What Is a Good ATS Score? What the Number Means, With Real Data
There is no official ATS score. Employers' applicant tracking systems don't send you a number, and most of them don't give recruiters a single "ATS score" either. The score you see comes from a checker tool, and each tool calculates it differently.
The number is still useful once you know what it measures and can decide whether 62 is good.
What a match score measures
Most resume checkers, including ours, compare your resume with one job description. The score estimates how much of what the job asks for your resume covers:
- Keywords: the skills, tools and terms named in the posting
- Requirements: whether your experience backs up what the job lists as required
- Title and level: whether your background fits the role you're applying for
So the score belongs to a pair: your resume and this job. The same resume can score 85 for one posting and 40 for another, and both can be correct.
What real scores look like
We looked at 34 checks run on our free ATS resume checker in October 2026, from people who allowed us to save their results.
| Score | Checks |
|---|---|
| Below 50 | 7 |
| 50 to 69 | 15 |
| 70 to 84 | 9 |
| 85 and above | 3 |
- Average: 61.1
- Median: 57.4
- Lowest: 18.0, highest: 95.4
The sample is small, a few checks may be repeats of the same resume, and people who opted out of saving aren't included. Still, the pattern is clear enough: most resumes land in the middle. A typical first check against a real job scores somewhere between 50 and 70.
So what is a good score?
Use these ranges as a rough guide for our checker. Other tools use different formulas, so their numbers won't line up exactly.
Below 50: weak match
Either the job is a stretch for your background, or your resume doesn't describe your experience in the job's terms. Check the missing keywords. If most of them are things you've never done, this probably isn't the right role. If you have the skills but didn't mention them, you have work to do.
50 to 69: typical, with clear gaps
This is where most people start. Usually a handful of important keywords are missing, or a requirement isn't backed up by any line in your resume. Fixing the top three or four gaps can be enough to reach the 70s.
70 to 84: good match
Your resume covers most of what the job asks for. Make sure the most important requirements are proven in bullets, not only listed in a skills section, then apply.
85 and above: strong match
Few resumes get here on the first try. Past this point, more editing usually doesn't change your chances much. Spend the time on applying early and on your cover letter or referral instead.
Don't chase 100
You can push any score up by pasting the job's keywords into your resume. Don't. A recruiter reads the resume after the system does, and a list of copied terms with nothing to back them up looks worse than a lower score with real experience behind it. Every keyword you add is also a question you may get in the interview.
Add a missing term only when it's true for you, and put it inside a bullet that shows what you did with it. Around 75 to 80 is a sensible target, as long as you get there honestly.
A score doesn't catch everything
A high match score doesn't mean your application will get through. Other things decide that too:
- Screening questions about work authorization, location or salary, which often reject applications automatically. More in Why is my resume getting rejected?
- A file the ATS can't read in the right order. A good score is worth little if your name comes out at the bottom. See what happened when we tested 7 layouts.
- Dates, gaps and job titles that make a recruiter hesitate.
How to raise your score the right way
- Run the check with the exact job description you're applying to.
- Open Keywords from the job and look at the missing terms. Add the ones that are true for you, using the posting's wording.
- Open Does your resume prove it? For every requirement marked missing or partial, find real experience that matches and write a bullet about it.
- Read What a recruiter will notice and fix date problems or unclear titles.
- Check What the ATS sees to make sure the text comes out of your file in order.
- Run it again. If the score moved into the 70s and the requirements are covered, apply.
For role-specific keywords, see our guides for data analysts, product managers, Java developers and software engineers.
Quick answers
What is a good ATS score?
On our checker, 70 or above is a good match and 85 or above is strong. The average across real checks was 61. Other tools use different scales.
What is the average ATS score?
In 34 checks on our tool in October 2026, the average match score was 61.1 and the median was 57.4.
Do employers see my ATS score?
Not the score from a checker tool. Some ATS rank or sort applicants by their own criteria, but there's no standard score that employers and candidates share.
Can a score be too high?
A score reached by stuffing keywords can hurt you when a recruiter reads the resume. A high score from real, well-described experience is fine.
Why did my score change between two jobs?
Because the score compares your resume with one specific job description. Different jobs ask for different things.
Check your own score against the job you want: run a free ATS check. No sign-up, and it takes a few seconds.
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