The Best Applicant Tracking Systems for 2026

Compare the top 17 tools, peer-reviewed for professionals.

Avg Price: $98/mo

Best Overall

#1

Ashby

4.9/5

The modern favorite. Ashby is built for speed and analytics. It combines ATS, scheduling, and analytics in one, perfect for distributed teams that need to coordinate interviews across time zones.

Pros

Incredible scheduling automation
Deep analytics on hiring speed
Modern, fast UI

Cons

Learning curve for features
Pricing is opaque

Custom

#2

Greenhouse

Best for Unbiased Hiring

4.8/5 Custom

The data-driven choice. Many modern firms use Greenhouse to remove bias from hiring. Its structured scorecards ensure every associate is interviewed using the same criteria.

#3

Idealist

Best for Mission-Driven Talent

4.8/5 $125/job

The sector's job board. While primarily a job board, their backend allows for basic applicant tracking. It's the #1 place to find mission-driven candidates who care about your cause.

#4

Remote

Best for Global Compliance

4.8/5 Free (for Talent)

Hire anywhere. While primarily an EOR (Employer of Record), Remote's 'Talent' product helps you post jobs and manage applicants specifically for international roles, ensuring compliance from day one.

#5

Polymer

Best for Early Stage

4.8/5 Free / $99/mo

No-code hiring. A newer entrant that focuses on simplicity and speed. It allows startups to spin up beautiful career pages and manage applicants without the bloat of enterprise tools.

#6

viRecruit

Best for Lateral Hiring & OCI

4.7/5 Custom

The legal specialist. Built for law firms, it manages the complex On-Campus Interview (OCI) process, lateral partner hiring, and integration with conflict check systems.

#7

BambooHR

Best for Small Firms

4.7/5 Custom

Great for small to mid-sized firms. It combines ATS with HRIS. If you need a simple way to post jobs to Indeed and onboard new paralegals electronically, this is the user-friendly winner.

#8

Breezy HR

Best for Budget Conscious

4.7/5 Free / $143/mo

Budget-friendly and visual. Breezy offers a generous free tier and low-cost plans perfect for non-profits. Its drag-and-drop pipeline makes it easy for volunteer committees to review applicants.

#9

Cord

Best for Hiring Engineers

4.7/5 Custom

Direct messaging for hiring. Cord integrates with your ATS but allows for direct, chat-like communication with engineers and designers, skipping the formal email threads that slow remote hiring down.

#10

Dover

Best for Lean Teams

4.7/5 Custom

Automated recruiting. Dover isn't just software; it creates the job post, sources candidates, and schedules the first interview for you. It's like having a recruiter in a box.

#11

Wellfound

Best for Startup Talent

4.7/5 Free / Custom

Formerly AngelList. It's both a job board and an ATS. For startups, it is the #1 place to find talent that specifically wants to work in tech/startups, saving you from filtering out corporate types.

#12

LinkedIn Talent Solutions

Best for Sourcing Talent

4.6/5 Custom

The sourcing powerhouse. For finding lateral associates or paralegals, nothing beats LinkedIn's database. The ATS allows you to manage the entire pipeline without leaving the platform.

#13

JazzHR

Best for Collaborative Hiring

4.6/5 $39/mo

Scalable and affordable. JazzHR is known for its flat pricing (unlimited users), which is crucial for non-profits where board members and department heads all need access to hiring.

#14

Lever

Best for Candidate Nurturing

4.6/5 Custom

Relationship focused. Lever combines ATS with CRM, allowing you to nurture passive candidates over time. This is crucial for remote teams fishing in a competitive global talent pool.

#15

Workable

Best for AI Sourcing

4.6/5 $129/mo

The sourcing engine. Workable's 'AI Recruiter' scans the web to find candidates that match your job description, helping remote teams find talent in markets they don't know well.

#16

LawCruit

Best for Campus Recruiting

4.5/5 Custom

A legacy player with deep roots. It's designed specifically for the legal recruitment cycle, connecting directly to law school career centers for seamless schedule imports.

#17

Zoho Recruit

Best for Automation on a Budget

4.5/5 Free / $25/mo

The value pick. Part of the massive Zoho suite, it offers a surprisingly robust free edition and very low-cost paid plans, including automated emails and resume parsing.