Plenty of applicant tracking systems say "free". Most mean a 14-day trial. A few have a real free plan you can use indefinitely, and every one of those has a limit designed to make you upgrade: one open job, one user, or candidates that disappear after a month.
This guide covers seven ways to track applicants without paying, what each free plan includes, and the catch. Everything was checked on each vendor's pricing page on 1 November 2026. Tools that only offer a free trial are left out.
Free applicant tracking systems at a glance
| Tool | What's free | The catch | Paid from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jobspage | 1 active job, unlimited applicants | 1 user, no job board posting | $19/mo yearly |
| Zoho Recruit | 1 active job, scheduling, email | One recruiter licence | €25/recruiter/mo yearly |
| Breezy HR | 1 position, unlimited users, job boards | Keeps only the last 30 days of candidates | $157/mo yearly |
| Jobsoid | 1 job, unlimited candidates | 1 user | $49/mo yearly |
| Indeed | Free job post, applicant management | Indeed applicants only | Pay per sponsored job |
| One free job post | LinkedIn applicants only, limited visibility | Pay per promoted job | |
| OpenCATS | Everything, open source | You host and maintain it | Free |
1. Jobspage
Jobspage is a careers page builder with an applicant tracker built in. The free plan gives you a branded careers page at yourcompany.jobspage.co with your logo and brand colour, a page for the job with your own application form, Google for Jobs markup, and a pipeline where you rate applicants and move them through hiring stages. Applicants aren't capped or deleted.
The catch: one active job and one user. You can't post to job boards from Jobspage, though each job has a Share on LinkedIn button and can appear in Google for Jobs.
Paid from: $19/month billed yearly ($29 monthly) for 3 jobs, unlimited team members and no Jobspage badge. See pricing.
Best for: a small company hiring one role at a time that wants a proper careers page rather than an email inbox. Start with the free applicant tracking system.
2. Zoho Recruit
Zoho Recruit's free plan includes candidate management, email and interview scheduling for 1 active job, which is more than most free plans offer.
The catch: the free plan is one job on one recruiter licence. Premium job boards, the branded careers site and sourcing start on Standard.
Paid from: €25 per recruiter a month billed yearly for 10 active jobs per licence.
Best for: a single recruiter who wants scheduling without paying, or a company already using other Zoho apps.
3. Breezy HR
Breezy's free Bootstrap plan is generous on reach: 1 active position, unlimited users, a customisable careers site, posting to 50+ job boards, and resume parsing.
The catch: the free plan only gives access to candidates added in the last 30 days. If you hire slowly, or want to return to earlier applicants, you'll need to pay.
Paid from: $157/month billed yearly ($189 monthly) for unlimited positions. More in our Breezy HR alternatives guide.
Best for: a team that wants its one opening on many job boards and fills it quickly.
4. Jobsoid
Jobsoid's free Beginner plan includes 1 job posting, 1 user account, unlimited candidates and its iOS and Android apps. A free trial of the paid features falls back to the free plan when it ends.
The catch: a single user, so hiring managers can't log in to review candidates.
Paid from: $49/month billed yearly ($59 monthly) for 3 jobs and unlimited users.
Best for: a founder or office manager hiring alone.
5. Indeed
Indeed isn't an applicant tracking system, but its free job post includes basic candidate management: your job appears in Indeed's search results and you manage applicants on Indeed. Automated messages and visibility boosts come with paid sponsored jobs.
The catch: it only tracks people who applied through Indeed, and free posts are shown below sponsored ones. Your data lives in Indeed, not in a system you control.
Paid from: sponsored jobs, priced by budget.
Best for: filling a single role quickly when Indeed is where your candidates are.
6. LinkedIn
LinkedIn lets you keep one basic job post open for free, with applicants managed in LinkedIn's hiring tools.
The catch: one active free listing at a time, limited visibility, and free posts pause after a limited run. As with Indeed, you only see LinkedIn applicants. Details in our LinkedIn job posting cost guide.
Paid from: promoted jobs on a daily budget.
Best for: professional and office roles where your network is the best source.
7. OpenCATS
OpenCATS is a free, open-source applicant tracking system and recruiting CRM maintained by its community. There is no plan limit because there is no plan: you download it and run it yourself.
The catch: you host it, keep it updated and apply security releases. That takes a server and someone technical, and nobody to call when it breaks.
Paid from: free, apart from hosting and your time.
Best for: a team with a developer that wants full control of its candidate data.
How to choose a free applicant tracking system
- You want candidates to land on your own careers page: Jobspage.
- You need interview scheduling: Zoho Recruit.
- You want your job on many job boards: Breezy HR, if you hire within 30 days.
- You hire alone and want mobile apps: Jobsoid.
- You only need applicants from one job board: Indeed or LinkedIn's free post.
- You have a developer and want to own the data: OpenCATS.
Whichever you pick, check two things before you commit: whether your applicants are kept once you stop paying or the free limit changes, and whether you can export them. A free plan is only free until you need to leave it.