Skip to content

The document vs the target

ShouldApply vs Kickresume: Document Design vs Job Decisions

Kickresume is the design-forward resume builder: 40+ HR-designed templates, a GPT-powered writer, an ATS checker, translation into 8 languages, and a personal website builder that turns your resume into a site. At $96/year for Premium it's also the cheapest annual plan in its category, and verified students get Premium free.

It's a document tool, fully. There's no job tracker, no job matching, no per-posting keyword targeting, and nothing that evaluates whether a specific job is worth your time. That's not a criticism of Kickresume; it's the boundary of the category. ShouldApply operates entirely on the other side of that boundary.

Score a job freeTwo halves of one application

Last updated

An example ShouldApply fit report. A Senior Platform Engineer role at Northwind scores 67 out of 100, with an 11 percent ghost probability, and the report lists three deductions: Terraform depth wants L4 where the candidate reads as L2, minus 18 points; team size wants lead experience, minus 9; and a preferred fintech background, minus 6.

The short version

These two barely compete at all

Kickresume builds and designs the artefact. We decide where it goes. Most people who use both touch them at different moments of the same application.

Everything on this page about Kickresume links to their own pages, with the date we checked it.

The short answer

Pick Kickresume if
You want the best-looking resume in the category, or you are a verified student, who gets Premium free.
Pick ShouldApply if
You have a good document already and need to decide where to send it.

Where the boundary sits

A beautiful resume still needs somewhere worth sending it

Kickresume's ATS checker examines your document in isolation, which is the correct scope for a builder. Everything on the right lives outside the file.

Kickresume

The artefact

  • 40+ HR-designed templates, the best looking in the category
  • A GPT-4.1 writer and 20,000 pre-written phrases
  • An ATS checker that reads the document
  • A personal website builder and translation into 8 languages

Answers: is this document good?

ShouldApply

The target

  • A 0-100 score for one listing against your profile
  • Skill depth on an L1-L5 scale, read from the JD's language
  • Ghost probability from posting age, reposts and disclosure
  • A salary benchmark by role and location

Answers: should this document go here?

Feature by feature

ShouldApply and Kickresume, side by side

Every row is a claim we would defend in writing. Kickresume wins on design, price and language support outright.

Feature comparison between ShouldApply and Kickresume. Three columns: feature, ShouldApply, Kickresume.
FeatureShouldApplyScore a job freeKickresume
Core functionJob fit scoring (0-100)Resume and cover letter builder
Template designNot included. N/ABest-in-class, 40+ templates
AI writingJD-specific tailoring (Pro)GPT-based section writer
Per-job targetingIncluded. Yes (score + gap report)Not included. No (ATS check is document-level)
Ghost job detectionIncluded. Yes (0-95%)Not included. No
Salary benchmarksIncluded. YesNot included. No
Personal website builderNot included. NoIncluded. Yes
PricingFree + $14/mo ProFree + $24/mo or $96/yr

Cost

Their annual plan is the cheapest thing on this page

Kickresume Premium is $96 a year, which works out to $8 a month, and verified students get it free. On price alone they win, and it is not close.

Monthly the numbers look different, $24 against our $14, but a resume builder is something you use intensely for a few weeks. An annual plan is the honest way to buy one, and theirs is excellent value.

Are resume builders worth paying for? →

What you pay per month

  • Kickresume, billed yearly$96/year, free for students$8
  • ShouldApply Prounlimited scoring$14
  • Kickresume, billed monthly$54 per quarter$24
Both checked 31 August 2026 against each company's own pricing page. Kickresume's free tier gives 4 templates; ShouldApply's gives 9 tools with no account plus limited scoring.

Where we are the wrong tool

You probably don't want ShouldApply if

  • You want the best-looking resume you can get. Kickresume's templates beat anything we offer, because we offer none.
  • You are a verified student. Their Premium is free for you and ours is not.
  • You need a personal website or your resume translated into another language.
  • Your applications are already well targeted and the document is what is letting you down.

Using both

Build it once, aim it every time

The document is a one-off project. The targeting is a decision you repeat every week.

  1. KickresumeBuild the base resume and get the design right once.
  2. ShouldApplyScore each listing you are considering.
  3. ShouldApplyRead the gap report for the ones worth pursuing.
  4. KickresumeAdjust the document for that specific role.
  5. YouSend it only where the score says it has a chance.

Straight answers

Questions about ShouldApply and Kickresume

Do ShouldApply and Kickresume compete?

Barely. Kickresume builds and designs the document. ShouldApply decides which jobs deserve it and shows the gaps to address. Most people who use both touch them at different steps of the same application.

Kickresume has an ATS checker. Is that a fit score?

No. It checks your document's parseability and structure, not your match to a specific job. A resume can pass every ATS check and still be a weak application for a given role. Fit lives at the listing level.

Which free tier is more useful?

Different things. Kickresume's free tier offers 4 templates with limits reviewers describe as tight for a real application. ShouldApply's free tier includes 9 standalone tools with no signup, plus limited scoring on a free account.

Great resume. Now pick the right jobs for it.

Score any listing free at ShouldApply.

Score a job freeTry 9 tools, no signup