Free tool
Free Job Application Tracker Template (Google Sheets + Excel)
A free 12-column job application tracker template, updated 2026-09-20. It has a status dropdown, a follow-up date that flags overdue rows, and a Stats sheet that computes your response rate and interview rate from what you enter. No signup.
.xlsx opens in Excel, Numbers and Google Sheets (File, Import). CSV is the bare 12 columns.
What is in the template
Twelve columns you fill in, two the sheet fills in for you (Days since applied, Follow-up due), and a second sheet with the numbers. One row per application.
| Column | Why it is there |
|---|---|
| Company | One row per application, so the same company twice is two rows. |
| Role | The exact title from the posting. Titles drift between the ad and the offer. |
| Job link | Postings get taken down. Keep the URL so you can still find the description in your history. |
| Date applied | Drives the days-since-applied formula and tells you when to follow up. |
| Status | Dropdown: Saved, Applied, Screening, Interview, Offer, Rejected, Withdrawn. Feeds the Stats sheet. |
| Resume version sent | If you tailor per role you will forget which file went where. This is the column people regret not having. |
| Contact | Recruiter or hiring manager name and email, so follow-ups go to a person. |
| Salary | Posted range or what you asked for. Useful when offers arrive weeks apart. |
| Next step | What you are waiting for, in your own words. |
| Follow-up date | When to nudge. The sheet flags the row when this date passes with no reply. |
| Source | Dropdown: company site, LinkedIn, referral, Jobless, Indeed, other. After 30 rows you will see which source actually gets replies. |
| Notes | Interview questions, who you spoke to, what they cared about. |
How to use it
- 1
Get your own copy
Download the Excel file or open it in Google Sheets with File, Import. Everything lives in one file: the Applications sheet and a Stats sheet that reads from it.
- 2
Add a row the moment you apply
Company, role, link, date and the resume file name. Set Status to Applied and Follow-up date to one week out. That is the whole habit.
- 3
Move the status when something happens
Recruiter reply: Screening. Call booked: Interview. Every status change is what makes the Stats sheet honest.
- 4
Check the Follow-up due column on Monday
Rows turn yellow when the follow-up date has passed and the status is still Applied, Screening or Interview. Send the nudge, push the date a week.
- 5
Read the Stats sheet every two weeks
Response rate under 10 percent after 30 applications is a resume or targeting problem, not a volume problem. Interview rate tells you whether the resume is doing its job once someone reads it.
The formulas built in
| Metric | Where | How it is computed |
|---|---|---|
| Days since applied | Applications, column M | Today minus Date applied |
| Follow-up due? | Applications, column N | Yes when Follow-up date has passed and Status is still Applied, Screening or Interview. The row turns yellow. |
| Response rate | Stats | Rows that reached Screening or later, divided by everything past Saved |
| Interview rate | Stats | Rows at Interview or Offer, divided by applications sent |
| Applied this week | Stats | Rows with Date applied from this Monday onward |
When a spreadsheet stops working
A sheet is the right tool for the first 20 or 30 applications. It breaks in three predictable places: recruiter replies land in your inbox and the sheet does not know; you tailor the resume per role and stop recording which version went where; and past 50 rows the Monday follow-up check becomes the thing you skip.
The Jobless application tracker is the same board with the upkeep removed: it is free and unlimited, applying through the browser extension moves the card for you, and connecting your inbox lets it read recruiter replies and move cards to Interview, Offer or Rejected after you confirm. Each card keeps the exact resume and answers you sent.
Job application tracker template FAQ
- How do I make a job application tracker in Google Sheets?
- Open a blank sheet, put one application per row, and add these columns: Company, Role, Job link, Date applied, Status, Resume version sent, Contact, Salary, Next step, Follow-up date, Source, Notes. Turn Status into a dropdown with Data, Data validation. Add a column with =TODAY()-D2 for days since applied. Or skip the setup and import the template above, which already has the dropdowns, the formulas and a Stats sheet.
- What columns should a job search tracker have?
- The five you cannot skip are Company, Role, Date applied, Status and Follow-up date. The one most people leave out and regret is Resume version sent. Salary, Contact, Source and Notes make the sheet useful after the first 20 rows, when patterns start to show.
- Does the template work in Excel and Google Sheets?
- Yes. The .xlsx file opens directly in Excel, Numbers and LibreOffice. In Google Sheets use File, Import, Upload; the dropdowns, the conditional formatting and the formulas in both sheets carry over. The CSV is the same 12 columns with no formulas, for anything else.
- When should I follow up on a job application?
- Seven days after applying if there is no reply, then once more a week later. After a screening call or interview, follow up on the day they said they would get back to you. The template sets the first follow-up date for you and flags the row when it passes.
- Is the job application tracker template free?
- Yes. No email, no signup, no watermark. Download the Excel or CSV file above and keep it. It is the same column layout the Jobless application tracker uses, so moving over later is a copy and paste, not a rebuild.
- What is the difference between this spreadsheet and the Jobless tracker?
- The spreadsheet only changes when you edit it. The Jobless tracker is the same board, free and unlimited, but it updates itself: applying through the browser extension moves the card to Applied, and connecting your inbox lets it read recruiter replies and move cards to Interview, Offer or Rejected after you confirm. Each card also links to the exact resume and answers you sent. Start with the sheet; switch when the upkeep costs more than the tracking is worth.