Jobscan vs Teal: Which Resume Tool Is Worth It?

Jobscan vs Teal is a common question once you realise your resume needs to change for every job. Both promise to help you match a resume to a job description, both have a free plan, and both want a subscription for the good parts. They come at it from opposite directions, though, and that decides which one is worth paying for.

Disclosure: I build SealApply, a free tool that overlaps with both. I checked each company’s own pricing and product pages on 2 November 2026 and quote them where I can. Plans change, so confirm the price on their site before you subscribe.

The one-line difference

Jobscan started as a resume scanner. You give it a resume and a job description, and it produces a match rate report showing which keywords and skills are missing. Everything else it sells, from AI optimisation to LinkedIn tips, builds on that report.

Teal started as a job tracker and resume builder. You keep every job you’re interested in and every version of your resume in one workspace, and its keyword matching and AI help you edit the resume for each job.

Jobscan vs Teal: free plans

Jobscan Premium vs Teal+

A note on sources. Teal’s numbers are from its public pricing page. Jobscan’s live plan page sits inside its app, so its prices come from Jobscan’s own May 2026 comparison table, which lists “Free (5 scans/mo); Premium: $49.95/mo or $89.95/quarter”. An earlier Jobscan post mentions a 7-day Premium trial and says there’s no yearly plan. Both companies’ prices are in US dollars.

Where Jobscan is worth it

Jobscan’s match report is the most focused version of this idea. Its homepage says its AI compares your resume with the job listing, detects which applicant tracking system the posting uses and tailors its recommendations to that system. It suggests aiming for a 75% match rate, while noting many people get interviews at 65%. That’s a sensible framing: the score is a guide, not a pass mark.

Premium is where you get unlimited scans and AI Optimize, where you accept or reject keyword suggestions and watch the match rate update. Jobscan also has a cover letter generator and LinkedIn Optimization, which is something Teal and most resume tools don’t focus on; check the plan page for which parts are free. Jobscan also has a credit-based Auto Apply: Premium includes two credits a month, extra credits start at $8.50 for five, and Jobscan says nothing is submitted until you approve it.

Jobscan is worth it if you’re applying to a smaller number of jobs that really matter, want to see the keyword gaps in detail, and care about your LinkedIn profile too. Five free scans a month is enough to try it properly, but not enough for an active search. If that cap is the problem, see the Jobscan alternative page.

Where Teal is worth it

Teal’s free plan is generous where it counts for organisation: unlimited resumes and unlimited job tracking, with a Chrome extension that saves jobs from 40+ job boards into your tracker. Its extension has 200,000 users and a 4.7 rating from 3.2K reviews on the Chrome Web Store. If you’re juggling dozens of applications, that tracker alone is a good reason to use it.

The tailoring side is where the free plan gets tight. Keyword matching shows the top five keywords per job, and AI credits are small: five for bullet points, two for summaries and two for cover letters. Teal+ makes all of those unlimited. Teal’s pricing is also flexible: the $13 weekly option suits a short, intense search, and you can cancel any time, dropping back to the free plan at the end of the billing period.

Teal is worth it if you want one tidy place for your whole search and you’re building or rebuilding your resume from scratch. If you mainly want the AI features without the subscription, the Teal alternative page compares the options.

What neither one does for free

Both tools help you edit the resume. Neither fills in the employer’s application form on its free plan: Teal’s extension saves jobs rather than filling Workday or Greenhouse forms, and Jobscan’s Auto Apply runs on paid credits. So after you’ve tailored the resume, you’re still typing your work history into each application by hand.

A free third option: SealApply

SealApply covers the part of both tools that most people want for every job, and then keeps going into the application form. It’s free, with no subscription and no account.

The diff matters more than it sounds. When an AI rewrites a resume, the risk isn’t a missing keyword, it’s a bullet point that now claims something you didn’t do. SealApply won’t invent experience, and you see every change before it’s kept. The resume tailoring page shows how it works.

Its autofill fills the form and leaves Submit to you, every time. Details are on the job application autofill page.

Where SealApply is the weaker pick: it has no LinkedIn profile optimisation like Jobscan, no library of resume templates and examples like Teal, and no job board. If any of those is the main thing you need, one of them will serve you better.

Before you pay for either

1. Count how many jobs you’ll apply to this month. Five free Jobscan scans or two free Teal cover letters may be plenty, or nowhere near enough.
2. Try the free plan on one real job description and see whether the suggestions are ones you’d actually accept.
3. Pick the shortest billing period that covers your search. A job search that ends in six weeks doesn’t need a quarterly plan.
4. Set a reminder to cancel. Both companies say cancelling takes effect at the end of the current billing period.