Best Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) For Startups in 2025

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) for startups are regularly used for hiring personnel throughout the year. As there is a variety of high-quality ATS for startups on the market, however, finding the finest applicant tracking software packages can be challenging. This article will help you understand what applicant tracking software is by describing its distinguishing variables and characteristics.

Signing up for the free trials or demos offered by prominent applicant tracking software vendors is a terrific approach to begin your search for the finest ATS for startups. Thus, you may compare the features and determine whether they meet your requirements. Bamboo HR, Greenhouse, Submittable, Sage HR, and Rippling have received the highest ratings in our reviews of applicant tracking software.

• Small businesses. These businesses often have between one and 50 employees but lack a specialized hiring department.
• Midsize businesses. If these businesses have between 51 and 500 people and are expanding rapidly, they must engage a professional recruiter.
• Large enterprises. These large firms have over 500 employees, a specialized IT department, and numerous recruiters for their various divisions.

• BambooHR: Simplified HR software for small and mid-sized businesses. Includes ATS and human resources information system (HRIS) technologies with multilingual accessibility. Additionally, you can monitor organizational metrics such as employee retention and attrition. Another benefit is the ability to restrict access based on employee role.
• Greenhouse: This helps startups optimize their hiring process. Hiring teams can create a structured, data-driven hiring process, from job openings to onboarding. It supports companies’ diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts to evaluate applicants fairly. It scales as companies grow, meeting the needs of startups as their businesses grow.
• Submittable: This web-based submissions management software is easy-to-use. With drag-and-drop fields, users can create dynamic submission portals and forms. Workflow automation simplifies administrative tasks like notifications, team assignments, and review updates. The solution saves time and allows submissions to move seamlessly and intuitively from the first to the last stage.
• Sage HR: This cloud-based human resource management solution helps with recruitment, performance reports, shift scheduling, and expenses. It has six modules: Recruitment Management, Performance Management, Timesheets Management, Shift Scheduling Management, Leave Management, and Expense Management. Startups can select modules and are billed monthly or annually.
• Rippling: An All-in-One HR and IT platform, Rippling helps manage payroll, benefits, apps, and devices. It can automate busy work like updating payroll, managing documents, and provisioning apps by connecting everything into one platform. It also offers robust reporting that can help track employee turnover, compensation trends, and app usage.

Here are some types of software that are closely related to applicant tracking systems (ATS) for startups:

• HR apps. HR teams are able to utilize their mobile devices to complete vital activities. Features include mobile clock-in and payroll processing with a single click.
• Talent management software. Provides HR managers with capabilities, such as application tracking and performance monitoring, to manage the entire employee lifecycle, from hiring to retirement.
• Onboarding software. You may automate onboarding procedures to successfully welcome and train new employees. Includes onboarding form management, digital signature capabilities, and task assignment for new hires.
• Staffing agency software. Ideal for external staffing and recruiting firms that can use capabilities like email/calendar integration, back office management, and time and expense monitoring to fill client roles.
• Recruiting software. You can conduct background checks, improve the applicant experience, and manage branding activities in addition to applicant tracking.

• Applicant scoring and ranking: Permits the scoring of candidates based on factors such as personality, talent, and experience. After receiving the scores, the software can either automatically or manually rank the candidates for a position.
• Job posting: This enables you to generate job listings for your available positions and post them to your website, job boards, and social media networks. You can purchase job board advertisements from ATS vendor partners, optimize listings for search engine visibility, and schedule posts in advance.
• Candidate profiles: You can keep comprehensive candidate profiles that include resumes, interview notes, management feedback, evaluation scores, social media profiles, and more. This facilitates the search for applicants based on keywords, experience, position, geography, etc.
• Applicant tracking: This allows you to track the applicant’s current status, such as initial interview, screening, etc. As each applicant advances to the next step or is eliminated from consideration, the database status is immediately updated.
• Reporting dashboards: Enables users to interpret recruiting and hiring data for a more data-driven applicant tracking procedure. This makes it easier for hiring managers to measure parameters such as time to hire, average hiring costs, and retention rates.

