You have a resume, a job posting, and a choice: run a quick free ATS check, or open a full ATS score. They answer different questions. A free ATS check tells you in seconds whether your resume uses the posting's key terms and whether its layout reads cleanly as text. A full ATS score gives you a weighted score out of 100 for one job, broken into keywords, skills match, experience relevance, and formatting, with an explanation and suggestions for each part.
Wizume has one of each. The free resume checker runs in your browser with no account: paste your resume and a job description to get a keyword match score, a sample of missing terms, and five formatting checks. The full score lives in the ATS resume builder, where it scores your saved resume against the job and helps you tailor a copy for it.
The short version: run the free check on every posting you are considering, and open the full score for the jobs you are actually going to tailor and send. The rest of this guide shows what each tool measures, a side-by-side comparison, a worked example with both scores, and a routine you can repeat for each application.
The short answer: which one to use
Use the free ATS check when you want to:
- Compare several postings quickly before deciding where to apply
- See which important terms from a posting are missing from your resume
- Confirm your layout reads as clean, single-column text after a template change
- Get a fast first read before you sign up for anything
Use the full ATS score when you want to:
- Prepare a specific application you plan to send this week
- See how your Skills section covers the posting's required and nice-to-have skills
- Get a read on how relevant your experience looks for the role, with a short explanation
- Apply one-click formatting fixes, tailor a copy for the job, and compare before and after scores
Most job seekers get the best results from using both in order: free check first to triage and fix the obvious gaps, full score second for the applications that matter.
Side-by-side: free ATS check vs full ATS score
| Free ATS check | Full ATS score | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it lives | Resume checker | ATS resume builder, on a saved resume |
| Account | No account needed | Free or Pro account |
| What you paste | Resume text plus the job description | The job description, scored against your saved resume |
| How it reads the posting | Simple rules pick out likely key terms and weight the important-looking ones | AI reads the posting and lists weighted key terms, required skills, and nice-to-have skills |
| What it scores | Keyword match, plus five formatting checks, each marked OK or flagged | Four weighted parts: keywords, skills match, experience relevance, formatting |
| Result | Keyword match score out of 100 | Match score out of 100 with a category breakdown |
| Score labels | Strong keyword match, Fair keyword match, Gaps to address | Strong match, Fair match, Needs work |
| Explanations | A short note on each formatting check | A "Why this score?" explanation for each part |
| Fixes | A suggested fix for each check, unlocked with a free account | Suggestions per part, plus one-click Standardize dates and Rename skill sections |
| Next step | Create a free account to keep the job description and open the tailor flow | Tailor resume to this job, then compare before and after scores |
| Saved results | Results show on the page while you work | Recent scores saved to your account |
| Free application pack | Free for everyone and leaves it untouched | Uses it on Free; unlimited on Pro Monthly |
Both tools use the same matching step to check whether a term appears in your resume. The difference is how they read the posting and how much more they measure on top of keywords.
What the free ATS check measures
The free resume checker is built for speed. Here is exactly what happens when you click to check:
- You paste two blocks of text. At least 150 characters of resume text and at least 100 characters of job description.
- It picks out the posting's likely key terms. Simple rules look for phrases in quotes, terms in parentheses, items in comma-separated lists (weighted higher on requirement and bullet lines), capitalized names, and two-word phrases that repeat. Terms that look more important get more weight.
- It scores your keyword match. The score out of 100 reflects how much of that weighted list appears in your resume. It also tells you how many of the extracted terms you matched.
- It shows the main missing terms. You see up to eight missing terms, plus a count of any more it found.
- It runs five formatting checks on the text you pasted:
- Resume length: whether the paste looks like a complete resume
- Dates on experience: whether it finds years or month-year dates
- Skills heading: whether a standard Skills-style heading is present
- Core section headings: whether Experience and Education headings are present
- Single-column layout: whether the text shows table-like columns that often come from two-column designs
Scores of 80 and above are labeled a strong keyword match, 60 to 79 a fair keyword match, and below 60 "gaps to address." Each formatting check comes with a suggested fix that unlocks when you create a free account.
What the free check is best at
- Triage. Paste three postings one after another and you will quickly see which role your resume already speaks to and which would need real rework.
- Vocabulary gaps. The missing terms often reveal that you describe the same work in different words. "Supplier relationships" versus "vendor management" is a typical example.
- Layout sanity. If you copy text out of a designed resume and the single-column check flags table-like columns, that is a sign software may read your sections out of order.
How to read it well
Because the free check reads the posting with rules, treat the missing terms as a shortlist to review, not a to-do list. Some will be core requirements you should address. Others will be generic words that happen to appear in the posting. Add a term only where it truthfully describes your work, and keep anything you cannot discuss in an interview off the page. For a full method to pull the right terms from a posting, see ATS resume keywords.
What the full ATS score measures
The full score runs in the ATS resume builder on a resume you have saved in Wizume. You paste the job description (between 100 and 20,000 characters), and nothing runs until you click to score.
