Given Australia’s relatively high cost of living rate––about $5,500 per month for a family of 4, not including rent––the need for having steady employment while living on the world’s largest island is becoming more prevalent in the country’s workforce of nearly 14 million people.
If you are looking for free CV search platforms for employers in Australia that cater to employers so that you can streamline your hiring process and start bringing in great people for interviews, you are in luck because we have found the best in the country.
In this article, we will show you the best free online resume databases––what they have to offer, and the benefits and drawbacks of each.
The Benefits of Using Online CV Search Platforms
A CV search platform is an online database that houses resumes from job seekers across various industries and locations. Good databases allow employers to search and filter these resumes to find the most qualified people and reach out to them to learn more about how they might fit within the role.
There are several advantages to using resume databases. The biggest advantage is the size and caliber of talent on offer. Unlike traditional job advertising, online platforms offer the highest volume of potential candidates at your disposal. All of these jobseekers exist in one dedicated space, so you are always getting the most diverse group of talent.
Another advantage is the amount of time and money you can save by using advanced search features to narrow down your results so that you are not sifting through thousands (or, depending on the database, millions!) of resumes.
The 10 Best Free CV Search Platforms in Australia
There are plenty of resources available across the continent for helping qualified (and even beginner) jobseekers find employment in Australia. Whatever your level of education, skills, training, or availability, there is a job site to help place you where you need to be.
Overall: GrabJobs is the best option for hiring Australians. It is a cost-effective resume database and recruitment solution that automates sourcing, screening, and interviewing of candidates (over 5 million online). GrabJobs features over 5,000 companies; auto-generated job seeker profiles mean that users can begin applying for new jobs in under a minute, making it great for employers looking to hire quickly and easily.
The cost: There are both FREE and paid options for employers––using the GrabJobs’ recruitment platform, the Starter model is AUD 125 per month; the Growth model is AUD 200 per month; and the Business model is AUD 250 per month. There is a 14-day free trial available––no credit card is required.
The benefits: Seamless platform navigation; exceptional customer service; useful features, including instant chat interview, email updates, and job candidate recommendations. Tracking job applicants is incredibly easy and the quality and relevance of job candidates available are premium.
The drawbacks: The costs associated with paid subscription model can be high, but a generous 14-day free trial offer is available.
Overall: One of the planet’s most popular job search engines for job seekers and employers alike––in fact, about 1 in 4 Australians are registered users––LinkedIn is a ubiquitous tool for finding full and part-time employees based on trusted connections. It also features numerous tools and subscription-based add-ons that make hiring so simple. As a LinkedIn user, you can either advertise a vacancy with your company for free in your newsfeed or pay to have it reach more users.
The cost: There are several cost options available with LinkedIn, the most basic model being completely free. However, the Premium Essentials, Recruiter Lite, and Premium Pro options come with monthly and annual fees.
The benefits: It is, without question, the largest professional network database. LinkedIn shares targeted job postings with relevant job candidates; it uses showcase pages to promote employers and their businesses; LinkedIn Business pages help employers improve their SEO rankings
The drawbacks: The fee structure of the additional features can be cost-prohibitive; the basic (free) version of LinkedIn limits some of the platform’s other features and does not often support others, often limiting its reliability. And licenses for the platform can get quite expensive
The cost: There are both FREE and paid options for SEEK employers––Classic, which uses a basic, 30-day ad listing; StandOut, which lets you promote your brand to the most relevant candidates; and Premium, which gives your ads full visibility thanks to a featured listing. Prices are available upon request.
The benefits: SEEK offers quick results, quality candidates, a simple sourcing process, and helpful support tools. For every job that you post as an employer, you can download complete CVs, follow up with personalized messages, and invite candidates to apply using the SEEK Talent Search. There is even a Concierge option that offers professional ad writing options to employers.
The drawbacks: Some users have noted that there is not a major difference between services offered per platform tier, except pricing. If you aren’t in it for the long run, SEEK might not be the best value for you.
Overall: This service is job seeker-centric, which means that the emphasis is on candidates looking to find work. CareerOne provides services for employers looking to hire and even curates your job description into an immersive experience to help them make the right choice when applying.
The cost: There are both FREE and paid options for CareerOne employers––FREE TO POST ads stay up for 21 days and include all standard ad features. The Standard model is AUD 185; the Premium model is AUD 255, and the Enterprise option is available for larger needs (pricing upon request)
The benefits: With CareerOne, employers only pay for quality candidates––employers have the flexibility to post jobs and preview applicants for free…and then decide if/how they want to spend money to get the most out of their sourcing experience. CareerOne also transforms job descriptions into more professional-sounding write-ups in order to attract the best candidates possible.
