Free Resume Keyword Scanner
Upload your resume and paste a job description. See exactly which keywords you are missing, where to place them, and how much your ATS score improves when you add them.
No signup required -- results in 30 seconds
How the Keyword Scanner Works
Upload Your Resume
Drop your PDF or DOCX resume. Our AI parser extracts every skill, keyword, and phrase from your content in seconds.
Paste the Job Description
Paste the full job posting. The scanner extracts every significant keyword and categorizes them by priority: must-have, important, and bonus.
See Missing Keywords
Get your keyword match percentage, a prioritized list of missing terms, and specific placement suggestions for where to add each one.
What the Keyword Scanner Reveals
Most people guess which keywords matter. The scanner removes the guesswork by analyzing the job description algorithmically and mapping every term against your resume.
Keyword Match Percentage
Your overall keyword coverage score. See what percentage of the job description's required terms appear in your resume. Aim for 70% or higher to pass most ATS filters.
Missing Keywords by Priority
Every missing keyword ranked by importance. Must-have keywords (from the requirements section) are flagged first, followed by important terms and bonus qualifiers.
Placement Suggestions
Where each missing keyword should go for maximum ATS impact. Summary keywords get 1.5x weighting. Skills section keywords are scanned explicitly. Top bullets get 1.2x weighting.
Ghost Skill Detection
Skills demonstrated in your experience bullets but missing from your Skills section. These are invisible to ATS keyword matching. The scanner surfaces them so you can add them.
Where to Place Keywords for Maximum ATS Impact
Not all keyword placements are equal. ATS systems weight keywords differently depending on where they appear in your resume. Here is how the scoring works:
Professional Summary
Keywords in your summary carry the highest weight. Include your target job title, 2-3 must-have skills, and one quantified achievement. This is the first section both ATS and recruiters read.
Top Experience Bullets
Your most recent 3-5 bullets are scanned more closely than older experience. Front-load your strongest keyword matches here. Use the exact terminology from the job description.
Skills Section
ATS systems explicitly scan your Skills section for keyword matches. List every required and preferred skill you genuinely have. Order them to match the job posting's priority.
Remaining Bullets and Projects
Keywords anywhere in your resume still count, just with standard weighting. Use remaining sections to cover bonus keywords and nice-to-have terms you could not fit elsewhere.
7 Keyword Optimization Tips
Use exact phrasing from the job description
If the posting says 'cross-functional collaboration,' use that exact phrase -- not 'worked with different teams.' ATS matches literal strings, not synonyms.
Spell out acronyms the first time
Write 'Search Engine Optimization (SEO)' to cover both forms. Some ATS systems search for the full term, others for the acronym.
Mirror the job title in your summary
If you are applying for 'Senior Data Analyst,' include that exact title in your professional summary. Job title matches carry extra weight.
Do not keyword stuff
Repeating 'project management' seven times is obvious to both ATS and recruiters. Use each keyword 1-2 times in natural context.
Cover both hard and soft skills
Hard skills get you past the ATS. Soft skills like 'stakeholder management' and 'cross-functional leadership' make you human to the recruiter.
Update keywords for every application
Every job description uses different language. 'Program management' and 'project management' are different keywords. Scan each posting individually.
Check your score before submitting
Run a keyword scan against every job you care about. A 5-minute check can be the difference between getting filtered out and getting an interview.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a resume keyword scanner?
A resume keyword scanner compares your resume against a specific job description and identifies which keywords, skills, and phrases are present, missing, or underrepresented. It shows you exactly what an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is looking for so you can add the right terms before you apply. Unlike a generic spell-checker, a keyword scanner maps your resume to the employer's requirements word by word.
How is this different from the ATS Resume Checker?
The ATS Resume Checker gives you an overall compatibility score across four dimensions: keywords, skills, experience, and formatting. The Keyword Scanner goes deeper on the keyword dimension specifically -- it extracts every significant term from the job description, shows which ones appear in your resume and where, identifies missing keywords by priority tier, and suggests exactly where to place them for maximum ATS impact.
Which keywords matter most for ATS?
Keywords fall into three tiers: (1) Must-have -- skills and qualifications listed in the Requirements section or repeated multiple times in the posting. Missing these usually means automatic rejection. (2) Important -- terms that appear once in responsibilities or preferred qualifications. These strengthen your match score. (3) Bonus -- nice-to-haves and contextual terms. Include them if true, but do not force them. The scanner categorizes keywords into these tiers automatically.
Where should I add missing keywords on my resume?
The highest-impact placements are: (1) Professional summary -- keywords here get 1.5x weighting in most ATS systems. (2) Skills section -- ATS scans this section explicitly for keyword matches. (3) Top 3-5 experience bullets -- keywords in recent, prominent bullets get 1.2x weighting. (4) Job titles and section headers -- exact title matches carry the most authority. Do not keyword-stuff -- weave terms naturally into existing content.
Is keyword scanning really free?
Yes. The full keyword scan -- including missing keyword identification, priority tiering, placement suggestions, and your keyword match percentage -- is completely free through our ATS Resume Checker with no account required. Upload your resume, paste the job description, and see results in 30 seconds. Create a free account to unlock AI-powered tailoring that adds missing keywords automatically.
How many keywords should my resume have?
There is no magic number, but aim to match 70% or more of the must-have and important keywords from the job description. Most job postings contain 15-25 significant keywords. Your resume should naturally include 10-18 of these across your summary, skills section, and experience bullets. Forcing every keyword in leads to keyword stuffing, which modern ATS systems detect and penalize.
Can I use the same keywords for every application?
No. Every job description uses different terminology, even for similar roles. One company says 'project management' while another says 'program management.' One posting wants 'Salesforce' while another asks for 'CRM tools.' Scanning each job description individually and adjusting your keywords is the single most effective way to pass ATS filters. JobVouch's AI tailoring automates this process.
What is keyword stuffing and will it hurt my resume?
Keyword stuffing means cramming keywords into your resume unnaturally -- repeating terms excessively, hiding white text, or listing skills you do not have. Modern ATS systems detect this and flag it. Recruiters who see keyword-stuffed resumes reject them immediately. The right approach is to integrate keywords into genuine descriptions of your real experience, not to game the system with repetition.
Stop Guessing Which Keywords Matter
Every job description tells you exactly what the ATS is scanning for. The keyword scanner decodes it in 30 seconds so you can fix the gaps before you hit apply.
Scan Your Resume Keywords FreeNo signup required -- results in 30 seconds