The first time you hired someone for your small business, it probably felt like a huge milestone. Now? You’re drowning in resumes, spending hours sorting through applications, and just trying to make it to the end of the day without pulling your hair out.
Hiring is exhausting for growing small businesses — and without a big HR team or fancy enterprise tools, trying to manage everything yourself can turn into instant chaos.
The good news is, an applicant tracking system (ATS) can help. Think of it like having an extra set of hands (without the struggle of recruiting a whole new person!).
In this guide, we’re breaking down the 10 best ATS tools for small businesses so you can pick the perfect match without spending hours in research rabbit holes. We’ll cover their pros, cons, features, pricing, and user feedback so you can make the most informed decision.
Stuck between options? We’ll also walk you through how to choose the best ATS based on your industry, hiring volume, and business size.
But before we dive in…
Do small businesses actually need an ATS?
You bet your bottom dollar they do!
Here’s why:
- You’ll save money. No, seriously — sometimes thousands of dollars! If you’re a company of 500, you’ll save around $514,350 per year according to the ROI calculator, which is well-worth the cost of a high-performance ATS.
- You’ll save time. Depending on how big your business is, this could be a lot of time. Studies show that an ATS platform can save 20% more time, which is around 2.4 months per year per recruiter. That’s an ROI of 560%!
- You’ll slash the risk of a bad hire. You don’t need any reminders just how expensive turnover can be. Luckily enough, an ATS makes this easier to avoid. A whopping 78% of people say their ATS has improved the quality of their hires. This inherently saves more time, money, and effort to spend on other tasks, like onboarding your new team member.
- You can compete with the big dogs (aka enterprise brands). Recruitment competition is fierce, and bigger enterprises usually have more resources to snatch top talent before small and growing businesses. With an ATS, you’ll have the power to move faster, and potentially swipe top candidates before major companies get around to making an offer.
The bottom line?
The sooner you get an ATS on your side, the quicker (and less stressful) your hiring process will be. It levels the playing field for growing small businesses and
Of course, not all ATS programs were designed for small business owners. Some are expensive, and others aren’t really designed for non-recruiter users.
The good news is, there are still plenty of small business solutions, including the 10 we’ve rounded up below.
Comparing the best applicant tracking systems for small businesses
How do the top ATS systems compare?
Here’s a quick look at how they stand side-by-side:
Now, let’s take a closer look at all 10 contenders.
1. Bullhorn: Best for automations
If you want to keep track of the full lifecycle of your candidates, Bullhorn’s dual CRM and ATS might be your best bet. You can use this software to manage the entire candidate experience, from searching and matching to scheduling interviews to onboarding new hires.
Bullhorn’s biggest claim to fame is setting up AI Agents, which you can use to automate simple tasks for your team. You can set up screening agents to whittle down applications, messaging agents to keep up with your candidates, and even create an enrichment agent to help pull information into your database.
Just keep in mind Bullhorn requires a custom quote for pricing, which may or may not be useful if you just want raw numbers for your team. Plus, some users report Bullhorn struggles with slowdowns and other performance issues. You can always request a live demo with your team to see the product in action before you invest.
⚡Connect Bullhorn with Fugo Digital Signage
Key features of Bullhorn
- Resume parsing
- Career portals
- Standard reporting
- Email notifications
- 2,000+ third-party integrations
What Bullhorn users say
“Bullhorn is a fantastic CRM system for any recruitment agency that wants to get set up quickly, have access to lots of great technology (including AI tools) and is keen to have the ability to easily customise the platform. Sometimes the platform can have slow loading times, but I can tell Bullhorn has made the effort to reduce this issue over the years I've been working with them.” — G2
Bullhorn pricing
Bullhorn doesn’t list pricing on its website, so you’ll have to contact the sales team for a quote. But it does mention the Bullhorn ATS starts at $99 (keep in mind this isn’t cloud-based).
2. Vincere: Best for teams without dedicated HR departments
Vincere creates recruitment agency software for both experienced teams and small businesses alike. It offers three different types of recruitment software: one for enterprises, one for midsize companies, and one for startups and small businesses.
Vincere’s startup software has everything you need to manage candidates as a small business or as a growing staffing agency. You can create and post job listings, sync interviews on your calendar, and send data to clients and other members of your team using the portal LiveList™ tool.
But some past users say Vincere can be “needlessly complicated,” so be prepared for a learning curve if you’re not overly familiar with ATS software. Plus, the pricing may be high compared to a few of its competitors. Need to cancel your plan? This may require several months of notice.