The drawbacks: For non-paying accounts, additional features (like “unlock all candidates who apply for a job” and “download a candidate’s resume”) live behind a paywall that can only be accessed if you buy credits.
Overall: Another popular global (and free) job search site, Indeed Australia not only places qualified candidates in roles suited to their skills and experience––but also provide crucial tools for jobseekers like salary guides and company reviews. Simply upload your resume to Indeed’s platform and companies reach out to YOU, making the stress of finding work that much simpler.
The cost: There are both FREE and paid options for Indeed employers––posting a job is FREE and it will always appear in general search results. Products like Mobile Recruiting, Indeed Resume, and Featured Employer are available for additional fees.
The benefits: Given the size and scope of Indeed’s global reach and presence, employers looking to fill one-off jobs often receive a great number of candidates. The job posting feature is easy and seamless, and many of the free tools are a great advantage to first-time posters.
The drawbacks: One of the consistent drawbacks to using Indeed for hiring is that the candidate pool is so heavy that oftentimes talent is too saturated and not always suited to the relevant position. Value is another key issue as many have felt that the resume search option is not a worthwhile investment.
6. PostJobFree
The cost: PostJobFree offers both FREE and premium services (which includes advertising job postings on other job boards); Premium Membership costs are broken down as follows: $29/month: 2 jobs promoted + 30 resume contacts; $59/month: 6 jobs promoted + 100 resume contacts; $99/month: 15 jobs promoted + 200 resume contacts, and so on.
The benefits: No fuss, no muss. PostJobFree is a very basic program that gets results without a lot of the flash and supporting sourcing tools––although it does offer assistance for Premium subscribers. For employers, simply post a job ad and qualified candidates will reach out.
The drawbacks: It features a very basic user interface that does not seem to have been updated in years––likely since its founding back in 2007. If you don’t care about UX/UI or seamless functionality, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Overall: Adzuna is a popular global site that helps employers expand their outreach to a broader audience. The site integrates with newspapers, ensuring that job ads will appear in front of the right candidates wherever they are and whatever medium they’re using for their job search.
The cost: Adzuna has FREE and paid options––however, they encourage prospective users to reach out to discuss various job posting packages.
The benefits: Users can make unlimited changes to job ads; paid users can include their company brand front and center. There is a large reach for business owners that includes over 1 million job email alerts for subscribers, plus there are over 100 national, local, and specialist job boards available.
The drawbacks: For business owners interested in posting for multiple jobs, paid options can be expensive. Plus, there is not much pay transparency on their website.
The cost: There are both FREE and paid options for Australian employers using Learn4Good––the Basic plan, the Professional plan, and the Ultra plan.
The benefits: All Learn4Good job posts are advertised for 6 months, and there is a FREE renewable 20-credit job listing function. There is a dedicated Australian-based section that focuses on jobs within public schools, private schools, and universities.
The drawbacks: Despite the large database of users across multiple regions, this site is only designed for employers looking to hire within the education industry. Pricing is only available in U.S. dollars.
The cost: There are both FREE and paid options for employers using Wellfound in Australia. While the most basic plan costs nothing––and comes with many valuable tools––there is a Recruit Pro plan for US $249 per month, and a Recruit Team plan (pricing available upon request).
The benefits: Wellfound employers looking to hire can connect with qualified candidates within the platform’s network of over 8 million users. There are unlimited free and paid global job posting plans––due to the wide availability of candidates from around the world, it’s perfect for Australia-based companies looking to hire remote workers.
The drawbacks: There is a strong emphasis on remote and tech-based industries; prices are only available in U.S. funds; there is no social media promotion.
The cost: While there is a dedicated FREE plan, employers using Jobvertise can choose from different monthly plans: Starter, Standard, and Pro––each have their own benefits for long-time use. If you are only posting for one job, the free plan should suffice.
The benefits: Jobvertise offers international CVs for employers looking to hire remotely; employers can view CVs posted within 30 days while receiving resume alerts filtered by category, industry, and title. Featured jobs are promoted and are the first posts seen by candidates.
The drawbacks: Pricing is only available in U.S. funds, and there is no dedicated Australia-based customer service.
The 10 Best Free CV Search Platforms for Employers in Australia
There you have it! The best free online CV search platforms in Australia. As a business owner looking to hire quality job candidates, now that you know the best places to search––including the perks of using search platforms online, as well as the benefits and drawbacks of each––you should be fully equipped to expedite your sourcing and hiring process. Not in Australia? Visit GrabJobs and check out online CV search platforms available in your country.
