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    Affordable AI ATS Platforms Compared for 2025

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    Andy Bennett​
    ·July 24, 2025
    Affordable AI ATS Platforms Compared for 2025

    Affordable-ai-ats-platforms-comparison is very important for small businesses. They want to make hiring easier in 2025. MokaHR, Recooty, and Manatal are top ats platforms. They are popular because they cost less and use strong AI tools for hiring. More small businesses use these platforms now. They want ai sourcing, less bias, and flexible prices. Manatal, for example, has plans starting at $15 per user each month. This makes it easy for small businesses to hire well. 

    Bar chart showing ATS adoption rates among Fortune 500 companies, large enterprises, recruiters, and SMBs in 2024-2025

    Affordable-ai-ats-platforms-comparison helps small businesses with hiring, ai, and cost. As ai changes how people get hired, these platforms give real value. They have flexible prices and strong ai features. 

    Affordable-AI-ATS-Platforms-Comparison

    Affordable-AI-ATS-Platforms-Comparison
    Image Source: pexels

    Pricing Overview

    Affordable-ai-ats-platforms-comparison looks at how much these tools cost. Most platforms charge by user or by what features you pick. This helps companies spend less as they get bigger. Manatal is one of the cheapest, starting at $15 for each user every month. Zoho Recruit and Freshteam have free and paid plans. This is good for new and small businesses. Most ats vendors want each user to have a license. Some give discounts if you pay for a whole year. If you want extra things like interview scheduling or special reports, it might cost more.

    Bar chart comparing monthly and annual per-user rates for Free, Standard, Professional, and Enterprise HR software plans in 2025

    Tip: User-based pricing lets companies add or remove recruiters when teams change. This keeps the ats easy to afford for new and growing companies.

    Key Features

    Affordable-ai-ats-platforms-comparison shows the main features that help users. AI recruiting software is now in many ats platforms. Zoho Recruit has an AI assistant called Zia. Zia helps match people to jobs, writes job descriptions, reads resumes, and automates tasks. Manatal uses AI to scan resumes and match people to jobs. It finds candidates from many places and matches them to open jobs. This saves time and helps hire faster.

    MokaHR’s AI recruiting software gathers candidates from job boards and social media. Its tools help recruiters focus on the best people. Zoho Recruit’s Zia AI assistant helps lower bias by using the same rules for everyone. These platforms also help with tasks like reading resumes and ranking candidates. Most affordable AI ATS platforms comparison choices do not have strong AI features, but Zoho Recruit and Manatal are different because of their AI tools. 

    Use Cases

    Affordable-ai-ats-platforms-comparison platforms help with many hiring needs. Startups often pick Recooty or Freshteam because they are easy and cheap. These tools help small teams post jobs, track people, and automate simple tasks. SMBs like Manatal for its AI tools and easy design. Zoho Recruit is good for companies that want strong AI, automated tasks, and reports.

    • Common ways to use affordable ai ats platforms in 2025:

      • AI reads and scores resumes to check candidates fast.

      • Ranks people by skills, experience, and fit.

      • Lowers bias by hiding names and using fair rules.

      • Automates things like setting up interviews and sending updates.

      • Uses data to help make better hiring choices.

      • Chatbots and messages keep candidates interested.

      • Lets teams work together and makes hiring easier.

    Recooty helps new and small businesses grow with automation, unlimited job posts, and custom steps. Manatal helps growing companies with AI tools and simple tasks. Zoho Recruit gives big teams strong automation, rule-following, and reports. These platforms cut down on manual work, make candidates happier, and help companies find the best people faster.

    What Is an ATS?

    An applicant tracking system, or ATS, is a kind of software. It helps companies with hiring new people. The ATS keeps track of all the job candidates. It follows each person as they move through the hiring steps. The system can also do things like set up interviews and send messages. Five years ago, ATS was just a simple database. Now, it has many new features. Today’s ATS can post jobs in many places at once. It can talk to candidates automatically. It lets companies make their own career pages. It can also work with other business tools. These new tools help hiring teams sort and find people faster. Modern ATS platforms help companies keep in touch with good candidates for the future. They also help follow data privacy rules.