⚡Connect Bullhorn with Fugo Digital Signage
Key features of Vincere
- Executive search tool
- Email and calendar sync
- Job posting on leading boards
- Tracking for emails and other touchpoints
- Send candidates to clients with portal LiveList™
What Vincere users say
“There are some pretty cool features. However, there seems to be too much focus on how the system looks or adding in as much as possible that it doesn't actually offer a simple approach to what a recruiter needs.” — TrustPilot
Vincere pricing
Like Bullhorn, Vincere doesn’t list any pricing online. But it does explain there are three different factors to consider:
- A per-licence fee for each member of your team
- An implementation fee (which can be avoided via migration)
- A customer support fee for ongoing support
Prices are charged on a month-to-month basis for users and customer support. Implementation is a one-time fee.
If you’re curious about add-ons or specific numbers, you’ll have to get in touch with the Vincere sales team.
3. Recruitee: Best for recruitment collaboration
Recruitee is an ATS that helps you identify, source, interview, hire, and improve your recruitment processes. Each plan comes with reporting, compliance, and onboarding tools, plus ~100 integrations and access to the Recruitee API.
Collaboration is at the core of Recruitee’s ATS software. You can share evaluations, schedule video meetings and feedback sessions, and even download the mobile app so you can message internally with your team.
For small businesses, the transparent pricing and intuitive interface are two more cherries on top. Just keep in mind the candidate experience isn’t always as smooth — the occasional glitch or confusing UI could make scheduling tricky on their end.
Key features of Recruitee
- Customizable recruitment pipelines
- Careers website
- Smart Campaigns
- ReferralsHub (for sourcing and rewarding referrals)
- Built-in video interviewing and meeting rooms
What Recruitee users say
“The solution is user-friendly and packed with features. I was looking for a Lever replacement (I work in a SMB and we don't have the budget for Lever). But the user interface could be easier to understand. One of the features I use the most (the pipeline) is about 3 clicks away from the main dashboard. I had a hard time figuring out how to create an evaluation template as well. Overall, I'm very happy with Recruitee.” — Capterra
Recruitee pricing
Recruitee’s pricing depends on the size of your time, the length of your contract, and your preferred currency.
Here’s the price you’d pay for a team of one to 20 employees with an annual contract in USD:
- Start: $216 per month for multi-job posting, business career websites, parse and search CVs, pipeline templates and automations, talent tools, unlimited data storage, and add-ons for texting and SSO
- Grow: $274 per month for access to ReferralsHub, event planning tools, questionnaires and knockout questions, Custom reporting, multi-languages and locations, evaluation forms, and optional add-ons for texting, SSO, and onboarding
- Optimize: Contact for quote for onboarding support, BI tool integrations, SSO, API support, unbiased hiring, and requisition approvals
4. Breezy HR: Best for free ATS tools
You’ve probably heard of Breezy HR — it’s one of the largest ATS platforms for growing small businesses. So you’ll be glad to know getting started is free if you’re only looking for a few basic tools.
An upgraded account with Breezy HR comes with built-in automation features like customizable workflows, interview self-scheduling, and AI-powered candidate screening. Plus, the drag-and-drop pipeline makes tracking applicants as easy as moving sticky notes across a board.
That said, Breezy HR isn’t perfect. While it’s great for automation, some users say it lacks the deep reporting features of enterprise-level platforms. And if you’re working with a large volume of candidates, the interface can feel a little slow at times.
Key features of Breezy HR
- Automated job posting
- AI-powered candidate screening
- Interview self-scheduling
- Drag-and-drop hiring pipeline
- Built-in texting and video calls
What Breezy HR users say
“Tech support is generally helpful and quick to respond. When there are no bugs, Breezy does its job well. But we've had issues with interviews not syncing with people's email, which has led to interviews being missed due to either the interviewer or interviewee not being properly notified.” — Trustpilot
Breezy HR pricing
- Bootstrap: Free for GDPR compliance, one career site, job posting on 50+ platforms, and resume parsing
- Startup: $157 per month for integrations, mobile apps (iOS and Android), live video meetings, real-time metrics, task management tools, and video assessments
- Growth: $273 per month for multiple recruitment pipelines, esignatures, referrals, scorecards, and reference checking
- Business: $439 per month for advanced questionnaires, assessment integrations, candidate comparisons, offer and job approvals, tag locking, and priority support
Keep in mind this doesn’t include Breezy’s other add-ons, like text messaging ($41 per month), candidate match scores ($35 to $137 per month), and Incognito Apply ($137 per month).
