indeed resume help review

Indeed Resume Builder and Resume Review Service: Is It Worth It?

3 key takeaways

• Indeed offers a Resume Builder and a personalized Resume Review.
• Indeed's Resume Builder is free to use.
• Teal's AI Resume Builder is part of a comprehensive platform to support the entire job search.

Job searching has changed dramatically over the last few years. Job posts are getting hundreds of applicants and many job seekers are spending hours personalizing their resume for each job. Enter the rise of resume builders. With the right resume tools, updating a resume for each application is easy.

Indeed's Resume Builder and Resume Review service help you write and improve your resume. But Teal’s AI-powered Resume Builder is arguably a stronger contender because of the AI suggestions and resume scoring features. The article dives into the features, pros, cons, and reviews of Indeed's resume products and examines whether they're worth it.

Struggling to land interviews with your resume?  Get started with Teal’s AI Resume Builder for free.

What is the Indeed Resume Builder?

The Indeed Resume Builder is a free online tool to build resumes, created by the classic job board site.

This resume builder offers a user-friendly interface that guides you through entering your information, such as work experience, skills, and education. The platform provides a library of resume templates to choose from and finished resumes can be downloaded as a PDF file.

Benefits of using the Indeed Resume Builder

• Free to use, making it a budget-friendly option for job seekers.
• Saves job seekers time with resume templates.
• User-friendly interface and predefined sections simplify the resume creation process.

Indeed Resume Builder cost

Indeed’s Resume Builder is free but lacks the powerful AI features of competitors.

Other resume builders cost anywhere from $20 to $40 per month on average.

Teal’s AI Resume Builder costs $9 a week or $29 a month and offers more than formatting. For instance, you can use AI to craft bullet points and summaries from scratch.

Indeed Resume Review cost

The resume tool is not the only resume offering by Indeed. The Indeed Resume Review cost for a human to review your resume is $35 for a 10-minute video review, $55 for a 20-minute video chat, or $155 for a resume rewrite.

An affordable alternative is AI-powered resume scoring used in resume software like Teal. Teal+ offers two different types of resume scoring. The first is Matching Mode, which gives your resume a score based on keywords matching the job posting. The second is Analysis Mode, which gives you a score for your overall resume and suggestions for improvements

Resume review services range from $100 to $500. An AI review offers a more affordable alternative with an unlimited number of resumes instead of paying hundreds for a one-time service. To understand the value of a resume review, check out how a ChatGPT review can secure your next interview .

Indeed Resume Builder Review

Indeed’s free resume builder is an easy tool for crafting professional resumes. Users enjoy its simplicity and ability to tailor content for specific jobs. However, some dislike the formatting and limited customization options, and the lack of an AI integration means you’re writing your resume unassisted.

Indeed reviews

Indeed has 3.4 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot, but that score reflects user experiences with the entire platform, not just its Resume Builder.

Indeed Resume Builder pros

• Free and fast, especially if you already have an Indeed account for job searching.
• Offers a selection of clean and professional-looking templates.
• User-friendly interface allows for easy editing and tweaks to your resume content.

Indeed Resume Builder cons

• With no AI integration, you have to write everything manually.
• Some users found ​​it lacks the flexibility to personalize your resume design and layout.
• No easy way to optimize your resume for a particular job posting and match keywords.

Who is the Indeed Resume Builder best for?

Indeed Resume Builder is a good option for job seekers on a budget or those new to resume writing. However, for AI assistance in resume writing and customization, Teal is a better fit.

Indeed Resume Review

Indeed Resume Reviews offer a quick and affordable assessment of your resume. While some users were happy with what they got for the price, others found the reviews generic and unhelpful.

Indeed Resume Review reviews

Indeed’s overall platform scores a 3.4 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot, and Indeed’s self-hosted page for its review services has a 4.7 out of 5 stars.

Indeed Resume Review pros

• Offers a cost-effective option compared to more in-depth resume editing services.
• Many users received feedback on their resume within a quick time frame.
• Good way to catch any basic mistakes and easy fixes.

Indeed Resume Review cons

• The resume review mainly focus on formatting and quick checks.
• Some users report that suggestions don’t go in-depth and aren’t helpful.
• The cost may not justify the limited feedback compared to more comprehensive AI resume tools, like Teal.

Who is the Indeed Resume Review service best for?

Indeed's Resume Review service is good for job seekers who want a quick resume assessment but don't need extensive personalized feedback. For reviewing multiple resumes or adding the right job description keywords to your resume, Teal is a better fit.

