Recruitment · head to head
Glassdoor vs Indeed
Glassdoor
Recruitment
Employer review and salary transparency app owned by Recruit Holdings, the same parent as Indeed
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Indeed
Recruitment
Job search app aggregating listings, owned by Recruit Holdings, the same parent as Glassdoor
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Glassdoor it shares the same parent company, Recruit Holdings, as Indeed, whose revenue depends on employer ad spend, which sits in tension with Glassdoor's role as an independent employer watchdog.; Indeed search ranking is influenced by which employers pay for sponsored placement, so prominent listings are not purely a match to relevance or seeker preference.
- They diverge on capability: Glassdoor covers Employee reviews, Indeed covers Aggregated job search.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Glassdoor and Indeed actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (iOS, Android, Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Recruitment).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Glassdoor
- Employee reviews
- Salary reports
- Interview insights
- CEO approval rating
- Job listings
- Company comparisons
Only in Indeed
- Aggregated job search
- One-click apply
- Job alerts
- Salary and company info
- Skills assessments
- Application tracking
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Glassdoor
- Researching a company's culture and management reputation before accepting a job offernot Indeed
- Comparing self-reported salary data for a role before a negotiationnot Indeed
- Reading anonymous interview reports to prepare for a specific company's processnot Indeed
- Checking CEO and leadership approval trends before joining a companynot Indeed
Indeed
- Searching and filtering job listings across many employers and other job boards in one placenot Glassdoor
- Applying to multiple jobs quickly using a saved Indeed resume via one-click applynot Glassdoor
- Setting alerts for new postings matching a specific role, location or salary rangenot Glassdoor
- Checking aggregated salary estimates for a role before an interview or negotiationnot Glassdoor
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Glassdoor
- It shares the same parent company, Recruit Holdings, as Indeed, whose revenue depends on employer ad spend, which sits in tension with Glassdoor's role as an independent employer watchdog.
- Review authenticity cannot be independently verified, and companies have periodically been accused of soliciting favourable reviews from current employees to offset negative ones.
- Self-reported salary data is not verified against payroll records, so figures for a given role and company can be inconsistent or dated.
- Older accounts were required to submit their own review or salary before unlocking others' data, and remnants of that give-to-get pressure can still affect what gets submitted.
- Employers can purchase enhanced branding pages, which changes what job seekers see on a company's page compared with a company that has not paid for branding.
Indeed
- Search ranking is influenced by which employers pay for sponsored placement, so prominent listings are not purely a match to relevance or seeker preference.
- It shares the same parent company, Recruit Holdings, as Glassdoor, so treating the two as fully independent sources of employer information overstates their independence from each other.
- Listing quality varies widely since postings are aggregated from many sources, and duplicate, expired or low-quality listings are a common complaint.
- One-click apply can encourage high volume, low-tailoring applications, which employers increasingly filter out with their own screening tools regardless of Indeed's reach.
- Resume and application data uploaded to Indeed is used across its own products and shared with employers a user applies to, which is the trade for the free service.
Pricing, plan by plan
Glassdoor
Free- Job seeker accountFree
- Free browsing of reviews, salaries and listings
Indeed
Free- Job seeker accountFree
- Free search, application and alerts
Which should you pick?
Choose Glassdoor if
- You need employee reviews.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on iOS, Android, Web.
- You also want salary reports.
Choose Indeed if
- You need aggregated job search.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on iOS, Android, Web.
- You also want one-click apply.
Questions people ask
- Is Glassdoor or Indeed better?
- Neither clearly leads. Glassdoor starts at Free and Indeed at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Glassdoor or Indeed?
- Glassdoor starts at Free and Indeed at Free.
- Does Glassdoor or Indeed run on more platforms?
- Both run on iOS, Android, Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Glassdoor for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Glassdoor best used for?
- Glassdoor is most often used for researching a company's culture and management reputation before accepting a job offer, comparing self-reported salary data for a role before a negotiation, reading anonymous interview reports to prepare for a specific company's process, checking ceo and leadership approval trends before joining a company. Of those, researching a company's culture and management reputation before accepting a job offer and comparing self-reported salary data for a role before a negotiation are not what Indeed is typically brought in for.
- What can Glassdoor do that Indeed cannot?
- Glassdoor covers Employee reviews, Salary reports, Interview insights, CEO approval rating. Indeed covers Aggregated job search, One-click apply, Job alerts, Salary and company info.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Glassdoor: Is Glassdoor free to use?
Yes for job seekers; employers pay for enhanced branding and recruiting products.
Indeed: Is Indeed free for job seekers?
Yes, searching, applying and setting alerts are all free; only employers pay, for sponsored placement.
Glassdoor: Are Glassdoor and Indeed the same company?
No, they are separate products but share the same parent company, Recruit Holdings.
Indeed: Are Indeed and Glassdoor connected?
Yes, both are owned by Recruit Holdings, the Japanese company that also owns Recruit staffing businesses in Japan.
Glassdoor: Are Glassdoor reviews verified?
No, reviews and salary reports are self-reported and anonymous; Glassdoor applies moderation but does not verify employment or salary details against payroll records.
Indeed: Does paying for a sponsored listing guarantee more qualified applicants?
No, sponsorship affects visibility and volume of applications, not their quality.
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