How BambooHR reads your resume
BambooHR is HR software with an applicant tracking system built in. Its help center documents the formats and size limit for uploads, but it does not describe resume parsing. What it does describe is a recruiter opening your resume as a document, next to the answers you typed into the application form. So the file has to read well to a person, and the form fields carry the structured data.
BambooHR is a trademark of its owner. ATSPrep isn't affiliated with it.
Will BambooHR read your file?
1.5 MB is well inside the published 20 MB limit.
- Made by
- BambooHR
- Parser
- Not published
- Accepts
- PDF, DOC, DOCX, BMP, XLS, XLSX, CSV, TXT, JPG, JPEG, TIF, RTF, TIFF, GIF, PNG, ZIP
- ATSPrep exports
- PDF accepted, DOCX accepted
What BambooHR pulls out, and what gets lost.
Your file goes in, BambooHR fills the fields it recognises, and the line underneath types what its own documentation says goes missing on the way.
What BambooHR accepts, with sources.
Every line below links to the page it came from. Where BambooHR does not publish a detail, this guide leaves it out rather than guessing.
Accepted file types
Size limits
Uploads accepted up to 20 MB.
What ATSPrep exports, and whether BambooHR takes it
This is computed at build time by comparing our export formats to BambooHR's published list. It is not written by hand, so it cannot drift out of date.
- PDFATSPrep exportAccepted by BambooHR
- DOCXATSPrep exportAccepted by BambooHR
BambooHR takes both, so the choice is yours. PDF or DOCX: a simple rule for picking
What trips people up on BambooHR
No documented resume parsing
BambooHR's help center does not describe parsing resumes into fields. Its Hiring app guide says a recruiter taps to view the resume and cover letter as documents, with pinch to zoom. Basic information on the candidate profile comes from the application questions the employer chose, not from the file.
Source: BambooHR Help Center, Hiring app candidate profile info · checked Oct 19, 2026The format list is platform-wide
BambooHR publishes one list of formats you can upload and preview anywhere in the product: PDF, DOC, DOCX, BMP, XLS, XLSX, CSV, TXT, JPG, JPEG, TIF, RTF, TIFF, GIF, PNG and ZIP. It does not publish a separate list for the resume field on an application.
Source: BambooHR Help Center, supported file formats · checked Oct 19, 202620 MB is the general upload limit
BambooHR lists a maximum file size of 20 MB for file and document uploads, and the same for ATS email attachments. It does not publish a different figure for resumes.
Source: BambooHR Help Center, fields character limits · checked Oct 19, 2026The employer picks the questions
When creating a job opening, the employer ticks which application questions to show and stars the ones that are required. It can add custom questions, including a file upload, and can set yes or no questions to disqualify a candidate automatically based on the answer.
Source: BambooHR Help Center, create a job opening · checked Oct 19, 2026Job pages live on the employer's BambooHR address
BambooHR gives each employer a careers website at its BambooHR URL with /careers/ on the end, carrying the company's logo and colour. Employers can also embed their openings on their own website, where the address will not show BambooHR's name.
Source: BambooHR Help Center, careers website · checked Oct 19, 2026Five applications per opening
A job opening stops accepting applications from a candidate who applies with the same name and phone number five times within six months. Apply once, with the right file.
Source: BambooHR Help Center, how does a candidate apply for a job opening · checked Oct 19, 2026
Formatting for BambooHR
Go through your file before you apply and tick each one off. Your ticks stay in this browser, so the list is still here for the next BambooHR job.
With no documented parser, the reader is the recruiter opening your file. A clean, single-column PDF or DOCX that reads well on a phone screen does the job.
The application questions are what fill the candidate profile. Type them in full rather than writing “see resume”.
A text-based resume is a small fraction of that. Large files usually mean embedded images, which add nothing for the reader.
Repeat applications to the same opening are capped, so check the file and answers before you submit.
All four checked. Good luck with this one.
Once it's sent, add the job to your tracker. You'll know which version went where, and when a follow-up is fair.
Read your resume back before BambooHR does.
Guidance is worth less than evidence. Export a PDF from the Studio and the X-Ray re-opens that exact file and shows you the text a parser recovers from it, in reading order, with anything it dropped marked.
$0 forever · No watermark · No card · First download needs no account
BambooHR and your resume
- What is BambooHR?
- BambooHR is HR software with a built-in applicant tracking system. The ATS gives each employer a careers website where candidates apply, and the job list can also be embedded on the employer's own site.
- Does BambooHR read PDF resumes?
- PDF is on BambooHR's list of supported file formats, so a PDF uploads and can be previewed. BambooHR's help center does not describe parsing resumes, so assume a recruiter reads the document itself.
- What file types does BambooHR accept for a resume?
- BambooHR publishes one platform-wide list: PDF, DOC, DOCX, BMP, XLS, XLSX, CSV, TXT, JPG, JPEG, TIF, RTF, TIFF, GIF, PNG and ZIP. It does not publish a separate list for resumes. PDF or DOCX is the sensible choice.
- What is the BambooHR resume size limit?
- BambooHR lists a maximum of 20 MB for file and document uploads. It does not publish a separate limit for resumes.
- Why did my resume fail to parse in BambooHR?
- BambooHR's help center does not describe resume parsing, so there may be no parse to fail. The candidate profile is built from the application questions you answered. Fill those in fully and check them before you submit.
- Does BambooHR rank or reject resumes automatically?
- BambooHR's help center does not describe resume scoring. It does let an employer add yes or no questions that automatically disqualify a candidate based on the answer, so read those questions carefully.
- How do I know if an employer uses BambooHR?
- Check the job page address. BambooHR's careers website is the employer's BambooHR URL with /careers at the end, for example company.bamboohr.com/careers. Employers can also embed the job list on their own site.
How the rest of them read a resume
- JobviteJobvite accepts twelve file types for a resume, from PDF and DOCX to images and spreadsheets, but its own help centre says scanned or locked PDFs cannot be added and image files are not parsed.12 file types
- RecruiteeRecruitee takes PDF, DOC, DOCX, ODT, RTF and TXT, plus JPG and PNG images of a CV. Its help centre says the parser needs a readable email address, which is usually missed in a header or footer, and that highly visual CVs are the most common reason a file cannot be read.8 file types
- WorkdayWorkday's own careers site takes DOC, DOCX, HTML, PDF or TXT resumes up to 5 MB. Its documentation says parsing results vary with format and word order, and that images and image-based styles get in the way.5 file types
- LeverLever takes resume files up to 10 MB and parses Word, PDF, RTF, WordPerfect, HTML and OpenDocument files, but not images. Its help centre is specific about when a parse fails, and most of the reasons are about how the file arrived rather than how it looks.5 file types
Start from an example that BambooHR can read.
Each one is a single-column document, scored by the same checks the Studio runs.