Internly vs. Handshake
September 2, 2026 · updated October 6, 2026 · 5 min read
These two solve different halves of the same problem. Handshake is the career platform your university (probably) partners with — a network where employers come looking for students. Internly is an app that shows you internships in your field and country as a deck you swipe through, and fills out and submits the application where the employer's system allows it. Yes, we make Internly. Here's the comparison we'd want if we were choosing.
At a glance
| Internly | Handshake | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Swipe-based internship app | University career network |
| Who fills out the application | Internly, on the forms it supports (a minority of listings); otherwise you, from the link it saves | You — through Handshake or on the employer's site, depending on the posting |
| Access | Anyone, any school; listings in 60+ countries | Through a partner school (1,400+ institutions, mostly in the US) |
| Exclusive listings | No | Yes — some roles target your school only |
| Events & career fairs | No | Yes |
| Where it runs | iPhone app and web app | Web, iOS, and Android apps |
| Application tracking | Status of each application, plus employer replies sent to your Internly address | Applications made through Handshake |
| Price | Free (one right swipe a day) · Pro for 30 a day | Free for students |
Where Handshake wins
Warm demand. Employers on Handshake chose to recruit students — sometimes specifically from your school. A role posted for students at your university is aimed at a far smaller group than an open listing on the internet. If your career center is active, the fairs, info sessions, and on-campus interviews are real advantages no standalone app can copy.
It's free. If your school is a partner, there is no reason not to have a profile.
Where Internly helps
Less form-filling. Many postings, on any platform, end at the employer's own form: résumé upload, questions, sometimes an account. Internly's aim is to take that step off you where it can.
What "applies for you" means, exactly. Internly can fill out and submit an application itself only where the employer uses an application form it supports — today that is Greenhouse, Lever, and Ashby, which is roughly 3,700 of the 60,000 listings in the catalogue, most of them in the United States. The web app labels every listing "We apply for you" or "Apply on employer's site" before you swipe. On the first kind, your profile fills the form, and if the form wants something your profile doesn't have, Internly asks you before sending anything. On the second kind, a right swipe saves the role to your Applications list with the employer's link, and you finish there yourself.
It doesn't depend on your school. Handshake is reached through a partner institution, and how much is on it for you depends on which employers recruit at your school. Internly's deck is the same whatever school you attend, covers listings in 60+ countries, and translates listings into ten languages.
One place to see where things stand. Every right swipe shows up in your Applications list with its status. By default Internly applies from an address it creates for you, so what employers send back is forwarded to your inbox and shown in the app too.
The verdict
Use both — they don't overlap much. Check Handshake for school-specific roles and events; use Internly to find roles beyond your campus network and to skip the form where it can submit for you. Neither one decides whether you get hired; the employer does.
Try the swipe side
Free to start — one right swipe a day, on internships in your field and country.
Download Internly