A free job application tracker, and how to use it
A job search generates dozens of threads at once. A simple spreadsheet keeps them from falling through the cracks, and shows you where to spend next week.
You don’t need an app to run a job search. You need one place where every opportunity and every person lives, and a habit of looking at it once a week.
A job application tracker is a spreadsheet with one row per opportunity: the company, the role, where it came from, the current stage, the next step and the people involved. Download the free template below, open it in Google Sheets or Excel, add a row every time something starts, and review it weekly.
Download the free template#
Download the job application tracker (CSV). It has the columns below and one example row you can delete.
Open it in Google Sheets#
- Go to Google Sheets and create a blank spreadsheet.
- Choose File > Import > Upload and select the CSV you downloaded.
- Pick Replace current sheet and import.
You can also upload the CSV to Google Drive and open it with Google Sheets.
Open it in Excel or Numbers#
Double-click the CSV, or use File > Open. Then save it as a normal workbook (.xlsx or .numbers) so your formatting sticks.
Once it’s open, freeze the header row and turn on a filter. That’s all the setup it needs.
What each column is for#
| Column | What goes in it | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Company | The company name | Obvious, but sort by it to catch duplicates |
| Role | The exact job title | Recruiters juggle many roles; use their wording |
| Link | The job posting URL | Postings disappear. Save a PDF too for roles you care about |
| Source | Referral, intro, recruiter reached out, cold application | The most important column for learning what works |
| Date applied | When you submitted | Tells you when a follow-up is due |
| Stage | One of the stages below | Lets you filter to what’s active |
| Resume version | Which file you sent, e.g. v3-growth | You’ll need it in front of you when they call |
| Contacts | Everyone involved, with their role | The referrer, the recruiter, interviewers |
| People to update | Who helped and should hear what happens | So you can close the loop at every stage |
| Next step | The single next action | The column that keeps things moving |
| Next step date | When it’s due | Sort by this every morning |
| Notes | What you learned in each conversation | Interview prep, gold for the next round |
The two columns most people skip are Source and People to update. Source is how you learn where your effort pays off. People to update is how you stay someone others want to help.
Stages to use#
Keep the list short and consistent so filters work:
- Researching: you’ve found it but haven’t applied or reached out.
- Reaching out: you’re looking for a contact or waiting on a referral.
- Applied: submitted, waiting to hear.
- Recruiter screen: first call scheduled or done.
- Interviewing: hiring manager or later rounds.
- Offer: you have one.
- Closed: rejected, withdrawn or accepted. Note which in Notes.
Track people, not only applications#
In a good search, most of your rows start as conversations, not applications. Add a row for every informational interview and every introduction too, with “Researching” or “Reaching out” as the stage. When a conversation turns into a role, the history is already there.
The People to update column is what makes closing the loop easy at the end. When you accept a job, filter for every name in it and send each person a short thank-you.
A weekly review that takes 20 minutes#
Pick a time, like Friday morning, and go through the sheet:
- Sort by Next step date. Anything overdue? Do it or reschedule it.
- Filter to Applied with no response in 10 days. Send one short follow-up, or move it to Closed.
- Update People to update. Did anything happen that a referrer or introducer would want to hear?
- Count the week. New conversations, new applications, new screens. Compare to your goal.
- Pick next week’s targets. Five new conversations is a good default for an active search.
See what’s working#
After three or four weeks, the Source column tells you something. Make a simple count: for each source, how many rows reached the recruiter screen or beyond?
If referrals and intros are turning into screens and cold applications aren’t, that’s your answer for where next week’s hours go. Eric Posen, who landed a director role six weeks after a layoff, saw this clearly: the roles he wanted had hundreds of applicants, and almost all his interview processes came from referrals. The applying step has his clip.
If nothing is turning into screens, the problem is usually upstream: the story or the resume, not the volume.
Other tools#
Notion and Airtable work fine if you already live in them, and dedicated job search apps add browser extensions and reminders. The columns matter more than the tool.
Here are my messy notes from this week's job search (calls, emails, applications): [PASTE NOTES] Turn them into rows for a job application tracker with these columns: Company, Role, Link, Source, Date applied, Stage, Resume version, Contacts, People to update, Next step, Next step date, Notes Rules: - Stage must be one of: Researching, Reaching out, Applied, Recruiter screen, Interviewing, Offer, Closed. - Source must be one of: Referral, Intro, Recruiter reached out, Cold application, Conversation. - If something is missing, leave the cell blank rather than guessing. - Output as CSV I can paste into Google Sheets. Then list anything that looks overdue or missing a next step.
Questions people ask#
What should a job application tracker include?#
At minimum: company, role, source, stage, next step and next step date. Add the resume version you sent, the people involved and notes from each conversation, and you’ll be prepared whenever someone calls.
Is there a free job application tracker for Google Sheets?#
Yes. Download the free CSV template and import it into Google Sheets with File > Import > Upload. It works the same way in Excel and Numbers.
How many jobs should I apply to per week?#
There’s no magic number, and volume alone rarely fixes a search. Set a weekly goal for conversations and applications together, then use your tracker to see which sources lead to interviews and shift your time toward them.
Should I track networking conversations too?#
Yes. Most good opportunities start as conversations, so give each one a row. It keeps your follow-ups on schedule and shows you which people and introductions are paying off.