Comprehensive Applicant Tracking System: Free Recruitment Solutions

Hiring is one of the most impactful aspects of running an up-and-coming startup or a small business—you need talented people to spur growth and stay competitive. Ironically, many early-stage enterprises try to save money for core business operations by cutting back on their hiring budgets. This creates a “catch-22” scenario, given that employing the most qualified people for the job is what generates wealth and, therefore, allows for bigger budgets (including those for hiring).

But there is a way to solve this dilemma—you need an applicant tracking system free of charge. These tools reduce your cost- and time-to-hire and let you secure the best talent you can afford. All that without spending a dime on the tool itself!

While most established ATS tools offer free versions of their software, only a select few provide sufficient features to truly optimize your hiring efforts. That’s why we’ll introduce you to the top 11 free applicant tracking system plans that offer the most value. In addition, we’ll present a high-volume ATS for SMBs with a free forever plan that includes virtually all the functionality available on its premium tiers.

What To Look For in a Free Applicant Tracking System

Most free ATS plans limit the available features in one way or another, so you need to look for those that serve your specific needs. If the tool has all the qualities listed below, then you’ve got yourself a jackpot:

• Easy to use: You should be able to perform tasks in minimal clicks without needing training or tech knowledge
• Easy setup: You shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to register an account. Ideally, there should be no need to provide any credit card information
• Job posting and distribution: You should be able to create jobs and post them to different job boards and social media platforms effortlessly
• Customization: See if the platform enables you to tailor every step of the hiring process to fit your workflow
• Centralized dashboard: The tool should allow you to track candidate information and move applicants through the funnel from a single location without having to switch tabs
• Integration: Make sure your free applicant tracking system can integrate with HR and interview scheduling tools like Calendly
• Template library: The best free applicant tracking systems have a collection of ready-made templates for job descriptions, candidate assessments, and email responses. This is especially valuable if you’re going through your first hiring cycle and are not quite sure how to go about it

Why Workello Is the Best Free Applicant Tracking System

Workello is a simple applicant tracking software with one of the most feature-rich free forever plans you’ll come across. It lets you leverage its vast library of job description templates to create and post job ads in minutes and receive unlimited applicants.

Meanwhile, you can use its collection of ready-made pre-hire assessments to evaluate an unlimited number of promising candidates! The only real difference between Workello’s free version and its most advanced paid plan is the number of submitted assessments you can review.

The first thing you’ll do after signing up for Workello is to create a job ad:

1. Enter the Hiring Library using the sidebar or through the Create New Job button
2. Choose to use one of many premade job ad templates or create a custom job

The main difference between the two approaches is that choosing the templates means most steps are already filled out, like job descriptions, suggested assessments, and resources to help promote the job ad. However, they are still entirely customizable to suit your needs.

After setting up the job ad, build your custom hiring workflow with just a few clicks. Define as many steps as you like, but keep in mind that Candidate Received and Offer will always bookend the process and are obligatory.

Once you have your ad and the hiring workflow all set up, Workello will generate a unique application link that you can add to your job posts on various job boards or social networks.

You’ll see the information and status of each candidate that applied to your job ad on the unified Workello dashboard. Moving the candidates through different stages of the funnel takes only one click and triggers automatic status updates.

Workello’s flagship feature is its pre-assessment functionality. You won’t have to worry if certain candidates lie on their resumes or use exceptional interview skills to mask their incompetence. Here’s what these evaluations look like in practice:

• Writers write test articles
• Sales representatives pitch products
• Customer support agents simulate difficult customer interactions
• Programmers perform coding tests

Whether you’re working with a limited hiring budget or want to test the waters before committing to a premium subscription, signing up for Workello’s free plan will help you secure the top 1% of qualified candidates while cutting your hiring costs by 50-75%!

1. Jobspage

Source: Jobspage

Because of its simplicity and versatility, Jobspage is one of the best applicant tracking systems for small businesses. Its straightforward and user-friendly design enables even the most non-tech-savvy folks to effectively manage their hiring process.

Jobspage provides you with a free account for one user and the opportunity to maintain up to 3 job posts simultaneously. You can also set up a careers page in as little as 5 minutes and use it to advertise jobs, boost your brand awareness, and attract qualified talent. Plus, there’s no limit to the number of candidates you can receive.

If your company is growing and you can afford to spend some money on paid plans, you’ll get customized application forms based on particular hiring needs and target analytics for optimizing future hiring cycles. With every plan upgrade, you’ll get more active job posts.

Jobspage Pros & Cons

2. Zoho Recruit

Source: Zoho

Zoho Recruit is an all-in-one talent acquisition solution that helps you fill your vacancies with the right candidates.

The platform’s free plan is geared toward freelance recruiters and recruitment agency startups. It allows one active job at a time, but you get access to free and paid job boards for extra exposure.

The job ads you create in Zoho Recruit are automatically published on Indeed, where they will be displayed and highlighted at the top of the job search results.

When it comes to scheduling interviews, Zoho’s calendar integrates with Google Calendar, Outlook, and iCal. You can use email or SMS to send invites and reminders about interviews.

You can add tags to an employee’s CV with up to 50 terms, and you’ll get a careers page as well as a single company profile. Meanwhile, integration with Zapier allows you to automate tedious tasks and boost productivity by connecting with numerous third-party apps.

