Struggling to get interviews?
Key takeaways
- While one page is the ideal standard for most candidates, a two-page resume is perfectly acceptable if you have over 10 years of experience or work in specialized fields like academia, research, or government.
- Prioritize relevancy over history by focusing on your most impressive achievements and omitting older, unrelated roles or low-value sections like “References” and “Hobbies” to save space.
- Maximize page real estate through strategic formatting, such as reducing margins, using a space-saving sidebar, and keeping bullet points to a maximum of two lines with hard numbers to prove your impact.
Should a resume be one page?
In most cases, one page is the ideal resume length. A single page is usually enough to highlight your most relevant skills, education, and achievements without overwhelming the reader.
However, a two page resume is appropriate if you have 10+ years of experience or extensive accomplishments to highlight. Some fields such as academia, research, or government even expect longer formats.
Ultimately, your resume should be as concise as possible while still showing why you’re the best fit for the job.
Free one-page resume templates
One of the easiest ways to keep your resume short (aside from using a resume builder) is to use a one page resume template to help you format your information concisely.
These free templates are designed to neatly fit all your information onto a single page.
1. Entry-level template
With its expanded education section and clean layout, this template is perfect for entry-level candidates who want to expand on their education or detail relevant projects.
2. Professional template
Sleek and formal, this template features a space-saving sidebar for shorter sections and a slim header that leaves plenty of room for a more detailed work experience section.
3. Modern template
This single page resume template is content-rich yet maintains a clean, uncluttered look. The sidebar helps you to organize your information clearly, while the vertical timeline graphic breaks up the page for easy reading.
4. Clean template
This resume template has a side-aligned header that frees up the entire top of the page, giving you extra room to highlight your key career accomplishments.
5. Creative template
Featuring a colorful skills section and space-saving header, this professional one page resume template is ideal for candidates in creative or tech-focused fields like graphic design or IT.
6. Stylish template
Featuring unique icons and a colorful header, this template is both eye-catching and practical. Its sidebar layout saves space, allowing you to highlight the qualities that make you an ideal candidate.
Our resume builder can make you a resume in as little as 5 minutes. Pick the template you want, and our software will format everything for you.
How to fit your resume on one page
While it may seem challenging, it’s almost always possible to fit your information into one page without leaving out key skills or experience.
1. Focus on your most relevant accomplishments
Highlight your most impressive achievements that are directly relevant to the job you’re applying for.
Instead of listing every responsibility, focus on the results you achieved and the impact you made. Whether you saved time, improved a process, or helped your team achieve a goal, concrete examples quickly show employers what you’re capable of.
2. Tailor your resume to the position
Including every job you’ve ever had takes up valuable space and adds unnecessary detail to your resume.
If you’ve held more than four previous jobs, include only the two or three most relevant to the job you’re applying for. This makes your resume easy to scan and quickly shows hiring managers that you’re qualified.
3. Cut unnecessary sections
Job seekers often waste valuable space on their resume with sections that add little value — or don’t belong there at all.
While including volunteer work or interests can be helpful when you have limited experience, they should be the first to go if you need to make room for your work experience.
Also, adding references to a resume generally isn’t necessary because employers don’t require references up front, and those who do will ask for them later in the hiring process.
4. Tweak your formatting
If you’re running out of space, try adjusting your resume’s formatting to help it fit on one page.
Try making the following adjustments to maximize space on the page:
- Use bullet points instead of paragraphs
- Reduce your margins
- Make your font smaller (although anything below 10pt might be hard to read)
- List your skills on a single line (separated by commas) or in a sidebar
- Reduce the indentation of paragraphs and bullet points
- Make the space between sections narrower
5. Write concise bullet points
Every word on your resume should count. Keep each bullet point in your work experience section to one or two lines at most. Short, achievement-focused bullet points backed by hard numbers are the most effective way to concisely showcase your contributions in past roles.
Here’s an example of a bullet point that is concise, but conveys all necessary information:
Developed new business by cultivating solid relationships with clients, increasing the number of high-worth clients by 30% in less than 2 years.
6. Combine sections where possible
When space is tight, look for opportunities to merge related sections. For example, you can group Education and Certifications under one heading if both are short, or list multiple roles at the same company within a single work experience entry to avoid repeating information.
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