What is an applicant tracking system (ATS)?

An applicant tracking system, or ATS, collects every application for your jobs in one place, so your team can read, assess and reply to candidates without digging through inboxes and spreadsheets.

What an ATS does

• Collects applications from job boards, your website and email into one list per job.
• Shows where each candidate is: new, screening, interview, offer, hired or rejected. Usually as a board with columns (a pipeline).
• Shares the work in the team: colleagues read, add notes and give ratings without forwarding emails.
• Replies to candidates: templates for confirmation, interview invitations and rejections, so nobody is forgotten.
• Keeps GDPR in order: how long applications are kept, and that they are deleted on time.

When does a small company need one?

Many start with a shared inbox and a spreadsheet. That works until one of these happens:

• A job gets more than 20 to 30 applications, and you lose track of who got a reply.
• Several people need to assess the same candidates.
• You hire regularly and want to find a good candidate from last year again (with consent).
• Someone asks how long you keep applications, and the answer is "we don't know".

What does an ATS cost?

Prices vary a lot. Some systems have a free plan with one or two active jobs. Systems for small companies typically cost from a few hundred to a couple of thousand Danish kroner a month. Many of the large vendors do not show a price and quote after a sales call.

For comparison, one profile job ad on Jobindex costs DKK 3,085 excl. VAT (price list checked October 2026). An ATS does not replace the job boards; it collects the applications from them.

ATS and AI

Many systems now use AI to read CVs and sort candidates. Under the EU AI Act, AI that assesses candidates is high-risk, and the rules apply from 2 December 2027. Ask the vendor whether the AI can reject candidates automatically, and whether every assessment can be explained.

How jah.dk does it

jah.dk is a Danish recruiting system for companies and agencies. The Free plan has up to 2 active jobs, a pipeline, a career page and Google for Jobs. The AI reads CVs in any language, but it never rejects anyone; a person does. Applications are deleted by default 6 months after the recruitment ends.

Try the live demo without signing up, see pricing, or create a free account.