21+ Best Resume Templates: Simple, Modern & ATS-Friendly

Introduction

If you are a job seeker, the importance of a strong resume is implicit. Strong resumes mean those with professional resume templates, are ATS-friendly and impressive. Every job seeker wants a perfect, experienced, and strong resume, but not everyone will succeed in building one.

The first and foremost thing that enhances your resume is your resume template. If you are using a complex resume template, which is not professional or impressive, it does not engage the recruiter to go through your skills even.

92% of recruiters say a resume with good design has a higher chance of being noticed. And by the design, they indirectly mean that professional resume templates and ATS-friendly resume templates win the job race. 

So, why think further? Not only to be professional and ATS-friendly, the templates must also be tailored to the latest hiring trends. ResumUp.com provides you with the best resume templates that you can use in 2025 and these are also downloadable resume templates. 

Benefits of Using a Resume Template

There are no drawbacks, only benefits, if you use professional and ATS-friendly resume templates. It only increases your chance of being noticed.

Saves Time

Instead of building your resume from scratch, you can directly use the resume templates, which help you to a great extent to save your precious time. You can just focus on customizing the resume content in the provided resume template.

Do Not Miss Any Information

Since the resume templates readily provide you with the sections of the resume, you can directly place your details under the titled sections without the effort to decide where the certain section is to be placed.

Beat The ATS

The resume templates we provide are well-optimized for the ATS and they increase your chances of selection. If you design your resume manually, the template may or may not be optimized for ATS. It is better to avoid the risk and use pre-designed templates that can pass through the ATS.

Cost-Effective

You can use our free resume templates to design your resume so that you do not have to spend your money to create a strong resume. 

Up-to-date

Our resume templates are always up-to-date with the latest hiring trends and are designed accordingly. These are also approved and appreciated by 150+ recruiters across different industries. Good luck with your resume for 2025!

Your template matters because certain templates are rejected for sure by ATS. If you do not use the resume templates and try to create your own, there are chances of your resume getting rejected even if your resume content is worth the job.

To avoid such situations where your resume gets rejected even if you tailor your resume content to the role's demands, it is highly recommended to use our best resume templates for 2025 to make progress in your career.

How to Choose the Right Resume Template

Yes, resume templates are critical for beating the ATS and enhancing the overall look of your resume. But how do you know if a particular template is the right and best one for your role and career level? 

Your right resume template depends on your job industry, career level, and other important factors.

Consider Your Industry

Some jobs might need a creative outlook for the resume and others might need a simple and organized one. 

Corporate Roles: Corporate industries like finance, law, administration, etc. will prioritize the selection of resumes with clean, simple, and professional resume templates. This allows them to focus on the important sections of resumes without being distracted by the excessive designs.

Creative Roles: Creative jobs like marketing, content writing, UI/UX designing, graphic designing, etc will expect creative resume templates that reflect your innovation and creativity. Visually impressing designs, with new ideas of designing, will impress the recruiters, convincing them of your ability to think outside the box.

Technical Roles: Jobs in the IT sector, Science, and Engineering will allow more organized and structured resume templates. These resume templates will highlight the necessary sections like skills and achievements in a more structured and organized way, making it easy for recruiters to look into required sections quickly.

Match Your Job

Your resume template should align with the expectations of the job you are applying for. Since different industries focus on different sections of the resume, your resume templates should be able to present the required section and resume content more effectively in such a way that it pleases the recruiter.

ATS Compatibility

After selecting a resume template that follows the above templates, check if the template is optimized for ATS and can pass through the ATS with an ATS resume checker. Here at ResumUp.com, we provide the best resume templates for 2025 that are tailored to various industries and also are ATS-friendly.

Enhance Readability

Your resume template should improve the readability of your resume content so that it does not bore the hiring managers or ATS and engage them more. If you focus more on complex designs and make it over-decorated, then your resume might irritate the readers and they may keep your resume aside. 

Align With Your Experience Level

The best resume template focuses more on the required information based on your experience level For example, if you are a:

An Entry-level Candidate: Choose a template that focuses more on education and skills.

