Our simple resume template collection boasts over 30 designs ideal for clean, easy-to-read resumes. Check out our guide and tips for creating a perfect simple resume.
Opt for one of these simple chronological templates if you have a long and consistent work history. You can download these templates for free and edit them in your preferred word processor.
Neat
Upfront
Subtle Creativity
Broad Appeal
Commencing
Indent Line
Creative Conventions
Fresh Take
Stately
Accomplished
No Point Left Out
Bold Red Shading
Packed Classic
Blue Pop
Beaming
Checkmark Timeline
Next Level
Tidy
Industry Lifer
Cosmopolitan
Elegant Traditional
Pretty in Pink
Bold Red
My Name Is
Simple Underline
Striking
Offset
Professional Block
Simple Red
Academia
Plus IT
Breezy
Caption It
Mono Shading
Burgeoning
Simple Central
Moving Up
These free downloadable functional templates are ideal for candidates with little or no previous work experience. Customize them with your skills and achievements and you’re good to go!
Substantial
Top Level
In A Nutshell
Raise the Bar
Space It Out
Classic Elegance
Section Lines
Traditional Plus
No-Nonsense
Non-Traditional
Skilled
Career Starter
Download these combination templates if you have some experience or you want to change careers. You can edit your resume in Word, and best of all, they’re free!
Bulletin
Discreetly Modern
Firm
Award Winner
Aristocratic
Executive Elegant
Bold Simplicity
Polished
Split Page
New Agenda
Check It Off
Airy Traditional
Inverse
Solid Segments
Simple resume templates are the best choice for more traditional roles like attorney, financial analyst, banker and medical assistant.
An easy way to figure out if you should opt for a simple resume is to look at your resume and think about how it would fit specific industries. The clean and sleek designs of simple resume templates are ideal for jobs in more conservative industries.
Although we highly recommend candidates in these fields stick to simple resume templates, anyone can use them! Their safe yet effective designs won’t distract any recruiter’s eyes and bypass applicant tracking systems (ATS). Simple resume templates are an excellent choice for all careers.
These steps will help you build a strong structure for your simple resume. Our guide will teach you about the type of content you should include and what measures you can take to achieve an impeccable design. Let’s dive in.
1. Select the appropriate format.You should always start by deciding on a resume format to structure your resume according to your specific strengths.
If you have a long and consistent work history, opt for the chronological format, which will put the resume’s focus on your job experience. This is the most commonly used format, so it’s what recruiters and applicant tracking systems are used to.
The functional format is ideal for candidates with no previous experience because it highlights your skills while downplaying your work history.
If you want to showcase both your skills and work history, you should try the combination format. This format can work for you if you have some limited work experience.
2. Include your key sections.You should know all resumes need to include the five key sections: contact information, professional summary, work history, skills, and education.
To keep your resume as simple as possible, stick to these basic sections, which we show you how to maximize:
Work history: Build up your work history by including quantifiable achievements. Instead of listing duties and responsibilities, quantify them with percentages, numbers, and dollars. For example, you could say: “Developed 15+ marketing campaigns to increase social media engagement by 35% with the target audience.”
Skills: To maximize your skills section, include a diverse selection of skill types: soft skills, hard skills, and technical skills.
Soft skills refer to the way you behave and how you do your work. For example, organization, conflict resolution, and time management are all soft skills.
Hard skills are learned through education or practical experience. Depending on your professional background, you could have the following hard skills: sales, marketing, knowledge of POS systems, accounting, or customer service.
Technical skills comprise your ability to work with specific technologies. For example, proficiency in Excel, intermediate level of Adobe Photoshop, and knowledge of mass mailing programs can all be considered technical skills.
Professional summary: To get the most of this section, pack your two to three sentences with action verbs and direct phrases. Write your professional summary in present tense and list your top three skills and most impactful accomplishments. Include quantifiable achievements here as you would do in a work history entry.
Education: Although a pretty straightforward section, what you include in your education can differ depending on your age and education level. You should always have the standard degree name, institution and location. If you only have a high school diploma, it’s best to keep that date off, so you avoid employers guessing your age and acting on biases when deciding to hire you.
Contact information: This essential resume section has changed with the times. You no longer have to include your full street address since most employers won’t communicate with you via mail. Eliminating your street address is also a way to avoid security threats. Since a resume is a digital document that is shareable indiscriminately through email, you don’t want anyone accessing your physical location. Including your city, state, and ZIP code is more than enough.
Since we’re on the topic of digital communication, the contact information is a great place to include a link to your portfolio, LinkedIn profile, or professional social media accounts where you share your work, such as photography, videos, or content creation.
To avoid cluttered blocks of text, you should opt for strong, active phrases and bulleted lists instead of long sentences and paragraphs. A helpful design principle you should employ is the presence of white space which consists of the blank areas between each section of your resume. It allows for easier reading.
4. Use clean fonts.For a straightforward design, opt for sans serif fonts like Arial, Helvetica or Verdana, which add to the template’s clean appearance. Avoid fonts that are heavily flourished or too creative since they will disrupt your design and be hard to read by both recruiters and ATS.
5. Be consistent with your design.A simple template shouldn’t have too many different elements: fonts, colors, or bold and underlined text. If you want to employ one design element, make sure to be consistent with it throughout your entire resume. For example, if you’re going to differentiate your section titles with a pop of color, use the same color for all of them and opt for a muted tone instead of its brightest shade.
6. Opt for a minimal style.When it comes to simple resume templates, the adage of less is more rings true. If you want to add a small design element, opt for a minimalist option. A subdued pop of color or a sleek line is more than enough to elevate your template from boring to sharp.
To write your strongest resume yet, it’s essential to pay attention to the small details. Check out our resume do’s and don’ts to see if you’ve covered all of them in your resume.
2021 resumes are going to be all about skills. With so many people out of the workforce in 2020, many workers might not be able to find jobs in the roles they had before. Having a resume focused on your skills rather than an inconsistent work history will help you sell yourself better. Remember that you can use a set of skills in multiple industries. These are called transferable skills. Customer service, communication skills, and sales are examples of transferable skills that employers in most industries are looking for.
The key to selling yourself in less than 25 words is to make each word and phrase of your statement count. Whether you’re writing a summary statement, a career objective, or a pitch, follow these tips:
In our Hloom library, the difference between simple and basic resumes lies in how much design is applied to the templates. Basic templates are the most straightforward option. They are usually black and white, with traditional fonts and a one-column layout. Simple templates can include a pop of color or a two-column layout if you want a more current yet subdued design.
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