What does ATS stand for?

ATS stands for Applicant Tracking System. It is software used by employers to collect, sort, scan, and rank job applications. Over 97% of Fortune 500 companies and most mid-size employers use an ATS to manage their hiring process.

How does an ATS scan a resume?

An ATS parses your resume into structured data by extracting text from each section — contact info, work experience, education, and skills. It then compares keywords and phrases from your resume against the job description to rank how well you match the role.

Which ATS systems are most commonly used?

The most popular ATS platforms include Workday, Greenhouse, Lever, iCIMS, Taleo (Oracle), and BambooHR. Each parses resumes slightly differently, but following standard formatting best practices ensures compatibility across all of them.

Do small companies use ATS software?

Yes. While nearly all large companies use an ATS, an increasing number of small and mid-size businesses do as well. Even companies with fewer than 50 employees often use lightweight ATS tools like JazzHR, Breezy HR, or Workable to manage applicants.

Guide

6 min read

Feb 28, 2026

What is an ATS? Complete Guide for Job Seekers

Kayvan Zahiri

Founder, ResumeAI

Kayvan is the founder and lead engineer of ResumeAI. He writes the product and the code, and recently open-sourced the State of ATS 2026 dataset that maps the Applicant Tracking System used by 743 large employers.

View on LinkedIn

Last updated June 10, 2026

What is an ATS?

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is software that companies use to manage their hiring process. It collects, sorts, scans, and ranks resumes submitted for job openings.

How Do ATS Systems Work?

When you submit your resume online, it goes through these steps:

Parsing — The ATS extracts text from your resume and identifies sections

Keyword Matching — It compares your resume keywords against the job description

Scoring — Your resume receives a relevance score

Ranking — Candidates are ranked by score for recruiter review

Popular ATS Systems

75% of resumes are rejected by ATS

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Workday — Used by 50%+ of Fortune 500

Greenhouse — Popular with tech companies

Lever — Common in startups

iCIMS — Used across industries

Taleo (Oracle) — Enterprise favorite

How to Beat ATS

The key is to make your resume ATS-friendly while still being compelling for human readers. Use our AI Resume Builder to automatically optimize for both.

Related Resources

Free ATS Score Checker →Career Change Resume Guide →Cover Letter Guide →How to Explain Resume Gaps →Resume with No Experience →Browse Resume Examples by Job Title →

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