Choosing the Right Resume Format for You
Learn how to choose the best resume format to boost your job search success
Did you know that the format you choose for your resume could be the single most important decision you make? It’s true! Even if an employer is unfamiliar with the intricacies of resume creation and knows nothing about the different types of available resume formats, they’ll still instinctively recognize a poor format choice when they see it. That’s why choosing the best resume format for your job search needs is so critical for ensuring you make the right impression on prospective employers.
But what types of formats are available for your resume, and which one is the best resume format for you? We’ll answer those and other important resume format questions in this guide and provide the tips you need to structure your resume in a way that helps you stand out from the competition.
Related reading: How to Make Your Resume Stand Out in 2024
Why do you need to choose the best resume format?
To understand why you need to identify the best resume format for your career needs, it’s helpful to consider what employers are looking for when they start to review your resume.
Obviously, they’ll want to see that you have the right skills, experiences, and other qualifications for the position so that they can feel confident you’re worthy of an interview and possible job offer. It’s your job to make sure they can quickly find that information during their review of your resume.
Unfortunately, a poorly formatted and badly structured resume may prevent the average hiring manager from appreciating your resume details. After all, most employers spend an average of five or six seconds skimming a resume. If your resume isn’t formatted in a way that captures their attention in that limited time, chances are the decision-maker will simply reject the submission and move on to the next candidate.
And that’s assuming your resume even makes it to the decision-maker’s desk. Poor formatting could prevent your resume from getting past the company’s applicant tracking system – or ATS. If that happens, then no human eyes will ever scan your resume, and your candidacy for that position will be dead on arrival.
The right resume format will also ensure your document contains the key sections, keywords, and details that automated scanners and human reviewers are looking for. The ATS will scan for those important elements to ensure your resume meets the job posting’s required qualifications.
Once you pass that test, the employer’s human decision-maker will rely on your resume’s structure to direct their own quick scan. If they find what they’re looking for in just a few seconds, they’ll spend more time reading the rest of the document.
Now that you understand why it’s so critical to use the best resume format, it’s time to examine the different options available to you. So, what are the three most common resume formats? The good news is that there are only three main options in use today:
Chronological
Functional
Hybrid (combination)
Let’s examine each of these important resume formats right now.
Chronological resume format
Many job seekers and hiring managers believe the chronological resume – or, more specifically, the reverse-chronological resume – to be the best resume format for most candidates’ needs. This format is distinguished by the way in which its work experience section lists previous employers in reverse chronological order. That formatting option ensures employers will always be able to quickly find information about your most recent or current employment.
Like other resume formats, the reverse-chronological option separates your employment data into distinct sections based on the type of information you’re trying to convey to employers.
Pros and cons of the chronological resume format
Before we explain the best ways to use this popular resume format, let’s examine some of the pros and cons that can help you determine whether this option will work for your needs.
Pros:
By presenting your work experience in reverse order, you make it easier for hiring managers to review your overall career progress.
You can effectively showcase professional development and growth, while also providing important context about where you’re currently at in your career journey.
Employers are intimately familiar with this resume option; they’ll instinctively know how to navigate your resume as they scan it for specific details.
This is often the best resume format for getting past applicant tracking systems to ensure that your resume is seen by human eyes.
Cons:
Sometimes, career chronology isn’t always perfectly aligned with career goals. When you use the reverse-chronological format, you provide an unbroken account of your recent employment history, which could result in the inclusion of employment that’s not professionally relevant to what you want to do next in life. To avoid confusion, you will need to devote extra attention to those unrelated jobs to ensure you focus on the transferable skills you used in those positions.
This resume format may also do little to address significant gaps in your employment. To counter this potential problem, you’ll need to devote part of your resume to special projects, freelancing, education, or volunteer work that you undertook during those gaps.
Chronological resume format template example
To help you visualize how a chronological resume might look, we’ve crafted a simple template that you can refer to as you create your own. All you need to do is copy this basic structure, section headlines, and other text, and then fill in each section with your own career details.
FIRST AND LAST NAME
[City, ST, ZIP] | [Email address] | [Phone number] | [LinkedIn URL]
[Resume headline that includes the job title you’re seeking and descriptive text that highlights your area of specialty, skills, or experience.]
[Resume profile paragraph: 3 to 5 sentences that detail your job title, years of experience, and specific expertise. Include two or more relevant skills and one or two relevant achievements that demonstrate how you can provide value to the employer’s company.]
CORE COMPETENCIES
[Create a 2 or 3-column list of 9-12 relevant hard and soft skills, in bullet point form. Refer to the job posting qualifications to ensure that your list includes every needed qualification, and then complete this section by listing other job-related abilities that highlight your unique value as an employee]
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
[Company Name – City and State]
[Job Title, Start Date to End Date]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
Repeat with additional previous employers to highlight ten to fifteen years of prior employment.
EDUCATION
[Name of Degree and Major] | [School Name] | [Dates Attended, or Graduation Date]
You can also include information about coursework if it bolsters your credentials and your GPA if the employer requests it and yours is higher than 3.5.