    AI in ATS

    AI recruiting software has changed how ATS works. AI tools can look at resumes and pick out important skills. This makes hiring faster and easier. It also helps make sure good people are not missed. AI recruiting software can study old hiring data. It helps recruiters guess how well someone might do at the job. AI tools use chatbots and send messages to keep people interested. AI recruiting software can suggest jobs that fit a person’s skills. These tools let recruiters spend more time on big decisions. They also make the hiring process better for everyone. AI recruiting software helps lower bias by looking at skills, not things like age or gender.

    Note: AI recruiting software in ATS can make hiring 30% faster. It can also help hire more diverse people by 20%. But people still need to use their own judgment to find the best fit.

    Why Affordability Matters

    Affordability is very important for small and medium businesses. They need to save money when picking an ATS. Affordable ATS platforms help companies spend less and hire better. For example, some Bronx SMBs hired people 40% faster. They also spent 35% less money per hire after using an ATS. These systems can cut down on paperwork by 60%. This lets HR teams spend more time finding good workers. Affordable AI recruiting software gives small businesses helpful tools. These include posting jobs, checking candidates, and working together as a team. This means better candidates, a stronger company image, and smarter hiring. So, affordable ATS platforms help businesses find and hire the best people more easily.

    Top ATS Platforms Reviewed

    MokaHR

    MokaHR is a top ats platform for companies wanting better hiring. It uses ai recruiting software to help with hiring tasks. The platform has tools for screening candidates and posting jobs on many sites. It also helps automate work steps. MokaHR uses matching and smart filters to find good candidates fast. Both small and big companies can use it. You can pay by subscription, per hire, or by different levels. Small businesses pay from $19 to $199 each month. Big companies might pay up to $530 monthly. MokaHR does not show prices online. Companies must ask for a price quote.

    Aspect

    Details

    Pricing Models

    Subscription, pay-per-hire, tiered, à la carte

    Pricing Range

    $19–$199/month (small business), up to $530/month (enterprise)

    Ideal User Profile

    Companies of all sizes seeking ai-enabled screening, multi-platform job posting, integrations

    User Experience

    Good for new users, but setup and training required

    Benefits

    Improves hiring efficiency, enhances candidate experience, automates repetitive tasks

    MokaHR is good for companies that want to make hiring easier. Its ai-powered tools help do boring tasks and save time. But users need to spend time setting it up and learning how to use it.

    Recooty

    Recooty is a top ats platform for startups and small businesses. It is simple and does not cost much. It uses ai recruiting software to read resumes and track people. Recooty’s tools help screen candidates fast and save money. The platform is easy to use and works with big job boards.

    Plan

    Price (per month)

    Features

    Startup

    $25

    20 job postings, basic tracking, job board integration

    Growth

    $49

    50 job postings, advanced tracking, custom career page, priority support

    Enterprise

    Custom

    Unlimited postings, analytics, API, custom integrations

    Recooty is easy to set up and helps teams work together. It makes hiring faster and looks nice. But it does not have a mobile app, so some people may not use it everywhere. Its ai recruiting software reads resumes and matches people to jobs. Sometimes it misses people with odd resume styles. Recooty is good for startups, small businesses, nonprofits, and healthcare groups that need quick hiring.

    Tip: Recooty’s ai tools help small teams handle many candidates without more HR staff.

    Manatal

    Manatal is a top ats platform with strong ai recruiting software and low prices. It starts at $15 per user each month. You get unlimited resume reading, ai candidate tips, and custom pipelines. Manatal’s ai tools help screen, match, and post jobs on over 30 sites and social media. It works in many languages and follows GDPR rules, so global companies can use it.

