Should you apply if you don't meet all the requirements?

You found a job you like, but you only tick 6 of the 10 boxes. Do you apply, or move on? Here's an honest framework — because the popular advice ("just apply anyway!") is only half true.

The honest short answer

It depends on which requirements you're missing, not how many. Missing two "nice-to-haves" is very different from missing the two things the role is fundamentally about. Job postings are wish lists — but some items on that list are dealbreakers, and some aren't.

The 70% rule — and its big caveat

A common guideline says: if you meet around 70% of the requirements, apply. That's a decent starting point, and many people (especially those who under-apply) would benefit from being less strict with themselves.

But the caveat matters: 70% of the right things. If the missing 30% is the core skill the job is built around — the specific stack, the required certification, the years of experience in that exact function — then no, 70% doesn't save you. Meeting 70% of a senior architect role while missing "architecture experience" isn't a 70% match; it's a no.

Which requirements you can be short on

Usually flexible: "nice to have" skills, specific tools you could learn quickly, a slightly lower years-of-experience count, secondary certifications, soft skills. Employers pad postings with these; they rarely filter on them.

Usually firm: the core technical skill named in the title, a hard legal/regulatory requirement (a license, work authorisation), a large gap in seniority, and anything listed as "required" or "must have." Missing these is where "just apply anyway" wastes your time.

The trap of applying anyway to everything

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" sounds motivating, but applying to jobs you clearly don't match has a real cost: your time, your energy, and your morale. Fifty rejections from stretch roles you were never getting is not a numbers game working in your favour — it's burnout. Being selective isn't being timid; it's spending your limited energy where it can actually pay off.

How to decide fast

Ask three questions: (1) Do I have the core skill the title is about? (2) Do I meet any hard, non-negotiable requirements (license, authorisation, minimum seniority)? (3) Is the gap something I could honestly frame as transferable? If yes, yes, and yes — apply, and tailor hard. If the core skill or a hard requirement is missing, your energy is better spent elsewhere.