BEST Applicant Tracking Systems for Small Business

In this blog post, I’m going to share the best applicant tracking systems for small businesses on the market to take the stress and pressure off recruitment. If you’ve ever been overwhelmed and frustrated with recruiting talent on your team, then stick around. 

In my role as HR Business Partner, I’ve seen first hand how incredibly useful an applicant tracking system can be. I’ve also seen that most small businesses do recruitment in a very manual way. They’ll post the open job on multiple job boards manually, then collect resumes through a dedicated inbox which they have to manually manage. Then read through each application individually. Everything from sending emails to preparing offer letters is manual, and there’s no reporting or metrics to speak of. At the end I’ll tell you my top recommendation for the best applicant tracking system for you.

There are countless ATS out there in the market, and they offer a world of features and benefits. The ones I’m going to talk about are those specifically designed for small, growing businesses with price points to match. Some of the best ones have a free plan. Most have pricing that goes up the more you hire. So, if you’re going through a growth phase in your business, you’ll pay more, but you can always downgrade once you’ve filled those roles.

Of course, as I go through this, if you have a recommendation for a small business ATS that I haven’t mentioned, PLEASE comment below and share it with us.

First, I’ll say that I’m not affiliated with these systems in any way. I don’t get a cut of their sales, nor do I benefit in any way if you sign up with them. 

Applicant Tracking Systems for Small Business

With that said, my first suggested ATS to consider is Breezy. Their basic plan is $0 which is awesome.

The next one I want to talk about is ZipRecruiter. Now ZipRecuiter is not as much an applicant tracking system as much as it is an AI powered resume finder. If you’ve ever used an recruitment agency to find candidates for you, ZipRecruiter works the same way.

The next one on the list is Workable. I’ve found Workable  to be extremely user-friendly. 

Another ATS I’ve used in the past is Zoho Recruit. 

Finally, there’s Betterteam, but in full transparency, I’ve never used it and the fact that they have a question on their FAQ asking if they’re legit, makes me wonder about them at all. Still it’s worth a try.

My Recommendation for Your Applicant Tracking System

Alright, so my final recommendation from all the ATS I’ve just shown you. If you’re tight on budget, I highly recommend Breezy. You can’t beat the features they give you for the price. If you have some money to spend and want to really take your recruitment process to the next level, I suggest Workable. Finally, if you find you’re spending a crazy amount on recruitment agencies, I suggest you give ZipRecruiter a whirl. See if it works for your business – you might just save a few thousand dollars.

These applicant tracking systems for small business will save you hours of time for sure, and to reduce the overwhelm of having hundreds of applicants, download our free guide on the 15-Minute Phone Interview. In it I show you an interview process to quickly screen candidates without investing too much time. Download our free guide.

I hope you found this blog post on the best applicant tracking systems for small business helpful and that you’re going to try out one of these options. Please share this blog post with your friends and colleagues, and don’t forget to follow for more content just like this.

If you’re in the middle of hiring right now, check out this blog post on Employee Value Proposition and on Onbaording to take your recruitment effort to the next level.