Ghost jobs: how to spot a job posting that isn't real, and what to do instead
A ghost job is a posting for a role the employer isn't actively filling: left up after it closed, reposted to collect resumes, or kept to look like the company is growing. Warning signs are an old or endlessly reposted date, a vague description, and a role missing from the employer's own careers page. Favor postings created recently on the employer's own hiring board.
What is a ghost job?
A ghost job is a posting that looks open but isn't being filled. Some are simply stale: the role was filled or cancelled and the posting stayed up, often on job sites that copied it from the employer. Others are left up on purpose, to collect resumes for later, to show investors or staff that the company is hiring, or to advertise a role that already has a candidate in mind.
Job seekers and hiring-software companies have both described the problem; Greenhouse's 2024 survey of job seekers, for one, asked about their experience of ghost jobs.
Why do companies post jobs they don't plan to fill?
- The posting outlived the role: it was filled, frozen or cancelled, and nobody took it down, or a job site kept its copy.
- Pipeline building: the company keeps an evergreen posting open to collect resumes for future openings.
- Appearances: a careers page full of roles signals growth to investors, customers and staff.
- An internal candidate: the role is advertised because a rule requires it, but someone has already been picked.
Evergreen postings aren't always ghosts. Some large employers hire continuously for common roles. The difference is whether anyone is reading the applications.
How can you tell if a job posting is a ghost job?
| Sign | What to check |
|---|---|
| The date is old, or the same role keeps reappearing | When the employer created it. Job sites often show the date they copied a posting, not the date it went up. |
| It isn't on the employer's own careers page | Search the company's careers page for the title. If the link falls back to a general page, treat the role as closed. |
| The description is vague | A real opening usually names a team, a location and specific duties. |
| No pay range where the law requires one | Several US states and cities require many employers to print a pay range in the posting. |
| The company has announced a hiring freeze or layoffs | News about the employer from the last few months. |
| Nobody can say who the role reports to | Ask the recruiter about the team and the timeline. A real opening has answers. |
Is a ghost job the same as a job scam?
No. A ghost job wastes your time; a scam is after your money or your identity. A scam may promise high pay for easy work, interview you only by text, or send you a check and ask you to return part of it. See how to spot student job scams.
How do you avoid applying to ghost jobs?
- Start with roles created in the last few days, while the team is still reading applications.
- Apply through the employer's own careers page, not a copy on a job site.
- Look up the team and the hiring manager; a real role usually has one you can find.
- Ask about the timeline in your first conversation with a recruiter.
- Track every application, and move on after two follow-ups.
Carir can't know whether a team intends to hire. What it can show is when a role was created and where: its daily matches use each hiring system's own timestamp, never the date a job site copied the posting. There is more on why that matters in why fresh job postings matter.
Sources
- Greenhouse — 2024 State of Job Hunting report: A hiring-software company's survey of job seekers, including their experience of ghost jobs.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics — Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: The official monthly count of US job openings and hires, for the market-wide picture one board cannot give.
- Federal Trade Commission — Job Scams: How fake job offers work, the payment requests that give them away, and where to report one.
Questions people ask
What is a ghost job?
A posting for a role the employer isn't actively filling: left up after the role closed, kept open to collect resumes, or posted for appearances.
How can I tell if a job posting is real?
Find it on the employer's own careers page, check when it was created, and look for a named team, a location and specific duties. A role missing from the employer's own page is the clearest warning sign.
Should I still apply to a posting that might be a ghost job?
If it is on the employer's own careers page and fits you well, applying costs little. Just don't spend hours tailoring for a posting that is months old; put that time into roles created this week.
Why do companies post jobs that don't exist?
Usually not to deceive anyone in particular: postings outlive filled roles, employers collect resumes for future openings, or a role is advertised although an internal candidate has been chosen.
Is a ghost job a scam?
No. A ghost job wastes your time; a scam wants your money or personal details. Never pay to apply, and never deposit a check from an employer you haven't verified.
Try it on your own search
Carir finds the roles employers posted today, scores each one against your resume with the lines that earned it, and tailors without inventing experience. The free plan includes the job board and the tracker.