Straight away
- Your CV Score and a one-line summary
- Your five area scores
- What’s already working
- Your first two fixes
Free CV checker: Check your CV in 30 seconds
Upload your CV and the job you want. AI scores it out of 100, scores each part of it and tells you what to fix first, for that role.
- No sign-up needed
- PDF, Word or pasted text
- Kept for 7 days so you can save it, then deleted
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Check your CV
Your CV Score and top fixes in about 30 seconds.
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Kept for 7 days so you can save it, then deleted. How we handle your CV
How does the CV checker work?
An AI model, briefed to review CVs like an experienced UK recruiter and CV coach, reads your CV against the job you want and tells you plainly what to change first.
Add your CV
Drop in a PDF, a Word file (.docx) or a text file up to 5MB, or paste the text. With a PDF, the AI sees your layout as well as your words.
Name the job
Type the job you’re going for, such as Store Manager or Junior Developer. Everything is judged against that role, so the same CV can score differently for two jobs.
Read your report
In about 30 seconds you get a CV Score out of 100, scores for five parts of your CV, what’s already working and the first fixes to make.
What does the CV checker look at?
Every check covers the same ground, judged for the role you typed. This is exactly what comes back.
A CV Score out of 100
One overall score for the role you entered, with a one-line summary of where your CV stands.
Five area scores
Summary, experience, education, skills and layout, so you can see which part is pulling the score down.
What’s already working
Two or three strengths to keep, so you don’t fix what isn’t broken.
Fixes in priority order
Usually five to seven changes, most important first, each naming what to change and why it matters for this job.
ATS readiness
A score out of 100 and a note on how well your CV suits applicant tracking systems: headings, structure and keywords.
Keywords to add
Up to eight skills or terms employers for this role look for that your CV doesn’t mention yet.
In your full report
- Every fix, in order
- Notes and suggestions for each area
- Your ATS readiness score and note
- Keywords to add for the role
- Saved with your CV, without using a free use
What it doesn’t do
- It checks against a job title, not a whole job advert. To match a specific advert, use CV tailoring or job match in your account.
- It doesn’t check cover letters.
- It doesn’t rewrite your CV. The fixes say what to change; the AI tools in your account can help you do it.
An example CV check result
This is what a report looks like. It’s made up: a fictional retail supervisor applying for a Store Manager job, not a real person’s CV.
Example
62
Getting there
A tidy retail CV, but it reads as supervisor duties rather than the results a store manager is hired for.
CV Score out of 100, checked for Store Manager
Summary 54
Experience 61
Education 76
Skills 48
Layout 79
What’s working
- Clear job titles, employers and dates, showing steady progress from sales assistant to supervisor.
- Two pages with plain headings, so it’s quick to scan.
Fix these first
- Rewrite the profile for a store manager role: say how many people you lead and which store results you own, instead of “hard-working team player”.
- Turn the bullets under Retail Supervisor into results: “responsible for stock control” says less than how far stock loss fell after your changes.
4 more fixes, notes on each area, 6 keywords to add and the ATS readiness score are in the full report.
From the full report
72 ATS readiness out of 100. Standard headings and a simple one-column layout, but few of the management terms store manager adverts use.
Keywords to add
Note on Skills (48)
Lists qualities like teamwork, but few of the management skills the role asks for. Add the ones you can back up.
Example only, for a made-up CV. Your report will be about your own CV and the job you type.
How the CV Score works
Your CV Score (AI) is an AI estimate of how ready your CV is for the job you named, from 0 to 100, with separate scores for your summary, experience, education, skills and layout.
It judges how well your CV makes the case for this role, so a CV that’s great for one job can score lower for another.
What pushes it up
- A profile written for this job, not any job
- Bullets that show results, with numbers where you have them
- The skills the role needs, backed up in your experience
- Clear structure, sensible length and standard headings
What pulls it down
- Duties instead of achievements (“responsible for…”)
- A profile that could belong to anyone
- Missing skills or terms the role calls for
- A long, cluttered or hard-to-scan layout
It’s a guide, not a verdict. It’s an AI opinion, not a hiring decision, and it can move a few points if you check the same CV twice. Use it to choose what to fix first and to compare versions. The Community Score, from other members’ reviews, is separate.
What is a good CV score?
- 90+ Exceptional Ready for top roles
- 80–89 Strong Minor fixes
- 70–79 Good foundation Several things to improve
- 60–69 Needs work In key areas
- Under 60 Rework it A bigger rewrite will help
The checker is told to mark honestly and to expect most CVs to land between 45 and 80, so a score in the 60s is a normal place to start, not a fail.
Fix your CV section by section
Your report shows which part of your CV needs the most work. Here’s what good looks like in each, with examples and guides.
Your profile
Two to four lines at the top, written for this job: what you do, your level and one or two results that matter to the role. Cut lines anyone could write, like “hard-working team player”.