A Mid-level Candidate: Select the template that balances your work history details and achievements.

An Executive: Choose a template that is more likely to highlight your expertise, leadership, and professional summary.

All-device Friendly

Ensure the resume template you are selecting looks great on screen when printed, and it is professional-looking on all kinds of devices, both online and offline.

Following the above steps should help you choose the right template for your targeted job. However, do not forget to proofread and review the resume once or twice before applying.

Resume Template Categories

To understand the resume templates, there are various categories in the resume templates:

Basic and Simple Resume Templates

These resume templates are simple with legible fonts. They often use fonts like Arial, Times Roman, or Calbiri and are best used by entry-level candidates and in situations where the content matters more than the design.

Professional Templates

These professional resume templates use indirect ways of enhancing the look by highlighting titles with bold letters, using borders, shaded sections, etc to give a more polished look. These resume templates are best used by corporate industries like finance and law where throwing a business-oriented image through a resume is crucial.

Modern Templates

These templates use modern fonts, layouts, and unique elements to showcase creativity. Creative professionals and tech employees can use these templates to show they are innovative and capable of creating new ideas.

Creative Templates

Creative resume templates use lively colors, innovative designs, and new styles to present the resume content more creatively, impressing the readers. Graphics and visual elements used directly influence the reader and engage them more.

These resume templates are best used by Graphic designers, content creators, and others aspiring towards creative roles. These resume templates highlight their creativity and innovation which are most demanded by their targetted roles.

Executive Templates

These resume templates are mostly used by senior-level professionals like executives, directors, etc. These templates use a lot of white spaces to show professionalism and are simple and clean. 

These executive resume templates highlight the achievements and leadership qualities of the candidate more effectively and are designed to throw light on confidence and management capabilities.

Specific Career Resume Templates

These resume templates are aligned to the particular job that the candidate is applying for. These are specific to that role alone and highlight the demands of the role like Skills sections for tech aspirants and Case studies for the marketing field. 

These resume templates are best used by anyone who is applying for a job because these templates purely depend upon the job expectations.

ATS Resume Templates

ATS resume templates are well-optimized for ATS and are crucial for any applicant since most companies use ATS for screening resumes nowadays. Being well-optimized for ATS means avoiding formatting like tables, images, etc since ATS cannot process these graphics and may misinterpret your data if you use those.

These templates are essential to use because if the resume cannot pass through ATS, it will not reach the recruiters as well.

Templates for Different Career Levels

Based on your career level, you have to select the right resume template because each career level will need to highlight different sections specifically.

Entry-Level Resume Templates

For the entry-level candidates, their resume should focus more on highlighting their skills, academic achievements, internship experience, if any, and similar things. So thry should use clean, minimalistic, and simple resume templates to engage the reader into going in depth in their resume to understand their qualification for the role.

So an entry-level candidate's best resume template will have:

• Simple layout
• Sections like academic background and achievements, skills, or volunteering experience.
• Fonts that are easy to read, like Arial, Times New Roman, or Calibri.

These resume templates are best to be used by recent graduates, candidates who are transitioning into a new career, or professionals with very limited experience. 

Key Sections:

• Contact Information
• Objective or Summary (optional but can briefly highlight career goals)
• Education (degree, institution, honors, relevant courses)
• Skills (software proficiency, languages spoken, etc.)
• Internship or Volunteer Experience (projects or roles that showcase relevant capabilities)
• Certifications (if applicable)
• Awards or Recognitions (optional, if you have received any related to academics or early career)

Key Sections:

• Contact Information
• Professional Summary (overview of career, skills, and expertise)
• Work Experience (details of roles, responsibilities, and notable achievements)
• Skills (specific to the industry and role—e.g., software, technical abilities, languages, etc.)
• Education (degree, institution, and relevant certifications)
• Certifications and Training (if applicable)
• Professional Affiliations (optional, such as memberships in industry-related associations)

Key Sections:

• Contact Information
• Executive Summary Leadership Experience (specific roles where you've led teams or initiatives, including detailed accomplishments)
• Strategic Achievements (measurable outcomes, such as revenue growth, improved efficiency, or market share)
• Core Competencies (skills relevant to senior roles, like strategic planning, financial oversight, and stakeholder management)
• Education and Certifications (degrees, prestigious certifications, and leadership programs)
• Boards or Affiliations (if applicable, such as membership in advisory boards or industry associations)

Industry-Specific Resume Templates

It would be more beneficial if you understand the right resume templates for the job industry. All the steps together bring you to the right resume template and increase your chances of being selected.

