Job application tracker template: download a free spreadsheet for Excel or Google Sheets.
Pick the columns, add the jobs you have applied to if you like, and download it. The sheet works out when to follow up on each application and marks the ones that are due.
The Excel file has a dropdown for each stage, works out each follow-up date, and turns a row yellow when its follow-up is due.
Free, and there is no account. The sheet is made in this browser; what you type is sent nowhere.
What each column in the tracker is for.
The standard sheet has the first three groups. Choose “With interviews” for the fourth, or “Simple” for six columns.
The job
- Company: Who you applied to. One row per application, so a second role at the same company is a second row.
- Role: The job title as the posting gives it, so you can find the posting again.
- Job link: The posting's address. Postings come down once they fill, so save a copy of the text in Notes if it matters.
- Location: City, or remote. Useful when you compare offers.
- Found on: Where you found it. After a month you can see which sources lead to interviews.
Where it stands
- Date applied: The day you sent it. The follow-up date is worked out from it.
- Stage: Where it stands, from a dropdown, so you can sort and filter by it.
- Next step: The one thing you do next, in a few words: "Email the recruiter", "Prepare the case study".
- Follow up on: Filled in for you: 7 days after the date applied, while the stage is Applied. Type over it to choose your own date.
Who and what
- Contact: The recruiter or referrer, and how to reach them.
- Resume version: Which resume you sent, so you know what they read before an interview.
- Notes: Salary, notice period, what they asked, anything to remember.
Interviews
- Interview date: The next interview. Send a thank-you within a day of it.
- Round: Which round is next.
- Thank-you sent: Whether you thanked them after the last interview.
Seven stages, and what each one asks of you.
The Stage column is a dropdown, so every row uses the same words and you can filter by them.
Saved
Apply, or delete the row if the posting has closed.
Applied
Wait 7 days. If you have not heard by then, send one short follow-up email to the recruiter.
Screening
Send a thank-you within a day of each conversation, and ask when you will hear.
Interview
Send a thank-you within a day of each conversation, and ask when you will hear.
Offer
Read the whole offer before you answer. If something should change, ask by email, with a reason.
Rejected
Ask once for feedback, then keep the row: it shows which roles and sources work for you.
Withdrawn
Nothing to do. Keep the row so you do not apply twice.
Ten minutes a week keeps the tracker useful.
A tracker only helps if it is up to date. This is the whole routine.
Update every stage
Ten minutes, once a week, on the same day. A reply you forgot to log is the one you forget to answer.
Follow up on the yellow rows
A row turns yellow 7 days after you applied, while it is still at Applied. One short email each, then move the date on.
Close what has gone quiet
No reply a month after a follow-up? Mark it Rejected and keep the row. Over a few months the rows show which roles, sources and resume versions get replies.
Rather not keep a spreadsheet? The job tracker in a free ResumeGuru account keeps every application on a board, with a match score for each. Not sure what to write? The follow-up email tool writes the thank-you and the status check. Got an offer? The salary negotiation email asks for more, with a reason.
What should a job application tracker include?
At least the company, the role, the date you applied, the stage and when to follow up. Add where you found the job, the contact and which resume you sent once you are applying to more than a handful.
How do I track job applications in Excel?
Download the Excel file above. Add one row the day you apply, pick the stage from the dropdown, and the follow-up date fills itself in. Use the arrows in the header to sort or filter by stage.
How do I use it in Google Sheets?
Download the Excel file, then in Google Sheets choose File, Import, Upload, and pick it: the dropdowns and the yellow highlight come with it. Or press Copy for Google Sheets and paste into a new sheet, which brings the rows without them.
When should I follow up on a job application?
About a week after you apply, if you have not heard: the tracker marks the row on day 7. After an interview, send a thank-you within a day, and follow up if the date they gave passes.
Should I keep rejected applications in the tracker?
Yes. Mark them Rejected rather than deleting them: they stop you applying twice, and over a few months they show which roles and sources lead to interviews.
Is what I type uploaded anywhere?
No. The sheet is made in your browser, and the file goes straight to your downloads. Nothing you type here is sent or stored, and there is no account.
A tracker counts the applications. Your resume decides how many get a reply.
The free review reads your whole resume in about a minute.