The 25 Top Recruiting Software Tools Of 2021

Somen Mondal

January 14, 2021

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Top Recruiting Software 2021

The capabilities of recruiting software are changing rapidly and HR Tech, once an oxymoron, is alive and well in 2021.

According to Unleash, Global HR technology investment saw deals of $100 million or more in Q3 2020 – the second-highest level since 2017.

With hundreds of recruiting software companies out there, how do you determine which ones are worth investing in?

To highlight the best in the market, we’ve created this guide to the 25 top recruiting software tools of 2021.


2021 Recruiting Software Infographic V1

Top Job Aggregators

Job boards and job aggregators are central to the recruiting ecosystem because direct applicants make up 48% of all hires.

  1. Indeed, with its database, is the biggest source of external hires by far. In 2020, it was credited with an incredible 75% of all job applications and 47% of all hires in the US
  2. LinkedIn, primarily known for its professional social networking platform, connecting professionals globally, also provides a Job Search Tool allowing users to find job opportunities. These opportunities are based on location, industry, and recommendations based on your employment profile on LinkedIn. 
  3. Google For Jobs, designed to be a direct competitor to Indeed, may prove to be a game-changer. It recently added four new features: accessing salary information, applying location filters, bookmarking saved jobs, and selecting which job board applicants job seekers want to use to apply.
  4. ZipRecruiter, with over 25 million job seekers a month visiting the site, became a popular choice for employers as well as job seekers because it posts job listings to multiple job boards, as opposed to just one

Top Stand-Alone Applicant Tracking Systems

With 90% of large companies and 68% of SMBs estimated to use an ATS, applicant tracking systems are the biggest category of recruiting software. 2020 saw a lot of ATS migration as employers continue to search for their best fit. According to OnGig, the most common ATS systems that employers in 2020 migrated to are SAP SuccessFactors, Workday, iCIMs, and Taleo.

  1. iCIMS, the second biggest ATS by market share according to Datanyze, is a content-generating machine. Fun fact: iCIMS is an acronym that stands for Internet Collaborative Information Management Systems.
  2. SmartRecruiters, featuring large customers like Visa, Skechers, Kelly Services, Equinox, and Alcoa, SmartRecruiters focuses on both candidate and recruiter experience.
  3. Lever, a San Francisco startup, is making a name for its focus on diversity and metric-based recruiting.
  4. Greenhouse, with 4.5/5 stars according to G2, is known for its structured hiring and interviewing approach.

Top Human Capital Management Software

According to Gartner, HCM (Human Capital management), is a set of practices that relate to people resource management. An HCM software provides more core administrative support with personnel administration, benefits administration, payroll, etc. On the other hand, a standalone ATS is specifically focused on tracking and managing candidates within an organized database. 

  1. Ceridian, an enterprise software, helps manage the entire employee lifecycle. It combines payroll, HR, benefits, talent and workforce management, recently rolling out COVID-19 specific features and resources
  2. SAP SuccessFactors, born when SuccessFactors was acquired by SAP America in 2011, is an HCM that is used by 43% of the Foetune 500 companies.
  3. Workday was named a leader in Gartner’s 2020 Magic Quadrant for Cloud HCM Suites Mid-market and Large Enterprises. According to Gartner, Workday brings in more than 650 customers every year.
  4. Oracle Cloud HCM, a solution primarily for mid-large sized organizations, and focuses on streamlining HR tasks with AI and machine learning. With modules such as goal management, performance management and strategic workforce planning, Oracle Cloud HCM is a strong comprehensive HCM tool.
  5. ADP, an HCM for small, mid-size, and enterprise-sized companies, boasts a full range of cloud-based payroll and HR solutions. ADP has been named in the Fortune Magazine’s ‘World’s Most Admired Companies’  for 12 consecutive years. 

Top Recruitment CRMs

With the rise of recruitment marketing, candidate relationship management (CRM) software has become central for attracting, engaging, and nurturing candidates.

  1. Yello, with features that include, schedule automation, video interviewing, employee referrals, and integrations with ATSs and HRISs, has a talent acquisition platform that provides a variety of recruiting solutions. 
  2. Beamery,  the London-based startup, ranked 10th fastest growing company in the UK in the 2020 Deloitte Technology Fast 50. It offers self-styled recruitment marketing software targeted at fast-growing companies.
  3. Avature, founded by Dimitri Boylan, co-founder and former CEO of HotJobs.com, Avature is a highly flexible enterprise SaaS platform for Global Talent Acquisition. Avature has over 650 customers of which 110 are Fortune 500 organizations.

Top Talent Intelligence System

Talent intelligence systems allow HR leaders to make efficient, accurate, and fair talent decisions, by providing support with resume screening, the employee lifecycle, and increased productivity. With the competing demands of increased hiring volume and decreased recruiter headcount, talent intelligence systems will be at the top of recruiting software in 2021

  1. Ideal, a talent intelligence system that enhances HR software to help teams make more accurate, fair, and efficient talent decisions. Leveraging proprietary artificial intelligence technology, Ideal analyzes data across the entire employee lifecycle. Ideal is able to accurately screen and match talent and automate administrative tasks—all while providing concrete, data-driven insights on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Top Video Interviewing Tools

With a recent survey finding 63% of HR managers having conducted an online interview, video interviewing software is becoming an important part of the recruiting tech stack.

  1. HireVue, receiving an eye-opening $93 million in funding to date, one of its differentiators is incorporating Industrial-Organizational Psychology in its pre-hire assessments and interview analyses.
  2. VidCruiter, specializing in video interviewing software, also offers other recruitment solutions such as digital structured interviews, automated reference checking, and more. Major clients include the United Nations, Samsung, Canon, and the Atlanta Hawks.
  3. Interviewstream, a Chicago-based company has a variety of solutions such as interview building, interview scheduler, interview prep, and more. They work towards the success of over 900 clients such as emerging businesses, colleges, universities as well as, large-midsize companies.

Top Testing & Assessment Tools

The use of pre-hire assessments to test the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other qualifications are on the rise. Surveys show that more than 80% of Fortune 500 companies are using pre-hire assessments.

  1. Criteria Corp, a pre-assessment tool that seamlessly integrates with current ATS and HRIS processes provides a variety of assessments to measure candidates across a variety of dimensions, such as cognitive aptitude, personality, emotional intelligence, etc. 
  2. Berke Assessment, founded in 2004, creates tests that help employers predict job behaviours such as teamwork, communication, customer service, and problem-solving. 
  3. HackerRank, creates coding and technical assessments to help recruiters assess the skills of developers and software engineers. It also offers an online interviewing tool.
  4. Traitify, with more than 200 current customers provides an image-based, mobile-first personality assessment. Traitify’s assessments are quick and effective taking an average of only 90 seconds to complete with a completion rate of 90% or higher.
  5. SHL, providing science-based assessments, along with expert training and consulting for the last 40 years, was awarded the 2020 HR Tech Award for Best Innovative Tech Solution for their Virtual Assessment and Development Center

Looking Ahead in 2021

With this list of the top recruiting software tools for 2021, we can confidently say that this is the year of evolution and change, and these are the tools that will allow for companies to stay ahead of the hiring and recruitment curve. 

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