The 14 checks
Every check, in the order the checker runs them, with the points it is worth out of 100. A check passes, fails, or — when your file doesn't carry what it needs — is left out of your score.
| Check | Points | Why it matters | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Real, selectable text | 15 | Selectable text is the only thing a parser can read — a picture of text reads as blank. | Re-export this file as a text-based PDF, using Save As or Export from Word or Google Docs — not a scan or a photo. |
| Every page has textNot measured on Word files | 5 | A page with no text layer is skipped entirely. | Replace the near-empty pages with real typed text — an image, a text box, or a design element with no text behind it will not carry through. |
| Single-column layout | 12 | One column keeps your lines in the order you wrote them. | Rebuild the layout as one single column, so text extracts in the same order it reads on screen. |
| Reading order matches layoutNot measured on Word files | 6 | A parser reads your sections in the same order a person does. | Reflow the content top-to-bottom and left-to-right so the extracted order matches the visual order. |
| No table-based layout | 6 | Table cells are often merged or shuffled when a parser flattens them. | Move this content out of a table into plain paragraphs or a bulleted list. |
| No floating text boxes | 4 | Floating text boxes are often read out of order, or skipped. | Replace the floating text box with regular in-line text in the document body. |
| Contact details in the body | 8 | Details in the page body get read; headers and footers are often dropped. | Move the email and phone number out of the header or footer and into the main body of the CV. |
| Fonts decode to real Unicode textNot measured on Word files | 4 | Your fonts turn into real letters, not scrambled symbols. | Retype the affected text using a standard system font — a decorative or embedded font that does not map to Unicode will keep producing garbled text. |
| Complete contact details | 8 | A phone, email and location are what an employer needs to reach you. | Add the missing details near the top of the CV, in the body text rather than a header or footer. |
| Standard sections present | 10 | Familiar headings tell a parser where experience, education and skills start. | Add a clearly labelled heading for each missing section, using a standard name like Experience or Education. |
| Appropriate length | 6 | The right length gives a reader enough detail without burying it. | Trim or expand the CV so it lands closer to a typical one-to-two page length. |
| Bulleted, scannable content | 6 | Bullets split your work into separate, scannable lines. | Break the long paragraphs into short, bulleted lines. |
| Bullets open with a strong verb | 5 | Opening with a verb says what you did in the first word. | Open each bullet with a strong action verb instead of a phrase like "responsible for" or "worked on". The same goes for a bullet that starts with a noun: write "Prepared monthly reports", not "Preparation of monthly reports". |
| Bullets carry a measurable result | 5 | Numbers make a result concrete and easy to compare. | Add a measurable result — a number, a percentage, or a scale — to more of the bullets. |
A Word file has no fixed pages, no visual reading order and no embedded fonts to inspect, so the checks marked "Not measured on Word files" are left out for .docx files, and a Word CV is scored on at most 85 of the 100 points. Length is also left out for a Word CV over 1,200 words, because the page count it would need isn't in the file.
How the score and bands work
Your score is the points you earned divided by the points of the checks that could run on your file, shown as a percentage. A check that cannot run is left out of both numbers, so it never counts against you.
The percentage falls into one of four bands:
- 85% or more: Reads cleanly. A machine reads this CV cleanly.
- 60% to 84%: Some text at risk. A machine reads most of this CV, but some of it is at risk.
- Below 60%: Machine loses text. A machine is losing real text from this CV.
- No readable text: no number is shown: Couldn't be scored. A machine couldn't read enough of this file to score it.
Is there such a thing as an "ATS score"?
Not one that travels between employers. Greenhouse, a widely used applicant tracking system, says it never uses AI to rate candidates or auto-reject applications; rules for rejection are set by each recruiter. Source: Greenhouse
In Enhancv's interviews with 25 recruiters (n=25), 23 said their systems don't auto-reject CVs for formatting, content or design; every one used knockout questions, such as eligibility to work, instead. Source: Enhancv
The Harvard Business School and Accenture study Hidden Workers (2021) found that screening tuned to exacting requirements rejects many experienced, capable people, for gaps in a CV or experience that does not match a list exactly. Source: Harvard Business School
So a number from any checker, ours included, is that checker's own measure. Ours answers one question only: can software read your file? Being read correctly is the start; no tool can guarantee a shortlist.
What it doesn't check
- Whether you match a job. Comparing your CV with a job post — its keywords and requirements — is a separate scan for signed-in users that uses 5 AI credits.
- An employer's own settings: knockout questions, required certificates, salary or location filters.
- What a recruiter thinks of your experience. A readable CV still has to persuade a person.
What happens to your file
- The check runs in your browser; your CV file isn't sent to a server for the check.
- A copy stays on your device for 24 hours, so you can come back to the result, and you can remove it sooner.
- If you are signed in, your account keeps the score, the check results and the file name — never the file itself or its text.
- Opening the CV in the editor is a separate step, and that step uploads the file.
- In the editor, most AI actions receive your CV without your email, phone number, address, photo or personal details. The CV Assistant chat is the exception: it sees the whole CV, so it can edit any part of it.
One column or two?
Every PromptCV.app CV starts as a single column, and some designs offer an optional two-column layout. The single-column check is worth 12 of the 100 points because software often reads two columns across the page instead of down each column, mixing your sections together. If you choose two columns, check the result with the free checker before you send it.
Version and changes
This page describes version 6 of the rubric, last reviewed on 3 Oct 2026. The version goes up whenever a change could move a score: a new check, a changed weight or a fixed detector.
- Version 6 (30 Sep 2026): contact details on one-page PDFs are measured; roles with no achievement bullets fail the content checks; section headings are matched more strictly.
- Version 5 (30 Sep 2026): a missing LinkedIn link no longer costs points; better detection of phone numbers, locations and headings.
- Version 4 (29 Sep 2026): number words such as "four", lakh and crore count as measurable results.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a good ATS Readability Score?
- 85% or more means software could read your file cleanly. 60% to 84% means some text is at risk, and below 60% means software is losing real text. The score describes readability only, not how well you match a job.
- Is it the same as an employer's ATS score?
- No. Employers' systems don't publish a score that carries from one employer to another — Greenhouse, for one, says it never uses AI to rate candidates. Ours is our own measure of whether software can read your file.
- Why did my two-column CV lose points?
- Software often reads two columns across the page instead of down each column, which mixes your sections together. The single-column check is worth 12 of the 100 points.
- Does it check Bangla text?
- Yes. It reads Bangla Unicode text, and it warns you when Bangla was typed in an old Bijoy-style font or comes out of the file in the wrong order, because software cannot read it then; the checks that depend on reading words are left out for such a file. The bullet-verb check runs on English CVs only.
- Is my file uploaded?
- Not for the check: it runs in your browser, and your CV file isn't sent to a server for the check. If you choose to open the CV in the editor, that separate step uploads it.
- How is job matching different?
- This checker looks only at whether software can read your file. Matching your CV to a specific job post is a separate scan for signed-in users that uses 5 AI credits.