However, an ATS-friendly resume does not need to be plain, and no format can guarantee an interview. The goal is to make your real qualifications easy to extract, search, compare, and verify.

What is the best ATS-friendly resume format?

The reverse-chronological format is the safest option for most applicants because it clearly connects job titles, employers, dates, skills, and achievements. A combination resume can also work, but a purely functional resume is generally less effective for both ATS parsing and recruiter review.

Best choice for most candidates: Use a reverse-chronological resume. Choose a combination format only when a prominent skills section helps explain your fit without hiding your employment history.

Related: Best Resume Format for 2026 [Pros and Cons]

How does an ATS scan and rank resumes?

An applicant tracking system, or ATS, is software employers use to collect applications, store candidate information, coordinate hiring workflows, and search or filter applicant data.

When you upload a resume, the system doesn’t read it like a human recruiter. Instead, it converts your document into plain text and parses details into structured database fields:

• Contact Details: Full name, phone number, email address, location, and professional links.
• Professional Summary: Your short career overview, target role titles, and primary qualifications.
• Work Experience: Job titles, company names, employment dates, and accomplishment bullets.
• Core Skills: Technical tools, software, hard skills, certifications, and industry keywords.
• Education: Degrees, fields of study, institution names, and graduation years.

Not every ATS automatically assigns a score or rejects candidates. Its behavior depends on the software, employer settings, job requirements, screening questions, and any additional recruiting tools connected to it.

In a SHRM survey of 1,688 HR professionals, 64% of respondents whose organizations used automation or AI in recruiting said their tools automatically filtered unqualified applicants. Sixty-nine percent said the tools provided an applicant match percentage or ranking.

The practical lesson is simple: An ATS-friendly resume should make accurate information easy to extract. It should not attempt to manipulate an unknown scoring formula.

What ATS-friendly resume formatting should include?

An ATS-friendly resume requires both structural completeness (the exact sections software looks for) and technical readability (layout rules that ensure accurate parsing). If essential sections are missing or formatted incorrectly, the system may misfile your information or drop key qualifications entirely.

A carefully built two-column resume may parse correctly in some modern systems, but a single-column structure remains the lower-risk option. This is especially important when applying through an unfamiliar portal.

How to structure an ATS-friendly resume

1. Put contact information in the main document body

Include:

• Full name
• City and state or country
• Phone number
• Professional email address
• LinkedIn profile
• Portfolio or GitHub link when relevant

Do not place your only copy of this information in a header, footer, image, or floating text box. Greenhouse lists headers, footers, text boxes, columns, graphics, and complex tables among the formatting features that can contribute to an unsuccessful or partial resume parse.

A full street address is usually unnecessary unless the employer requests one.

2. Add a targeted professional summary when it adds value

A resume summary should identify your professional level, relevant specialization, and strongest evidence in approximately two to four lines.

This summary contains relevant terminology, but each claim is also supported by context. That is more persuasive than a list of disconnected keywords.

3. Create a focused skills section

Use the same terminology as the job description when it truthfully describes your experience.

If the posting asks for customer relationship management, and you have that experience, you might write:

Customer relationship management (CRM): Salesforce, HubSpot

Including the full term and its acronym can help when employers search for either version.

Avoid filling the section with unsupported soft skills such as “hard-working,” “dynamic,” or “excellent communicator.”

4. Connect keywords to evidence in your work experience

Keywords help an employer find relevant qualifications, but repetition alone does not prove competence. Place important terms inside accomplishment-focused bullets.

The stronger version demonstrates project management, budget responsibility, stakeholder coordination, scope, and results.

When reviewing resumes through our free resume review service, one recurring problem is a mismatch between the skills section and the evidence below it. If you claim leadership, forecasting, compliance, or process improvement, your experience section should show where and how you used it.

5. Format each position consistently

Use the same structure throughout your work history:

Write full job titles when possible. “Senior Account Executive” is clearer than an internal abbreviation such as “Sr. AE II.”

For more guidance, see our article on how to write resume job descriptions.

6. Include education, certifications, and projects where relevant

Projects can be particularly useful for students, career changers, and technical candidates. Describe the project, your contribution, the tools used, and the outcome.

How should you use keywords in an ATS resume?

Start by separating the job description into four categories:

1. Required skills and tools
2. Responsibilities
3. Credentials or education
4. Desired outcomes

Then compare those requirements with your actual background. Prioritize terms that are both important to the role and supported by your experience.

For example, if a posting repeatedly mentions:

• Financial forecasting
• Variance analysis
• Power BI
• Executive reporting

Do not copy those phrases into a hidden keyword block. Incorporate them naturally:

Never add a skill, credential, or job title you cannot defend in an interview.

Should an ATS resume be submitted as PDF or DOCX?

Follow the application instructions first. If the employer requests PDF, submit PDF. If it requests Word, use DOCX.

Modern systems frequently support both. For example, Greenhouse accepts .doc, .docx, .pdf, .rtf, and .txt candidate documents, according to its current supported-format documentation.

The real distinction is not simply PDF versus Word:

• A text-based PDF can usually be parsed.
• A scanned or image-only PDF may contain no readable text.
• A DOCX containing text boxes, complicated tables, or floating objects can still parse poorly.

When no format is specified, DOCX is a conservative choice. A properly exported, text-based PDF is also appropriate for systems that accept it.

Formatting mistakes that can interfere with parsing

Avoid placing important information inside:

• Photographs or graphics
• Skill-rating bars
• Logos and icons
• Charts
• Complex tables
• Floating text boxes
• Headers and footers
• Decorative sidebars
• Scanned documents

Workday notes that parsing results can vary based on the resume format and word order and recommends avoiding images and image-based styles.

You do not need to remove every visual detail. Subtle color, bold headings, spacing, and restrained typography can create a professional design without hiding essential content.

Copyable ATS-friendly resume template

Adjust the sections to the role. A software developer may place technical skills and projects near the top, while an experienced manager should normally prioritize leadership experience and business outcomes.

Download Free ATS-Friendly MS Word template here →

ATS-friendly resume templates

Entry Level Attorney Resume Template

Best for: Entry-level attorneys, law school graduates, legal interns, and junior associates applying to law firms or corporate legal departments.

View Template Details →

Real Estate Attorney Resume Template

Best for: Conservative fields like law, finance, accounting, and government roles.

View Template Details →

How to test whether your resume is ATS-friendly

Before applying:

1. Select and copy the complete resume into a plain-text editor.
2. Confirm that sections appear in the correct order.
3. Check whether your name, employers, job titles, dates, and education remain understandable.
4. Open the exported document on another device.
5. Review the application preview or parsed fields when the portal displays them.
6. Correct any missing or incorrectly populated information manually.
7. Use a clear filename such as First-Last-Resume.docx.

The plain-text test does not reproduce every ATS, but it can reveal broken reading order, missing text, and image-based content.

Final ATS-friendly resume checklist

Before submitting, confirm that your resume:

• Uses a clear reverse-chronological or combination structure
• Has a logical reading order
• Uses standard section headings
• Includes consistent job titles, employers, and dates
• Matches truthful terminology from the job description
• Supports important skills with experience
• Contains no essential text inside graphics or text boxes
• Uses the employer’s requested file type
• Remains readable after export
• Is tailored to the specific role
• Contains no hidden keywords or invented qualifications

An ATS-friendly resume format improves the accuracy with which your information can be processed. The substance still determines whether you are competitive: relevant experience, credible evidence, and clear alignment with the position.

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