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Free ATS résumé checker: see what an ATS reads from your résumé
Runs in your browser. Your file is never uploaded or saved.
Choose a PDF or DOCX and see the plain text a straightforward parser takes from it, which fields it can find, and what to change. There is no account, no email gate and no score to chase.
Check your résumé
Drop your résumé here
PDF or DOCX, up to 10 MB. English-language résumés.
Runs in your browser. Your file is never uploaded or saved.
Compare with a job posting (optional)
Paste the posting’s text to see which of its terms your résumé uses. It stays in this tab, like your file.
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What an ATS does with your résumé
An applicant tracking system (ATS) is the software an employer uses to collect and manage applications. When you upload a résumé, it usually tries to read the file into fields: your name, contact details, jobs, dates, education and skills. Recruiters then search and sort those fields, and they can usually open your original file as well.
How well that reading goes depends on the file. Plain text in a single column is easy to read. Text locked in an image, a table or a text box can come out missing or in the wrong order, and a profile built from that may be harder to find.
A formatting problem is not the same as an automatic rejection. For what is documented about rejection, and where the claim that an ATS throws out most résumés comes from, read Does an ATS reject your résumé?
What we check and why
Each check shows evidence from your own file and says what to do about it. Some apply to one file type only. The last column says where the concern comes from.
The file
| Check | What we look at | Why it matters | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| File type | Whether the file really is a PDF or a DOCX, whatever its name says. | Applicant tracking systems accept a short list of file types; Greenhouse, for example, takes .doc, .docx, .pdf, .rtf and .txt. Photos and scans may be refused or read as blank, and this checker reads PDF and DOCX only. | Documented |
| File size | How large the file is. | A large file usually means embedded images or fonts, and some application forms cap upload size. | Convention |
| File name | Whether the name tells a recruiter whose résumé it is. | Recruiters see the name when they download your file. It does not change how the text is read. | Convention |
| Copy protection (PDF only) | Whether the PDF asks readers not to copy its text. | A parser that honors that setting may not be able to take the text out of a protected file. | Convention |
| Length | Pages and word count. | Most résumés fit one or two pages. Longer ones are fine when the experience is there. | Convention |
The text
| Check | What we look at | Why it matters | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selectable text | Whether every page holds real text rather than a picture of text. | A parser reads text, not pixels. A page that is only an image may read as blank, and this tool does not do OCR. | Documented |
| Readable characters | Characters that did not turn into readable text, such as replacement marks, icon-font glyphs and joined letters like “fi”. | Unrecognized characters are a documented reason a résumé fails to import cleanly, and they can break keyword matching. | Documented |
| Symbols and icons | Decorative symbols, emoji and arrows in the text. Plain bullets are fine. | Symbols may drop out or turn into odd characters when a parser reads the file. | Convention |
| Fonts and size | How many font families the file uses and how small the body text is. | Many fonts or tiny type make a résumé harder to read for people and, sometimes, for software. | Convention |
| Hidden text (DOCX only) | Text marked hidden, set to 1 point, or colored white on a white page. | A parser may read text a person cannot see, and a hidden keyword list can look like stuffing. | Convention |
| Tracked changes and comments (DOCX only) | Leftover edits and comments stored in the file. | A parser may read deleted wording or comments as part of your résumé, and a recruiter who opens the file can see them. | Convention |
| English text | Whether the text reads as English. | The checks and the reference reader here are written for English-language U.S. résumés. | Convention |
Layout
| Check | What we look at | Why it matters | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columns | Whether the page is laid out in side-by-side columns. | Some employer guidance asks for a single column, because a parser may read across the columns instead of down them. | Documented |
| Tables (DOCX only) | Text laid out in table cells. | A parser may read a table row by row and mix the cells together. Some employer guidance says to avoid tables. | Documented |
| Text boxes (DOCX only) | Text placed in floating text boxes. | Text boxes sit outside the main flow of the page and may be skipped or read out of order. Employer guidance says to avoid them. | Documented |
| Header and footer | Contact details that sit only in the page header or footer. | Some parsers skip headers and footers, and employer guidance says to keep key details out of them. | Documented |
| Images and graphics | Photos, logos and other picture content. | A parser cannot read text inside an image, and a photo gives it nothing to use. Employer guidance says to avoid logos and images. | Documented |
| Links | Whether each link shows its address in the visible text. | A parser that reads text sees the words on the page, not the address behind them. | Convention |
What a parser finds
| Check | What we look at | Why it matters | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Whether a name can be read at the top of the first page. | The name is the first field a parser looks for, and missing information is a documented reason an import fails. | Documented |
| Email address | Whether an email address can be read. | Without an email address there is nothing for an employer to reply to, and missing information is a documented reason an import fails. | Documented |
| Phone number | Whether a phone number can be read. | Many application forms ask for a phone number, and a parser may fill it in from your résumé. | Convention |
| Location | Whether a city and state appear with your contact details. | Recruiters often filter by location, and a parser may fill it in from your résumé. | Convention |
| Profile links | Whether a LinkedIn address is written out in the text. | A link only counts for a text reader if its address is written on the page. A profile link is optional. | Convention |
| Section headings | Whether standard headings such as Experience, Education and Skills are used. | Parsers sort your text by looking for familiar headings. Uncommon headings can leave content unfiled. | Documented |
| Dates | Whether jobs have dates and how the dates are written. | A parser works out your experience from the dates it can read. Mixed or unusual formats are harder to read. | Convention |
| Jobs and titles | Whether each date range sits next to a job title and an employer. | When dates drift away from titles, a parser may build the wrong work history. | Convention |
| Skills list | Whether a skills section lists your skills as separate items. | Many systems look for skills in a labeled section. A list is also easy for people to scan. | Convention |
- Documented
- Named in public guidance from an ATS vendor or an employer’s careers site.