OPTIONAL SECTIONS
Optional sections can include everything from professional associations to certifications, publications, or information about your professional portfolio—only if they’re professionally relevant.
Related reading: What is a Chronological Resume (with Tips and Examples)
Functional resume format
Another option you might want to consider is the functional resume format. Unlike the chronological resume, the functional format focuses more attention on your skills than your broader career trajectory.
While it still includes a work experience section that lists all the jobs you’ve had in the last 10 years, its main emphasis is on core competencies and transferable skills. As a result, this format is sometimes used by recent graduates, job seekers with significant gaps in their work history, and candidates who are trying to change careers.
Pros and cons of the functional resume format
Let’s take a moment to explore some of the pros and cons of the functional resume format to better understand whether this formatting option is the best resume format for you.
Pros:
Functional resumes can help candidates address noticeable employment gaps by focusing more attention on skills and other qualifications. Employers whose attention is drawn to your stellar skills might overlook a perceived lack of relevant work experience.
This resume format is also useful for career changers who lack the type of relevant experience employers may be interested in seeing. By focusing attention on how you’ve used relevant or transferable skills to achieve positive results, you can demonstrate that your skill set will translate well to your new career.
The functional resume’s focus on skill development can be used to create a narrative that emphasizes how you’ve increased your value as an employee over time. That can send a powerful message about your overall career development, even if your career path has taken some unexpected twists and turns.
Cons:
Applicant tracking systems may struggle to read resumes that use the functional format. Since job seekers may take creative liberties with the structure of this resume, ATS scans may not be able to efficiently locate the keywords they use to evaluate your document.
The structure of a functional resume may interfere with your ability to tell a cohesive story about your employment history, skills, and fitness for the position. When skills and achievements are highlighted without chronological employment context, hiring managers may have a difficult time understanding how you gained the skills you convey in your resume.
Employers are skeptical when they see this resume format. Many candidates have often used the functional resume format to mask employment gaps or other work history concerns. Even if you have nothing to hide, using this format may raise red flags with prospective employers and make them reluctant to give your candidacy the attention it deserves.
Functional resume format template example
So, what does a functional resume look like? Below, we’ve provided a basic template that you can use to craft your own functional resume. If you copy and paste this basic outline, you can create your resume by simply inserting your own professional details in each section of the template.
FIRST AND LAST NAME
[City, ST, ZIP] | [Email address] | [Phone number] | [LinkedIn URL]
[Resume headline, including the title of the job you’re seeking, your years of relevant experience, and a few descriptive words that emphasize your specialty and potential value]
[Resume profile paragraph: A 3 to 5-sentence paragraph that includes your job title, years of experience, and sentences that highlight your most relevant competencies. Also, include one or two quantifiable achievements to demonstrate your value. If you’re changing careers, you may also want to add a sentence that explains how your skill set and experience make you qualified to fill the new role.]
RELEVANT SKILLS
[Create a 2 or 3-column list of 9-12 relevant hard and soft skills, in bullet point form. You can identify some of the required skills by reviewing the job description Make sure that your list includes every required skill, and add other related abilities that help to bolster your qualifications]
AREAS OF STRENGTH
[Select your top three competencies and list them below this section heading. Beneath each of these skills, add three or four bullet point examples of achievements that demonstrate those skills. Try to include real numbers that highlight the value those results provided for your prior employers.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
[Company #1 Name – City and State] | [Job Title, Start Date to End Date]
[Company #2 Name – City and State] | [Job Title, Start Date to End Date]
[Company #3 Name – City and State] | [Job Title, Start Date to End Date]
[Company #4 Name – City and State] | [Job Title, Start Date to End Date]
EDUCATION
[Name of Degree and Major] | [School Name]
[Dates Attended, or Graduation Date]
You can also include information about coursework if it bolsters your credentials, as well as GPA – if the employer requests it and yours is higher than 3.5]
OPTIONAL SECTIONS
Optional sections can include everything from professional associations to certifications, publications, or information about your professional portfolio—only if they’re professionally relevant.
As you review this template, you’ll notice that the achievements that are usually included within the work experience section have instead been moved to the Areas of Strength section. As a result, your work experience section will be much shorter, shifting the focus on skills you bring to the table for new employers.
Related reading: What is a Functional Resume Format: Template & Example
Hybrid/Combination resume format
The hybrid resume format is often called the combination format since it incorporates some of the best elements of both the reverse-chronological and functional resume. In so doing, the hybrid format shines a light on your most relevant skill qualifications and your professional experience. It also utilizes key elements of the reverse-chronological resume by listing that work history in reverse order.
This resume format is often used by candidates with gaps in their work history since it avoids the stigma associated with the functional resume. It’s also a great option for anyone who is trying to shift from one career to another and can serve as an effective vehicle for candidates who may lack experience in the role they’re seeking. The resume’s hybrid structure can also help job seekers stand out from other candidates who might be using a chronological or functional format.
Pros and cons of the hybrid resume format
It’s important to examine the potential advantages and disadvantages of using this format option if you want to determine whether the hybrid resume is the best resume format for your needs. To help you with that process, we’ve included a brief explanation of this format’s pros and cons:
Pros:
The hybrid format can be a great way to minimize employment gaps in a way that avoids the negativity associated with the functional resume format. By redirecting focus to transferable skills and quantifiable achievements, those gaps are less likely to draw negative attention.
