# Pinpoint ATS Resume Format & Limits

> Pinpoint takes a CV as PDF or DOCX, and nothing else. Its software reads the CV on upload to write the candidate summary recruiters see first.

|  |  |
| --- | --- |
| System | Pinpoint |
| Vendor | Pinpoint |
| Also known as | Pinpoint ATS, Pinpoint HQ, pinpointhq.com |
| Rendered page | https://atsprep.com/ats/pinpoint |
| This document | https://atsprep.com/ats/pinpoint.md |

Pinpoint's help centre is short on numbers. It does not publish a file size limit or name a parser. What it does publish is the shortest format list in this guide, PDF and DOCX, and the fact that the summary a recruiter reads at the top of your profile is generated from your CV by software.

## Taking the file in

|  |  |
| --- | --- |
| Accepted file types | PDF, DOCX |

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, upload a CV to an existing application](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/2639431-can-i-upload-a-cv-to-an-existing-application) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

## Autofill

When a recruiter adds a candidate, Pinpoint can auto-fill the form from the resume, or create applications from up to 20 resumes at once and populate them with the data pulled from each one.

If a resume cannot be parsed or read, the recruiter who uploaded it gets an email listing the candidates that failed and why. Pinpoint does not document an applicant-side review of the parse.

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, manually add a candidate to a job](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/2621880-how-do-i-manually-add-a-candidate-to-a-job) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

## What Pinpoint does differently

### PDF or DOCX, nothing else

Pinpoint's help centre says the formats accepted for a CV are .pdf and .docx. There is no DOC, RTF, ODT or plain text on the list, so an old Word file needs saving as DOCX first.

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, upload a CV to an existing application](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/2639431-can-i-upload-a-cv-to-an-existing-application) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

### Software writes the first thing a recruiter reads

The candidate profile shows a summary that Pinpoint auto-generates. Its software reads the CV when the candidate uploads it and writes a short summary of their experience and qualifications. Pinpoint says the summary is factual, with no opinions included.

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, how the candidate summary is generated](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/2619596-how-is-the-candidate-summary-generated) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

### A failed parse is reported to the recruiter

When a recruiter creates candidates from resumes and one cannot be parsed or read for any reason, Pinpoint emails the uploader to say which candidates failed and why. The failure is visible on their side, not yours.

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, manually add a candidate to a job](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/2621880-how-do-i-manually-add-a-candidate-to-a-job) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

### No published size limit or parser

Pinpoint does not state a maximum file size for a CV or name the engine that reads it, anywhere we could find. That is recorded here as unknown, not as permission to send a heavy file.

### The apply link gives it away

Pinpoint documents each employer's public job listings at company.pinpointhq.com. If the job page you are applying on sits on that domain, the employer uses Pinpoint.

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, list Pinpoint jobs on any website](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/5878344-how-to-list-pinpoint-jobs-on-any-website) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

### A custom domain can hide it

Employers can move their career site off Pinpoint's subdomain onto their own address, such as jobs.company.com, by pointing a CNAME record at custom-domain.pinpointhq.com. A company address does not rule Pinpoint out.

Source: [Pinpoint Help Center, custom domain for a career site](https://help.pinpoint.support/en/articles/11848504-how-do-i-add-a-custom-domain-to-a-career-site) (checked Oct 19, 2026)

## What to do about it

### Send a PDF or a DOCX

They are the only two accepted formats. If your file is DOC, RTF or Pages, export it to one of them first.

### Lead with a clear, factual history

The summary recruiters see first is generated from your CV. Plain job titles, employers, dates and qualifications give it something accurate to say.

### Keep it a text-based file

Export the PDF from your editor. With no published size limit or parser to check against, a light text-based file is the safe default.

## Questions

### What is Pinpoint?

Pinpoint is an applicant tracking system that employers use to run career sites, collect applications and manage hiring. If a job page sits on a pinpointhq.com address, the employer uses Pinpoint.

### Does Pinpoint read PDF resumes?

Yes. PDF is one of the two CV formats Pinpoint accepts, with DOCX, and its software reads the CV on upload to generate the candidate summary.

### What file types does Pinpoint accept for a resume?

PDF and DOCX. Pinpoint's help centre says the formats accepted for a CV are .pdf and .docx.

### What is the Pinpoint resume size limit?

Pinpoint does not publish one. This guide records that as unknown rather than quoting a number from elsewhere.

### Why did my resume fail to parse in Pinpoint?

Pinpoint does not publish a list of causes. It says that when a resume cannot be parsed or read for any reason, the recruiter who uploaded it receives an email with the reasons. A file that is not PDF or DOCX is outside the accepted list.

### How is the Pinpoint candidate summary generated?

Pinpoint's software reads the CV when the candidate uploads it and creates a short, factual summary of their experience and qualifications, with no opinions included.

### How can I tell if an employer uses Pinpoint?

Look at the job page URL. Pinpoint documents employers' public job listings at company.pinpointhq.com. Some employers move their career site to their own domain, such as jobs.company.com, so a company address does not rule Pinpoint out.