Teal's AI Resume Builder

Teal’s AI Resume Builder helps you create and customize tailored resumes faster. Unlike Indeed’s resume tool, Teal helps you write bullet points and a resume summary with AI, providing tips along the way.

Users appreciate how Teal’s resume tools helps them tailor their resume to specific job descriptions and save time and effort in the job search.

Teal user testimonials

Reviewers love Teal, rating it 4.5 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot and 4.9 out of 5 stars on the Chrome Web Store.

Teal Matching Mode for resume keywords

Teal’s Matching Mode feature lets you match your resume to a specific job posting and get an instant score based on how your resume stacks up. Teal can also help you find keywords in job descriptions to tailor your resume and always know what skills to highlight.

While Indeed has an Instant Resume Scan feature separate from their resume builder, it only provides a few general suggestions before offering an upsell for their paid review services.

To understand how to use keywords in your resume, read this post on keywords for resumes .

Why Job Seekers Prefer Teal

Aside from the more favorable Teal reviews , With Teal’s AI-powered builder and resume scoring features, you don’t need to pay for a review every time you create a new resume. Plus, 90 percent of Teal’s features are available for free.

You get all of this when you sign up with Teal:

AI-powered optimization: Teal uses artificial intelligence to help you write or update your resume.

Tailor your resume to a job posting: Teal’s Matching Mode analyzes job descriptions, highlighting missing skills to tailor your resume for the job.

Straightforward pricing with no hidden fees: With Teal you can start for free and pay weekly, monthly, or quarterly, if you decide to upgrade.

Not only does Teal offer a free resume builder like Indeed, but you also get all of these features:

• Ability to consolidate your job applications in one place with Teal’s free Job Tracker. No more digging through spreadsheets to find job descriptions, application details, or what stage you are in.
• AI cover letter generator to easily create personalized and impactful cover letters that showcase your qualifications and enthusiasm for the job.
• Teal is your one-stop shop for everything job search—find opportunities, write resumes, track applications, and manage your search seamlessly from a single platform.

Job seekers love using Teal to keep track of their whole job search, from finding new job postings to creating keyword-optimized resumes to tracking the statuses of every application. Sign up for Teal for free to get started.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is indeed’s resume builder worth it.

Whether Indeed's resume builder is worth it depends on your needs. It's free, easy to use, and integrates with Indeed jobs. However, Teal's AI Resume Builder also has a free plan and offers more features.

How much does Indeed’s resume review cost?

Indeed’s resume review costs $35 for a 10-minute video review, $55 for a 20-minute video chat, or $155 for a resume rewrite.

Is Indeed resume review worth it?

Reviews are mixed on Indeed’s Resume Review service with some users saying it wasn’t worth what they paid.

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Indeed Resume Builder Review: Is it Worth it?

11 min read

It goes without saying that having a perfect resume is a critical step in landing your dream job. It can be hard to decide, though, whether you should bite the bullet and hire a professional resume writer or use a free resume builder online. The Indeed resume builder is a feature that the job search platform offers to over 350 million unique users across the globe. 

You are probably already searching for job listings on Indeed, but is using the Indeed resume builder worth your time and effort? Free certainly sounds good, right? As with anything in life, there are pros and cons to using the Indeed resume builder. In this article, we’ll talk about what’s good about it and what’s bad about it plus give you some alternatives to using it. 

Why a good resume is important

Without spending too much time on the importance of a good resume – mostly because you probably already know that it’s critical to securing an interview – let’s talk about why. Your resume is the first point of contact you’re likely to have with a prospective employer. You want it to help you stand out from the very large job-seeking crowd. Without a properly formatted and customized resume, you won’t even get through the company gatekeeper – the applicant tracking system (ATS) . 

On top of that, you need to make sure that your resume is eye-catching to impress the human beings at the company. With that said, format is crucial. There are currently three format options that are popular in the resume writing industry and with good reason.

Reverse chronological resume format

Functional resume format

Hybrid resume format

Each of these format types has proved popular with recruiters. They are considered to be easier for software and human recruiters to review, and present information in a way that recruiters prefer to see. In short, they meet the target audience’s demands.

Which resume format is right for you depends on your work history, experience level, and the position you are targeting. 

Enter the Indeed resume builder

The free resume builder on Indeed’s website does adhere to the popular formats and offers an easy-to-use system for resume building. Because of its user-friendliness and the fact that it’s free, it has gained some traction in the job-seeking world. However, there are advantages and disadvantages to using it. 

How does it work?