5. Hireology: Best for HR management
Recruitment and HR are two peas in a pod — and that’s where Hireology comes in. This all-in-one hiring and HR platform helps small businesses attract, hire, and retain top talent while streamlining payroll, onboarding, and even employee scheduling.
The real magic of Hireology is how it connects the dots between hiring and HR management. You can post jobs to multiple boards, track applicants, run background checks, and then seamlessly transition new hires into onboarding and payroll.
That said, Hireology is built with HR-heavy, recruitment-heavy industries in mind (think hospitality and healthcare) rather than more niche industries. Also, while the platform is feature-rich, not all of them are necessary for growing SMBs.
Key features of Hireology
- Multi-job board posting
- Built-in background checks
- Automated interview scheduling
- Onboarding and payroll integration
- Employee self-service app
What Hireology users say
“The platform is easy for employers & candidates - simple steps and no training required. But the initial setup of Hireology is cumbersome and time taking. Plus, the phone app gets stuck sometimes, which is annoying.” — Gartner
Hireology pricing
- Essentials: Starts at $249 per month for unlimited job postings, job distribution, texts and emails, automations, one integration, and insights and reporting
- Professional: Starts at $499 per month for new hire onboarding, document collections, TextApply and QR codes, employee referral management, campaign management, and multiple integrations
- Premium: Custom pricing for payroll and tax tools, employee self-service app, benefits, compliance, verification, and license and credential tracking
6. Trakstar Hire (formerly Recruiterbox): Best for larger SMBs
Trakstar Hire (formerly known as Recruiterbox) is designed to make hiring easier for larger growing teams. With a focus on efficiency, it helps businesses organize their recruitment process with automated workflows, structured hiring pipelines, and collaborative tools.
One of Trakstar Hire’s biggest strengths is its ability to centralize all hiring activities. From job postings to candidate evaluations, everything stays in one place so you can track progress and keep your team aligned. Plus, it offers a seamless onboarding experience by integrating with HR systems.
One caveat: limited scalability. Some users mention that while Trakstar Hire is excellent for mid-market, it may lack some of the customization options found in larger enterprise ATS platforms. You should also know the reporting features might not be as advanced as other competing platforms.
Key features of Trakstar Hire
- Centralized hiring dashboard
- Automated workflow management
- Customizable hiring pipelines
- Interview scheduling
- Classified hiring tools
What Trakstar Hire users say
“Trackstar has been a wonderful tool to add to the hiring process. I do feel like there is a learning curve to understanding how everything is going. I did not receive any training on the platform, and am not sure if there was an intro when I first logged in, but I feel like adapting to using a new platform is the most challenging aspect across larger teams with varying technology experience.” — G2
Trakstar Hire pricing
Like many other ATS platforms on this list, Trakstar doesn’t list its pricing online. You’ll need to contact the sales team if you want a custom quote.
7. Homerun: Best for employer branding
Homerun is an intuitive ATS with a separate HR module that focuses on giving small teams an easy, visually appealing way to manage hiring. Even better? You can try it out for free before committing to a paid plan. You’ll get a full 15 days to give it a try (no credit card required).
Homerun shines when it comes to employer branding. You can create sleek, customizable job pages, organize your hiring workflow with a Kanban-style pipeline, and collaborate seamlessly with your team. It’s perfect for companies that want a beautiful, user-friendly interface without the clunky, corporate feel.
That said, Homerun is best suited for creative teams and startups rather than high-volume recruiters. Plus, some users find the feature set a little light compared to more robust ATS platforms, which could make it difficult to scale depending on how fast you’re growing.
Key features of Homerun
- Customizable job pages
- Kanban-style hiring pipeline
- Track holidays and sick leave
- Stored applicant and employee data
- Shared team calendar for hiring
What Homerun users say
“A very friendly interface, all the features to quicken the recruiting process and enable more team members to participate and review potential candidates. Cons: Some UX patterns are to be improved or need more customizations. Customer service is always here to help though!” — Capterra
Homerun pricing
- Light: €89 per month (~$100 USD) for three job slots, 25 employee seats
- Basic: €159 per month (~$175 USD) for six job slots, 75 employee seats, custom domains, and the ability to remove the ‘Hiring with Homerun’ branding
- Plus: €249 per month (~$275 USD) per month for 10 job slots, 150 employee seats, version history, and access to the public API
- Custom: Custom price for 10 job slots and/or 150 employee seats
You can always add additional employee seats for an extra €4 per month (~$5 USD).
