Resume Margins: Standard Sizes & How to Set Them

Margin sizes are an important part of proper resume formatting and they can help make your resume look polished and professional.

In general, you should use 1″ margins, which are the default on Microsoft Word.

However, you can move your margins within a range of ½”–1″. For example, you might use 1″ margins if you have less work experience. Or, you might prefer more narrow page margins if you want to include more details on your resume.

Check out this example to see what standard margins for a resume look like:

Best margins for printing a resume

We recommend you use the standard margins for a resume (1″) to guarantee that nothing will be cut off when you print out your document.

In the printing section, make sure to select the right paper size. If you’re printing onto US letter-size paper, select that option on your computer. If you’re printing onto A4 paper, use that setting.

If you try to print on a different type of paper than what’s in the printer, you’ll end up with inaccurate margins.

1. How to change resume margins in Google Docs

Google Docs makes it easy to change the margins for your resume. Click File on the top menu, then hit Page Setup, and you’ll be given a pop-up with the options you need.

If you’ve set Google to use American English, this pop-up will use inches. If you see centimeters instead, use 2.54 cm for 1″ and 1.27 cm for ½”.

2. How to change resume margins in Microsoft Word

Unlike Google Docs, Microsoft Word offers preset resume margin options. They can be accessed by clicking Layout on the menu bar, and then clicking Margins:

The Normal option gives you 1″ margins on all four sides of your page, while Narrow changes them all to ½”.

if you want to specifically modify the margins to 1″ on the top and bottom but ½” on the sides, you can click Custom Margins at the bottom and manually input your specifications.

The best resume templates for 2026

One of the best ways to make your resume is by filling out one of our free resume templates. All our templates are designed by experts and free to download for Microsoft Word or Google Docs.

View Resume Templates

Additional resume writing resources

• Best format for your resume
• Best fonts for your resume
• Is 10.5 font too small for a resume?
• How to make a resume on Word
• Cover letter vs. resume
• How long should a resume be?
• How far back should a resume go?

Frequently asked questions about resume margins

We’ve answered some common questions on resume margins below:

Can I use margins thinner than ½” if I have a lot of experience?

We do not recommend using margins thinner than ½”, as your resume will look crowded and unprofessional. If you can’t fit all of your details on the page, use only the most recent and most relevant work experience and omit unnecessary information about your education to save space.

If my resume is less than a page, can I increase the margins?

Yes, you can increase the margins so your experience fills the page, but don’t go much wider than 1”. You can also increase the spacing between lines if your resume is less than a page to use a full page.