Resume Now Reviews: Resume Builder and Templates

Should you entrust your resume builder needs to Resume Now? As a professional resume writer with over two years of experience, I’ve reviewed hundreds of application documents, so I decided to put Resume Now’s services to the test to help you answer this question.

Here’s what I liked – and didn’t like – about Resume Now’s builder and templates.

Build My Resume

Our free-to-use 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.

Resume-Now.com customer reviews

Having assisted job seekers with their resume-making needs since 2005, Resume Now has accumulated over 9,000 reviews on Trustpilot to date. They have an average Trustpilot rating of 4.3/5, and 78% of reviewers gave their business 5 stars.

Additionally, on Sitejabber more than 3,900 generally satisfied customers have given Resume Now an overall rating of 4.45 stars.

The Resume Now resume builder

Resume Now claims its resume builder makes it easy to build your own resume in 15 minutes or less. I attempted this myself, and here’s what I found:

How it works

Whether you want to start a resume from scratch or import an existing resume to use with another resume template, the builder provides a relatively straightforward experience.

As with other resume builders, I was asked to fill in my contact information, a work experience section, an education section, and a skills section.

After adjusting these details, I was presented with a finished, personalized resume ready for additional edits.

What I liked about Resume Now’s builder

Overall, I found the builder to be intuitive and easy to use. The following is a list of what I liked the most about Resume Now’s resume builder:

1. Easy to use resume-building steps

Resume Now’s claim that you can create a strong resume in 15 minutes or less holds true. Different members of our team tested it 12 separate times and finished building their resume on average in 11.5 minutes.

On the resume work experience section part of the builder, I enjoyed being able to choose between writing my own resume bullet points or using recommended ready-to-use phrases as necessary.

In the skills section page of the builder, Resume Now generates a list of skills based on the job title you put in. There’s a stronger emphasis on hard skills in their builder, possibly because soft skills are difficult to objectively measure.

Personally, I think it would’ve been useful to have a tip encouraging job seekers to provide examples demonstrating a balanced set of hard skills and soft skills throughout their resumes and especially in their experience section.

The final step in the builder prompts you to edit each resume section directly if necessary and has a built-in spell check to ensure your resume is free from spelling errors.

2. A lot of customization options

If you change your mind and want to use a different template than the one you originally picked, you can easily switch it out once you reach the final stage of the builder. At this stage, it’s also possible to choose a different color for your resume and experiment with the formatting.

Additionally, Resume Now gives you the option to include additional sections such as language skills, certifications, awards, or accomplishments on your resume.

What I think could use improvement

While there’s a lot to like about Resume Now’s builder tool, I noticed a few things that negatively impacted my experience as a user:

1. Confusing template selection process

The templates at the top of the template pages all lead you directly to the builder when you click on the “use this template” button, instead of letting you download them directly.

To get to the free downloadable pages, you have to scroll far down the page and you only have a very limited number of options.

In my opinion, it would be more helpful if it was clearer which templates are available in the free portion of the builder and if it was easier to switch templates once you’ve already started your resume.

2. Lack of transparency

Once I had picked my template, customized it, and filled in all my information I was asked to create an account to save and download my resume. It wasn’t until I had already signed up, however, that I was informed I would have to pay to be able to do so.

I can see how this could be frustrating if you’re a job seeker who’s just looking for a quick, free way to create a professional-looking resume. In that kind of situation, you don’t really want to waste valuable time making a resume that you can’t even use unless you decide to spend money on it after all.

You should also be aware that if you do sign up for one of the subscription options, you’ll have to cancel it yourself or else it auto-renews every 14 days (or every year if you choose the annual subscription).

Resume Now’s templates

Resume Now offers six different categories of templates designed to match the needs of different types of job seekers. These categories are:

• Modern
• Creative
• Simple
• Minimalist
• ATS-friendly
• Executive

Here are eight sample templates taken from each category, along with my thoughts on them:

Modern

Thanks to colorful resume headers, Resume Now’s Modern templates stand out from traditional templates required in fields like finance and law. These are a great option if you want to display a little individuality while maintaining a sleek, professional image.

However, I found that some of the Modern templates’ features appeared visually awkward with compact text and too much blank space. I believe this space could be better utilized both in their single-column and two-column templates.

Creative

Resume Now’s Creative templates represent the kind of resume you’d see in fields like graphic design or marketing.

With a variety of different fonts and clean layouts to choose from, including photo resumes, you can’t go wrong with one of these templates if you’re applying for a job in the creative industry.

Simple

Resume Now recommends their Simple templates for job seekers looking for a more bare-bones approach. And while some templates nailed this with a clean, no-frills layout, I discovered that others looked very similar to the Modern templates.

Minimalist

The minimalist category contains a good selection of basic templates with clean layouts. If I was applying for a job in a more conservative field like law or healthcare, I could easily see myself using one of these templates for my resume.

ATS-Friendly

An ATS-friendly resume just means it contains few visual elements like images and graphics and follows a straightforward layout, so don’t feel confined to the options in this category.

In fact, I found several of these templates on the minimalist and simple template pages as well, so you can safely use any of those templates without worrying about applicant tracking systems rejecting your resume.

Executive

The Executive category has some solid professional template options, ranging from basic to sophisticated.

There are a couple of two-column designs that provide more space for additional categories like core competencies or awards, if that’s something you’re looking for.

Frequently asked questions about Resume Now

Still not sure about Resume Now’s resume building services? I answer some frequently asked questions about Resume Now below:

Is Resume Now free?

No, Resume Now is not free if you want to download your resume as a PDF or Word Doc. To download your finished resume from the Resume Now resume builder, you’ll need to pay $2.45 for 14-day limited access, which auto-renews at $23.85 per month.

However, if you don’t want to pay you can download the contents of your resume for free by downloading your resume as a plain text file from Resume Now’s builder. To do this, click “download” toward the end of the builder process, and then click “text file.”

Is Resume Now safe?

Yes, Resume Now is a safe website that provides a resume builder and various career resources to job seekers. It offers a range of resources to help people create professional resumes and cover letters, including a resume builder, resume templates, and articles providing writing advice and tips.

Like many websites, Resume Now collects personal information from users to provide its services. This includes information like your name, email address, and phone number. Resume Now states that it carefully protects user information, including using encryption technologies to protect data transferred over the internet.

Is Resume Now legit?

Yes, Resume Now is legit. As one of the largest resume building websites in the world, Resume Now has an average Trustpilot rating of 4.6/5 and provides services to thousands of job seekers every month.

How much does Resume Now cost?

Resume Now’s resume builder costs $1.25 for 14-day limited access, $1.45 for 14-day full access, or $5.85 for monthly access. After your 14-day trial, your subscription will auto-renew for $23.85 every 4 weeks.

Additional resume builder reviews

Not convinced by Resume Now? Learn about some alternative resume builder services by reading our other reviews:

Build your resume in minutes

Use an AI-powered resume builder and have your resume done in 10 minutes. Just select your template and our software will guide you through the process.

Build your own