## Exporting from ATSPrep to Pinpoint

ATSPrep exports a linear, single-column, parser-safe document. Against Pinpoint's published list of accepted types:

- **PDF** — on Pinpoint's accepted list
- **DOCX** — on Pinpoint's accepted list

## The other guides

- [Greenhouse](https://atsprep.com/ats/greenhouse) — Greenhouse takes PDF, DOC, DOCX, RTF and TXT, and will not parse a resume larger than 2.5 MB. Its own support docs name what makes a parse fail: columns, contact details in a header, abbreviated job titles and more.
- [Oracle Taleo](https://atsprep.com/ats/taleo) — Oracle ships Taleo with a 1 MB default attachment limit and no resume parser of its own. Parsing only works if the employer has enabled a third-party partner integration, so behaviour differs from one Taleo site to the next.
- [SmartRecruiters](https://atsprep.com/ats/smartrecruiters) — SmartRecruiters accepts PDF, DOC, DOCX, RTF, JPG and PNG at 2 MB per file, and its CEO named Textkernel as the parsing engine, whose own documentation warns about PDFs more bluntly than any resume blog does.
- [Ashby](https://atsprep.com/ats/ashby) — Ashby accepts PDF, DOC and DOCX up to 50 MB but does not support Markdown. Its docs name the two reasons a resume fails to parse, and its better parser is an opt-in feature some employers never switch on.
- [Workable](https://atsprep.com/ats/workable) — Workable accepts PDF, DOC, DOCX, RTF, HTML and ODT for a resume, with a 5 MB ceiling, while other attachments on the same form are allowed four times that size.
- [Manatal](https://atsprep.com/ats/manatal) — Manatal takes PDF, DOC, DOCX and RTF, parses every resume the moment it lands with a parser it built rather than licensed, and keeps the original file where recruiters can open it.
- [SAP SuccessFactors](https://atsprep.com/ats/successfactors) — SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting parses resumes with Textkernel in 15 languages, takes resumes up to 5 MB, and says plainly that parsing is not always accurate. What SAP's own documentation says, with links.
- [BambooHR](https://atsprep.com/ats/bamboohr) — BambooHR takes uploads up to 20 MB in common formats including PDF, DOC and DOCX. Its help center does not describe resume parsing: recruiters open your resume as a document, and the application form is filled in by you.
- [Jobvite](https://atsprep.com/ats/jobvite) — Jobvite 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.
- [Recruitee](https://atsprep.com/ats/recruitee) — Recruitee 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.
- [Workday](https://atsprep.com/ats/workday) — Workday'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.
- [Lever](https://atsprep.com/ats/lever) — Lever 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.
- [iCIMS](https://atsprep.com/ats/icims) — iCIMS extracts text from PDF, Word, RTF, plain text, HTML and OpenDocument resumes by default and fills profile fields from the file you upload. It does not publish a resume size limit.
- [JazzHR](https://atsprep.com/ats/jazzhr) — JazzHR takes PDF, DOC, DOCX, RTF, ODT and TXT resumes up to 5 MB. Its own support docs say a scanned resume is treated as an image: no name, no email, nothing searchable.
- [Breezy HR](https://atsprep.com/ats/breezy-hr) — Breezy HR takes DOC, DOCX, Pages, PDF, RTF and TXT resumes. Its docs say a scanned resume, or one in an unsupported language, is not parsed, and its AI review tools skip any resume that wasn't.
- [Personio](https://atsprep.com/ats/personio) — Personio parses PDF and DOCX CVs with Textkernel, if the employer has opted in. Its own help centre lists ten reasons a parse fails, from headers and tables to 8 pt text and skill bar charts.
- [Dayforce](https://atsprep.com/ats/dayforce) — Dayforce takes DOC, DOCX, PDF and RTF resumes up to 5 MB. Import Resume parses the file into your candidate profile, and uploading again overwrites what the last one filled in.
- [Comeet](https://atsprep.com/ats/comeet) — Comeet, now Spark Hire Recruit, takes PDF, DOC and DOCX resumes and parses them in 39 listed languages. Arabic and Korean are not among them, and a file that is not a true PDF may not even open.

## About ATSPrep

ATSPrep (https://atsprep.com) is a free resume and application workspace. Match experience to a posting, strengthen claims with evidence, and track the next action. Its PDF check shows text recovered by ATSPrep's extractor, not an employer's proprietary ATS or hiring decision.

- **Price:** free. Checking, importing, editing and downloading cost nothing, and downloads carry no watermark. Everything listed here is free.
- **Account:** none needed to check, import or edit a resume. A free sign-in is needed to download after the first file, to sync, and for more checks or more than 5 AI edits.
- **Your file:** parsed and exported inside the browser. The resume file itself is never uploaded.
- **Optional:** text leaves the browser only when you press a button: semantic match and AI edits (the lines involved), a job link (the link) and Pip voice calls (your speech). Never your contact details, and none of it is stored.
- **Connection:** some tools load on first use and need a connection to download. Local storage is not a cloud backup.
- **Accepts:** PDF, DOCX, TXT, Markdown, or pasted plain text.

Start here: https://atsprep.com/studio