8. BetterTeam: Best for automatic job distribution
If posting job ads one by one makes you want to scream, BetterTeam is here to save the day. This ATS helps small businesses post to 100+ job boards with just one submission so you don’t need to manually copy/paste on different tools.
BetterTeam is perfect for small teams that need maximum exposure with minimal hassle. Just create a job post, hit publish, and let the system handle the rest. You’ll also get access to a candidate tracking system so you can manage applications without drowning in emails.
But while BetterTeam is fantastic for getting job posts out into the world, it’s not as feature-packed as some ATS platforms. If you need in-depth automation, detailed analytics, or the ability to communicate with candidates on-platform, you may need to look elsewhere.
Key features of BetterTeam
- One-click job distribution to 100+ job sites
- Customizable job application forms
- Candidate tracking via email
- Automated email (no internal communication)
- Mobile-friendly job postings
What BetterTeam users say
“After using Betterteam with two former companies and now utilizing it in my new position, it has been a great addition to any recruiting efforts and is very beneficial for easy recruiting. However, it would be nice if I could contact candidates directly from the Betterteam site to keep any candidate interaction organized to one software. It would also be nice if I could search/source candidate resumes through a database of candidates willing to be kept on file for search purposes.”
— Capterra
BetterTeam pricing
BetterTeam’s pricing depends on the contract and monthly job posts you wish to have.
Here’s what to expect from each tier:
- Solo: $39 monthly or $234 yearly for one monthly job post
- Solo: $99 monthly or $234 yearly for three monthly job posts
- Solo: $139 monthly or $834 yearly for 10 monthly job posts
- Solo: $209 monthly or $1,254 yearly for 20 monthly job posts
- Solo: $398 monthly or $2,388 yearly for 50 monthly job posts
- Corporate: $598 monthly or $3,588 yearly for 200 monthly job post
9. GoHire: Best for AI tools
If you’re looking for an ATS that does the heavy lifting for you, GoHire’s AI-powered hiring tools may be worth checking out. You can use this platform to help automate repetitive tasks like screening resumes, scheduling interviews, and ranking candidates based on qualifications.
With GoHire, it’s easy to set up AI-powered job descriptions, predictive candidate scoring, and automated messaging to keep your hiring process running smoothly. Plus, its job distribution tool gets your listing in front of top talent without the usual (frustrating) manual effort.
But while GoHire’s AI features are great for automation, keep in mind they might need manual review (like any AI tool on the market). And keep in mind the pricing may be difficult to scale — the base plan only supports three active job posts.
Key features of GoHire
- AI-powered candidate scoring
- Automated interview scheduling
- One-click job distribution
- Custom hiring pipelines
- Team collaboration tools
What GoHire users say
“What impresses me most working with GoHire is how simple it's made in an user-friendly way. From posting job postings to tracking candidates, it makes all of the hiring processes easier with its intuitive interface. Being able to post across multiple job boards with one click is a huge timesaver. But the thing that annoys me the most in GoHire is its inability to provide the advanced reporting feature, which complicates getting detailed insights even more. Furthermore, some integration with other HR tools could be more seamless to make it more functional.” — Capterra
GoHire pricing
- Starter: €89 (~$115 USD) per month for three active job posts, CV/resume parsing, and AI candidate matching
- Growth: €149 (~$190 USD) per month for 10 active job posts, screening questions, customizable pipelines, team member mentions, and a candidate activity feed
- Pro: €249 (~$320 USD) per month for unlimited job posts, video questionnaires, interview scorecards, automated stage actions, private notes, and advanced reporting
You can always sign up for GoHire’s 14-day free trial to try before you buy.
10. AvaHR: Best for company culture profiles
Finding amazing talent requires creating an amazing company culture — and that’s exactly where AvaHR shines. This ATS helps small businesses build detailed company culture profiles, which makes it easier to attract candidates who truly fit your team.
With AvaHR (previously VIVAHR), you can highlight your company’s values, mission, and team dynamics within the hiring process. You can also assess candidates based on cultural alignment to make sure you hire people who will thrive in your work environment.
However, while AvaHR is fantastic for culture-first hiring, it may not offer all the integrations your team needs. If you need more robust data tracking, or if you want AI-powered tools without purchasing a more expensive plan, you may need to supplement with additional software.
