Resume Format Guide: Templates and Examples
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Your resume format is the skeleton, not the decoration: the order your sections run in and how your work history is laid out. Pick the wrong one and the software that reads your resume first can misfile half of it. This page compares the three formats, tells you which to use, and gives you a free .docx of the two that actually work, with no signup.
There are three formats: reverse-chronological, combination (also called hybrid), and functional. Most people should use one of the first two. The section below on which to choose gives you a straight answer for your situation.
The rule every format has to obey: pass the ATS
Many employers run your file through applicant tracking software (Workday, Greenhouse, iCIMS) that reads it into fields before a person opens it. That reader breaks on anything clever. Keep your resume single-column, use standard section headings, and save it as a .docx or a text-based PDF. Two columns, tables, text boxes, and a photo in the header are the usual reasons a parsed resume comes out scrambled. Format for the software first, because if it cannot read you, no recruiter will.
Reverse-chronological: the default
The reverse-chronological format lists your jobs newest first, each with dates, and it is what most recruiters expect and most parsers handle cleanly. Use it when you have a steady work history in the field you are applying to. It is the safest choice for the majority of applicants, and it is the first template in the .docx above. Here is a filled example.
Lagos, Nigeria | daniel.okafor@example.com | +234 80 5555 0134
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Customer service supervisor with 5 years in retail-banking support. Cut average call handling time 18 percent while holding satisfaction above 90 percent.
EXPERIENCE
Customer Service Supervisor - FirstLine Bank, Lagos
March 2022 to present
- Lead a team of 8 handling 400-plus customer queries a day.
- Cut average handling time from 6.5 to 5.3 minutes by rewriting the call script and retraining the team.
- Held customer satisfaction above 90 percent for eight straight quarters.
Customer Service Agent - FirstLine Bank, Lagos
June 2019 to February 2022
- Resolved account and card queries for 60-plus customers daily.
- Trained 5 new agents on the complaints process.
EDUCATION
B.Sc. Business Administration - University of Lagos, 2019
SKILLS
Team leadership, complaint resolution, CRM software, call-quality coaching, reporting
Combination (hybrid): skills first, then history
The combination format opens with a short key-skills block, then shows a condensed reverse-chronological work history. It suits career changers, people returning after a gap, and senior applicants who want their strengths read first. Because the dated history is still there, it parses cleanly, which the functional format does not. This is the second template in the .docx. The skeleton looks like this:
[City, Country] | [Email] | [Phone]
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
[Two lines: who you are and your strongest result.]
KEY SKILLS
- [Skill area 1 with a one-line proof.]
- [Skill area 2 with a one-line proof.]
- [Skill area 3 with a one-line proof.]
EXPERIENCE
[Job title - Employer, Location]
[Dates]
- [Result bullet.]
- [Result bullet.]
EDUCATION
[Degree - Institution, Year]
Functional: why to avoid it
The functional format lists skills and drops the dated work history. It gets recommended for hiding gaps, and it usually backfires. Recruiters read a missing timeline as a sign you are covering something up, and many applicant tracking systems cannot parse a resume with no dated experience, so it fails before a person even sees it. If you have a gap or a career change, use the combination format instead: lead with skills, but keep the history so both the software and the reader can follow it.
Which format should you use?
- Steady history in your field. Reverse-chronological.
- Changing careers, returning after a gap, or senior with a lot to lead with. Combination.
- First job with no work history. A short reverse-chronological resume built from education, projects, and any volunteer or internship work. See the first resume guide.
- Almost nobody. Pure functional.
The sections, in every format
Whichever format you pick, the parts are the same. A header with your name and contact details. A two-line professional summary. Your experience, each bullet starting with what you did and ending with a result you can put a number on. Your education. A skills line matched to the job posting. Drop the furniture that dates a resume: you do not need an objective statement, the line "references available on request," or, for a US or UK application, a photo, date of birth, or marital status. For the phrasing that turns duties into results, read resume writing techniques.
Resume or CV? Country matters
A resume is a one-to-two-page summary; a CV is longer and is the standard term across the UK, Ireland, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana and India, where a teaching or professional CV commonly runs two pages with a referees section. Personal-detail rules flip by country too: a photo and ID number are expected on a Gulf or Kenyan CV and left off a US or UK resume. The CV guide and the country notes in the teacher resume guide cover those differences.
Where the employer collects your details through a portal rather than a mailbox, the parsed resume fills the form fields, and the fields do the first cut. The financial analyst job application walks through which of those fields are gates.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best resume format in 2026?
Reverse-chronological for a steady history, combination for a career change or a gap. Both keep a dated work history, which is what recruiters expect and what applicant tracking systems can read. Avoid the pure functional format.
Which resume format is best for an applicant tracking system?
A single-column reverse-chronological or combination layout with standard headings, saved as .docx or a text-based PDF. Skip tables, columns, text boxes, and header photos, which parsers drop or scramble.
Should I use a functional resume to hide an employment gap?
No. A missing timeline reads as hiding something and many systems will not parse it. Use the combination format: lead with skills, then show a short dated history that accounts for the gap.
Do I need an objective or a "references available on request" line?
No. Replace the objective with a two-line summary of who you are and your strongest result, and leave references off the resume; provide them when asked.
How long should a resume be?
One page early in your career, two once you have several relevant roles. A CV for the UK or an African market can run to two pages with referees.
Sources
- Microsoft and major resume guides, resume format comparisons for 2026.
- Applicant tracking system parsing behaviour (single-column, standard headings, dated history) as documented by ATS and recruiting references.