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Resume tool
Free ATS Friendly Resume Templates
Three ATS friendly resume templates built to be read correctly by applicant tracking systems: one column, standard headings, plain-text contact details and no graphics. Download in Word or PDF, or open in Google Docs.
Pick a style, switch to the student version if you are early in your career, and download.
- Free download
- No signup
- Word and PDF
- No email required
- Tested for ATS parsing
1. Choose a template
All three are single-column and pass ATS parsing.
Finance, law, government and academia
Business, tech, operations and most corporate roles
Marketing, design, media and startups
Jordan Taylor
Marketing Manager
jordan.taylor@email.com | (555) 123-4567 | Chicago, IL | linkedin.com/in/jordantaylor
Summary
Marketing manager with 7 years of experience in B2B SaaS. Built and led demand generation programs that grew pipeline by 140% in two years. Skilled in paid search, marketing automation and turning campaign data into budget decisions.
Experience
Marketing ManagerMar 2022 – Present
Brightline Software, Chicago, IL
- Grew marketing-sourced pipeline from $4.2M to $10.1M in 24 months by rebuilding the paid search and webinar programs.
- Cut cost per qualified lead by 38% by moving $600K of annual budget from display to intent-based campaigns.
- Led a team of 4 specialists and 2 agencies; introduced a weekly reporting dashboard adopted by sales leadership.
Digital Marketing SpecialistJun 2018 – Feb 2022
Northwind Analytics, Chicago, IL
- Managed a $1.2M annual Google Ads and LinkedIn Ads budget with a 4.1x return on ad spend.
- Launched a HubSpot lead-scoring model that raised the sales acceptance rate from 22% to 41%.
- Wrote and tested 60+ landing pages, lifting the average conversion rate from 2.8% to 5.3%.
Education
B.A. Marketing2014 – 2018
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL
Skills
Marketing: Demand generation, paid search, SEO, account-based marketing, A/B testing
Tools: HubSpot, Salesforce, Google Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Google Analytics 4, Looker Studio
Certifications
Google Ads Search Certification2025
HubSpot Marketing Software Certification2024
HubSpot Academy
2. Download Modern
Left-aligned, clean sans-serif with navy headings.
Using Google Docs?
Download the Word file, upload it to Google Drive, then right-click it and choose Open with → Google Docs. The layout carries over intact.Why it is ATS-friendly
- Single column, read top to bottom
- Standard headings: Summary, Experience, Education, Skills
- Contact details as plain text, not in a header
- No tables, text boxes, icons or images
- ATS-safe font at 10.5pt, 0.75" margins
- Real, selectable text in both Word and PDF
Why use an ATS resume template
Most mid-size and large employers run applications through an applicant tracking system before anyone reads them. The ATS converts your file to plain text, sorts it into fields and ranks it against the job. A layout that looks great to a person, with two columns, icons and a skills chart, can come out of that process as a jumble of half-sentences with no contact details.
An ATS template removes that risk at the source. Because everything sits in one column of real text, the parser reads it in the order you wrote it, finds your email and phone at the top, and files each job under Experience. You can check any resume this way: upload it to the ATS resume viewer and read the text the parser extracts.
Modern, Classic or Creative: which one to choose
- Classic: Centred name, serif type and black rules under each heading. Best for finance, law, government and academia.
- Modern: Left-aligned, clean sans-serif with navy headings. Best for business, tech, operations and most corporate roles.
- Creative: A colour accent bar beside each heading, still in one parseable column. Best for marketing, design, media and startups.
The choice is about tone, not parsing: all three extract identically. Match the template to your industry and keep the content the focus. Recruiters remember results, not fonts.
Word, PDF or Google Docs
Word (.docx) is the version to edit. Replace the sample content, keep the styles, and export a PDF from Word when you are done. PDF is ready to read as it is and shows the finished layout; it is a text-based PDF, so every word stays selectable and parseable. Google Docs users can upload the Word file to Drive and open it with Docs, then use File → Download → PDF to export.
Prefer to fill in a form instead of editing a document? The free resume builder includes a single-column Classic template and exports a polished PDF in one click.
Layout mistakes to avoid
- Adding a sidebar. The most common way to break an ATS template. Keep skills in their own section below your experience.
- Moving contact details into the header. Some parsers skip the page header entirely.
- Renaming headings creatively. "My Journey" is not recognised as Experience.
- Shrinking fonts and margins to fit. Stay at 10-12pt and 0.5"-1" margins; the resume length checker measures both.
- Filling it with clichés. A clean template with "results-driven team player" in it still reads like a template. Run your text through the buzzword checker.
Frequently asked questions
What makes a resume template ATS friendly?
One column read from top to bottom, standard section headings (Summary, Experience, Education, Skills), contact details as plain text in the body rather than a page header, no tables, text boxes, icons or images, a common font, and real text rather than an image export. All three templates on this page follow every one of those rules.
Are these ATS resume templates really free?
Yes. Every template downloads in Word and PDF with no account, no email address and no watermark. Use them for as many applications as you like.
Is there an ATS resume template for students?
Yes. Switch the sample content to 'Student / graduate' above and every template is rebuilt with education first, followed by projects, internships and skills, which is the order recruiters expect from someone early in their career.
Can I use these templates in Google Docs?
Yes. Download the Word version, upload it to Google Drive, then right-click the file and choose Open with → Google Docs. Because the templates use plain paragraphs and native bullets, the layout converts without breaking.
Should I send my resume as Word or PDF?
Both formats work with modern ATS as long as the file contains real text. PDF keeps your layout identical on every screen; Word is the safest choice for older systems and recruiters who want to edit. If the job posting names a format, use that one.
Are Canva resume templates ATS friendly?
Most are not. Design tools tend to place text in separate boxes, use multiple columns and export graphics, which parsers read out of order or not at all. If you like a design-tool layout, check the exported PDF with our ATS resume viewer before you send it.
Filled in your template? Check it before you send it
Upload the finished CV for a free ATS compatibility score, a keyword gap report and a prioritised list of fixes. Under 30 seconds, no signup, nothing stored.
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