Key features of AvaHR
- Company culture profile builder
- Culture-based candidate assessments
- Employee testimonials and team showcases
- Customizable interview scorecards
- Diversity and inclusion tracking
What AvaHR users say
“I liked that it was very easy to implement. It took very little time for it to integrate to Linkedin and Indeed. I also like that you can customize so many settings, and that the system is really easy to use. Even my managers like using it! Sometimes integrations get a little lost, and it takes some work [to fix], but my account manager has been helpful.” — G2
AvaHR pricing
- Standard: $83 per month for five active job postings, one user, one location, unlimited candidates and culture profiles, integrations, and onboarding support
- Growth: $125 per month for unlimited job postings, users, and locations, customizable pipelines, and dedicated phone support
- Premier: $299 per month for access to the AI-powered Hiring Assistant, eSignatures, custom roles and permissions, text messaging, referral tracking, and access management
- Hiring Autopilot: Custom quote for applicant screening, pre-employment checks, branded career pages, job scorecards, access management, and culture branding
How we picked the best application tracking systems for small business
First, we rounded up top-of-the-line platforms and took a deep-dive into review sites like G2 and Trustpilot. We scrubbed any platforms with overwhelming negative reviews, especially those with ‘red flag’ issues (think recurring bugs or inescapable contracts).
Next, we tested each platform offering a free trial to better understand the service. The ones we couldn’t test either had a deeper dive with customer reviews on forums, or were written off our list since we couldn’t see the software ourselves.
Finally, we reached out to each company to ask for a quote, specifically on what made them different. We wanted our readers to see exactly what set them apart so they could zoom in on the one or two offering the best bang for their buck.
Key features to look for in an ATS for small business
You need a tracking system you can jump in and start using immediately — not a multimillion-dollar platform with tools, text recruiting or APIs (at least, not yet).
So as you whittle down your shortlist, how do you sort the ‘must-haves’ from the ‘nice-to-haves?’
Here’s a quick look at key ATS features for small companies:
- Affordable pricing: Whether it’s per-user pricing or a monthly flat rate, you need an ATS that can scale alongside your business. Searching for the cheapest possible platform probably isn’t the best approach. You get what you pay for, after all — you just want to make sure you’re paying for effective tools.
- Resume parsing: You want to spend less time sorting through candidate applications, right? Resume parsing can help you pick and pull keywords so you get the right candidates scheduled for interviews.
- Email tracking: And speaking of interviews, look for software that connects to your email (for tracking, scheduling, and management purposes). Some ATS platforms offer an internal email system so you can review incoming messages and bulk-send others to keep everyone informed of each stage in the pipeline.
- Reporting and dashboards: Good ATS platforms offer basic analytics, but great ATS platforms offer reports, dashboards, and other visualizations that can help you make decisions quickly. You can also share dashboards with employees, stakeholders, and team members, like on a conference room TV or a screen in your common area.
- Third-party integrations: Whether you need to integrate with a CRM or cast recruitment metrics to a screen, you need a customizable ATS that lets you connect the rest of your tech stack. Unless you actually enjoy flipping between multiple tabs, of course.
Getting more people through the door with Fugo
An ATS can do a world of good for small businesses, from scanning resumes and booking interviews to automatically sending a graceful ‘non-selection’ message to applicants. It can also keep your entire team in the loop — whether or not they all work in the same place.
You can take this a step further with digital signage by uploading, displaying, and sharing recruitment data from anywhere. No more letting hiring updates get buried in emails or lost in spreadsheets. With Fugo, you can make critical hiring information instantly visible.
Imagine what you can do with data inside and outside your ATS:
- Put your data (securely) on display, whether you’re working in an office, from home, or in separate physical businesses
- Highlight open roles in break rooms so employees can refer great candidates or even apply themselves to open roles
- Display interview schedules to keep your internal teams aware of important dates and reduce the need to reschedule
- Announce new hires to make onboarding feel fun and welcoming
- Show key data like time to hire and process length so stakeholders can make better decisions moving forward
Recruitment shouldn’t have to feel a ‘background’ process for your team. With Fugo, you can get (and keep!) the right information front and center. Everyone can help to collaborate on projects, share information freely, and ultimately make hiring just a little bit easier.
No need to take our word for it, though.
Sign up today for a 14-day free trial and see how digital signage makes hiring seamless, transparent, and engaging.
