Zety Resume Builder Review: Rate My CV vs Zety (2026)
A free ATS resume scanner vs a paid resume builder. Which one actually helps you get hired?
$0 vs $25.95/mo
Price difference
Zety is one of the most heavily marketed resume builders online. With over 11,600 reviews on Trustpilot and millions of monthly users, Zety offers a drag-and-drop resume editor with 18 professional resume templates, an AI writing assistant, and a built-in resume checker. The onboarding walks you through building a resume section by section, offering pre-written phrases and content suggestions tailored to each job title.
But here is what most Zety resume builder reviews do not tell you upfront: the free plan only lets you download your resume as a plain text file. To export a PDF or Microsoft Word document — the formats every employer expects — you need a paid subscription. The 14-day trial costs $1.95, then auto-renews at $25.95 every four weeks. Many users report building their entire resume, customizing fonts, adjusting page layout, and writing all their content, only to discover the download paywall at the final step. That frustration shows up repeatedly in Zety customer reviews across Reddit, Trustpilot, and employment forums.
Rate My CV solves a different problem entirely. Instead of building resumes from scratch, Rate My CV is a free ATS resume scanner. You upload your existing resume and a job description, and the tool analyzes keyword matches, formatting compatibility, and section structure — showing you exactly what to fix so your resume passes applicant tracking system filters. No account required. No subscription. No fee to see your results.
If you want a full AI-powered rewrite delivered as a professional DOCX, that is a one-time $7 payment — not a recurring subscription.
So the real question is not which tool is better — it is which one you actually need right now. If you are creating a resume from nothing, Zety is a resume builder. If you already have a resume and need to know whether it will survive ATS parsing for a specific job, Rate My CV is the scanner that tells you. Many job seekers use both: build in Zety, then optimize with Rate My CV before submitting each application.
Feature-by-feature comparison
Feature
Rate My CV
Zety
Primary function
ATS resume scanner — analyzes existing resumes
Resume builder — creates resumes from templates
ATS scoring against job descriptions
Free — compares your resume to any specific job posting
✓
Built-in resume checker gives general score only (not job-specific)
Keyword gap analysis
Shows exactly which keywords are missing from the job description
✓
No keyword matching against specific job descriptions
Resume builder / editor
Coming soon (Reactive Resume integration)
Full drag-and-drop editor with 18 resume templates and AI content suggestions
✓
AI resume rewrite
$7 one-time — complete DOCX rewrite delivered via email
✓
AI writing suggestions built into the resume editor
Cover letter builder
Free cover letter generator included
✓
Cover letter builder included with paid plan
Free plan download format
N/A (scanner tool — no download needed)
✓
TXT only — PDF and Word require paid subscription
Resume template quality
N/A (scanner, not builder)
Professional, modern templates with customizable fonts and page layout
✓
Subscription pricing
No subscription — $7 one-time rewrite option
✓
$1.95 trial then $25.95 every 4 weeks (auto-renewing)
Account required to use
No — scan immediately
✓
Yes — email signup required
Cancel subscription
Nothing to cancel — no subscription
✓
Must cancel before trial ends to avoid $25.95 charges
Pricing comparison
📄 Rate My CV
Free tierUnlimited ATS scans, no account required
Paid$7 one-time AI resume rewrite (DOCX)
No subscription. No recurring charges. No download paywall.
Zety
Free tierBuild and edit only — TXT export, no PDF download
Paid$1.95 trial then $25.95/4 weeks
Annual plan: $71.40/year ($5.95/month). Many Zety customer reviews mention billing surprises and difficulty cancelling.
The honest verdict
Comparing Zety and Rate My CV is really comparing two different categories of resume software. Zety is a resume creation tool — it helps you build a professional resume from scratch using templates, a drag-and-drop editor, and AI-powered content suggestions. Rate My CV is a resume optimization tool — it scans your existing resume against real job descriptions and shows you what is missing.
If you need to create a resume from nothing, Zety does that job well. The templates are professionally designed, the onboarding experience is smooth, and the AI writing assistant saves real time by suggesting pre-written phrases for each section of your resume. For job seekers who are starting from a blank page, a resume builder makes sense.