- Convention
- Common résumé advice or our own judgment. Not tied to a vendor’s documentation.
The guide Does an ATS reject your résumé? lists the sources behind the documented checks. Checks marked convention are labeled that way so you can weigh them yourself.
Common fixes
- Use one column. A single column reads in the same order for people and for parsers. If you like a sidebar, keep it to a short list of skills.
- Put your name and contact details in the main text. Write your name, email, phone number and city and state at the top of the first page, not in the page header or a text box.
- Use standard headings. Experience, Education and Skills tell a parser where each part of your résumé starts. Creative headings read well to people but may leave content unfiled.
- Write dates one way. Pick a format such as Mar 2021 – Present and use it for every job, so the dates stay next to the titles they belong to.
- Leave out tables, text boxes, icons and images. Use paragraphs and plain bullets. Replace a phone icon with the word Phone, and keep any photo or logo off the page.
- Export a real text file. Save or export a PDF from the program you wrote the résumé in, so the letters stay selectable. A scan, a screenshot or a PDF printed to an image reads as blank. If the application names a file type, use that one.
- Write link addresses out. A clickable word like portfolio keeps its address behind the scenes. Write linkedin.com/in/yourname in the text so a parser that reads words still gets it.
- Clean up the file. Accept or reject tracked changes, delete comments, and remove hidden text before you save. Hidden text can be read by a parser and looks like keyword stuffing to a person.
What this checker cannot tell you
- This is how a straightforward parser reads your file, not any particular employer’s system. Real systems differ from one another and from this one.
- It does not read scanned pages or photos of text. There is no OCR here, so a page that is only an image is reported as a problem, not read.
- The checks and the reference reader are written for English-language résumés in the U.S. Other languages and formats may be read wrongly.
- It reads PDF and DOCX files up to 10 MB, and the first 10 pages of a PDF.
- There is no score. A clean report does not predict whether an employer will move your application forward, and it says nothing about whether you match a job.
- The job posting comparison matches words. It does not know what is true for you, so add a term only if it is true for you.
Your file stays on your device
The analysis happens locally in this browser tab. Your file is read by code that runs on your device, and nothing is sent to LAYIQ: no upload, no copy of your file or its text, and no copy of your results.
Nothing is saved. The file, the text taken from it, the report and any job posting you paste live only in the memory of this tab. Closing or reloading the page clears them.
PDF files are read by pdf.js, an open-source library from Mozilla that runs in your browser and loads from LAYIQ’s own site. DOCX files are read by code written for this page. Neither sends your file anywhere.
You can check this yourself. Open your browser’s network panel, choose a file and watch the requests: the only ones are for the checker’s own code, and none carries your file.
Frequently asked questions
What does an ATS résumé checker do?
It shows how software that reads résumés may see your file. This one takes the text out of your PDF or DOCX, lists the fields a simple parser can find, such as your name, email, jobs and dates, and runs checks for layout problems that can scramble that text, such as columns, tables, text boxes and images. It does not predict whether you will get an interview.
Is my résumé uploaded or saved?
No. The checker runs in your browser and reads your file on your device. Nothing is sent to LAYIQ and nothing is stored, so closing the tab clears it. A job posting you paste to compare stays in the tab too. The privacy section explains how to confirm this yourself.
Does an ATS automatically reject résumés with bad formatting?
Usually not. Formatting problems more often mean a system fills in your profile wrongly or leaves parts empty, which can make you harder to find. The automatic rejections that are documented come from rules the employer sets, mostly screening questions on the application, not from how a résumé looks. The evidence is in Does an ATS reject your résumé?
Should I use a PDF or a DOCX?
Use the file type the application asks for. If both are allowed, either usually works as long as the text is real, selectable text in a simple layout. Employer guidance differs on which parses best, so this checker reads both and shows what each file gives a parser. A PDF exported from your word processor keeps its text selectable. A PDF made by scanning or printing to an image does not.
Why does the checker warn about columns, tables or text boxes?
A parser reads a file as a stream of text. When a page has side-by-side columns, some parsers read straight across the page and mix the columns together. Tables and text boxes may be read cell by cell or skipped, and some employer guidance asks candidates to avoid them. When the checker finds columns it shows the text in more than one reading order so you can see the difference.
Does the checker give an ATS score?
No. One number would suggest a precision that nobody outside an employer’s own system has. You get the extracted text, the fields found, and each check with its evidence and a fix. Each check also says whether its concern is documented by an ATS vendor or an employer, or is common advice.
Can it read a scanned résumé or a photo of one?
No. The checker does not do OCR, which turns pictures of text into text. A page that is only an image reads as blank to a parser, so the checker reports it as a problem to fix. Export a text-based PDF from your word processor, or retype the résumé, and check that file.
How does the job posting comparison work?
If you paste a job description, the checker pulls out the skills and tools it names, notes which are listed as requirements and which as nice to have, and shows how many of those terms appear in your résumé. It compares words only. It is not a match score and it does not know what is true for you. Add a term only if it is true for you.