    Strengths

    Suitable For

    User-friendly interface

    Startups, SMBs, large enterprises

    AI-driven candidate recommendations

    High-volume recruiting, agencies

    Automated job posting

    Mid-sized to large companies

    Customizable recruitment pipelines

    Organizations with standard workflows

    Collaboration tools

    Recruitment teams, HR departments

    Mobile app availability

    Recruiters on the go

    Affordable pricing

    All business sizes

    Weaknesses

    Impacted Users

    Limited client portal customization

    Agencies needing strong branding

    Occasional integration glitches

    Companies relying on many integrations

    Navigation difficulties

    New or less tech-savvy users

    Limited reporting

    Data-driven HR teams

    Performance issues

    High-volume users

    Limited HR management

    Companies needing full HRIS

    Less adaptable for unique workflows

    Niche organizations

    Manatal’s ai tools help find and match people fast. Its built-in CRM and resume reading are good for agencies and growing companies. Some users think reports are too simple. People who want lots of changes may need another platform.

    Freshteam (Free/Low-Cost Option)

    Freshteam has a free plan for up to 50 users and 5 job posts. It gives basic ats features like tracking, storing resumes, and talking to candidates. Freshteam’s ai recruiting software is not strong, but it works with Office 365, Google, and social media. It also links to other Freshworks tools, so it is good for companies using those.

    Freshteam’s free plan lets teams work together, manage leave, and use a mobile app. It is easy to use and cheap for basic hiring. But its ai recruiting software is limited and support can be slow. Freshteam is best for small businesses, nonprofits, and schools that want simple, low-cost ats. 

    Feature Comparison

    Platform

    AI Features

    Automated Candidate Screening

    Matching

    Bias Reduction

    Integrations

    Pricing (per user/mo)

    Best For

    MokaHR

    AI-enabled screening, automation

    Yes

    Yes

    Yes

    Job boards, HR tools

    $19–$199+

    All sizes, advanced recruiting

    Recooty

    AI resume parsing, job matching

    Yes

    Yes

    Partial

    Job boards

    $25–$49+

    Startups, SMEs, nonprofits

    Manatal

    AI recommendations, resume parsing

    Yes

    Yes

    No

    30+ job boards, CRM

    $15+

    High-volume, global recruiting

    Freshteam

    Limited AI, basic automation

    No

    No

    No

    Freshworks, Google

    Free–$50

    Small teams, basic recruiting

    Note: Manatal and MokaHR have the best ai tools for hiring. They offer automated screening, matching, and work with other systems. Recooty is great for startups. Freshteam gives basic ats features for free.

    How to Choose the Best ATS for Startups and SMBs

    Define Needs and Budget

    Startups and small businesses must know what they need most. They should check price, how easy it is to use, features, ways to change it, and help from support. The table below shows how much each thing matters when picking an ATS:

    Criteria

    Importance Weight

    Pricing

    25%

    Ease of Use

    25%

    Feature Set

    20%

    Customization & Integrations

    20%

    Customer Support

    10%

    Bar chart showing importance weights of ATS criteria for startups and SMBs

    Small businesses should look at Manatal, Workable, and iSmartRecruit. These platforms have good prices and strong ai features. If a company needs more, it can try advanced tools. But most small businesses do well with simple, low-cost options. Picking a budget early helps save money and keeps hiring fast.

    Check Integrations

    Integrations are very important when picking an ATS. Small businesses use many tools for HR, payroll, and projects. The best ats for startups connects with job boards, email, and work apps. This means less typing and a smoother hiring process. Zoho Recruit, for example, works with Zoho HR and other tools. Some platforms need Zapier to connect everything. Good integrations help with rules, make candidates happy, and let teams find the right people.

    Tip: Startups should see if the ATS links with payroll, benefits, rules, and learning tools to help them grow.

