Compare/Head to head

HireBuddy vs HireLayer

Same facts, side by side: starting price, free tier, MCP, API and what each one is actually built for.

Starting price

HireBuddy

$119.95/mo Free trial

HireBuddy is an AI screening and sourcing tool for recruiters and in-house hiring teams. QuickScreen ranks every applicant by fit and explains the match, and Talent Scout finds passive candidates on LinkedIn, GitHub and the web from a plain-English query. Screening is priced by resume scan, from $119.95/month for 500 scans after a free 10-scan trial.

Where HireBuddy fits

  • Teams buried in inbound applications who want a ranked shortlist with reasons
  • Greenhouse users who want AI screening added on top
  • Recruiters who prefer plain-English search over Boolean strings
  • Buyers who want a per-scan price they can budget

HireLayer

€24/mo Free tier

Developer API from Paris for adding resume parsing and candidate scoring to your own software. Five endpoints cover CV parsing, job criteria extraction, one to one matching, ranking up to 10 candidates and skills normalisation, all on one credit balance, and a first-party MCP server lets Claude or ChatGPT use the same tools in a chat. The free plan gives 50 calls a month; paid plans are 24 euros a month for 500 and 89 euros for 2,000.

Where HireLayer fits

  • ATS and HR software teams adding resume parsing to their product
  • Job boards that prefill profiles from an uploaded CV
  • Agencies screening applicants inside Claude or ChatGPT
  • EU teams that need resumes processed inside the EU

At a glance

DetailHireBuddyHireLayer
Starting price$119.95/mo€24/mo
Free tier–No✓Yes
Free trialYesNot on record
MCP server–No✓Yes
Public API–No✓Yes
Listed underAI screening, AI sourcingAI screening, Sourcing

Where they pull apart

HireBuddy

Stands out: Pricing is by the scan, so you can work out the cost per applicant up front (about $0.15 to $0.24 a resume), and candidate to job match analysis is unlimited on every plan. One customer quoted on the site uses QuickScreen to spot potential fake candidates.

Watch out: Talent Scout sourcing has no published price and is sold by demo. The site gives no company location or founding details, its customer logo strip shows placeholder logos, and there are no outside reviews yet.

Not the right fit for

  • Teams that need a published price for sourcing and outreach
  • Buyers who want an established vendor with outside reviews

HireLayer

Stands out: Every score comes with a reason: Match returns a status and explanation for each weighted criterion, and Rank orders up to 10 candidates for one credit with a rationale each. Prices are public, failed calls cost nothing, and the same credits work through the MCP server, so a recruiter can screen resumes in Claude without writing code.

Watch out: Criteria labels, match explanations and ranking rationales are written in French whatever the input language, so English teams rely on their assistant or their own code to translate them. Prices are in euros only, and the ATS connections are API recipes a developer builds, not one click marketplace apps.

Not the right fit for

  • Recruiters who want a finished screening app with no setup
  • Teams that need explanations written natively in English

Pros and cons

HireBuddy

  • Clear per-scan pricing from $119.95/month
  • Every ranking comes with the reasons for the match
  • Free 10-scan trial without a sales call
  • Talent Scout sourcing price is not published
  • Only Greenhouse and GitHub are named as integrations
  • No outside reviews and little company detail on the site

HireLayer

  • Explanation for every criterion in Match and Rank
  • Public prices, a free plan and no charge for failed calls
  • First-party MCP server on every plan
  • Explanations returned in French only
  • Euro pricing with no USD price list
  • ATS links are build it yourself API recipes

What each one costs

HireBuddy

$119.95/mo

QuickScreen pricing is based on resume scans per month. Trial is free, one time only, with 10 resume scans. Pro is $119.95/month for 500 scans (about $0.24 a scan). Growth is $189.95/month for 1,000 scans (about $0.19 a scan). Scale is $299.95/month for 2,000 scans (about $0.15 a scan). Custom is quoted per seat with flexible scan volumes, and Enterprise is a custom quote with unlimited scans. Every plan includes unlimited candidate to job match analysis and role scope advice, and extra AI credits can be bought. The pricing page has a monthly and annual toggle and single and multi-user licences; annual prices are not shown. Talent Scout sourcing is sold through a demo. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 15 Oct 2026

HireLayer

€24/mo

The Free plan gives 50 credits a month on all five APIs with no card and no time limit. Starter is €24/mo for 500 credits and Scale €89/mo for 2,000 credits; Enterprise volume is sold by quote. One-time credit packs that do not reset monthly cost €29 for 500, €99 for 2,000 and €449 for 10,000. One successful call on any API uses one credit, a Rank call covers up to 10 candidates, and failed calls are free. The vendor publishes prices in euros only. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 12 Oct 2026

Common questions

Can you try HireBuddy or HireLayer for free?
HireLayer carries a free tier on our listing. HireBuddy offers a free trial.
Does HireBuddy or HireLayer have an MCP server?
HireLayer ships a first party MCP server, so an AI assistant can work the product directly.

Not the pair you wanted?

All HireBuddy alternatives All HireLayer alternatives Every AI screening tool

Editorial listings, never paid rankings. Prices checked 15 Oct 2026. Confirm current terms on the vendor site. Spot an error?