HireWire vs JobsTracker (jobstracker.org)
Two free trackers with the same privacy stance: no account, no cloud, data in your browser. They differ in what they do with that data.
There are at least two products called “JobsTracker”. This page covers jobstracker.org, the local-first browser tracker. For the AI-powered one launched on Product Hunt at jobstracker.app, see HireWire vs JobsTracker (jobstracker.app).
Verdict
- Choose JobsTracker if you apply through many channels and want to log each application by hand, score your résumé against a pasted job description, and let it read pasted recruiter emails to update status. It also offers optional passphrase encryption.
- Choose HireWire if you also want to find roles. It pulls 55 public job feeds, ranks them against your skills and salary floor, and tracks the ones you save through a six-stage pipeline with follow-up drafts, insights and agent briefs.
- On privacy they are close. Both keep data in the browser with no account. HireWire’s app page has cookieless usage analytics (off under Do Not Track). JobsTracker’s app page has none, though its marketing pages use Google Analytics.
Side-by-side
| HireWire | JobsTracker (jobstracker.org) | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free (“no account, no subscription, no paywall”) |
| Account | None | None |
| Where data lives | localStorage, mirrored to IndexedDB | localStorage |
| Encryption at rest | No | Optional passphrase (exports are unencrypted) |
| Finds jobs for you | Yes: 55 public feeds, plus optional Adzuna and Jooble keys | No job feed advertised. You add applications yourself |
| Add an application by hand | No. Only postings from the wire can be saved | Yes |
| Fit / match scoring | Every posting scored against skills, salary floor (currency-converted), freshness, remote and blocked keywords | Résumé-to-job-description fit badge with matched and missing keywords |
| Salary filter | Yes: floor in 12 currencies | No salary field in the app’s data model |
| Résumé / CV handling | Paste text, extract skills locally. The text isn’t stored | Upload .txt or .pdf, read locally and stored in the browser |
| Recruiter email parsing | No | Yes: paste an email and it sets Interviewing, Offer or Closed, and flags emails that need a reply |
| Pipeline stages | Saved, applied, screen, interview, offer, archived | Applied, Interviewing, Offer, Respond, Closed, Ghosted |
| Follow-ups | Flags jobs 14 days quiet and drafts a follow-up email. Calendar (.ics) export | “Needs response” inbox for pasted emails |
| Contacts / referrals | Per-job contacts plus a People ledger with 10-day nudges | Not verified |
| Analytics / insights | Funnel conversion, days per stage, source yield, offer comparison, weekly digest | Dashboard: totals, interviews, offers, response rate |
| AI-agent export | Markdown, JSON or CSV brief for Claude Code, Cursor or Codex | No (status detection runs locally, “no AI service”) |
| Backup / restore | One JSON file. Restore by button or drag and drop | JSON export and import |
| Tracking on the app page | PostHog, cookieless, named feature events only, off under Do Not Track | None, per its privacy policy. Google Analytics on marketing pages; AdSense planned |
| Ads | Hand-sold sponsor slots with no click tracking | Advertisement slot on its site; AdSense “planned” |
| Mobile app or sync | No | Not verified (Gmail sync described as planned) |
Sources: jobstracker.org home page, its privacy page (last updated 2026-06-17) and the public app code, checked 2026-10-14. HireWire: the app’s source at hirewire.fyi.
Where JobsTracker is stronger
It is built for the applications you find yourself. You can add any role from any source, paste in a recruiter’s reply and have the status set for you, and see at a glance which threads need an answer. If an encrypted local store matters to you, for example on a shared computer, JobsTracker has it and HireWire doesn’t.
Where HireWire is stronger
HireWire covers discovery as well as tracking. It ranks a few hundred live postings by your criteria every hour, hides blocked locations, filters by a salary floor across currencies, and keeps dates per stage so it can show conversion and time-to-screen. For developers, the agent brief turns the shortlist into a task for a coding agent.
Using both
They don’t conflict. Some people find and rank roles in HireWire and log off-board applications in a manual tracker. If you want to consolidate, see moving from JobsTracker to HireWire. It is a manual path, and the guide explains why.
FAQ
Is JobsTracker the same as HireWire?
No. They are separate, unrelated products. Both are free browser-based trackers with no account, but JobsTracker is a manual tracker with résumé fit and email status detection, while HireWire is a job feed aggregator with a tracker built in.
Which one is more private?
Both keep your data in the browser with no server copy. JobsTracker’s app page has no analytics and offers passphrase encryption. HireWire’s app page sends cookieless feature-usage events unless Do Not Track is on. Neither uploads your CV.
Can I move my JobsTracker data into HireWire?
Not with one click. HireWire has no import for other trackers’ files. The migration guide covers the manual options.
Open HireWireFree, no account. Your profile, CV text and pipeline stay in this browser.
Open HireWire →