How to Check a Resume for ATS Readability

There is no single test that proves a resume will work in every applicant tracking system. You can still catch common readability problems before applying. Use the exported document and the actual employer application as your main checks rather than relying only on a third-party score.

What to do

Open the PDF and select or copy its text. Paste it into a plain-text editor and look for missing sections, strange reading order, broken characters, or dates detached from roles.
Check that section headings, employer names, titles, and important skills are ordinary text rather than only images. Keep labels recognizable.
After upload, inspect any automatically populated fields. Correct errors there, because the employer may use that extracted information alongside the original file.

Example

If copied text reads a left-column skill next to an unrelated right-column date, try a simpler layout and compare the output.

Testing helps identify issues, but no test can guarantee how every employer's software or review process behaves. Keep a simple version available if an application repeatedly scrambles a more elaborate layout.