How is the ATS score calculated?
The ATS score measures one resume against one job description. It combines keyword coverage, skills alignment, and experience relevance drawn from that specific posting. Because it is relative to the job, the same resume scores differently against different postings. It is a match score, not a universal resume grade.
It is a match score, not a resume grade
This is the single most common misreading. A low score does not mean your resume is bad. It means this resume and that posting do not line up yet. Running the same resume against a closer-fitting job will produce a different number without you changing a word.
What goes into it
- Keyword coverage: Which terms from the posting appear in your resume, weighted by how central each one is to the role.
- Skills alignment: Whether the hard skills, tools, and certifications the posting asks for are present and evidenced.
- Experience relevance: Whether your history reads as relevant to the level and scope described in the posting.
Where to see the full breakdown
Executive shows the complete score breakdown, including how each component contributed and every gap ranked with the reason it matters. The free tier shows the score and a partial gap list.
The full method, including how we validate it, is written up on the methodology page.
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