The hybrid resume format’s balanced structure can make it easier for career changers to emphasize the transferable skills they need to prove their qualifications. And since those skills are presented in the top third of the resume, employers will have an easier time identifying them – which can entice them to read the rest of the resume.
This resume format can also be great for job seekers who want to emphasize key achievements to demonstrate their qualifications and potential value. One of the easiest ways to capture an employer’s interest is to cite accomplishments that allow them to envision you as a valuable member of their team!
Cons:
Since the hybrid resume attempts to merge two different resume approaches, these job documents can easily grow longer than the acceptable two-page limit. Most employers will lose interest in a three-page or longer resume – not to mention, some hiring managers look at three-page resumes as grandstanding.
This type of resume requires keen attention to structure and context, or it risks appearing repetitive. For example, if your work history includes roles that used the exact same skills, employers might quickly become bored as they review it.
Since your key skills are given prominence near the top of the resume without job context, employers may have a more difficult time associating them with your job roles. It takes careful planning to balance the skills section with your work history to provide the right context for that critical information.
Hybrid resume format template example
So, what does a functional resume look like? Below, we’ve provided a basic template that you can use to craft your own functional resume. If you copy and paste this basic outline, you can create your resume by simply inserting your own professional details in each section of the template.
FIRST AND LAST NAME
[City, ST, ZIP] | [Email address] | [Phone number] | [LinkedIn URL]
[Resume headline that includes your desired job title and descriptive language that showcases your specialty and value]
[Resume profile paragraph: Create a 3 to 5-sentence paragraph with your job title, length of experience, and core skills. If you’re trying to switch careers, include a line that explains why you’re bringing your talents to a new field of interest. You should also add one or more achievements to round out this summary, making sure to include real numbers that quantify your results.]
KEY QUALIFICATIONS
[Create a bullet point list of your top four or five skills, with brief but detailed descriptions of how you use them in your job. Make sure that this section of your resume is focused on key qualifications from the job description to prove your qualifications for the role.]
ADDITIONAL RELEVANT SKILLS
[Create a 2 or 3-column list of 6 to 9 additional hard and soft skills in bullet point form. Try to focus on skills that you haven’t already demonstrated in the Key Qualifications section to avoid any repetition.]
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
[Company Name – City and State] | [Job Title, Start Date to End Date]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
[Quantifiable achievement #1, highlighting how you used your skills to achieve tangible and measurable results for that employer. Use real numbers to show value]
Repeat with additional previous employers to highlight ten to fifteen years of prior employment.
EDUCATION
[Name of Degree and Major] | [School Name]
[Dates Attended, or Graduation Date]
Related reading: 30 Resume Summary Examples that Work in 2024
Which format do most employers prefer for resumes?
As we mentioned earlier, most employers prefer the reverse-chronological resume format. It’s one of the most popular and transparent resume standards in use today. Employers who see a resume using this common format will typically feel comfortable reviewing the candidate’s information without wondering whether they’re trying to hide something.
At the same time, there are job seekers whose unique career path or goals may require a different approach. If you’re one of those folks, the hybrid option is typically the best alternative to the traditional reverse-chronological resume.
As for the functional resume, there are few instances in which this option makes sense – especially when you consider the stigma that is often attached to its use. As a rule, you should make the chronological resume your first choice, if possible. If you feel your career history requires a different format, the hybrid option should almost always be selected over the functional format.
Tips to identify the best resume format for your needs
Now that you’ve had a chance to review the different options available to you, it’s time to consider some tips that can help you identify the best resume format choice for your job search needs.
Q: Do you have several years of experience working in the same industry or job role? Are you switching to a new career that aligns well with existing skills and previous experiences?
A: If you answered yes, then the chronological resume is almost certainly the right choice for you. It will provide all the tools you need to create a career narrative that highlights your qualifications for the position.
Q: Is this your first job or your first position in this industry? Are you making a career change and have the required skills without relevant experience?
A: If you answered yes to one or both of these questions, then you’ll probably be best served with a hybrid resume.
Using the best resume format is vital for job search success
When it comes to resume formats, one thing is for sure: you need to use the best resume format for your unique career needs if you want to ensure you’re conveying the most compelling narrative to prospective employers. Hopefully, the tips, advice, and examples provided in this guide can help you make the right choice and boost your job search efforts!
Not sure if your resume is relying on the best resume format? Why not get your free resume review from our team of experts today – and jumpstart your career advancement?
This article was originally written by Leo Bastone and has been updated by Ken Chase.
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Written by
Ken Chase, Freelance Writer
During Ken's two decades as a freelance writer, he has covered everything from banking and fintech to business management and the entertainment industry. His true passion, however, has always been focused on helping others achieve their career goals with timely job search and interview advice or the occasional resume consultation. When he's not working, Ken can usually be found adventuring with family and friends or playing fetch with his demanding German Shepherd. Read more resume advice from Ken on ZipJob’s blog.