    Use Free Trials

    Free trials let small businesses try the best ats for startups before buying. Most top platforms give 14 or 15 days to test. Teams can try ai recruiting, finding people, and interview tools in real hiring. The table below shows how long free trials last and what you can use:

    Platform

    Free Trial Duration

    Scope of Trial Features

    Skima AI

    14 days

    AI-driven candidate sourcing, screening, interview scheduling, analytics, integrations

    Workable

    15 days

    Full features in Standard plan, job advertising, candidate evaluation, collaboration, analytics

    Manatal

    14 days

    AI-powered recommendations, sourcing, ATS and CRM features

    Zoho Recruit

    15 days + forever free

    Core ATS with AI, ongoing limited free access

    Loxo

    Forever free + demo

    Limited free version with core ATS and recruitment features

    Bar chart comparing free trial durations of leading affordable AI ATS platforms

    Manatal’s free trial lets you use ai recruiting, find candidates, and see reports. Free trials help small businesses see if the platform makes hiring better. Teams can check how each system works with candidates and hiring before picking the best one.

    Best Applicant Tracking Systems by Category

    Best Applicant Tracking Systems by Category
    Image Source: unsplash

    Best Overall

    Manatal is the top applicant tracking system for 2025. Experts and users both say it is great. It is not expensive and has strong ai features. People like how easy it is to use. You can move things around with drag-and-drop. Manatal uses ai to help pick the best candidates. It also has good search tools. Small and big companies can use Manatal. This makes it a good choice for many.

    Feature/Aspect

    Details

    Platform

    Manatal

    Pricing

    Starting at $15 per user per month (Professional Plan)

    AI Features

    AI-powered candidate filtering and recommendations, AI-based prescreening

    User Score

    4.7

    Popularity Score

    4.2

    Product Score

    4.2

    Target Market

    SMBs (Small and Medium Businesses)

    Key Features

    Drag-and-drop pipelines, AI candidate matching, Boolean and Advanced Search

    Customer Examples

    Unilever, Coca-Cola, Panasonic, Ogilvy, Toyota

    Support

    24/5 live chat, email support, documentation, free onboarding and training

    Limitations

    No free plan, interface only in English, limited API access for lower-tier plans

    Comparison to Others

    Other platforms like Workable and Paradox have higher user scores but are not budget-friendly

    Manatal’s ai tools help recruiters find good people fast. You can change the hiring steps to fit your needs. Many small businesses pick Manatal because it saves money and gives good help.

    Manatal is affordable, has strong ai, and a high user score. That is why it is the best applicant tracking system for 2025.

    Best for Startups

    Startups need an applicant tracking system that is simple and cheap. It should have features that help them grow fast. The best ats for startups in 2025 uses ai to match candidates. It also connects with many other tools and is easy to use. Zoho Recruit and Breezy HR are the top choices.

    ATS Platform

    Key Features

    Pros

    Cons

    Breezy HR

    Drag-and-drop candidate pipelines, custom questionnaires, incognito apply (removes bias), background checks, analytics

    Free forever plan, user-friendly, covers entire hiring process

    Higher cost than some, fewer job boards

    Zoho Recruit

    AI candidate matching, one-click posting to 75+ job boards, consolidated candidate database, mobile-friendly portal

    Free trial, 50+ integrations, easy interface, recruiting to onboarding

    N/A

    Workable

    AI-powered candidate recommendations, 70+ integrations, instant posting to 200+ job boards, interview scheduling, onboarding portal

    Free trial, LinkedIn RSC integration, robust end-to-end features 

    No free plan, some features add-ons only

    JazzHR

    Candidate tracking and ranking, HR tool integrations, customizable branding, fast e-signatures, compliance reporting

    Fast setup, highly customizable, unlimited jobs/users

    Email-only support on low tier, fewer features than competitors

    Zoho Recruit gives startups ai matching and lots of ways to connect with other apps. Breezy HR has a free plan and is easy for new businesses to use. Both help startups find and manage candidates well.

    Startups do best with platforms that use ai, are easy, and have good prices. Zoho Recruit and Breezy HR are the best ats for startups in 2025.

