Best Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) for Recruiters & Recruiting Agencies in 2025

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) for recruiters and recruiting agencies go a long way in expediting the processes and workflows associated with hiring personnel. It would be a straightforward affair if there are limited options in the market, but seeing so many of them complicates matters. A guide, then, would be helpful in navigating through the applications, the features, and other issues that can affect your organization.

Searching for the best applicant tracking system can be a challenge. For recruiters and recruiting agencies, one great way to start is to sign up for free trials and demos. By actually using the platform, you will be able to test and compare the tools and functionalities of each and identify which software would best complement your operations. To enhance your search, you may also check the applicant tracking software reviews of BambooHR, Greenhouse, Submittable, Sage HR, and Rippling.

Solo/Independent Recruiters. Typically working solo, they have a clear specialization and work in a specific niche. These entrepreneurs are experts in their fields but also have a digital mindset as they use technology in their work processes.

Small businesses. Typically these recruitment agencies have less than 50 employees and use a platform for recruitment offering the essential tools.

Midsize businesses. These are recruitment agencies and businesses characterized by high growth and have between 51-500 employees. Agencies of this size need to have a recruitment system in place for effective HR management.

Large enterprises. These large companies have over 500 employees and dedicated departments for HR recruitment and management.

BambooHR: Designed for small and medium-sized companies, this easy-to-use HR system has ATS tools for application management. As a standout among applicant tracking systems (ATS) for recruiters and recruiting agencies, it allows users to post job openings and check all application data as they arrive. Users can also share job postings on social networks or popular job boards.

Greenhouse: This ATS helps companies create a structured hiring process by defining the specific qualifications of ideal candidates and creating corresponding scorecards for easier applicant evaluation. You can also set up interview kits and scorecard summaries for data-driven hiring decisions.

Submittable: This submissions management software includes an applicant tracking system that gathers applications, follow up with applicants, screen for eligibility, creates custom review forms for the evaluation of applications, and collects references. This app is mobile-ready, which lets you track applicant status even on the fly.

Sage HR: The recruitment module of this cloud-based HR management solution offers an end-to-end recruitment platform that accelerates the recruitment process. Among the features are automated tracking, on-demand applicant screening, and advanced analytics.

Rippling: This ATS simplifies the hiring process with efficient sourcing and frictionless tracking. It lets you set up custom hiring workflows and processes, including interview stages, and create approval flows and alerts for open roles, schedules, and reports.

The following types of software are closely related to ATS in their functions:

Staffing agency software. This end-to-end recruitment agency software typically includes tools for applicant tracking. Some platforms also have recruitment CRM, reporting and analytics tools, and tools for facilitating collaborative hiring.

Recruiting software. Aside from applicant tracking, applicant tracking systems (ATS) for recruiters and recruiting agencies allow agencies and recruiters to build an applicant database. In addition, there are tools to boost candidate retention and improve engagement.

Talent management software. This platform automates recruitment, onboarding, learning, professional development, and engagement. It manages the full employee lifecycle from recruitment to offboarding.

HR apps.  Applicant tracking systems (ATS) for recruiters and recruiting agencies allow recruiters to use their mobile devices to monitor applicant progress and other related tasks. The application tracking module includes tools for sourcing, tracking, and reporting.

Onboarding software. This platform provides a defined process for training new hires. Form creation tools, digital signature tools, and task assignments are just some of those included in this software.

Applicant scoring and ranking: Based on your pre-defined criteria, this tool scores candidates by evaluating their skills, experience, and personality. Candidates are automatically ranked based on their final scores and qualified candidates are identified for specific job openings.

Job posting: On every job ad platform, this tool allows you to simultaneously publish open opportunities so you can quickly build your candidate pipeline. Some apps allow you to manage multi-channel postings with optimization tools. Job board ads are also available from ATS vendor partners.

Candidate profiles: This core feature of ATS is your central database of all candidate profiles that include their resume, interview notes, manager feedback, assessment scores, and social media profiles. Depending on current job openings, recruiters search and filter this database to look for qualified candidates.

Applicant tracking: This tool enables recruiters to monitor every candidate at every stage of the recruitment process. Depending on the progress of the candidates in the hiring process, the system automatically updates their status in the database.

Reporting dashboards: Providing hiring insights to recruiters, this ATS feature collates all hiring information to provide recruiters and agencies with measurable data. The average cost of hiring a candidate, time to hire, and retention rates are just some of the important information that reporting dashboards are able to provide.