Experience and achievements
Start each bullet with what changed because of you: money saved, time cut, customers helped, targets hit. Use real numbers, and keep the most detail for your last two or three roles.
Skills
List the skills the job asks for that you can back up, in the advert’s own words. A short, relevant list beats a long one, and the key skills should show in your experience too.
Education
Put your highest or most relevant qualification first. Early in your career, add grades, modules or projects that fit the role. Later on, a line for each is plenty.
Layout and format
Standard headings, one column and one date format throughout. Two pages is normal in the UK, one is fine early on. Keep key details out of headers, text boxes and images.
No CV yet?
Never written one? Answer a few easy questions, one at a time, and we turn your answers into a proper first CV. Then come back and check it.
Does it check for ATS?
An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software many employers use to collect, search and sort applications, often before a person reads them.
What our check tells you
- An ATS readiness score out of 100 with a short note, in your full report
- It looks at standard headings, plain structure and the keywords the role needs
- Keywords for the role that your CV is missing
- Your layout score, which covers structure, length and headings
What it can’t tell you
- We don’t run your CV through any employer’s ATS, and we can’t see how one has been set up.
- No checker, ours included, can promise your CV will get through a particular employer’s system.
- A good ATS score doesn’t guarantee an interview, and a lower one doesn’t mean your CV is bad.
The safest bet: standard headings, real text rather than images, a .docx or text-based PDF, and the advert’s wording wherever it’s true for you. Read our ATS guide.
Is my CV private?
Yes. Here’s exactly what happens to your CV when you check it.
What happens to your CV
- We send your CV and the job you typed to Anthropic, our AI provider, to write your report. It doesn’t use your CV to train its models.
- We keep the CV text and the report for up to 7 days, so you can save them to an account.
- Save it, and it becomes a CV in your account. The temporary copy is deleted straight away.
- Don’t, and we delete the CV text and the report after 7 days.
What we keep, and what we don’t do
- We keep the score, the job title and the date, without your CV.
- We log your IP address with each check, to keep to 3 free checks a day.
- We don’t show your CV to other members, recruiters or employers.
- We don’t sell your data.
Is the CV checker free?
Yes. The check is free and needs no account. You only pay if you want unlimited AI tools while you apply.
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Free check
£0 no account
Your CV Score, five area scores, what’s working and your first two fixes. 3 checks a day.
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Free account
£0 forever
Save a check with its full report for free, build and download CVs, get a free weekly email of jobs that match your CV, and 3 free uses to try the tools.
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Job-ready pass
£2.99 once, for 7 days
Every AI tool, unlimited: 7 days £2.99, or 30 days £6.99. One payment that never renews.
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Pro
£4.99 a month
Every AI tool, unlimited, month by month. Cancel any time.
CV checker questions answered
Is this CV checker free?
Yes. The check is free and needs no account: you get your CV Score out of 100, five area scores, what’s working and your first two fixes, up to 3 times a day. A free account shows the full report with every fix, and that’s free too.
What is a good CV score?
For the job you entered, 80 or more is strong, 70 to 79 is a good foundation, 60 to 69 needs work in key areas and below 60 needs a bigger rewrite. The checker marks honestly and expects most CVs to land between 45 and 80, so a score in the 60s is a normal place to start.
Does the CV checker check for ATS?
Partly. Your full report includes an ATS readiness score out of 100 with a short note, based on headings, structure and the keywords the role needs. It doesn’t run your CV through a real employer’s system, so it can’t promise how one will treat it.
Is my CV kept private?
Yes. We send your CV and the job you typed to our AI provider, Anthropic, to write the report, and delete the CV text and report after 7 days unless you save them to an account. We don’t show your CV to other members, recruiters or employers, and we don’t sell it. How we handle your CV.
Can it check a cover letter?
No. It’s built for CVs, and if you add a cover letter it will say it isn’t a CV. With a free account, the Cover Letter Builder drafts one from your saved CV and the job advert, using 1 free use (unlimited on the Job-ready pass or Pro). Not sure you need one? Read our cover letter guide.
How often can I check my CV?
Up to 3 free checks a day, no account needed. A good routine is to check, fix the top one or two things, then check again. With a free account you can also run a Quick Scan on a saved CV, using 1 free use (unlimited on the Job-ready pass or Pro).
What files can I upload?
A PDF, a Word file (.docx) or a plain text file up to 5MB, or you can paste the text (from 100 to 10,000 characters). Older .doc and .rtf files can’t be read yet, so save them as a PDF or .docx first.
What’s the difference between the CV Score and the Community Score?
The CV Score (AI) is the instant score out of 100 from this checker. The Community Score is separate: once your CV is saved in a free account, other members can review it, and their votes make up your Community Score.
A score is a start. Fixing it is the point
A free account saves your CV with the full report and comes with 3 free uses to rewrite weak bullets, tailor it to a job ad or write the cover letter. Members can review your CV too.