Indeed, CareerBuilder, LinkedIn, Glassdoor, SimplyHired, and others are among the top 12 job search engines.
In this article, I’ll go through the advantages and disadvantages of each so you can pick which job search engines YOU should use to receive the most interviews.
Following that, we’ll discuss niche job sites, which can help you uncover job openings in your specific industry with far less competition than the major job search engines.
You’ll know where to upload your resume online to receive the greatest results by the time you’re done.
Let’s get this party started…
The 12 Best Online Job Search Engines
1. Indeed
Indeed hosts millions of job advertisements from tens of thousands of different websites.
They will have more employment opportunities published than any other site we are aware of, and job seekers typically remark that it is the quickest and easiest application process among online job search engines.
For these reasons, it is the top-recommended job board on our list and the place to start if you are new to job boards.
In addition to applying for jobs on Indeed, you can set up job alerts to be notified when new opportunities matching your criteria are posted, research and compare salaries, and much more.
(NOTE: We advocate using job search engines and job portals for no more than 20% of your total job search effort. So, we’re not suggesting that you spend your whole job hunt on sites like Indeed. That is not the ideal strategy, and you would be better off networking and applying directly to organizations that interest you!)
However, for the 20% of your time spent on job boards (remember, we recommend 20%), Indeed is where we’d start!
2. CareerBuilder
CareerBuilder has been online for more than 20 years and offers highly customizable search features so you can quickly see job postings that match exactly what you’re looking for.
Unlike Indeed, CareerBuilder gathers job postings directly from employers (they post their jobs directly to the site) (they post their jobs directly to the site). CareerBuilder also collaborates with numerous local news organizations to offer local employment advertising in their “classifieds” section.
This is why it’s a good idea to look at a few job boards; they collect data in very different ways, so you’ll see various positions posted on different job search engines/sites.
Someone in one industry may discover that Indeed is ideal, while CareerBuilder is not.
Someone in a different industry might find the exact reverse to be true.
So it’s all about trial and error to find which of these top 5 online job search engines produces the greatest results for YOU.
3. LinkedIn
LinkedIn has a lot to offer, including networking, a fantastic online course platform called LinkedIn Learning, and, yes, job searching!
Indeed, LinkedIn has one of the most effective online job search engines.
Approximately 50% of jobs posted on LinkedIn include “EasyApply,” which allows you to submit your information with only a few clicks (and without the need for a cover letter!)
You can also refine your searches to see only the jobs that interest you.
It is important to note that the efficiency of LinkedIn for you will be determined by the industry/field in which you are searching.
We’ve spoken with a number of job searchers and professionals in tech jobs, engineering, and so on, and they all seem to agree that LinkedIn is an excellent job search tool.
Unfortunately, people in a few different industries have stated that LinkedIn is not the greatest job search engine for them, so we recommend trying a few to see for yourself.
4. Glassdoor
Glassdoor began as a ratings/review service where employees could write anonymous employer reviews.
They’ve developed much since then, and now include a superb salary research tool as well as a job search engine that we’ve tested and highly recommend.
To begin searching, you must register.
However, we believe it is worthwhile to create a free account.
Glassdoor offers millions of job listings that you can search for and apply to directly from their website, so it’s well worth your time to look around.
5. SimplyHired
SimplyHired features excellent search functionality and personalization, as well as the ability to save your individual searches so you can return each week and simply repeat your own searches.
Employers can be filtered based on a variety of factors, including eco-friendly business culture, companies that support diversity, employers who recruit veterans, and more.
6. GetWork
GetWork, formerly LinkUp, is a sleek, modern job search engine that displays verified, up-to-date job listings from employer websites. This means you’ll spend less time applying for positions that are already filled or on hold.
(Occasionally, a company will fill a position but fail to remove it from job boards, and other job search sites may continue to display those advertisements for weeks or months.)
Along with verified listings, the site has a user-friendly design and good search options. You can restrict your results by city, state, or zip code, and you can search by job title, firm name, or keyword.
7. Snag a Job
Another sizable, well-known job search engine is SnagaJob.
Although creating a profile is recommended for optimum results, you can start browsing positions before doing so.
They are undoubtedly worth a look. You can use keywords and geographical filters, much like most other job sites and search engines.
8. Facebook Job Search
Despite the fact that many individuals use Facebook every day, not many are aware of this.
You can apply directly from your Facebook profile using the button provided by Facebook Jobs, which will display jobs in your neighbourhood.
Depending on your profile, this may be beneficial or negative.
A lot of your professional information might not be a good idea to post on Facebook in light of recent privacy issues. Therefore, since your profile is likely to already contain the information you need to apply for a job, we really prefer LinkedIn’s job search engine (listed at #3 on this list).