Before we get into the good and bad, let’s talk about the simplicity. When you go to Indeed’s resume-builder website, you simply click the button to “Build your free resume.” Indeed will present several templates for you to choose from so that all you have to do is fill in the blanks. For example, once the template opens, you click on “Name” and a box will open that allows you to type in your name. You keep doing that for all the highlighted areas on the template. 

As you progress through the template, you’ll notice that the details you type in will populate live exactly as you type them into the box. So, grammar and proper spelling are all up to you. The system does give you the option to add some formatting, like bold and italicized text and bullet points, but those are the only design options you have.

Once you hit download, it provides you with a PDF that you can save to your computer. A box also pops up that gives you the option to “Get resume help from a real person.” That’s it, you’re done with the free resume builder offered by Indeed.

As you saw, Indeed’s resume builder allows you to input information like skills, education, work experience, and accomplishments into question-and-answer type boxes, which it then formats into a resume you can use to apply for various positions. This is especially helpful for jobs that you’re applying to directly on Indeed’s job search platform. 

It’s also a very useful tool if you’re not well-versed in the do’s and don’ts of resume writing. One thing is certain, formatting a resume can be complex and often time-consuming. When you add that to the budget constraints of being out of work, Indeed’s resume builder starts to look more and more appealing. 

Key Takeaway

Pros key takeaways:

User-friendly

Budget-friendly

Integrate with Indeed’s job search

As it turns out, the cons, unfortunately, outweigh the pros of using the system. The largest barrier is that the resume Indeed’s resume builder produces isn’t properly optimized for the ATS scanners that companies use. By adopting a one-size-fits-all approach to resume creation, Indeed’s resume builder can truly hurt you in the job search process. 

That’s because nearly 75% of resumes are rejected by the ATS. After all, they’re not correctly formatted or keyword-optimized. This is among the number one reason why job seekers are ghosted by companies – your resume is rejected by the ATS for improper formatting or optimization so the human beings at the company don’t even know you exist.

Another major problem with the platform’s free resume is that you can only download it as a PDF file. Not only does that present a potential issue for some ATS to process, but you also can’t make edits to the downloaded document, which is important because you’re supposed to be tailoring your resume to every job that you apply to. 

You should also be sending a Microsoft Word resume version versus a PDF unless the job posting specifically asks for a PDF. What you might lose in formatting balances out with knowing that the ATS can read your resume.

While there are a few templates you can choose from, they’re very basic. Of course, it's never a good idea to turn your resume into an art project but you do want a format that stands out. 

Cons key takeaways:

Not ATS optimized

One-size-fits-all approach

Wrong file type

Generic templates

Limited design flexibility

EXPERT TIP: View 200+ more professional resume samples for all industries, along with a guide to writing resumes from our career experts.

What should you do instead?

The Indeed resume builder is only one of a metric ton of other options out there, including other resume builders, artificial intelligence, professional resume writers, and do-it-yourself options, each with their own set of pros and cons. Let’s explore a few other options. 

Other free options

Before you waste a lot of time researching other online resume builders, you should understand that they’re basically all the same. They’re simple to use and cost-effective but lack customization options and have very basic templates. If you think of your resume as an investment in your future, it’s probably a good idea to find something that requires some type of actual investment (time or money) so that you get a good return.

Artificial intelligence

In addition to online resume-builders, like Indeed’s resume builder, you could utilize AI to help you craft your resume. You’ll end up with more options for customization which gives you the option to properly tailor the resume to your industry and job targets. There could be some steep learning curves, depending on the platform you use and the language that’s produced by the AI program may end up presenting you more as a doer than an achiever . 

Professional resume writing service

If you think of your resume as one of the most important financial documents you’ll ever own – without it, you can’t pay bills, go on vacation, or save for retirement – it stands to reason that you should consider every avenue for making sure that it opens career doors to propel you toward financial security. With that said, a professional resume writing service – like the one ZipJob offers – can certainly ensure you get a resume that is properly formatted and tailored to your job targets. Of course, there is a monetary requirement from you that could stretch your budget. 

Do-it-yourself

A lot of people fall into the DIY category. After all, it’s your career, you should know how to write about it, right? That’s not always the case, especially if you have a hard time bragging about your achievements. Of course, this is the most cost-effective option that gives you the most control over the final product, but there’s a lot to know – like resume-writing best practices and rules that will get you past the ATS. 

The bottom line – the review

Before you decide the option that’s best for you, there are some additional things you should think about, including:

Do you have time to write a resume on your own?

Do you have good writing skills?

Are you confident in your abilities and experiences enough to write about them?