IT and Tech Resume Templates

These resume templates are for those who are in the IT and tech industry. These resume templates emphasize more on technical skills like programming like Java, Python, etc, and certain tools and frameworks like Jira, Docker, Github, Agile, etc.

These templates are used by software developers, web developers, data scientists, IT employees, etc.

[provide a template]

Healthcare Resume Templates

Unlike other resume templates, healthcare resume templates contain a separate section for certifications, continuing education, and medical licenses. The resume template is clean and easy to read and focuses more on highlighting clinical expertise.

These resume templates are best used by doctors, nurses, healthcare administrators, etc, and all others who are applying for healthcare industry.

[provide a template]

Education Resume Templates

These resume templates are for those who are applying for positions in the education sector. The resume template focuses more on providing sections for explaining teaching experience, education philosophy, and academic background.

These can be used by teachers, principals, etc, and all others in the education industry.

[provide a template]

Sales and Marketing Resume Templates

These resume templates focus on highlighting metrics, achievements, and sales performance and are for candidates applying for marketing positions, sales positions, etc. They use bold letters and colors to draw attention to achievements. 

These resume templates can be used by sales representatives, marketing managers, etc., and others in the marketing industry.

Engineering Resume Templates

These resume templates have a more technical resume structure, emphasizing critical thinking and problem-solving qualities. Key sections include skills, certifications, project experiences, etc. 

These templates are used by civil, mechanical, software, electrical, and other engineers as well.

[provide a template]

Finance Resume Templates

Finance resume templates include key sections that highlight accounting skills, financial analysis, etc. 

[provide a template]

Chronological Resume Templates

This is the modern resume template that is used widely these days. The chronological resume template is designed in such a way that it presents the candidate's work experience in reverse chronological order, i.e., it will start with the most recent position that the candidate served in, and other recent follows it. 

Design

• The design is clean and simple, and it focuses on highlighting the work experience first. 
• At the top is the work experience section, followed by education and skills.
• In the work experience section, job title, company name, dates of employment, and achievements in that workplace are clearly mentioned.

Used By

Chronological resume templates are for those candidates who have a strong and considerable number of years of experience in the same field. 

Why This Template Is Good

The chronological resume template is good to use because it:

• It clearly shows the growth in the career or career advancement.
• Clearly explains the experience showcasing your management and consistency capabilities.
• This format is familiar to the hiring managers making it easy for them to go through resumes using chronological resume templates. 

[provide a template]

Functional Resume Templates

Unlike chronological resume templates, these functional resume templates emphasize more on skills and achievements rather than work history. Even if a candidate has gaps in their career, they can use this template, which you cannot follow in a chronological resume template. 

Design

• Organized sections for skills and qualifications
• Focuses more on highlighting relevant skills
• Uses clean and simple fonts like Arial for readability.

Used By

• Career changers who have gaps frequently in their careers can use this functional resume template.
• Individuals who have gaps in their employment history.
• Candidates who have limited work experience or recent graduates.

Why This Template Is Good

The functional resume template is also widely used because:

• It emphasizes skills and covers the employment gaps
• It highlights transferable skills also
• Focuses more on positive aspects

[provide a template]

Combination Resume Templates

It gives a mixture of both chronological and functional resume templates. It highlights skills and achievements effectively and also provides a detailed explanation of work history. This is a great option for any job seekers with standard details to include in the resume.

Design

• Usually, the top part of the resume focuses on skills and achievements and the lower part of the resume details about work history.
• The template starts with a professional summary.
• Uses clean and simple fonts that are easy to read.

