Cover letters still matter: 60 per cent of companies ask for one, and 77 per cent of recruiters prefer candidates who include one. Yet writing a fresh letter for every role eats time. AI generators now close that gap, and LinkedIn’s 2025 “Draft with AI” button proves the concept has gone mainstream.
We benchmarked five leading tools on writing quality, speed, design polish, price, and workflow extras. The winners below help you send stronger applications in less time—without losing your personal voice.
How We Tested And Ranked Each Tool
To keep the playing field level, we ran the same mid-level marketing résumé and a single Fortune 500 job ad through all five platforms in October 2025. For each product, we:
- Generated three cover-letter drafts, then averaged the results to reduce outliers.
- Timed the entire flow, from clicking Generate to a draft we would confidently send.
- Scored every draft against five weighted factors:
- Writing quality and relevance — 35 per cent
- Speed and ease of use — 25 per cent
- Value for money, including free tiers — 20 per cent
- Design flexibility — 1 per cent
- Workflow extras (e.g., ATS scoring, one-click apply) — percentage
To confirm real-world readiness, we uploaded each final PDF to Jobscan’s ATS Resume Scanner, which simulates how Workday, Greenhouse, and other systems parse applications. Only letters that cleared this check without formatting errors kept their full points.
Those combined scores produced the rankings you’ll see next, with data you can replicate.
At A Glance Comparison
Need the crib sheet? Here is how the five tools stack up.
| Tool | Best used for | Free tier |
| AIApply | High volume applications | 1 draft per day |
| Novorésumé | Portfolio-ready design | Try before buy |
| Enhancv | Zero-cost jump start | Unlimited drafts |
| Kickresume | Polished prose | 1 draft |
| Grammarly | Final draft polish | Unlimited |
*Prices are monthly and pulled from public product pages in November 2025.
AIApply: Best For Automated Applications At Scale
For job seekers who send dozens of applications each week, AIApply focuses on speed and volume. The web app generates a tailored cover letter, refreshes your résumé layout, and, if you choose, submits the entire packet on your behalf.
During our October 2025 test, a two-page marketing résumé plus a Fortune 500 job ad produced a ready-to-send letter in 45 seconds. One click later, the platform filled the employer form and attached both files, our quickest end-to-end result.
Quality holds up: sentences read like those of a mid-career professional, and a tone slider lets you pivot from formal to energetic while matching job-post keywords for ATS alignment. We edited only two lines to match the personal voice.
AIApply’s edge is volume, and the platform’s full feature set is detailed on AIApply’s official site. Queue ten matching roles, and the system returns tailored packets without slowing down. Trade-offs exist: the layout is fixed (clean but not fancy), and auto-application requires the paid plan ($12 per month). You also need to grant temporary login cookies; the company states that credentials remain encrypted and are not stored.
If speed and scale outrank design freedom, AIApply turns repetitive applications into a task you can complete during a coffee break.
Novorésumé: Best For Polished, Brand-Ready Design
Novorésumé shines when presentation matters as much as prose. “Its curated library of Novoresume Cover Letter Templates offers cohesive designs that pair clean layouts with ATS-safe formatting. The editor opens with 16 designer templates, each paired with a matching résumé layout, so your application carries a studio-level finish.
During our October 2025 test, we picked a minimalist theme, added résumé details, and let the AI suggest stronger verbs, flag the missing hiring-manager name, and add a note on the company’s latest product launch. Total build time was about eight minutes, slower than AIApply but visually superior.
The tool guides you through Greeting → Hook → Value → Call to action while offering real-time suggestions without overwriting your voice. Fonts remain aligned, spacing stays clean, and every template is ATS-friendly because the text stays selectable.
You can try the builder free; exporting a premium design costs $12 per month. If you work in marketing, consulting, or any field where aesthetics signal credibility, that fee feels like an investment, not an add-on.
The trade-off? Novorésumé is not the fastest option, yet when style points count, it delivers substance and polish on a single page.
Enhancv: Best Free Jump Start
Enhancv’s no-login generator is the fastest way we found to get a usable first draft. According to Enhancv, its platform helps candidates create clear, job-ready documents without sacrificing ATS compatibility. During our October 2025 test, we uploaded a two-page résumé, pasted the Fortune 500 job ad, and received a plain-text letter in about 30 seconds.
Speed is the headline: the AI threads your metrics and keywords into a structured draft you can paste into Docs or Word. You will still want to adjust tone, because content-first copy can feel mechanical until you add personality.
Design features sit behind the paid builder, yet even the free option keeps text ATS safe. Enhancv states that you can “generate as many cover letters as you need—no login, no hidden payments,” although its help page notes the free plan covers two downloadable letters before a pro upgrade is required.
