Leader
57Heralded Score, range 30–75
The most visible applicant tracking systems, October 2026
Most cited source
20citations
From Google AI Mode and Google AI Overviews
Where engines disagree most
1/4engines put it in their top three
Top three on Google AI Mode, not on Gemini, Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT
Brands
| Rank | Brand | Rank change | Heralded Score All | AI | Search | Score trend | Mentioned | Recommended | By engine | Mentioned by | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | New entry | 57 , range 30–75 | 61#1 | 52#2 | 57
| 43% | 23% | | First reading | |
| 2 | | New entry | 47 , range 22–63 | 44#2 | 54#1 | 47
| 29% | 15% | | First reading | |
| 3 | | New entry | 40 , range 21–60 | 41#4 | 37#6 | 40
| 23% | 16% | | First reading | |
| 4 | | New entry | 36 , range 17–56 | 36#6 | 38#5 | 36
| 21% | 8% | | First reading | |
| 5 | | New entry | 30 , range 22–61 | 43#3 | 8#19 | 30
| 22% | 17% | | First reading | |
| 6 | | New entry | 29 , range 12–55 | 34#7 | 21#11 | 29
| 14% | 11% | | First reading | |
| 7 | | New entry | 28 , range 19–56 | 38#5 | 12#15 | 28
| 19% | 10% | | First reading | |
| 8 | | New entry | 27 , range 7–53 | 32#8 | 19#13 | 27
| 14% | 7% | | First reading | |
| 9 | | New entry | 19 , range 1–41 | 3#18 | 47#3 | 19
| 8% | 0% | | First reading | |
| 10 | | New entry | 19 , range 4–49 | 18#9 | 20#12 | 19
| 11% | 4% | | First reading |
“=” marks brands whose score ranges overlap, so the test cannot separate them. Every brand named in at least three answers is ranked. AI and Search give each brand’s score and rank on that side alone. By engine has one dot per engine (ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode), darker the more often it names the brand.
Most cited sources
| Rank | Source | Type | Cited in | Engines | Pages cited | Brands its pages mention |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Social | 20.0% | 2 of 4 | 16 | Not read |
| 2 | | Review site | 15.0% | 3 of 4 | 7 | 10 |
| 3 | | Social | 5.0% | 1 of 4 | 10 | Not read |
| 4 | | Directory | 5.0% | 1 of 4 | 8 | Not read |
| 5 | | Vendor site | 13.3% | 4 of 4 | 2 | 13 |
| 6 | | Community | 10.0% | 1 of 4 | 7 | Not read |
| 7 | | Vendor site | 11.7% | 4 of 4 | 2 | 9 |
| 8 | | Review site | 5.0% | 2 of 4 | 3 | 3 |
| 9 | | Consultancy | 5.0% | 2 of 4 | 1 | Not read |
| 10 | | Regulator | 3.3% | 1 of 4 | 3 | Not read |
Questions asked
| Question | Language | Most recommended |
|---|---|---|
| What is the best applicant tracking system for small businesses? | English | |
| Recruiting software for growing companies | English | |
| How can a small company manage job applicants without losing candidates? | English | |
| How do I organize hiring when we get hundreds of applications? | English | |
| Hiring through email and spreadsheets vs. an applicant tracking system for startups | English | |
| Recruitment agency vs. in-house recruiting software for growing companies | English | No brand recommended |
| Alternatives to managing candidates in spreadsheets | English | |
| Alternatives to posting each job ad on job boards by hand | English | |
| I'm the only recruiter at a 100-person company. What software can help me manage hiring? | English | |
| I run a startup that's hiring ten people this year and need a simple recruiting process. | English | |
Each engine's top three
Google AI Mode
- 1
Workable
- 2
Greenhouse
- 3
BambooHR
Gemini
Google AI Overviews
- 1
- = 2
- = 2
Zoho Recruit
ChatGPT
- 1
- = 2
Breezy HR
- = 2
Related leaderboards
Method
Each leaderboard ranks brands on two sides. AI is how ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode answer the board's buyer questions. Search is Google's top 10 results for the keywords behind those questions. All combines the two, where Search is measured.
For the AI side, each month Heralded asks every engine the same buyer questions, twice each, and reads every answer. An answer counts 0 for a brand it leaves out, 50 for a brand it names and 100 for a brand it recommends, and the Heralded Score is built from those. A brand named in at least three answers gets a score and a place.