If you’re changing careers, do you understand what transferable skills are?

How competitive is your industry?

Are you applying for an entry-level, mid-range, or executive position?

The answers to these questions can have a major impact on which resume-writing option is best for you. If you are applying for an entry-level position and don’t have a lot of experience, then you could probably get away with using Indeed’s resume builder. On the other hand, if you’re changing careers or are applying for something a little higher up on the career ladder, Indeed’s resume-writing tool is not going to serve you very well. 

Also, considering that you are responsible for coming up with all of the text on the resume you build on Indeed, if you have poor writing skills you’ll want to avoid using the platform. Spelling, grammar, syntax, clarity, and consistency all play a vital role in how your resume is perceived by prospective employers. It isn’t just about your skills and achievements. A simple typo on your resume could cause your resume to end up in the garbage. 

Likewise, if you’re applying for a role in a highly competitive job market, Indeed’s resume builder will probably not serve you very well. The simplicity of the templates provided by Indeed will not help you stand out from the crowd. When you’re trying to catch the eye of a higher-level recruiter or hiring manager, you want something more customized. 

The next step – upload to Indeed

The sheer popularity of Indeed’s website for searching for jobs and researching companies cannot be understated. So, even if it isn’t in your best interest to use Indeed’s free resume builder, you definitely want to have your resume on the platform. Mostly because it makes the overall application process easier. 

Therefore, after you figure out which option is best for you and have a finalized, customized, and optimized resume in your hands, you should upload it to Indeed so you can both easily apply to jobs with a single click and have employers find your resume in Indeed's database to reach out to you directly.

More than uploading your resume, though, you need to complete your Indeed profile. This goes a step further in helping recruiters find you and learn more about what you can bring to the table for any position they may have open. Just as you would tailor your resume with relevant keywords from job descriptions, be sure you’re customizing your Indeed profile with the right keywords, too. 

Your future is on the line

Your career is too important to leave to chance! Having the right resume makes all the difference in the world, which is why you have to think critically about whether to use Indeed’s free resume builder or one of the other options that we talked about. Submitting a poorly constructed resume to a new job opening can have a negative impact and close doors that could’ve been your pathway to financially rewarding opportunities. 

Remember, companies get hundreds of applications for every job they have open so your resume has to stand out from that crowd and capture the attention of the hiring manager. Otherwise, you can kiss a call for an interview goodbye. 

If hiring a professional resume writer is the option you’ve decided is best for you, ZipJob’s team of writers is standing by to work with you on a personal basis to highlight your skills, achievements, and qualifications in a way that gets you past the ATS and impresses a hiring manager. 

Recommended reading:

12 Best Resume Builder Tools

Best Resume Writing Services (All Industries)

How Much Do Resume Writing Services Cost in 2023?

Marsha Hebert, Professional Resume Writer

Marsha is a resume writer with a strong background in marketing and writing. After completing a Business Marketing degree, she discovered that she could combine her passion for writing with a natural talent for marketing. For more than 10 years, Marsha has helped companies and individuals market themselves. Read more advice from Marsha on ZipJob's blog .

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6 things you could be doing wrong if you're struggling to get a job

• The labor market is softening, and it might be harder to get a job compared to the past.
• Business Insider talked to job experts about why applicants might struggle to get hired for a role.
• A poorly organized résumé or not learning about a company during interview prep could be issues.

If you're not hearing back after applying for jobs , you may need to make some changes to your résumé, interview prep, or search strategy.

A cooler labor market means it could be harder to find a job now than a couple of years ago. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows there were 1.2 job openings per unemployed person this past June compared to 1.5 job openings per unemployed person in June 2023.

"It's remaining steady, but it's definitely softer than it was several years back," Leanne Getz, vice president of tech staffing firm Experis's delivery channels, said about the labor market. "So, not surprising that applicants are having a little bit more of a challenge to identify opportunities."

Stacie Haller, the chief career advisor with ResumeBuilder.com , said she thinks "people aren't necessarily as prepared when they enter a job search today" because they may think the job market is the same as it was many years ago.

But for job seekers who are struggling, there are ways you can try to improve your odds. Below are some things that you may want to change if you aren't landing a job .

You are sending out way too many résumés

One issue could be you're sending out a bunch of résumés , including for jobs you don't even want or for jobs where you don't have the desired experience. Haller suggested having most of what an employer is looking for before applying to the role.

"I would prefer people to not send out 800 résumés just throwing spaghetti against the wall," Haller said. "That's when you hear from people, 'It's a horrible market, and I can't get a job.'"

