28% of job postings on company career sites have been open over 90 days
Points and comments are a snapshot, not live.
28.3% of open job postings have been up for more than 90 days, per a September 2026 report.
Unlisted's Ghost Jobs Report analyzed 607,050 postings from 15 applicant tracking systems, reading directly from employer career sites. The median open posting is 36 days old. 94,106 postings (16.3%) have been open over 180 days. Hospitality roles sit longest (43.9% over 90 days); healthcare turns over fastest (19.7%). Among applicant tracking systems, Lever has the highest stale share (48.2%), Workday the lowest (17.2%). Of 88,895 closures in the last 30 days, 14.6% came down within a week. 4.2% of closed postings were reposted within 30 days by the same employer for the same role.
What commenters are saying
Commenters largely view these stale postings as evidence of 'ghost jobs'-ads for positions that don't truly exist. Some argue hospitality and education roles linger because wages are too low, while healthcare posts fill quickly due to high demand. Others note that mandatory posting rules for government and union jobs force listings even when an internal candidate is already chosen. A few commenters defend employers, saying increased applicant volume and AI-generated resumes make screening harder, and that high standards-not deception-explain long-open postings.