If you are a student, recent grad, or anyone on a tight deadline, Enhancv delivers a fast, no-cost draft. It will not win style awards, but it handles the basics and protects your budget.
Kickresume: Best For Ready-To-Send Writing Quality
If polished prose is your priority, Kickresume delivers. In our October 2025 test, it took about one minute to turn a résumé plus a job ad into a draft that needed almost no editing. The AI writes with natural transitions, inserts key skills without keyword stuffing, and even suggests ways to address employment gaps.
Design depth matches the writing: 40+ templates range from conservative to creative, all ATS-friendly, similar to what you see in design-forward builders like Novorésumé. Pick a style, click Apply, and your letter and résumé share a unified look.
Cost is straightforward. The first AI letter is free; ongoing access to unlimited drafts and every template requires Kickresume Premium. The half-year plan averages $14 per month, while a true month-to-month option is $24 per month. Students can request free Premium through the site’s education program.
For applicants who value crisp language over pure speed, Kickresume earns its keep with less tinkering and more sending.
Grammarly: Best For Final Polish On A Tight Budget
Grammarly’s AI generator lives inside the tools you already use, such as Docs, Word, and email, so there is no new interface to learn. Paste your résumé bullets, add the job ad, click Generate, and a draft appears in seconds.
The main value comes after generation, especially if you first created a quick draft in a speed-focused tool like Enhancv. Grammarly’s side panel suggests clarity rewrites, tone shifts, and conciseness tweaks. Slide the tone dial toward formal, tap Shorten, and the paragraphs tighten without losing personality.
Design is not the focus; you receive clean text ready for any application portal. That makes Grammarly ideal when substance outranks style and error-free prose is a must.
Cost seals the deal. The Free plan costs $0 and now includes up to 100 AI prompts per month. Premium starts at $25 per month and adds deeper rewrites plus plagiarism checks.
If accuracy matters more than aesthetics, Grammarly gives you a solid first draft and remains a tireless proofreader without denting your budget.
How To Get The Most From AI Cover-Letter Tools
- Provide rich inputs and refer to our guide on streamlining the cover-letter writing process for extra speed and clarity. Clear data in, sharp draft out.
- Read the draft aloud. Your ear spots robotic phrasing faster than your eyes. Replace stiff verbs with stronger ones and trim filler.
- Verify every detail. Names, dates, and metrics must match your résumé; ATS software flags inconsistencies.
- Match the company’s voice. Formal fits finance, while conversational fits startups. Most generators include a tone slider, so adjust it and refine manually.
- Protect your data. Choose platforms with published privacy policies and avoid pasting sensitive numbers, even when using high-volume application tools like AIApply. The Federal Trade Commission advises sharing only job-relevant information online.
Conclusion
AI cover-letter generators have matured into reliable, time-saving tools that help applicants move faster while still presenting their strongest professional story. Our 2025–2026 benchmark shows that the best platforms deliver clean formatting, recruiter-ready writing, and impressive accuracy when matching role requirements.
But the real advantage comes from pairing machine efficiency with human judgment. Use AI to handle the heavy lifting—structuring paragraphs, weaving in keywords, tightening language—while you focus on the nuances that prove authenticity: your motivations, your personality, and the one or two achievements that genuinely set you apart.
In a hiring landscape where volume is high and attention is short, the candidates who win are those who apply quickly and meaningfully. With the right AI tool and a small amount of thoughtful editing, you can consistently send applications that accomplish both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do hiring managers actually prefer personalised letters?
Yes. Surveys from SHRM and LinkedIn indicate that personalisation—such as referencing the company’s recent initiatives or explaining why the role excites you—improves recruiter engagement. AI helps you draft faster, but personalisation still differentiates you.
Which AI tool is best for beginners?
If you’re new to AI-assisted applications, Enhancv and Grammarly offer the gentlest learning curve. Enhancv generates quick drafts, while Grammarly improves clarity and tone inside the tools you already use.
Can AI help if I’m changing careers?
Absolutely. Tools like Kickresume and Novorésumé are strong at reframing transferable skills and rewriting résumé points to match new industries. Still, you should manually highlight any training, certifications, or personal projects relevant to your target field.
Are creative templates safe for ATS systems?
Most modern generators now ensure that even visually rich templates remain ATS compatible by keeping text selectable and avoiding embedded images. Still, when in doubt, export in Word format and re-scan using Jobscan or a similar checker.
Should I ever skip a cover letter?
Only if the employer explicitly says it’s optional and the application form offers no place to upload one. If given the chance, include a short letter—our testing shows it remains an easy way to stand out with minimal extra work.
How do I maintain a consistent voice across applications?
Use the same résumé data input across tools, set the tone slider to similar levels, and perform a final manual pass. Reading your draft aloud remains the fastest way to ensure consistency.
