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Resume Keyword Scanner

Compare your resume with a job post and see every matched and missing keyword, grouped so you know which gaps matter.

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Example report

  • Posting's job title not found

    Job title

    The posting is for a "Demand Generation Manager," and that phrase is not in your resume. If your current work is demand generation under another title, say so in your summary: "Marketing manager focused on demand generation for B2B SaaS."

  • Required skill missing: account-based marketing

    Hard skills

    It appears three times in the posting, including the requirements list. Your resume uses only the acronym "ABM." Write "account-based marketing (ABM)" once in a bullet with a result so both forms match.

  • Required tool missing: Salesforce

    Tools

    The posting lists Salesforce under requirements. Your resume mentions "CRM" but not the product. If you used Salesforce, name it in a bullet and in your skills section.

  • Outdated name: "AdWords"

    Tools

    The posting says "Google Ads," the platform's current name. Update the term so it matches the posting and reads as current experience.

  • "Marketing automation" appears only in your skills list

    Hard skills

    The keyword matches, but nothing in your experience shows it in use. Add it to a bullet with scope, such as "Built 14 marketing automation workflows in HubSpot for trial users."

  • Preferred skill missing: webinars

    Preferred

    Listed under "nice to have." Add it only if you have run or promoted webinars. Otherwise, leave it out and focus on the required gaps.

  • 10 keywords matched

    Matched

    HubSpot, email marketing, paid social, SEO, content strategy, A/B testing, budget management, landing pages, B2B, and lead scoring all appear in your resume. Keep them in your most recent role where possible.

About the resume keyword scanner

Recruiters search their applicant pool the way you search a job board: by title, skill, tool, and credential. If a posting asks for "HubSpot" and "lifecycle marketing" and your resume says "CRM platforms" and "email campaigns," a person might see the overlap, but a search may not. The fix is rarely a rewrite. It is usually a dozen word choices.

This free resume keyword scanner compares the text of your resume with a job description you paste. It lists the keywords you already match, the ones that are missing, and the ones that appear in a different form, such as an acronym without its full name. Results are grouped by type so you can tell a missing required skill from a nice-to-have. Below, you will learn where to place keywords and how often to use them.

How to use it

  1. 1

    Paste the full job description

    Include the responsibilities, requirements, and preferred qualifications. Skip the company boilerplate and benefits if you like, since those sections rarely contain the skills recruiters filter on.

  2. 2

    Paste your resume text

    Copy the text from the file you plan to send. The scanner compares the words that are actually there, so test the current version, not an older draft.

  3. 3

    Review matched and missing keywords

    Start with missing hard skills and the job title, then tools and credentials. For each missing term, ask one question: have I actually done this? Only add the ones where the answer is yes.

  4. 4

    Add keywords where they prove something

    Put each true missing keyword into a bullet that shows you using it, and in your skills section if it is a tool or method. Then scan again to confirm the match.

Which keywords matter most

Not every word in a job post is a keyword. The ones that matter are the terms a recruiter would type into a search box or use to compare candidates. They tend to be specific nouns, not adjectives.

A useful signal is position and repetition. A term that appears in the job title, in the requirements list, and again in the responsibilities is almost certainly central. A term that appears once under "nice to have" is worth adding only if it is easy and true.

  • Job title: the exact title in the posting, such as "Demand Generation Manager."
  • Hard skills and methods: "variance analysis," "A/B testing," "wound care," "contract negotiation."
  • Tools and platforms: named software and systems, such as Salesforce, Epic, SAP, or Figma.
  • Credentials: degrees, licenses, and certifications the posting names, such as PMP, RN, or CPA.
  • Domain terms: industry phrases such as "B2B SaaS," "revenue cycle," or "clinical trials."

Where to place keywords and how often to use them

Here is a simple rule that works for both search and human readers: put each core keyword in two places, once where you list it and once where you prove it. A tool belongs in your skills section and in a bullet that shows what you did with it. A method belongs in a bullet with a result. The job title belongs in your summary or headline, if it honestly describes you.