Used By

• Candidates who have a standard work history and relevant skills and want to highlight both.
• Those who have relevant skills for the job but doing a career switching and also showcase the relevant skills.

Why To Use This Resume Template

The combination resume template is great to use because it:

• Do not neglect work experience skills or achievements.
• Is also flexible for career changers
• It provides a balanced presentation of the candidate's capabilities

Resume Templates for Remote Jobs

Remote jobs mean that the candidate can work from anywhere other than the office. It means he/she can connect to the work online and can use a virtual environment to connect with fellow employees or to gather.

Resume templates for this kind of job will be different since these templates will focus on sections that mention the candidate's communication skills, technical proficiency, and independence. The candidate's ability to work through a virtual work environment is highlighted in these templates.

Design

The design of the remote jobs resume templates includes a clean and uncluttered layout, fonts that are digital-friendly, and sections that are easy to scan. No complex graphics or formatting will be there.

Used By

• Professionals who have good experience in remote jobs and want to continue further,
• Anyone who wants to transition from offline work to a remote job.
• Freelancers and independent contractors seeking opportunities.

Since it is a remote job, it is essential to highlight your proficiencies and skills properly through your resume and your resume should be visually appealing. Therefore, using the right template for your remote job resume is very important.

Tips for Customizing Resume Templates

After all of these, aligning your resume so that it passes through the ATS by following proper steps like choosing the right template is important. Here are a few tips for customizing resume templates:

Align The Resume With The Job Standards

Customizing your resume template is to place your details properly in the template. After choosing the right template, ensure your resume content is tailored to the job description. It means that the qualities and details you mentioned should meet the expectations of the job.

Include Relevant Keywords

Extract important keywords and industry-related keywords from the job description and include those in your resume.

Add Relevant Skills

Highlight the relevant skills using ATS-friendly terms (industry-related). Doing these will pass your resume through ATS effortlessly and result in a good ranking of your resume.

Change The Professional Summary

In your resume template, change and re-frame your professional summary such that it matches the job demands and is more professional and personalized.

Your personalized professional summary should include your job title, number of years of experience, relevant skills, and achievements you made at your previous workplace, certifications, if you have any.

Highlight Relevant Skills

Change the skills in your resume template by prioritizing the skills relevant to the job first, and avoiding listing too many generic ones.

Ensure your skills are related to the job you are applying for, and those skills can be included properly in the template that you chose.

Focus on Work Experience

Your resume template decides how and where your work experience is placed in your resume. Highlight your achievements using metrics and explain briefly about your role in the work experience section. 

Choose The Right Design

Re-check if the resume template's designs align with the targetted job industry and if the template is not over-decorated. Keep it simple yet organized and structured, depending on your targeted job role.

Test For ATS Compatibility

At last, check if the built resume is compatible with ATS using the best tools like ATS Resume Checker. Review your score and accordingly follow the AI-driven suggestions and customize your resume. Do not forget to proofread and check your resume twice before applying. 

Common Mistakes to Avoid with Resume Templates

Using The Resume Template Without Customization

This is one of the most common mistakes that job seekers make in a hurry which later affects the selection process. 

• Do not use the template as it is provided directly. Add your details relevant to the job completely.
• Modify the sections by placing your relevant details and check once.
• Include your professional summary, and skills, and fill the other important sections with your details and tailor them to the specific job that you are applying.

Overloading With Information

Do not add more information than required and include only relevant information. Any detail which does not add value to your resume can be omitted.

Neglecting ATS Optimization

Do not ignore optimizing the template and resume for ATS since this is the most initial and crucial step in your selection process.

Using Generic Templates

Instead of choosing the random and basic resume templates, select the templates that are right for your industry and are tailored to your current targeted job's industry.

Misusing The Headings and Subheadings

Using difficult and complex headings for section titles is to be avoided. Instead, use the template's titles that are easy to understand and navigate, like 'Work Experience', 'Technical Skills', 'Achievements', etc.

Key Sections in Resume Templates

Professional Summary

Your professional summary is a brief description of your competencies in a short paragraph, usually in 4-5 lines. It includes your job title, experience level, relevant skills, proficiencies, achievements, certifications, and relevant coursework.