9. Zip Recruiter
You may use ZipRecruiter to look for jobs by location and keyword, and they recently introduced a new “Get Recruited” feature that they promise will put you in touch with employers (after you enter your name and email address).
It’s rare for a recruiter to have the ideal position for you and thought to reach out (since they probably have 1,000 other resumes/CVs in their computer, too), in our experience. We haven’t had an opportunity to test this out yet.
10. Robert Half
Last but not least, Robert Half is a sizable job search website with thousands of listings that you can browse.
The search results can be filtered by area, industry, job type, and job title.
The search engine displays the starting pay range for many professions, which we believe is fantastic. No one wants to apply for numerous jobs without knowing whether they will even pay enough.
11. Idealist
A non-profit organisation established in New York called Idealist.org lists full-time job openings, volunteer opportunities, and internships.
They are still one of the greatest job search websites to use, despite being more well-known in some circles for their volunteer and internship possibilities.
There are many of job search criteria to help you narrow down the job listings you view, a nice user experience that’s simple to use, and high-caliber job results that are on par with all of the other job search websites we’ve looked at so far.
Idealist is undoubtedly a website worth visiting if you’re looking for a career, and you’ll probably find openings from reputable businesses in lucrative, expanding fields.
12. Angel.co
A job board exclusively for startup positions is available on Angel.co. For anyone attempting to get into a tech startup or other growth-stage company with significant upside potential, it’s one of the greatest job search engines, if not the best.
Additionally, growth-stage businesses are my preferred category of business for persons in their 20s and 30s.
They provide greater chances to advance, take on new duties or areas, receive stock or equity, and other opportunities.
Therefore, if you’ve been looking for a startup job but have only seen opportunities with larger firms on the job search websites mentioned above, Angel.co will give you access to a different kind of employment that might be more appealing.
Specific Job Boards
It’s also worthwhile to investigate specialised employment boards and job search engines.
For instance, Dice is a sizable employment board dedicated to tech positions. If you work in technology, here is a list of 55 employment boards.
Many job searchers are beginning to understand the value of using niche job boards or industry-specific job boards.
Because fewer individuals are visiting these sites, you’ll have less competition and find more relevant job postings with less “crap” to sort through.
To begin started, we advise looking into employment boards relevant to your sector or expertise on Google.
Search terms that you might use include:
- Creative job boards
- Sales job boards
- Healthcare job boards
- Etc.
You should be able to locate job search engines devoted to particular fields of work (such as IT, pharma, etc.) and industries (like writing, design, sales).
Even employment boards for particular job categories, like remote jobs, exist.
Best Job Search Engine for Government Jobs
We propose USAJobs.gov, the official job site of the US Government, if you’re specifically seeking for job search websites for government positions.
Job seekers can browse through tens of thousands of openings, save job notifications and job postings, submit their resumes, and make them searchable by hiring government agencies.
Even if there are still other websites you can use to look for government jobs, this is the first one you should try.
Best Job Search Engine for UK Jobs
Although the majority of the aforementioned job search websites are geared toward the US, we advise our UK readers—or anybody else looking for job search websites with UK-based listings—to visit reed.co.uk.
One of the biggest and greatest job-search websites in the world, Reed mostly focuses on employment in the UK.
You can search on their job board by job type (such “software engineer”) and location (town, postal code, etc.)
It is akin to other significant job sites, however it has a UK focus.
Best Job Search Engine for Freelance Jobs
We advise using Upwork.com if you’re specifically looking for freelance jobs or just attempting to land new clients as a freelancer.
Although it is not faultless and has its share of complaints, in our experience it has the most clients that are of a high calibre and pay well. The user-friendly job search interface enables you to select and remember search parameters as well as rapidly apply to suitable job vacancies as you come across them.
One of the top freelance job search engines is Upwork, which can be the only freelance job board you require to start your own freelance business.
In addition to taking longer to master any job search engine if you spread your time across several of them, doing so will also spread out your reviews, which isn’t a good idea.
Warning: Not Too Much Dependence on Job Search Engines.
You should really just spend 20% of your time on job boards, as we already explained (this includes the top 12 job search engines we mentioned at the beginning of this page, as well as niche job websites).
Spending your remaining time networking and applying directly to positions that interest you will be a much better use of your time (find employers on LinkedIn, via searching Google, via your network, etc.)
You can fast get more interviews by doing this.
However, as long as you’re utilising those strategies the majority of the time, it may be advantageous to invest 20% of your time on internet job boards while following the aforementioned procedures.