Gabrielle Davis, a career trends expert at Indeed, told Business Insider people should first consider the things that matter to them in a job beyond a paycheck, such as the benefits and whether it's remote, instead of first applying to many roles.

"I think that when job seekers function from maybe a place of slight panic, they don't do that because they feel like, 'I just have to move fast because the market's moving fast. I have to get all the stuff in, and I'm just going to see what sticks,'" Davis said. "And that's not always really fruitful for them. So I think that it's better to take a much more intentional approach to the actual job search."

You are waiting too long to apply

OK, so you have decided to send out fewer résumés that are more focused on gigs you want. Now, don't wait too long to actually apply.

Related stories

Haller said job seekers should reply to a job posting within 24 hours "to at least have a shot to be in the mix."

Haller said people come to her and say, "'Oh, I saw a job posting that I'm interested in.' And they take days, if not a week, to reply."

She added, "By the time they send their résumé out, that company's probably on final interviews."

You might need to reconsider the contents or format of your résumé

Six seconds. That's how long Haller said job seekers have "to capture somebody's attention by your résumé or by your profile."

Formatting could be important to consider when putting together a résumé in hopes of successfully landing work.

"You need to know how to create and format a résumé that works in today's job search process," Haller said, adding this "means the formatting should be cleaned, standardized, and easy to read."

Getz said the résumé should also be similar to things noted on a candidate's online profile, like on LinkedIn. She also said résumés should be accurate and be in their own words.

"We're seeing candidates utilizing certain AI tools to generate the résumé, and it's fine to use it to help guide or give you suggestions, but you want to be careful about having something like ChatGPT design your whole résumé," Getz said. "It's easy for recruiters to pick up on that. It doesn't seem authentic."

You are not considering your connections

There's more that can be done than uploading a résumé to a job application. Haller said job seekers may want to see who they can contact at the company beforehand.

Haller said, "The last thing you want to do is dump your résumé into" an applicant tracking system "if you have another way to make contact inside that company."

Getz noted people could consider who they may know at the place they're hoping to get a job when they are applying.

"It is often about the network and who you know, but it also is sometimes just a game of numbers," Getz said. "There are so many applicants. You have to just keep applying, be consistent, be persistent, be patient."

You are not doing sufficient prep for an interview

If you get the good news that an employer is interested in interviewing you, it's probably best to prepare for the interview with some research.

Haller said people should know the company's mission, why they even want to work for the employer, and prepare questions to ask during the interview.

"I've interviewed people as a hiring manager with people who have no idea what the company does or why they're even interested in a job," Haller said. "That's a waste of everybody's time."

Some helpful hints of what to say during the interview are in the job posting itself.

"The job posting tells you exactly what they're looking for," Haller said. "That's where your prep starts. So if you know what they're looking for, you want to prepare as many examples that you can about what they might ask in reference to what they're looking for in the person they hire."

Getz also talked about being prepared and other basics of interviewing. Getz said to make "sure that you're dressed professional, that you've prepared, that you've done your research on the company that you're interviewing with, that you have strong questions to ask, that you're prepared to answer behavioral style questions."

Don't do an interview from a car and eliminate any background noise, Getz also advised. Getz emphasized the basics of doing an interview because "it could be one of those minor, little things that knock you out of consideration that could have been overcome by simply being prepared, dressed for the interview."

Davis suggested preparing a few main points that you want to reiterate in every interview round. "If you're speaking to maybe two or three people at a company, just because you've spoken to the same people at one company doesn't always mean that they are sharing exactly what you've spoken about to their colleagues," Davis said.

She added those main points can help show your prep, and she said, "Any sign of preparedness to an employer means, OK, this person is showing up. They're here. They're taking it seriously."

You aren't sending a thank-you note, or you're following up too much

Davis said a handwritten thank-you note could be good if you did an in-person interview. Even if it was not an in-person interview, Davis said sending a simple thank-you note on the same day could be good.

Davis said the note should thank the person for their time and include something personal from the interview to show you were listening.

"I think that really goes a long way," Davis said. "And after that, it's kind out of your hands, so waiting to hear back from the recruiter or hiring manager and then going from there."

Getz said "to be cautious about how often you're following up" because you're not the only job candidate a hiring manager is talking to. She said people don't want to overdo their reach out, and it should be professional.

How long did it take you to find a job, or how long have you been unemployed? Reach out to this reporter to share your experience at [email protected] .

Watch: "Don't run too fast" – the best advice Delta CMO Alicia Tillman received

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