Resume Design: Templates, Ideas and How-to

1. Catch the recruiter’s eye with your header

Want to grab the hiring manager’s attention right out of the gate? Iris is a modern resume template with a strong use of header space. The block of color helps your name stand out and draws the eye to your contact info. This works particularly well with a bold, sans-serif font like Arial.

2. Consider using an insignia

Eyes move from left to right across the top of a page, and some designs use the upper-left corner effectively with a logo, monogram or small insignia based on the candidate’s initials. Sleek and minimal, this design — known as Aspen — uses thin, delicate lines throughout. They’re used most noticeably to break up the candidate’s initials.

3. Showcase your colorful and creative spirit

Resume designs don’t have to be plain. You can make a perfectly professional resume while offering a glimpse of a more playful aspect of your personality, particularly if you work in the arts. This creative resume template does exactly that by including a spotted pattern that appears to be poking its head around the corner. While the design is fun, it doesn’t take away from the content, which remains well-organized.

4. Get clever with the border

Borders can be a nice addition to a well-designed resume. Take our Hickory template, for example. The border here seems to lay on top of a solid-color header in a way that makes the design feel layered. Borders also draw focus to the content, creating a clear demarcation between the words and the edge of the page. Ultimately, they are an aesthetically pleasing method for organizing the page.

5. Go crisp and refined

Bring clarity, precision and excellence to your job search by choosing a design that is crisp and refined. Clear lines and well-structured information make your document easier to read, not to mention employers will be impressed with your organizational skills. The template above, named Crisp, accomplishes a lot with very little. Minimalist templates remains a powerful tool in the resume-building toolbox.

6. Tastefully elevate your profile

Since your resume profile is your introduction to an employer, it deserves a little extra attention. This unnamed design from the Etsy shop HiredGuardian gives the profile a standout design by placing the text — and the section header — in a box. With an elegant design all around, you may want to consider taking a similar approach on your resume.

7. Say hello with this playful spin

A unique, playful design could help you stand out from other candidates, show your personality and encourage recruiters to spend more time with your resume. Take Quote Bubble, for example. This template uses a speech bubble instead of the conventional header, almost as if the candidate is speaking directly to you. There’s also space to add your job title, which isn’t always the case with other resume designs.

8. Place your skills in the spotlight

This inventive resume design from the CvDesignCo places skills and core competencies before work experience. Additionally, the spacious design and neat use of bullets and italics give each skill room to breathe. Perfect for career changers and entry-level applicants, showcasing skills is a great strategy for when you have limited experience.

9. Add a job-specific twist

This Etsy resume design is perfectly compatible with Google Docs and Microsoft Word. Designed for nurses, what helps this resume stand apart is the image of a heartbeat monitor in the upper left-hand corner. Adding a job-specific icon gives the resume more visual interest and immediate relevance to the hiring manager who only spends a few seconds scanning each application.

10. Return to a classic

For a simple resume template, you can’t get much better than an old-school design like the Standard. What’s the benefit of paring down your design to the basics? For one, such designs are more likely to be compatible with the applicant tracking systems (ATS) employers use to screen applicants. Plus, they make a professional and serious impression on the reader and, most importantly, are very easy to read.

11. Put your best face forward

Hoping to add a personal touch? Include a headshot on your resume. The Spotlight template does exactly that, conveying confidence and approachability even before the recruiter starts reading. In the U.S., this type of design is best suited for fields in which headshots are the norm, such as acting, modeling, television or public relations.

12. Try out a novel style

Sometimes you just want to showcase your creativity. This visually dense, complex design made by WhiteCastleStudios on Etsy includes photos, multiple colors and a much more pronounced professional summary to make a commanding impression. Best for applicants in a creative industry like graphic design or marketing, designs like this will help you stand out in a stack of traditional resumes and showcase your design skills and aesthetic sensibilities.

13. Go big with a unique design element

Another way to add visual interest and showcase creativity is by adding a major design element to a professional resume template. Here, the quotation mark helps block off the header area, serving a specific design purpose. It also shows innovative thinking, which can be an important quality in creative fields. Ultimately, there’s no harm in experimenting with these types of features, but you must use them wisely.

14. Emphasize your career trajectory

This clever Etsy design uses a visual timeline to draw attention to the work experience section. By emphasizing work history, it’s easier for the recruiter to see your clear career progression; consistent, stable employment and the longevity of your career. You can also highlight milestones with a clear, easy-to-follow visual representation of your career journey.

15. Create a unique logo

The Vera resume design on Etsy is fun because the resume maker created a logo that could be aligned with other branded materials (like business cards or a cover letter). This type of design is eye-catching and memorable.

Next, we’ll share design tips to help you get started.