The best ATS for recruitment agencies and recruiters offers the following benefits:

Increases efficiency through automation. ATS tools streamline the hiring process by automating repetitive tasks. It facilitates faster evaluation of candidates with candidate data management. With the consolidated applicant data in one platform, workflows are improved, enabling recruiters to focus on improving processes.

Extends recruiter reach. The reporting and analytics tool provides insights into which job boards are frequented and have the best candidates, as well as information on the structure and effectiveness of job postings. It also gives recruiters and agencies the opportunity to benchmark their recruitment practice against the best industry performers. With detailed reports, recruiters are able to provide stakeholders—both candidates and companies—with timely information.

Improves collaboration and visibility. In evaluating candidates recruiters and hiring managers can collaborate using the ATS platform. This promotes visibility as the recruiter and the client can see how candidates are ranked based on agreed qualifications. Both parties are assured that applicant scoring and ranking were performed independently by the system.

Enhances recruitment process. In using ATS, recruiters and agencies can customize workflows. Aside from the standard processes, for each specific job, the recruitment structure can be designed for a more thorough evaluation of candidate skills. Automated alerts, task lists, and shared calendars can also be used to increase engagement.

Mobile-first virtual recruiting

Candidates are sending applications from their mobile phones. Top candidates today may be multigenerational but they all demand seamless and fully mobile interactions. As more people do their transactions online using their mobile devices, recruiters and recruiting agencies are using ATS that are able to adapt to these changes. How people search for job openings and how they apply are important trends that applicant tracking systems should be able to capture for effective candidate engagement.

Enriched user experience

The intuitive and simple user interface facilitates a seamless application process. Today, recruitment platforms have chatbots that immediately attend to the queries of candidates. These chatbots ensure that candidates will experience an application process that allows them to schedule interviews, and submit their personal data based on their preferences.

Fully-integrated cloud-based ecosystem

ATS will be leveraging cloud-based infrastructure for security and scalability. Recruiters and recruiting agencies will further enhance services by integrating ATS with their technology stacks. The result would be a fully-integrated applicant tracking system for recruiting agencies that can collect more data on how recruitment systems impact business.

Increased focus on employee diversity

Embracing diversity is not just for enhancing the company’s image. Job applicants are becoming more conscious of how their prospective employers are promoting workplace diversity, and they tend to choose companies that are authentic in embracing differences.

While the best ATS for recruiters and recruitment agencies delivers significant benefits, there are also potential challenges that users should take into account. Addressing these potential issues will ensure that you will be able to maximize user benefits.

Flawed configuration narrowing applicant pools

Typically, an ATS system is configured to eliminate applicants that have gaps in their employment history, or those who do not have a college degree. This results in missing out on good candidates because the system fails to see the skills of the candidate as it is configured to focus on credentials.

Keyword-matching technology identifying poor fits

Job descriptions tend to be stuffed with a list of skills that are not really essential to a particular role. When the words used by the most qualified candidate fail to match that of the system, automatically that candidate gets a lower chance of proceeding to the next stage of the recruitment process.

Getting applicant tracking systems for recruiters and recruitment agencies requires a significant investment. Given this, you should take time to understand your recruitment workflow and processes, and identify what type of technology can add value to your operations. Before you commit to a subscription plan, answering the following questions can help you choose the best ATS for staffing agencies:

• Is the platform compatible with your equipment?
• Does the platform offer all the essential applicant tracking tools? What are the unique features?
• Is the system easy to use? Can it integrate with my current tech stack?
• What are the pricing plans? Are they inclusive of customer support, features, and other services?
• Do they charge reasonable fees for add-on services?
• Is customer support offered on multiple channels like email, live chat, and phone?

Technology has undoubtedly advanced work processes, even in HR recruitment. With the help of AI and machine learning, applicant tracking systems are now able to screen and evaluate candidates even before recruiters personally meet them. This advancement has delivered efficiencies and accelerated processes. However, these automated systems also have limitations. Recruiters and recruiting agencies must learn how to configure the system in such a way that it will accommodate candidates based on skills and experience, and not just on credentials.

The use of ATS extends your reach and reduces friction. It also improves transparency and visibility, and increases candidate engagement. With recruitment today mostly taking place on mobile devices, the use of ATS will become more important in getting the right candidates. Hopefully in reading this article you will be able to start your search for the best applicant tracking system that will complement your current recruitment processes.