Compare/Head to head

HireBuddy vs ShortlistIQ

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

ShortlistIQ

$49/mo Free tier

Conversational AI that runs first-round interviews and scores them. Free plan for 10 applicants; Basic is $49/mo.

Where ShortlistIQ fits

  • Startups testing AI first-rounds
  • TA teams that want scored interview reports without an enterprise RFP
  • Desks that will start on the free 10-applicant plan
  • High-volume screening that is not yet HireVue-shaped

At a glance

DetailHireBuddyShortlistIQ
Starting price$119.95/mo$49/mo
Free tier–No✓Yes
Free trialYesNot on record
MCP server–No–No
Public API–No–No
Listed underAI screening, AI sourcingInterviewing, AI interviewing

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

ShortlistIQ

Stands out: A public $49 Basic plus a real free rung. That is rare in AI interviewing, which is usually quote-only.

Watch out: Basic is a startup cap (20 interviews). Agencies are on Premium at $599/mo.

Not the right fit for

  • Enterprises that need Workday-native voice AI
  • Teams that refuse AI interviews
  • Agencies that need $49 to mean unlimited

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

ShortlistIQ

  • Public $49 Basic instead of a pure quote
  • Free plan to try 10 applicants
  • Scored first-round reports without a human interviewer marketplace
  • Volume caps on Basic
  • Integration list is not published in detail
  • Not an ATS

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

ShortlistIQ

$49/mo

Free tier; paid from $49/mo (Basic). Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 4 Nov 2026

Common questions

Is HireBuddy cheaper than ShortlistIQ?
ShortlistIQ starts lower, at $49/mo against $119.95/mo for HireBuddy. That is the entry plan on each side, so the real number depends on seats and the tier you land on.
Can you try HireBuddy or ShortlistIQ for free?
ShortlistIQ carries a free tier on our listing. HireBuddy offers a free trial.

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