resume is never visible to recruiters, hiring managers, or any third party. We have no commercial relationship with ATS vendors or employers.
No account required for a basic check
You can run a full ATS score without creating an account or providing an email address. An optional account unlocks score history and side-by-side comparisons.
Supported File Formats
Recommended for most situations. Preserves your intended layout for human reviewers while still being parseable by modern ATS software when produced correctly (avoid "print to PDF" from design tools like Canva).
The safest format for older ATS platforms. Microsoft Word files are natively parsed by every major system. If you are uncertain which format an employer uses, DOCX is the lower-risk choice.
The most universally compatible format and useful as a sanity check — if your resume looks good as plain text, an ATS will have no trouble reading it. Not recommended for submission to employers due to lost visual hierarchy.
Ready to see your score?
Upload your resume and paste a job description. You will have a detailed ATS score and prioritised fixes in under ten seconds — no account required.
Try the checker free