Comparison
Sausage Dog vs TopCV
Both rewrite CVs. They aren't the same product. Here's the honest UK breakdown.
Reviewed by Anthony, founder · Updated
TL;DR: use TopCV if you want a one-shot human-written CV and you'll pay £170-£500 once for it. Use Sausage Dog if you're actively applying and need a tailored CV per job — five tailored applications cost less than 10% of TopCV's entry price.
Where TopCV wins
- A human reads your existing CV, asks questions, and rewrites holistically. Genuinely useful if your current CV needs a structural overhaul, not just tailoring.
- The interview guarantee on some tiers — if you meet their application conditions you get a rewrite if it's not working.
- One-and-done. If you don't want to learn a new tool or run anything yourself, you pay once and a CV arrives in a week.
- Good for senior / exec roles where bespoke positioning matters and you're only applying to a handful of jobs.
Where TopCV loses
- Single “master” CV. You get one version. Tailoring it per job is back on you, which is the actual problem most applicants face.
- UK norm gaps. Quality varies by assigned writer. NHS bands, civil service Success Profiles, and trust-specific wording can come out generic.
- Speed. 5-7 business days minimum. If you have an application closing tomorrow, you're stuck.
- Cost ramp. The entry-level price covers junior / early-career CVs. Mid-career and senior tiers run £300-£500.
- Trust variance. Public Trustpilot data shows decent average but a wide spread — some writers excellent, some weak.
Side-by-side
| Feature | Sausage Dog | TopCV |
|---|---|---|
| Turnaround time | < 1 minute | 5-7 business days |
| Cost (one CV) | Free | £170-£500+ |
| Cost (unlimited tailoring) | £9/month | N/A |
| Tailored to each job | ||
| Written by AI | ||
| Written by human | ||
| UK norms baked in (NHS, public sector) | Depends on writer | |
| ATS-friendly output | ||
| Cover letters included | Premium | Premium tier |
| Interview prep included | Premium | |
| LinkedIn rewrite included | Premium | Add-on |
| Interview guarantee | On select tiers | |
| Edit yourself per application | Not needed | Yes, manually |
Cost maths for five applications
Realistic UK application volume per role: 5-10 over 4-6 weeks.
- TopCV (mid-career tier × 5 rewrites): ~£1,500 — or one £300 master + your own tailoring per job.
- Sausage Dog Premium (1 month, unlimited): £9.
- Sausage Dog Free (5 tailored CVs over 5 days): £0.
Which should you use?
Use TopCV if your CV is fundamentally broken (no narrative, no structure, hasn't been updated in 5 years), you're happy to pay £170-£500 once, and you only need one polished master version.
Use Sausage Dog if you have a workable CV and the problem is that you keep applying without hearing back. Tailoring per role is the highest-leverage move; doing it manually is hours per week; £9/month makes it a minute per application.
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Tailor my CV freeFAQs
What is TopCV?+
TopCV (owned by Talent Inc.) is the UK arm of one of the largest paid CV writing services. They pair you with a human CV writer who produces a rewritten CV in 5-7 business days. Pricing typically starts around £170 for an entry-level CV and rises with experience.
Is TopCV worth £170+?+
It depends. If you have an outdated CV, no recent applications, and want a polished one-shot rewrite by a human, TopCV does the job. If you're actively applying and need tailored CVs per job, the maths breaks down — five tailored applications at TopCV is roughly £850 versus £9 for a month of unlimited Sausage Dog.
Who actually writes the TopCV CV?+
A freelance writer assigned to your order. Quality varies by writer. Many TopCV reviews on Trustpilot mention the writer's knowledge of UK-specific roles (NHS bands, civil service competencies) being uneven. For UK public sector roles especially, Sausage Dog's prompts are written for UK norms by default.
Can I tailor a TopCV CV per job application?+
You can edit it yourself, yes, but the version they deliver is a single "master" CV. Tailoring it per role is back on you — which is exactly the problem Sausage Dog solves in a minute.
Does TopCV guarantee interviews?+
They offer a 60-day interview guarantee on some packages — if you don't get more interviews in 60 days they rewrite again for free. Read the conditions: most require you to send the CV to a minimum number of applications and keep records. Sausage Dog doesn't guarantee interviews; no honest tool can.