ATS-friendly resume formatting, explained

What the software actually stores

An applicant tracking system, usually called an ATS, is the database employers use to take applications. It extracts text from your file and files that text under headings it recognizes: experience, education, skills. It does not score you for taste. If the text never lands in the right field, a recruiter searching for a skill will not see it.

You still need a resume a person can read in a few seconds. The format below does both.

Use one column and plain headings

Use a single column. Put your name and contact details in the body of the document, not in the header or footer. Those areas are often skipped by parsers.

Label sections with words the system expects: Experience, Education, Skills. Dates on their own line or at the end of the role line are fine if they are text, not a graphic. Skip icons, text boxes, tables, and skill bars. A bar does not say "Excel" to the database.

• Contact line: name, city, phone, email, one profile link.
• Experience: employer, title, location, dates, then bullets.
• Skills: a short list of tools and methods you use, written out.

Send text, not a picture of text

A PDF is fine when you can select the words with a cursor. A scan of a paper resume is a picture, and the ATS will store little or nothing. DOCX is also fine. Avoid unusual fonts and tiny type. If you design for print, export and then copy a paragraph out of the file to confirm the words survived.

The same rules apply when you tailor. Changing bullets should not mean adding columns. See how to tailor a resume to a job description.