Repeating a term five times does not make you more qualified, and a reader will notice. One or two natural uses of each core keyword is enough. Spread them through your most recent roles, since those are what recruiters read first.

Match the posting's form of each term. If it says "Microsoft Excel," do not write only "spreadsheets." If it uses an acronym, write the full term once with the acronym in parentheses, such as "account-based marketing (ABM)," so either version matches.

How to add missing keywords without stuffing

Keyword stuffing means adding terms you cannot back up, listing a block of keywords with no context, or hiding text in white font. All three backfire. Recruiters see your parsed text, and interviewers ask about everything on the page.

Instead, look for experience you already have but described in different words. That is the most common reason for a gap. Here is how a few missing keywords turn into honest edits.

  • Missing "stakeholder management": "Worked with other teams" becomes "Managed stakeholders across sales, finance, and legal to launch a new pricing tier."
  • Missing "Salesforce": "Updated the CRM daily" becomes "Maintained pipeline and forecast data in Salesforce for 60 accounts."
  • Missing "root cause analysis": "Fixed recurring issues" becomes "Ran root cause analysis on repeat equipment faults, cutting downtime 20%."
  • Missing a tool you have never used: leave it out, and be ready to explain a similar tool you know in the interview.

Examples

Sample scan: marketing manager applying for demand generation

Matched (10): HubSpot, email marketing, paid social, SEO, content strategy, budget management, A/B testing, landing pages, B2B, lead scoring

Missing (6): demand generation, account-based marketing, Salesforce, pipeline attribution, lead nurturing, webinars

Different form (2): resume says "ABM" (posting says "account-based marketing"); resume says "AdWords" (posting says "Google Ads")

Job title: "Demand Generation Manager" not found

Sample scan: registered nurse applying to an ICU role

Matched (8): BLS, ACLS, patient assessment, medication administration, telemetry, care planning, patient education, interdisciplinary team

Missing (4): CCRN, ventilator management, titration of vasoactive drips, sepsis protocols

Different form (1): resume says "EHR" (posting names "Epic")

Job title: "ICU Registered Nurse" partly found ("Registered Nurse")

Tips for better results

  • Scan against each job post separately, since two postings with the same title can stress different skills.
  • Add the posting's exact job title to your summary or headline when it honestly fits your work.
  • Write an acronym and its full form once, so a search for either version finds you.
  • Back every keyword in your skills list with at least one bullet that shows you using it.
  • Leave out keywords you cannot discuss in an interview, even if the scanner flags them as missing.

Frequently asked questions

It reads the job description, identifies the terms that look like skills, tools, titles, and credentials, and then checks whether each one appears in your resume text. It also flags common variants, such as an acronym without its full form. The comparison runs in your browser on the text you paste.

There is no official threshold, because each employer's system and recruiter searches differently. A practical target is to include every required hard skill, tool, and credential that you genuinely have, plus the job title if it fits. Missing a few preferred terms is normal. Missing most of the required ones usually means the role is a stretch.

Use the posting's terms for skills, tools, and titles, but write your own sentences around them. Copying full sentences from the job post makes your resume read like the employer's ad rather than a record of your work, and a recruiter will recognize their own wording. Keywords belong inside your accomplishments, not instead of them.

Sometimes. If a posting repeats a phrase such as "cross-functional collaboration" or "client-facing," it can be worth using that wording in a bullet that shows it in action. Adjectives like "motivated" or "detail-oriented" rarely help, since they cannot be verified. Focus first on hard skills, tools, and credentials, which recruiters search for most directly.

Most often the skill is there in different words. You might write "built dashboards" while the posting says "data visualization," or "CRM" when it names a specific product. Switch to the posting's term where it is accurate. If the skill is truly not on your resume, add a bullet that shows where you used it.

They overlap but answer different questions. A keyword scanner asks whether your words match this job post. An ATS checker asks whether software can read your resume at all: contact details, headings, and dates. Run the ATS resume checker once per resume layout, and run the keyword scanner for every job you apply to.

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