Craigslist was once one of the best places to search for any kind of job. From a temporary position as a Cashier to an Executive Assistant for a major retail company, you could find it all on Craigslist. However, with fewer people looking for jobs on Craigslist, the amount of Craigslist jobs posted is at an all-time low.
As years went on after the creation of Craigslist Jobs, more job boards started to appear, including Indeed in 2004, Glassdoor in 2007, and ZipRecruiter in 2010, which decreased Craigslist’s popularity for experienced positions. However, even today, Craigslist is still one of the world’s most popular job boards. Nowadays, it is used more for blue-collar and less senior positions. The question is, is Craigslist still a good place to look for jobs? Here are the pros and cons of Craigslist job postings.
Pros of Finding Jobs on Craigslist
Fewer Applicants
Let’s be honest, nowadays Craigslist has a bad connotation to its name. When you hear someone say, “I applied for a job on Craigslist,” the first thing you ask is if it a legitimate company. However, thousands of companies use Craigslist to fill their job openings. If you apply on Craigslist, the good news is you have a higher chance of the hiring manager or recruiter to see your resume. Why is this?
Job boards like Indeed and Glassdoor average close to 250 applications for one job opening. Craigslist averages around 20-30 applications per job posting. During the pandemic, job searching was more difficult because more people were unemployed than ever before. These numbers increased drastically, making Craigslist a great source for job seekers to get their resumes seen by hiring managers. Make sure to write an effective resume when using Craigslist for your job search.
We recommend that if you apply for a job via Craigslist, make sure to take off your phone number and address on your resume. We also recommend using a new email address just in case!
Small Companies use Craiglist the Most
As you know, a budget for recruiting as a small business is much different than the budget for recruiting as a corporation. That being said, small companies that can’t afford the larger job boards will take advantage of Craigslist.
Looking at Craigslist compared to other job board costs, it is the least expensive (Other than Indeed). To post a job on Craigslist, it can cost between $7 and $75, depending on where you post. ZipRecruiter is a little more expensive, charging $249/per month for four job slots. Glassdoor charges between $64.90 and $249.00 per job. And lastly, it costs $495 to post jobs on LinkedIn.
As you can see, Craigslist is the cheapest job board that charges for job postings. If you are looking to apply to open positions at a local company, we suggest looking for jobs on Craigslist!
Cons of Finding Jobs on Craigslist
Non-Legitimate Job Postings
There are some things you should know before applying for jobs on Craigslist. Craigslist is one of the top 20 websites in the US and generates over $1 billion in revenue. In fact, more people visit Craigslist than companies like Netflix, Zillow, Walmart, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and CNN. Even though it is one of the most popular websites online today, Craigslist only has 50 employees. That means that very rarely will these employees catch and takedown non-legitimate jobs, so be aware.
Right now, the majority of jobs on Craigslist are scams. If you happen to search Craigslist for jobs, take the time to review job descriptions. Usually scams will include spelling errors or information that is too good to be true!
To learn more about ways to determine if a Craigslist job posting is legitimate, check out this article. Our tip for you is that don’t rule out Craigslist for your job search. Many recruiters and companies still use Craigslist to post job openings. Just make sure you are taking the right steps to identify if the job postings are legitimate before applying for them.
Indeed is Better than Craigslist
Craigslist is the cheapest job board that charges for job postings, but Indeed doesn’t charge anything. It is more beneficial for you to go on Indeed and apply for jobs rather than on Craigslist because there will be more legitimate job openings there.
The reason why Craigslist still charges for job postings is to weave out the scams. However, just because it is $7 to post a job doesn’t mean scammers won’t continue to pay for it. The best part of Indeed is that they verify the company before allowing them to post a job. Doing this research prevents scams and any risks to the job search. If you are comparing Indeed vs Craigslist, we would call Indeed the “Craigslist Killer,” because it is a much better option when looking for jobs.
Craigslist Can Be Dangerous
As I said before, Craigslist has thousands of non-legitimate job postings that can be scams. However, that is not the only scary thing about Craigslist. If Craigslist were a city, it would be among the most dangerous in the US. There have been 128 murders since the site started in 1999. The best thing is to be cautious on the site and research the companies before you apply. Better yet, find the company you are applying to, and rather than applying via Craigslist, find the company’s email online and send your resume that way.
If you choose to apply for jobs on Craigslist, don’t add any personal information that isn’t necessary. Only put your name, phone number, and email address. Also, if you are invited to an interview, research the location of the interview beforehand to make sure it is a legitimate company!
Conclusion: Don't Use Craigslist, Use Indeed Instead
Now that you know a little bit more about Craigslist’s pros and cons, make sure to be careful when using the site as a job board. Craigslist jobs are a good resource for your job search, but far worse than the alternatives of Indeed and Glassdoor.
If you are looking for blue-collar or less senior roles, check Craigslist after looking through jobs on Indeed. More often than not, every company that posts on Craigslist will also post their job on Indeed. We recommend checking Craigslist in case a legitimate job pops up that is not on other job boards; however, research a companies job opening on Craigslist before applying.
If you are stuck in the job hunt, contact City Personnel! We can help you find a job you will love, fast. If you want to learn about doing Zoom interviews, check out our new blog, “Zoom Interview in Your Car.”
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