AI reads the posting and lists its key terms with importance weights, the required skills, and the nice-to-have skills. It also assesses how closely your work history lines up with the role and writes a short explanation. Your resume is then scored on four weighted parts:
| Part | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Keywords | 40% | How many of the posting's key terms, weighted by importance, appear in your summary, skills, experience, education, and projects |
| Skills match | 25% | How many of the required skills appear in your Skills section, with nice-to-have skills counting for less |
| Experience relevance | 20% | How closely your work history lines up with the role, with a short explanation |
| Formatting | 15% | Whether your resume structure is easy to read, from filled-in core sections to consistent dates |
The total is labeled Strong match at 80 and above, Fair match from 60 to 79, and Needs work below 60. Below it you get:
- A category breakdown and a "Why this score?" explanation for each part
- Suggestions such as adding a missing term if you have demonstrated it
- One-click fixes for two common formatting issues: Standardize dates puts every date in one format (for example, Jan 2020), and Rename skill sections gives your skill groups clear category names
- Tailor resume to this job, which creates a tailored copy for the posting, scores it again, and shows the before and after numbers
- Recent scores saved to your account, so you can compare runs
If you want the full background on what goes into a score and what a good number looks like, read what is an ATS score.
Worked example: one resume, both tools
Here is a fictional example to show how the two tools work together. The candidate, the posting, and every number are illustrative, not a prediction of any real result.
Priya is an operations coordinator applying for a Logistics Analyst role. The posting's required skills include Excel, Power BI, inventory management, SQL, and supply chain planning. Its nice-to-haves include vendor management, Python, and Lean.
Step 1: the free check
Priya pastes the text of her current resume and the posting into the free checker. It comes back at 54, gaps to address. The missing terms include "inventory forecasting," "Power BI," "vendor management," "SQL," and "KPI reporting." Four formatting checks come back clean, but the Skills heading check is flagged: her old file labels that section "Toolkit."
She works through it by hand in a few minutes:
- Renames "Toolkit" to "Skills."
- Uses Power BI every week, but it only appeared inside one bullet, so she adds it to Skills.
- Writes "weekly demand estimates" in one bullet. That is inventory forecasting, so she uses the posting's phrase there.
- Builds the weekly KPI dashboard for her team, so "KPI reporting" goes into the bullet that describes it.
- Has never written SQL, so it stays off the page.
The second free check comes back at 71, fair keyword match, and all five formatting checks come back clean. The gap is smaller and honest, and the role is clearly a fit. She decides to give this one a full application.
Step 2: the full score
Priya saves her resume in Wizume and runs the full score with the same posting. It comes back at 65, Fair match:
| Part | Score | What the breakdown shows |
|---|---|---|
| Keywords | 60 | Several weighted terms still missing, including "vendor management" and "replenishment" |
| Skills match | 45 | Three of five required skills in the Skills section, and none of the three nice-to-haves |
| Experience relevance | 78 | Recent roles line up well, with a note that analysis work could be more visible |
| Formatting | 94 | Dates appear in two different formats |
Weighted together, that is 60 × 0.40 + 45 × 0.25 + 78 × 0.20 + 94 × 0.15, which rounds to 65.
The full score surfaced two things that only it measures: her Skills section still listed only three of the five required skills, because "inventory management" appeared in her bullets but not in Skills, and the experience note pointed out that her analysis work was buried.
Step 3: tailor, re-score, and stop
On a tailored copy for this job, Priya:
- Clicks Standardize dates to fix the mixed formats.
- Adds inventory management, which she does every day, to her Skills section.
- Renames "supplier relationships" to "vendor management," the posting's term for the same work, in Skills and in the matching bullet.
- Moves her strongest analysis result, a reorder report she built that cut stockouts on her site, to the top of her current role.
- Leaves SQL off and mentions in her cover letter that she is taking an introductory course.
The re-score comes back at 79, Fair match: keywords 78, skills match 68, experience relevance 80, formatting 100. She stops there. The remaining gaps are skills she does not have yet, and every line on the page is something she can talk through in an interview.
Two takeaways from the example:
- The two numbers are on different scales. The free check's 71 and the full score's 65 measured different things. Compare the free check with itself and the full score with itself.
- A fair score can be the honest finish line. Chasing the last points would have meant adding SQL. Leaving it off and addressing it in the cover letter is the stronger application.
A routine for every application
- Free check on the exact posting. Paste the full job description from the page you are applying through, including requirements and responsibilities.
- Fix structure and wording by hand. Standard headings, dates on every role, the posting's phrasing where it is true. Re-run the free check.
- Decide where to invest. Compare the free results across the roles you are considering. Pick the ones where your real experience covers the must-haves.
- Full score on your saved resume. Read the breakdown first. A low skills match usually means your Skills section is missing required tools. A low formatting part points to structure. More on structure: resume skills section guide.
