Free ATS Resume Checker

ATS systems parse your resume into structured fields - contact info, work history, education, and skills. They look for standard section headings, consistent date formats, and keyword matches against the job description. If your formatting prevents clean parsing, your content may be lost or scrambled. This tool shows you which sections our parser detected and which it missed - a directional preview of how an ATS may read your resume.

DOCX files preserve semantic structure (headings, paragraphs, lists) that ATS systems can read directly. PDFs flatten everything into positioned text, so the ATS must reconstruct the structure - a process that often fails with complex layouts, tables, or columns. A well-structured DOCX is generally more ATS-friendly than a PDF, though a clean single-column PDF works fine too.

The top issues are: multi-column layouts that scramble reading order, text embedded in images or headers/footers that gets skipped entirely, missing standard section headings (e.g., using "Where I Worked" instead of "Experience"), inconsistent date formats, and special characters or fancy bullet points that render as garbled text.

Most ATS checkers give you a single score that conflates machine readability with human appeal. Pasvo separates these concerns: the ATS checklist flags the formatting issues that most often trip up ATS parsers, while quality insights tell you whether humans will find it compelling. We also show you exactly what was detected - not just a number.

No. Your resume is processed securely on our servers and immediately discarded after analysis. We do not store, share, or retain your file or its contents. If you want to save your results and access AI-powered optimization, you can create a free Pasvo account.