Comparisons indicate that the best applicant tracking systems (ATS) for startups offer the following advantages:

• Streamlined hiring process: Recruiting solutions that aggregate all applicant information into a single location can expedite the screening of candidates. In addition, by automating routine administrative duties, these solutions enable hiring teams to devote more time to attention-demanding tasks, such as evaluating prospects and enhancing interview processes.
• Reporting and analytics: You can obtain answers to queries such as which website sends the top candidates, where the majority of candidates fail during the hiring process, etc. The analytics tools can assist you in identifying areas for organizational improvement. With the reporting tool, you may generate reports to keep stakeholders informed and fulfill regulatory requirements.
• Applicant scoring and ranking: Hiring managers, recruiters, and others can evaluate applicants collaboratively. They can evaluate all candidates using the same criterion. In leading systems, you only need to provide data on the most valuable qualities you’re seeking, and prospects will be ranked automatically for you.
• Candidate data management: Applicants and resumes typically flood in from a variety of sources. ATS allows you to input candidates automatically and store them in a safe database. You may construct comprehensive candidate profiles and easily search through them using parameters such as position, skills, geography, etc.
• Customized recruiting workflows: Each organization has its own hiring process and requirements. ATS enables your organization to personalize and standardize the hiring procedure for each position, including procedures for candidate evaluation, interviews, etc. In addition, it provides tools such as automated alarms, shared calendars, and task lists to guarantee nothing is overlooked.

Diversity among employees is vital

Diversity is not merely a matter of public perception. In addition, it provides tangible commercial results. According to a Gallup study, organizations with nearly equal numbers of male and female staff generate more earnings. In addition, according to a survey conducted by Glassdoor, two-thirds of candidates perceive diversity to be an important aspect when considering job offers and firms. Top firms like Microsoft and Apple are aggressively embracing diversity, and small businesses must do the same to remain competitive.

Mobile applications are gaining popularity.

According to a study done by the Pew Research Center, 28% of American job seekers have used a smartphone to conduct job searches. This climbs to 53% for applicants between the ages of 18 and 29. Beyond reading about job openings, they are now applying for positions from their mobile devices. Companies must adapt their application processes for mobile users to avoid missing out on tech-savvy applicants.

AI and ML free up humans to help others.

According to Mondo’s Creative and Digital Trends survey, 41% of employers prioritize AI and ML. The excitement around the technology continues to grow, but human-led AI is the focus in recruiting. Your applicant tracking system needs AI, ML, and automation to eliminate mundane tasks, improve decision-making, and allow more qualified people to see job postings.

ARI underpins multichannel communications

Automated Recruiter Interface (ARI) works on top of ATS and powers automated processes and conversational AI chatbots. As such, candidates can interact with recruiters where and when they want, like via SMS or Messenger. Work becomes efficient, and recruiters maintain control without being online 24/7.

You may overlook worthy applicants.

The best ATS for startups is meant to assess resumes that match specific criteria. The disadvantage is that they may not consider certain people, such as those with solid expertise in a different industry who wish to switch jobs. The application may end up neglecting such qualified candidates.

Unreliable and inaccurate

Sometimes, the ATS may reject resumes for reasons such as the scanner’s incapacity to properly understand the content or the resume’s overly complex design. This disadvantage impacts both individuals and companies, as they lose the opportunity to build a mutually beneficial partnership.

Poor mobile experience

The application procedure is often complicated, and some traditional ATS platforms are not mobile or text friendly. Candidate experience is important: If a “text application” leads to a browser and candidates are unable to apply by text, they may choose not to submit their application.

Tools for applicant tracking are not cheap. Prior to committing to a particular membership plan, conduct a comprehensive evaluation of prospective ATS for startups. To assist you, here are some questions you may want to ask when evaluating the applicant tracking platforms you’re considering:

• What is the scope of its feature set? Does the platform have the necessary applicant-tracking tools?
• Is the program user-friendly enough for your technophobes and versatile enough for your tech-savvy employees?
• Can it interface with your current enterprise systems?
• Does the platform support your equipment?
• Are their pricing structures cost-effective? Do they include the features, customer support, and additional services you require? If they do not, do they impose reasonable fees?
• Do they offer customer service across numerous modes, such as live chat, email, and the telephone?

In a world that is becoming increasingly digital, businesses must investigate new technologies to remain competitive. As you have just learned, applicant tracking is one use of this concept. By implementing a software solution to reinforce this process, you can expedite job advertising chores, simplify applicant tracking, and enhance the whole hiring procedure. In addition, these technologies can help you make your recruitment efforts more data-driven by giving tools that can generate reports and provide insight into your daily procedures.

However, it is important to understand that in order to gain the benefits of the best ATS for startups, you must also learn how to make it work for you. This requires knowing what it can and cannot do, as well as how to customize it to suit your needs. Importantly, you must take the effort to train your personnel on how to utilize the software so that you may maximize its functionality.

This article should have provided you with a starting point for your research on the best applicant tracking systems (ATS) for startups and a better understanding of how to use them to your advantage.