Technical skills and tools
Identify software, platforms, methodologies, programming languages, and technical capabilities requested by the employer.
Resume keyword scanner. See what’s missing.
Compare your resume with a job description. Find missing keywords, see where your experience matches, and get practical suggestions before you apply.
- Job-specific keyword analysis
- Clear matched and missing keywords
- Suggestions based on your actual resume
Add your resume
Add the job description
80 more characters needed
- Resume added
- Job description added
Your resume is used only to generate your analysis and is not shared with employers.
An example report, one requirement at a time
The scanner takes each requirement in the posting, finds the résumé line that supports it, and grades how well that line holds up. The report below uses sample data.
What you get back
The scanner takes each requirement in the posting, finds the résumé line that supports it, and grades how well that line holds up. The report below uses sample data.
Check My Resume KeywordsVisual example
Keyword Match
Analysis complete82%
- 24
- Matched keywords
- 8
- Missing keywords
- 3
- Suggested revisions
Matched keywords
AWSKubernetesTerraformPython
Missing keywords
CI/CDDatadog
Suggested revision
“…built CI/CD pipelines with GitHub Actions and monitored 40+ services in Datadog…”
What Does the Resume Keyword Checker Analyze?
The resume keyword checker compares the content of your resume with a specific job description. It looks for relevant skills, tools, qualifications, responsibilities, certifications, and industry language that may influence how closely your application matches the position.
Qualifications and certifications
Review required education, certifications, licenses, and experience-related criteria.
Responsibilities and achievements
Find role-specific duties and outcomes that should be reflected in relevant experience bullets.
Soft skills and terminology
Detect communication, leadership, collaboration, and industry-specific language used in the job posting.
How the ATS Keyword Scanner Works
Use the job description keyword scanner to extract important skills, responsibilities, qualifications, and role-specific terminology, then compare those terms against your resume.
- 1
Add your resume
Upload a PDF or DOCX file, or paste the text from your current resume.
- 2
Paste the target job description
The scanner extracts important skills, responsibilities, qualifications, and terminology.
- 3
Review your keyword report
See matched terms, missing resume keywords, and suggestions for improving relevant sections.
How an Applicant Tracking System Reads a Keyword
An applicant tracking system does not grade your resume. It stores the file, splits it into fields, and lets a recruiter search what came out of that split. A term you have can still fail to reach a person at any of these steps, which is what a keyword scan is looking for.
| Step | What the software does | What it means for your resume |
|---|---|---|
| Parsing the file | The document is split into contact details, employment history, education, and a skills list. Text inside headers, footers, text boxes, and images frequently never reaches those fields. | Keep every important term in the body of the document, under a heading a parser will recognize, such as Experience or Skills. |
| Searching the database | Recruiters search stored applications for the terms in the requisition, usually as exact strings combined with AND and OR. | A word you never wrote cannot be searched for. A synonym only helps if it appears on the page. |
| Filtering a shortlist | Saved filters narrow the list by location, years of experience, credentials, and required skills. | Write credentials and dates in full so a filter can read them, rather than leaving them implied. |
| Screening questions | The answers you type into the application form, not your resume text, decide the knockout rules. | Answer them accurately. Nothing in the resume overrides a failed screening answer. |
| Ranking features | Some systems order applicants against the requisition and show the recruiter a ranked list. | That ranking still runs on the words you used, which is the part a keyword scan can check before you apply. |
Mainstream applicant tracking systems do not reject a resume for scoring low on keywords. Rejections come from a recruiter, a screening answer, or a filter you fell outside of. Keywords decide whether you turn up in the search that happens before any of that.
What the Keyword Report Shows
The report maps every keyword in the job description to the place in your resume it was found, so you can see the proof rather than a score on its own.
The line that proves it
Each matched keyword links to the bullet, skill, or certification it was found on, with the employer and role that line belongs to.
Listed versus demonstrated
A term that only appears in a skills list is marked differently from one that appears in a bullet describing the work. Recruiters read the difference the same way.
Nothing to point at
A keyword with no line connected to it is a real gap in the resume, not a scoring quirk, and it is the first thing worth fixing.
What Are Missing Resume Keywords?
Missing resume keywords are relevant terms found in a job description that are not clearly represented in your resume. A missing keyword does not always mean you should add it. First confirm that the term accurately describes your experience.
The strongest resumes use the employer’s language where appropriate while remaining honest, natural, and easy to read.
Terms this posting asks for
AWSTerraformKubernetesInfrastructure as Code
Job description requirement
Experience building AWS infrastructure with Terraform and supporting Kubernetes workloads.
Resume currently says
0 of 4 termsManaged cloud infrastructure and containerized applications.
Improved version
3 of 4 termsBuilt AWS infrastructure with Terraform and supported containerized workloads running on Kubernetes.
Only use the improved version when it accurately reflects your real experience.
How to Use ATS Keywords Without Keyword Stuffing
Use the exact name of important tools
When relevant, write “Amazon Web Services (AWS)” instead of only writing “cloud platform.”
Add keywords in context
Use important terms inside professional summaries, skills, and achievement-focused experience bullets.
Prioritize job requirements
Focus first on skills and qualifications listed as required or repeatedly mentioned.
Use natural variations
Where appropriate, include both an abbreviation and its full form, such as “Infrastructure as Code (IaC).”
Keep the resume accurate
Never add a certification, technology, responsibility, or qualification you do not genuinely possess.
Avoid hidden keyword lists
Do not add invisible text, repeated keyword blocks, or unrelated terms simply to manipulate automated systems.