For more advanced ATS features like resume processing and pre-screening, you’ll have to subscribe to Zoho Recruit’s subscription plans.

Zoho Recruit Pros & Cons

3. iKrut

Source: iKrut

iKrut takes pride in allowing users to post a job in one minute. From creating content-rich job descriptions and careers pages to interview scheduling and onboarding, the platform’s free plan lets you manage your entire hiring process from a single location.

You can publish unlimited jobs, use social media to reach additional candidates, and leverage iKrut customer assistance. Simply add the iKrut-generated application link to your job ads, and the software will collect and centralize all applicant data.

With many applications pouring in, a mass email rejection tool can save your recruiters hours of repetitive work.

iKrut Pros & Cons

4. OpenCATS

Source: OpenCATS

OpenCATS is an open-source and entirely free applicant tracking system. It offers a simple, user-friendly interface, so you and your recruiters can spend as little time as possible implementing it.

This free ATS lets you manage internal recruiting by checking the Internal posting checkbox on job orders. For hiring externally, you can track candidates individually, even with multiple locations, departments, and hiring managers.

There is also a dedicated page for job ads, and here’s how you can use it:

1. Activate the jobs page and brand it however you want—all “public” positions will be displayed on the dashboard
2. Enable candidate application through the page
3. Create questionnaires for candidate assessment
4. Add existing employees to the stages that a candidate goes through, from initial application to onboarding
5. Alert recruiters of new applications for assessment
6. Automatically upload updated vacancies to selected job posting sites using a built-in XML feed

Resume parsing and resume search were once part of OpenCATS, but they’re no longer available. However, OpenCATS has skill tagging, which is a handy alternative to keyword searching.

OpenCATS Pros & Cons

5. Recrooit

Source: Recrooit

Recrooit helps you connect with the top 2% of candidates not actively looking for a job on the most popular job boards. Recrooit’s ATS has features like resume parsing, interview scheduling, and candidate engagement, making it an all-in-one solution for your recruiting needs.

The only available features you won’t get with a free plan are Open API access, pre-selection options, custom compliance requirements and reports, and customer support.

After creating a job ad with the platform’s AI job description generator, you’ll reach candidates in no time with:

1. Distribution on 5,000+ job boards
2. A single-click setup of the career page

One of Recrooit’s biggest advantages is its focus on employee referrals. Employees can simply suggest eligible candidates, and the software automates the whole referral process, from monitoring performance to handling rewards and incentives.

Recrooit Pros & Cons

6. SmartStart by SmartRecruiters

Source: SmartRecruiters

SmartRecruiter’s free cloud-based ATS called SmartStart is designed to streamline and automate your hiring funnel and team communication. Although there’s no limitation on the number of users, it caps the number of active jobs at 10.

It takes just one click to post jobs to Google, Indeed, Monster, LinkedIn, and 200+ other job boards and social media platforms. Candidates can also apply to ads with a single click and monitor their application status in real time.

Once you receive an application, you can start managing candidates’ data and tracking their journey within the system. Build filters for criteria such as location or specify proximity filters based on the distance from cities or zip codes. The Status filter classifies applicants based on where they are in the hiring process.

Increase the reach and engagement of your ads by developing a customized website or using SmartStart’s job widget to display all open positions. You can also share videos, testimonials, and other materials to appear more desirable to candidates.

SmartStart Pros & Cons

7. Jobsoid

Source: Jobsoid

Post ads, source applicants, move them through the hiring funnel, and make informed hiring decisions—that’s what Jobsoid assists you with. Its free Beginner plan is ideal for startups and small companies, allowing you to receive unlimited candidates.

You can set up a job listing in minutes using Jobsoid’s 100+ job description templates. After that, the platform will automatically distribute the ad across multiple job websites for maximum exposure.

In addition to one-click job board postings, incorporating customizable email templates will eliminate repetitive tasks and help you save even more time.

The free plan lets you divide the hiring process into pipeline stages to maximize efficiency. Use this feature to:

1. Keep track of applicants at every stage
2. Add, change, or remove pipeline stages
3. Assign tasks automatically as soon as a candidate advances to a specific stage
4. Set up SMS and email alerts and communicate with candidates

You can also create a branded career site to enhance your employer image and online visibility. Integration with your website and Facebook page will further increase your reach and attract additional talent.

Jobsoid Pros & Cons

8. Loxo

Source: Loxo

Loxo promises to reduce the hiring time by 85%, cut costs by 74%, and find higher-quality talent while handling the entire recruiting process in one system. The basic features of its ATS and CRM are free, but you must pay to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to understand hiring preferences, recommend applicants, and automate tasks.

The platform allows you to add profiles to the talent pool and allocate them to open positions before approaching them, get contact information for applicants, and post unlimited ads on job boards.

With Loxo’s sourcing tool, you’ll have access to a database of 1.2 billion social and professional profiles gathered from different sources.

Loxo’s CRM has some of the most powerful search capabilities on the market. Choose between Boolean search (and, or, not), search specific fields, or emphasize particular words.

Loxo ATS Pros & Cons

Additional 3 Free Applicant Tracking Software

If you haven’t found what you’re looking for, we’ve reviewed some extra free applicant tracking systems:

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