    Best Free Option

    Small businesses want applicant tracking systems that do not cost extra. ATZ CRM is the best free platform with strong ai features. It uses GPT to help write job descriptions and notes. You can change the dashboard and connect it to email and calendar. These tools help small businesses hire and keep track of people without paying.

    ATZ CRM’s ai tools are better than other free systems. Breezy HR and Zoho Recruit have free plans, but their ai is not as strong. ATZ CRM helps small businesses make better job posts and follow candidates easily.

    ATZ CRM is the best free choice for small businesses that want advanced ai in an applicant tracking system.

    Best for Customization

    Some companies want to change their hiring steps to fit their needs. Manatal is the best for this among affordable ai applicant tracking systems. It lets you build your own hiring steps with drag-and-drop. Teams can make workflows that work for them.

    Platform

    Customization Options and Features

    Why It Leads in Customization

    Manatal

    Offers customizable recruitment pipelines with a drag-and-drop interface for easy tailoring of workflows.

    Recognized as the best for customizable pipelines among affordable AI ATS platforms, enabling tailored recruitment workflows. 

    Transformify

    Provides AI-powered ATS with features like job posting on hundreds of boards and AI-generated candidate success rates.

    Focuses on end-to-end ATS management but customization emphasis is less compared to Manatal.

    Manatal’s options help both small and big companies make hiring steps that fit their goals. The drag-and-drop tool makes it easy to change steps, give out tasks, and watch how candidates do. Transformify has ai too, but you cannot change things as much as with Manatal.

    Companies that want to build their own hiring steps and change fast should pick Manatal for the best customization in affordable ai applicant tracking systems.

    Businesses in 2025 can hire better with the right affordable AI ATS. The table below lists top choices for different needs:

    ATS Platform

    Best For

    Key Features

    Starting Price

    Manatal

    Startups, SMBs

    AI job matching, drag-and-drop pipelines

    $15/user/mo

    Recruitee

    SMBs

    AI job builder, bias reduction, mobile app

    Transparent

    TeamTailor

    Larger teams

    All-in-one ATS, HRIS integration

    Custom

    Bar chart comparing reported percentage improvements in business metrics after adopting affordable AI ATS platforms

    Companies say they hire up to 50% faster and spend 30% less. First, figure out what your business needs. Next, look at the features and try free trials. You can start using an ATS or ask for a demo from MokaHR or another top platform today.

    FAQ

    What is an AI-powered ATS?

    An AI-powered ATS uses artificial intelligence to help recruiters. It looks at resumes and matches skills to jobs. It can also do some tasks automatically. This saves time for companies. It helps them find better people to hire.

    How do affordable ATS platforms reduce hiring bias?

    Affordable ATS platforms use AI to look at skills and experience. They hide things like names and photos. This helps companies pick people in a fair way. It also helps teams become more diverse.

    Can small businesses use these ATS platforms easily?

    Small businesses can use these ATS platforms without special training. Most have easy dashboards and simple guides. Many let you try them for free. Teams can test features before they buy.

    What integrations do top ATS platforms support?

    Top ATS platforms connect with job boards, email, and HR tools. They also work with calendars. These links help teams post jobs and set up interviews. Teams can manage everything in one place.

    Do affordable ATS platforms offer customer support?

    Most affordable ATS platforms give customer support by chat or email. Some have help centers and training. Some plans have better support than others. 

    See Also

    Building Predictive Models Using Advanced AI Hiring Tools

    AI Hiring Platforms Deliver Smart Interviewing Capabilities

    Harnessing AI Recruitment Tools To Forecast Candidate Outcomes

    Boost Recruitment Results Using MokaHR’s AI Hiring Solutions

    Moka Recognized As Leading AIGC Innovator In China’s HR Tech

    Schedule a Demo with MokaHR

    From recruiting candidates to onboarding new team members, MokaHR gives your company everything you need to be great at hiring.

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