Where to Put a Keyword in Your Resume
The same term does different work depending on where it sits. This is the order to use when you have a keyword that genuinely describes your experience.
| Placement | What it does | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Job title line | Matches the title search, which is usually the first search a recruiter runs on a new requisition. | Only use a title you actually held. If your internal title was unusual, put the common equivalent next to it in brackets. |
| Experience bullets | The strongest place for a keyword, because it arrives with scope, tools, and a result attached. | One bullet per real accomplishment. Repeating the same term across five bullets adds nothing a recruiter values. |
| Skills list | Holds exact tool and technology names in the form the posting uses, where a filter can read them. | A skills list is a claim on its own. Anything important there should also appear in a bullet. |
| Professional summary | Carries the two or three terms that define the role you are applying for. | It is a paragraph, not a second skills list. |
| Certifications and education | Credential names, license details, and coursework that a credential filter searches for. | Write the full name and the acronym once, such as Project Management Professional (PMP). |
Keyword Variants Worth Writing Out
Postings and searches often use different forms of the same term. Where both forms are true of your experience, writing each one once is the cheapest gap to close.
| Term in the posting | Also worth writing | Why |
|---|---|---|
| AWS | Amazon Web Services | Recruiters search either form, and the expanded name rarely appears unless you write it. |
| K8s | Kubernetes | The abbreviation on its own misses every search for the full product name. |
| CI/CD | Continuous integration, continuous delivery, and the tool you used | Postings use the abbreviation; searches are often run on the tool name instead. |
| SQL | The dialect you worked in, such as PostgreSQL, MySQL, or T-SQL | Required-skill filters sometimes ask for the specific dialect rather than SQL. |
| CRM | The platform you used, such as Salesforce or HubSpot | A posting asking for CRM experience is usually searched by platform name. |
| RN | Registered Nurse, plus the state that licensed you | Credential filters read the full title and the licensing state. |
| GAAP | Generally Accepted Accounting Principles | Finance postings use the acronym while compliance filters use the full name. |
| P&L | Profit and loss | The symbol is easy for a parser to mangle, so the words should appear too. |
Resume Keyword Scanner vs. a Basic Word Counter
| Capability | Basic word counter | EliteResume AI keyword scanner |
|---|---|---|
| Compares resume with a specific job description | Limited | Yes |
| Finds multi-word skills and phrases | No | Yes |
| Groups keywords by category | No | Yes |
| Distinguishes matched and missing terms | No | Yes |
| Assigns keyword priority | No | Yes |
| Shows where a keyword appears | No | Yes |
| Provides resume improvement suggestions | No | Yes |
| Considers keyword context | No | Yes |
Continue Improving Your Resume
AI Resume Builder
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ATS Resume Checker
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Security
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Resume Keyword Scanner FAQ
A resume keyword scanner compares your resume with a job description to identify relevant skills, tools, qualifications, responsibilities, and phrases. It shows which keywords are already included and which relevant terms may be missing.
A resume keyword checker focuses mainly on the language shared between a resume and job description. A broader ATS checker may also review formatting, section structure, readability, contact information, and document compatibility.
ATS keywords are terms associated with the skills, qualifications, tools, responsibilities, and experience required for a position. Employers may use these terms when searching, filtering, or reviewing candidate profiles.
The tool analyzes the job description, extracts important terms and phrases, groups them by category, and compares them with the content of your resume.
No. Add a missing keyword only when it accurately reflects your experience or qualifications. Irrelevant keywords can make a resume misleading and less convincing to recruiters.
Relevant keywords can appear in your professional summary, skills section, work experience, project descriptions, education, or certifications. Their placement should depend on the context and your actual background.
No. Applicant tracking systems vary between employers, and hiring decisions depend on many factors. The scanner helps improve keyword alignment but cannot guarantee an ATS result, interview, or job offer.
Yes. Run a separate scan for each role because employers may use different terminology and prioritize different skills, even for similar job titles.
Repeating a term unnecessarily is unlikely to improve the quality of your resume. Use important keywords naturally and support them with clear evidence of your experience.
Yes. The scanner can compare either a resume or CV with a target job description, although the recommended document structure may vary by country and industry.
No. Beyond the first two or three natural uses, repetition adds nothing to a search result and costs you readability. A recruiter can spot a bullet written around a term rather than around the work in a couple of seconds.
No, and they are worth avoiding entirely. Parsers read the text whatever color it is, so the block of terms lands in the same field as the rest of your resume, and anyone who opens the file or copies the text sees it. It reads as an attempt to mislead, which normally ends the application.
It counts, and for tools and certifications it is often where a filter looks first. It is still the weakest form of proof, because a list says you know a thing while a bullet shows where you used it. The scan marks the two cases differently for that reason.
Sometimes. Some systems reduce words to a stem so that manage, managed, and managing all match, and some compare the exact string. Write the form the job description uses at least once so it does not depend on which behavior the employer has.
No. Copied requirements read as somebody else's writing, they push out the bullets that describe what you did, and they claim experience the interview will test. Use the employer's wording only where it describes work you have actually done.
Both parse cleanly when the layout is simple. What breaks a parse is the design rather than the format: multiple columns, tables, text boxes, graphics, and anything in the header or footer. Follow whatever the employer asks for and keep the layout plain.
Only the ones that are true of you. Start with the high priority gaps that appear in the responsibilities of the posting, add each to the bullet where you did that work, and leave the rest alone.
Yes. The scan reads whatever the posting emphasizes, so for a finance role it picks up reporting standards and systems, and for a nursing role it picks up licenses, specialties, and care settings.
Check Your Resume Before Your Next Application
Compare your resume with the job description, identify relevant keyword gaps, and make focused improvements before submitting your application.