shortlist-releases

Shortlist

Find jobs that actually fit you, and skip the scams.
A free Windows app that searches many job sites at once, scores every job for you, warns you about scams and fake ads, and helps you apply.

Free · no account · no ads · Windows 10 / 11 · public beta · Support it
_{Same app either way. The Microsoft Store version installs with no warning. The GitHub download may get a warning from Windows once. Why}

Shortlist home screen: best new matches, pipeline and quick triage

Every job scored for fit and quality	Sort new jobs one card at a time

Add your portfolio: it shapes searches and letters	Track every application

Turn a simple form into a clean CV

_{Screenshots use a made-up demo profile.}

Why I built it

Hi, I’m Bishoy, a business graduate from Cairo trying to start a career in project management, ideally abroad. I haven’t found a job yet. Like many of you, I spent hours on a dozen sites, got messages from fake “recruiters” asking for fees, and applied to ads that had been up for months with nobody on the other end.

So I built the tool I wished I had: one place that searches everywhere, tells you honestly how well a job fits you, and warns you before you waste your time or money. Finding, checking and tracking jobs in Shortlist is free, and that stays free.

I’m still looking too. Let’s find our jobs together.

What it does

One search, many job sites. LinkedIn, Indeed and Glassdoor (with a free key), plus Adzuna, Google Jobs, Reed, remote-job boards and companies’ own career pages. Search by job title or by a whole field, like “Data & Analytics”.
Deep search. Runs for a few minutes and finds many more jobs, trying related titles and companies that hire in your field.
Two scores for every job:
- Fit: how well it matches your CV, experience, location and visa needs.
- Quality: pay, employer reputation, benefits and freshness.
Scam shield. Warns about upfront fees, chat-app-only “recruiters”, too-good-to-be-true pay and brand-new websites.
Ghost-job detector. Spots ads that are reposted again and again, have stayed up for months, or are only “collecting CVs”.
Community warnings. Report a scam or ghost job in one click. When several users report the same employer, everyone gets a warning.
Visa sponsorship. Checks the job text and the official UK, Dutch and US sponsor lists.
Card Deck. Go through new jobs one at a time: → save, ← skip, ↑ apply.
Apply kit:
- Cover letters written from your real CV, and checked so nothing is made up.
- A tailored CV for each job, with a keyword-match score before and after.
- A CV builder that turns a simple form into a clean PDF or Word CV.
Tracker. Every application in one place: saved, applied, interview, offer.

Install

Easiest: get it from the Microsoft Store and press Get. No warning, and the Store keeps it updated. Or click Download for Windows above. It downloads Shortlist-beta-Setup.exe straight away. Run it.
- Windows may show a warning the first time you run the GitHub download. That’s expected for a new app; see Why does Windows warn me?
Open Shortlist and follow the 3 quick steps: add your CV, choose where you want to work, see your matches. It works right away with 8 free job sources.
Optional: connect free AI from Groq when a feature asks for it. The app walks you through it in about 2 minutes. It turns on CV reading, fit checks and cover letters.

Updates download by themselves. A bar at the top tells you when one is ready, and it installs when you close Shortlist. The Store version is updated by the Microsoft Store.

Microsoft Store

Shortlist is on the Microsoft Store as Shortlist: Job Search. Microsoft checked and signed it, so it installs in one click with no warning, and the Store keeps it updated. It’s the same free app as the GitHub download. If you already use the GitHub version, you don’t need to switch.

Why does Windows warn me?

When you download or open a new app, you may see one of these:

Your browser: “Shortlist-beta-Setup.exe isn’t commonly downloaded”. In Edge, click … then Keep, then Keep anyway. In Chrome, click Keep.
Windows: a blue box, “Windows protected your PC”. Click More info, then Run anyway.

Why: Windows trusts apps that are code-signed with a paid certificate (a few hundred dollars a year) or that thousands of people have already downloaded. Shortlist is new and made by one person, so it has neither yet. The warning doesn’t mean anything was found in the file.

How you can check it yourself: every release links a VirusTotal scan of the installer in its notes. Or use the Microsoft Store version, which Microsoft checks and signs, so there’s no warning at all.

Your privacy

Your CV, searches, letters and API keys stay on your PC. No account, no ads, and your data is never sold.
Shortlist only sends what it needs: your searches go to job sites, and AI requests go to Groq with your own key. Scam and ghost reports you make, and feedback you send, go to the Shortlist community server.
Anonymous crash reports and feature counts are off until you switch them on.
You can delete everything from Settings → Privacy & community.

Full details are in the privacy policy.

Feedback and help

Click Feedback in the left bar (or press Ctrl+Shift+F). Your message goes straight to my inbox. Leave your email if you’d like a reply. You can also open an issue.

Support Shortlist

Shortlist is free and has no ads. A few advanced tools (deep search, the CV builder, AI cover letters and Pro mode) are free for a limited time and may become part of a paid Pro plan later. Everything else stays free. If it helped you, you can support it here with InstaPay from Egypt or Airtm from anywhere.

Every supporter gets their name on the Supporters page inside the app. I add the new names every month, with each update. Put the name you’d like shown in the transfer note, or send it from the app’s Feedback page. You can also stay anonymous.

Can’t donate? Telling a friend who’s job hunting helps just as much.

Wrongly flagged?

Community warnings are automatic. An employer is flagged only after several different users, on different networks, report it, and every warning in the app says it comes from user reports. If you represent an employer that was flagged by mistake, open an issue or use the in-app Feedback form. Include the company name and website. I review every request and remove wrong flags quickly.

About the developer

Shortlist is built by Bishoy Raafat, a business graduate in Cairo who’s moving into project management, while job hunting himself. Say hi on LinkedIn.

Known issues

The GitHub download may get a warning from Windows on install. See Why does Windows warn me? The Microsoft Store version doesn’t.
The free AI plan has a daily limit. Shortlist tells you when it resets and keeps working without AI in the meantime. Settings → AI usage → Light saves the most.

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