- Tailor a copy, re-score, and send. Keep your master resume clean, make job-specific edits on a copy, and stop when the must-haves you genuinely meet are clear. The full method is in how to tailor a resume to a job description, and the reasoning behind keeping two versions is in master resume vs tailored copy.
Then write a cover letter from the same posting (how to write a cover letter from a job description) and log the application so you can follow up on time (how to track job applications).
If you prefer one step for the whole application, the Apply to job flow scores your resume against a posting, tailors a copy when the score shows room to improve, writes a matching cover letter from that version, and logs the application in your tracker when the company and job title are known. Your original resume stays as it is. With the Chrome extension, you can clip the job posting from the tab you have open straight into the tailor flow.
Which tool for which situation
| Situation | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Comparing several postings before you apply | Free check | Fast keyword match for each role, no account |
| You just switched templates or edited your layout | Free check | The formatting checks confirm your text still reads as one clean column |
| You are applying to a role you really want this week | Full score | Skills match, experience relevance, and a tailored copy with before and after scores |
| You are changing careers | Full score | The experience relevance part and its explanation show how much your resume needs to bridge |
| Your free keyword match is strong but you are unsure about fit | Full score | It checks required skills in your Skills section and how your experience lines up |
| You want the score, a tailored copy, and a cover letter in one go | Apply to job flow | Scores, tailors, writes the letter, and logs the application together |
Reading the two scores together
- Compare like with like. A free keyword match and a full match score use different term lists and measure different things. Track each one against itself, for the same posting, before and after your edits.
- High free score, lower full score. Usually your wording covers the posting, but your Skills section is missing required skills or your experience reads as a stretch. Check the skills match and experience relevance parts first.
- Lower free score, higher full score. The rules-based check may have picked up common words from the posting that carry little weight. The full score's importance weights and skills lists usually give the clearer picture of what matters.
- Both low. Look at structure first. Two-column designs, tables, text boxes, and icons can scramble or drop text when software reads a file. A single-column layout with standard headings keeps everything readable. See Canva resume vs ATS-safe layout and best resume format for 2026, or start from the single-column resume templates.
Every score reflects one tool's rules for one posting. Each employer configures its own system, and people make the hiring decision. Use both numbers as feedback on the document, and for how these systems read a file, see how applicant tracking systems read your resume.
Free and Pro
Wizume Free includes unlimited PDF downloads of your master resume and one free application pack. After your free application pack is used, Pro Monthly unlocks unlimited tailoring, cover letters, and ATS scans. See pricing.
The free ATS check on the resume checker is free for everyone, needs no account, and leaves your free application pack untouched, so you can run it on every posting you consider. In your account, the free application pack is used by the first AI action you run, such as one full ATS score in the builder or one full Apply to job run. Confirm your email to use it. If you want a score, a tailored copy, and a matching cover letter from that single run, the Apply to job flow does all three together. Either way, run the free check first and fix what you can by hand. More detail: free vs Pro resume builder.
Starting from scratch? Build a master resume in the free resume builder, or import a PDF, DOCX, or TXT file, then run your first check.
UK readers: checking a CV
In the UK you apply with a CV, and both tools work the same way: paste your CV and the job advert into the free check, then run the full score on your saved CV for the roles you will apply to. Many UK adverts include a person specification with essential and desirable criteria. Treat the essential criteria like required skills and the desirable ones like nice-to-haves, and make sure each one you meet is clearly stated. Build your master CV in the CV builder, and see resume vs CV for how the two documents differ.
FAQ
Is a free ATS check accurate?
It is accurate about what it measures: how much of a posting's likely key terms appear in your resume text, and how your text does on five basic formatting checks. Use it as a quick first read. For skills match and experience relevance, run the full score.
Which score should I pay attention to?
For a role you are actually applying to, the full score, because it weighs the posting's terms by importance, checks your Skills section against the required skills, and assesses your experience. For deciding which postings to pursue, the free check is quicker.
Why are my free and full scores different?
They read the posting in different ways and measure different things. The free check scores keyword match from terms picked by rules. The full score combines keywords, skills match, experience relevance, and formatting, with AI reading the posting. Compare each score with itself over time.
Do I need an account for the free ATS check?
You can run it without one. Paste your resume text and the job description on the resume checker and click to check. Creating a free account unlocks the suggested fixes and keeps the job description so you can open the tailor flow.
Does the free check use my free application pack?
The free check is free for everyone and leaves your free application pack untouched. In your account, the first AI action you run, such as a full ATS score or an Apply to job run, uses it.
What is a good score on each tool?
On both, 80 and above is the strong band and 60 to 79 is fair. Aim for the strong band with every must-have you genuinely meet clearly covered, rather than a perfect 100. A fair score with honest gaps is a better application than a high score built on terms you cannot back up.
Resume or CV?
In the US, you send a resume. In the UK, you send a CV. Everything in this guide applies to both.
Check your resume now
Paste your resume and the job you want into the free resume checker to see your keyword match and formatting checks right away. When you are ready to apply, open the ATS resume builder for the full score and a tailored copy.