But the cost and pricing model deserve scrutiny. The free plan is essentially a preview — you build your entire resume, invest your time in customization, and then discover you cannot download it in a usable format without paying. That experience generates genuine frustration. If you decide to pay, the annual plan at $71.40 is reasonable for an extended job search. The trial-to-subscription model at $25.95 every four weeks is not.
And here is the gap Zety cannot fill: it does not tell you whether your resume will pass the applicant tracking system for a specific job. Zety's built-in resume checker gives a general quality score based on resume best practices, but it does not compare your document against a real job description. It cannot tell you which keywords from that posting are missing from your resume.
Rate My CV does exactly this — for free. Upload your resume and paste any job description. In 30 seconds you see your keyword match percentage, which required skills you are missing, and where to add them. No account, no subscription, no download fee.
The smartest workflow in 2026: use Zety or any resume builder you prefer to create your base document, then run every tailored version through Rate My CV before submitting. The builder creates. The scanner validates.
Is Zety resume builder legitimate and trustworthy?
Yes, Zety is a legitimate software company with a 4.2 out of 5 rating on Trustpilot from over 11,600 customer reviews. The resume builder itself works well. The complaints in Zety reviews center on the pricing model — specifically the auto-renewing subscription and the fact that PDF downloads require payment. Zety is not a scam, but you should understand the cost structure before investing time building your resume.
How much does Zety resume builder cost in 2026?
Zety pricing has three tiers. The free plan lets you build and edit but only exports as a TXT file. The 14-day trial costs $1.95 and provides full access including PDF and Word downloads, but it auto-renews at $25.95 every four weeks if you do not cancel. The annual plan costs $71.40 per year ($5.95 per month billed upfront). Rate My CV's ATS scanner is completely free, and the AI resume rewrite is a one-time $7 fee with no subscription.
Can you download a Zety resume for free?
You can download in TXT format for free. PDF and Microsoft Word downloads require a paid subscription. Some users work around this by using the browser print function (Ctrl+P) to save as PDF, though formatting and page layout may shift.
Is Zety ATS-friendly?
Zety's resume templates are designed to be parsed by applicant tracking system software, and most of their standard templates work well with ATS parsing. However, Zety's built-in resume checker only provides a general score — it does not compare your resume against a specific job description. For actual ATS keyword matching against real job postings, use Rate My CV's free scanner.
How do I cancel my Zety subscription?
Log into your Zety account, go to account settings, and cancel the auto-renewal before the trial period ends. Set a calendar reminder for day 12 or 13 of your 14-day trial — do not wait until the last day. Multiple Zety customer reviews on Trustpilot report difficulty with the cancellation process, so confirm you receive a cancellation confirmation via email.
Does Zety check your resume against job descriptions?
No. Zety's resume checker provides a general quality score and suggestions based on resume writing best practices. It does not analyze your resume against a specific job description, identify missing keywords, or tell you how well your document matches a particular role. Rate My CV's free scanner does exactly this.
Is Zety better than other resume builders like Kickresume or Resume.io?
Zety, Kickresume, and Resume.io are all resume builders with similar features. Zety has more content suggestions and a larger template library. Kickresume has stronger AI writing features. Resume.io offers simpler pricing. All of them are builders, not scanners — none of them compare your resume against specific job descriptions. For that, use a dedicated ATS scanner like Rate My CV.
What is the most reliable resume builder overall?
It depends on your needs. For template variety and content suggestions, Zety and Enhancv are strong. For AI resume writing, Kickresume is competitive. For ATS optimization against specific job postings, none of these builders offer that — you need a scanner like Rate My CV. The most effective approach is using a builder and a scanner together.
What are the pros and cons of using Zety?
Pros: Professional templates with clean page layout, helpful AI content suggestions, guided section-by-section onboarding, large library of pre-written phrases by industry. Cons: Free plan only exports as text file, paid plan auto-renews at $25.95 every four weeks, download paywall surprises users after they have already built their resume, no job-specific ATS matching.