Job Application Tracker Template: Columns, Statuses, Follow-Ups
After twenty applications, most people can't remember which CV they sent where, who they spoke to, or which company never replied. A simple job application tracker fixes that. It doesn't need to be clever: a spreadsheet with the right columns, a short list of statuses, a follow-up date on every row and a weekly review. Below is a template you can copy, plus how to use it without turning your job search into admin.
What a tracker is for
A tracker earns its place by answering four questions quickly:
- Have I already applied here? Applying twice to the same role, or to three roles at one company in a week, is easy to do by accident.
- What did they see? When a recruiter calls two weeks later, you want the CV variant, the cover note and the salary figure you gave in front of you.
- What should I do next, and when? Follow-ups slip without a date.
- What's working? Which CV variant, which kind of role and which sources lead to replies.
Anything that doesn't help with these four is optional.
Where to keep it
A spreadsheet (Google Sheets, Excel, Numbers) is enough and easy to filter. Notion or Trello work if you already use them and like boards. Pick one place and stick with it; a tracker split across three tools is worse than none.
The columns
Here is a starting set. You can drop a few, but try the full set for a couple of weeks before cutting.
| Column | Example | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Date applied | 2026-09-22 | Shows how long you've been waiting |
| Company | Brightline | Prevents duplicate applications |
| Role title | Senior Backend Engineer, Payments | Exact title, as posted |
| Link | Job page URL | Postings disappear; save a copy of the text too if you can |
| Location / model | Remote · EMEA | Useful when comparing offers later |
| Source | Company careers page, referral, job board | Shows where replies come from |
| CV variant | Backend-v3 | Shows which version works |
| Salary figure given | €X–€Y gross/year | Keeps you consistent on calls |
| Contact | Recruiter name, email or LinkedIn | For follow-ups |
| Status | Applied | See the list below |
| Next action | Follow up with recruiter | One clear step |
| Next action date | 2026-10-02 | The column that keeps things moving |
| Notes | Asked about on-call in screening | Anything you'll want to remember |
(Brightline is a made-up company for the example.)
Two tips. Keep the salary column honest and in the same unit every time; our guide to salary expectations in applications covers why that matters. And name your CV variants the same way in the tracker and in your files, as suggested in how to tailor your CV to a job description.
A short list of statuses
Too many statuses and you'll stop updating them. This set covers most searches:
- Saved — interesting, not yet applied.
- Applied — submitted, no response yet.
- Screening — a recruiter call is booked or done.
- Interviewing — technical or team interviews in progress.
- Offer — you have an offer to consider.
- Rejected — they said no.
- No reply — no response after your follow-up window. Closing these keeps the list honest.
- Withdrawn — you stopped the process.
Use a dropdown in the spreadsheet so the spelling stays consistent and filters work.
Follow-up dates
Every row that isn't closed should have a next action date. A simple default:
- When you apply, set the next action date about a week or ten days out, with the action "check status".
- On that date, if you have a contact, send one short, polite follow-up. If you don't, just note it.
- After another week or so without a reply, set the status to No reply and move on. If they come back later, you can reopen the row.
- After each interview, set a date to follow up if you haven't heard back by the time they mentioned.
These intervals are a sensible starting point, not a rule; companies work at different speeds. If silence has become the norm for you, our piece on no replies to job applications looks at the likely causes.
The weekly review
Once a week, spend about twenty minutes with the tracker:
- Close stale rows. Anything past its follow-up window becomes No reply.
- Do the overdue actions. Filter by next action date up to today.
- Count by status. How many applications this week, how many screenings, how many interviews. You're looking at your own numbers over time, not comparing with anyone else's.
- Look for patterns. Did one CV variant lead to more screenings? Did replies come mostly from one source or one kind of role? Are you applying to roles that don't match your level?
- Decide one change for next week, such as a different CV summary, more roles in an adjacent title, or fewer applications with more tailoring.
With small numbers, patterns are shaky, so change one thing at a time and give it a couple of weeks. If you're following a structured plan, this review fits naturally into the weekly rhythm in our 30-day job search plan.
Keep it light
The tracker should take a minute per application and twenty minutes per week. If it starts taking more, remove columns. And if updating it feels like a record of rejections, remember that rows in "No reply" say more about busy hiring pipelines than about you.
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