SeekOut vs Textkernel (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, SeekOut grades higher than Textkernel: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
SeekOut grades higher on value for money, features and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
SeekOut
AI candidate sourcing across 1B+ profiles and your ATS
Textkernel
Resume parsing and AI matching for HR software and recruiters
Which one is for you
Pick SeekOut if
- Fits if you source for a small team of up to 3 recruiters
- Works for teams that want search linked to an existing ATS
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a price for any plan other than Sourcing Core, as the rest are custom annual quotes
- Tight if you need more than 3 seats, as Core has no extra seats
- Watch out: Core has no SSO
- Watch out: only Core has a free trial
- Watch out: applicant evaluation and AI screening need Full Recruiting Funnel
Pick Textkernel if
- Fits if you build HR software or a job board and need resume data pulled out
- Works for corporate HR teams with a developer who can wire in an API
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a hiring tool for recruiters: it's a component for other systems
- Not for you if you have no developer, as it runs through an API
- Watch out: $99 covers the Parser only; matching and market data are sold on a demo
- Watch out: add-ons such as the LLM Parser are listed without a cost
- Pricey if you parse in volume: monthly plans stop at 25,000 credits and anything bigger is Enterprise
How we grade them
| 2.4GPASeekOutFair | 1.8GPATextkernelWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | B$149 a month for 3 seats billed annually is about $50 a seat, inside the cheaper quarter of hiring tools at $74. $179 billed monthly. | C$99 a month for 500 credits on the Parser API, which sits between the category's cheaper quarter at $74 and its dearer quarter at $149. The page doesn't say how many credits one resume uses. |
| Free plan and trial | CA 14-day trial of Sourcing Core with no credit card, then nothing free. | CA free trial gives 500 credits with instant access, through a demo page or the API. It's a trial, not a free plan, and the page doesn't state its length. |
| Features | CAI search, 30+ filters, contacts, exports, outreach and a Chrome extension. Applicant evaluation and AI screening need the Full Recruiting Funnel plan. | DIt parses resumes and jobs and sells matching and market data separately by demo. On its own it does one narrow job and needs another system to be useful. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. You set up search, outreach and integrations. | DIt's used through an API, so someone has to write the integration. That's the configuration a D describes. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb and Chrome extension with Workday, iCIMS, Greenhouse, Lever and AI assistant integrations. | BWeb service with a documented API and a Source and Match product behind a demo. No desktop or phone app, so B. |
| Best for | candidate sourcing with AI search | parsing resumes inside other software |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: SeekOut and Textkernel. How we grade
Price against what you get
SeekOut starts at $149 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Textkernel starts at $99 a month and scores 1.7.
SeekOut scores higher, and starts $50 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other hiring and applicant tracking tools on the chart, 7 score higher than SeekOut for less, and 21 score higher than Textkernel for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- SeekOut also covers AI agents and reports.
- Textkernel also covers AI search.
At a glance
| SeekOut | Textkernel | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $149 per month, billed annually ($179 billed monthly) | $99 per month for the Parser API |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of Sourcing Core, no credit card required | Parser free trial: 500 free credits with instant access, through a demo interface or the API. |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | SeekOut | Textkernel |
| Price read from | seekout.com | textkernel.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
SeekOut
- Only Sourcing Core is priced publicly; every other plan is a custom, annual quote.
- Sourcing Core has no SSO and no extra seats beyond its 3 included.
- Only Sourcing Core offers the 14-day free trial.
- Applicant evaluation and AI screening need the Full Recruiting Funnel plan.
Textkernel
- The $99 price is for the Parser only; the other Textkernel products are sold through a demo request.
- Plans are credit based, and the page does not say how many credits one resume uses.
- Add-ons such as the LLM Parser are listed on the Professional and Enterprise cards, and the page does not break out their cost.
- It is a component for other systems, not a standalone applicant tracking system.
Key features
SeekOut
- AI candidate search
- Searches 1B+ external profiles and the company's ATS with AI that reads context, plus 30+ filters on the entry plan.
- Applicant evaluation and AI screening
- Scores inbound applicants, runs AI screening and flags signs of fraud. This sits in the full-funnel product.
- ATS rediscovery
- Surfaces past applicants and silver medalists already in the ATS, alongside external results.
- Outreach
- Email integration with send-on-behalf and AI multi-step campaigns, with contact credits and exports capped monthly.
- Chrome extension
- Sources and enriches profiles from any website without leaving the page.
- SeekOut MCP
- Brings SeekOut's profile search into Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Amazon Quick.
Textkernel
- Resume and job parsing
- Extracts, classifies and enriches data from resumes in 29 languages and job postings in 9, returned in a structured format for an ATS or CRM.
- LLM Parser
- A parser built on a large language model that the vendor says extracts more data than the standard engine.
- Parser add-ons
- Skills and job title normalization, image OCR, geocoding, resume anonymization and parsing of user-defined fields.
- Source and Match
- Separate AI search and matching product for finding and ranking candidates against jobs.
- Skills intelligence and market data
- Further products cover skills intelligence and labor market insights under the Market IQ name.
Plans
SeekOut
Sourcing Core$149
per month for 3 seats, billed annually ($179 billed monthly)
Unlimited search, 30+ filters, 500 contact credits and 1,000 exports a month, and AI multi-step campaigns.
SourcingCustom
Per-seat pricing billed annually, with 750 contacts and 5,000 exports per seat a month, SSO and diversity filters.
Sourcing + IntegrationCustom
Adds ATS rediscovery, unified external and ATS search, usage reports and market intelligence. Billed annually.
Full Recruiting FunnelCustom
Adds inbound applicant evaluation, AI screening, agentic workflows and custom integrations. Billed annually.
Textkernel
Parser Professional$99
per month, starting price for 500 credits
Self-serve credits for the Parser API. Monthly plans run from 500 to 25,000 credits; annual plans go up to 100,000.
Parser EnterpriseCustom
Higher parsing volumes, expert advice, and extras such as the LLM Parser and a skills taxonomy download.
Ways to pay less
SeekOut
- Annual discount
Save $360 a year with annual billing
Sourcing Core is $149 a month paid annually upfront ($1,788 a year) against $179 a month billed monthly.
Textkernel
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, SeekOut or Textkernel?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Textkernel is cheaper to start with: $99 a month, against $149 a month for SeekOut. SeekOut starts at $149 per month, billed annually ($179 billed monthly), and Textkernel starts at $99 per month for the Parser API.
Which has a free plan, SeekOut or Textkernel?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither SeekOut nor Textkernel has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do SeekOut and Textkernel run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only SeekOut lists a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.