It is the first section of the resume that the hiring manager goes through. So it should be written carefully.

Education Section

Your education section talks about your degree and your academic background. 

• Degree earned
• Name of the institution
• Graduation date
• Relevant coursework
• Honors, if received any

Work Experience Section

This section talks about your work history, explaining the responsibilities you had, achievements if you won, recognitions if you have received any.

• Job title
• Company name and location
• Dates of employment
• Key responsibilities and accomplishments
• Quantifiable achievements (e.g., "Increased sales by 20%")
• Relevant projects or initiatives

Skills Section

This section showcases your relevant skills, both technical and hard skills, and is one of the most important sections of the resume because skills are the main elements if you want to land a job. 

Use bullet points to list down the skills and categorize the skills 

Certifications

This section includes all the certifications you earned in the industry field. For example,

For the tech industry, certifications are certain frameworks or as any programming language developer, etc.

Awards and Honors

If you received any awards or honors for your contributions or for your work in your previous workplaces or any other work outside the company related to your job industry, you can showcase them under this section.

Projects and Portfolios

All the projects you have worked on, the results achieved and the brief introduction of it through portfolios can be included under this section. You can also provide the visual elements showing the outputs and their usage so that the employer can understand your project work in depth and consider for the selection process.

Optimizing Your Resume for Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)

Application Tracking System (ATS) is the system used by most of the companies these days. Your resumes are first scanned by the ATS and then if accepted by ATS only it will reach the recruiters So optimizing your resume for ATS is important.

How to optimize your resume for ATS?

• Use keywords from the job description in your resume
• Use ATS-friendly resume templates
• Choose standard fonts that are easy to read
• Use traditional headings like ‘Experience, ‘Education’, etc
• Save the resume in ATS friendly format, like in PDF or .docx
• Avoid using graphical elements like images
• Check your resume for ATS compatibility using the ATS resume checker

Future Trends in Resume Design

In the future, resumes will become more advanced and more creative in various aspects.

Personal Branding: Resume templates will reflect more personal branding using proper consistency. This will allow the seekers to present their uniqueness through their personal branding and increase their chances of being noticed by the hiring managers. Personal branding will highlight your creativity, leadership and other management qualities that any role would seek for.

Interactive Elements:Resume templates will have more interactive elements like QR, and multimedia. These templates are more in rise now. Though ATS cannot process visual elements like grpahucs, images, videos, etc, there are chances of it adapting to these and these may even become high-ranking aspects.

Focus on Soft Skills: Instead of focusing only on technical skills, focusing more on soft skills is also an expected and already in effect. Including technical skills alone will highlight the absence of an unknown thing, which can easily be noticed by the hiring managers. This gap can be and should be filled with soft skills as these are also important for any role. The recruiters also focus upon soft skills, instead of considering technical skills alone. Together, technical skills and soft skills complete the skills section of the resume.

AI and ATS Optimization: Resumes will be more tailored to the ATS and this is one of the most important aspects. What’s the use if your resume is very good but does not pass through ATS? AI plays a crucial role in this. You can use AI resume builders and ATS resume checkers for building the resumes and checking their ATS compatibility in advance to avoid rejections in the initial stages of selection.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Should You Send Your Resume As Doc or PDF?

To choose whether to send your resume as doc or pdf, check if any requirements are specified in the job description. If there is no requirements specification, opt for PDF.

Why You Should Use A Resume Template?

You should use a resume template because it provides more orgaized and structures approach and effectively presents your details in various sections. It is useful for highlighting the information effectively.

Are Free Templates Reliable?

Yes, our free resume templates are completely reliable as they are tailored to various industries and they are more ATS-friendly also. However, ensure you customize your template with your details properly.

Can I Use The Same Template For Each Job?

You can use the same template but the resume content is to be modified according to the targetted job. However, you can als choose from variety of resume templates that align to your current targetted job industry.

Are The Resume Templates Suitable For All Career Levels?

There can be different resume templates taht suit different career levels. If you are a fresher, you can use a different resume template than the one very experienced.