Why Your Resume's Font Is a Bigger Deal Than You Think
Think of a hiring manager sifting through a hundred applications. Their eyes are tired. They’re scanning for keywords and key qualifications. Your resume has about seven seconds to make an impact.
Here’s why your font choice is critical in that tiny window:
The Great Debate: Serif vs. Sans-Serif Fonts
You'll hear these two terms a lot. The difference is simple, and both categories have excellent options.
Team Serif: Classic and Traditional
Serif fonts have small decorative lines (or "feet") at the ends of their strokes. They have a classic, established feel and are often associated with print, books, and academia. They can make your resume feel authoritative and trustworthy.
Best for roles in: Academia, law, publishing, and other traditional industries.
Team Sans-Serif: Modern and Clean
"Sans" literally means "without." These fonts lack the decorative feet, giving them a clean, crisp, and modern appearance. They are incredibly easy to read on digital screens, which is where most recruiters will view your resume.
Best for roles in: Tech, marketing, design, and most contemporary corporate fields.
Our Top Picks: The Best Fonts for Your Resume
You can’t go wrong with these recruiter-approved, ATS-friendly classics.
Beyond the Font: Essential Resume Formatting Tips
Choosing the right font is just the start. The best resume designs use simple formatting to guide the reader’s eye.
Find the Sweet Spot for Font Size
Your font size should be large enough to read comfortably but not so large that your resume spills onto a third page.
Keep It Consistent
Choose one font and stick with it. Using multiple fonts on a resume looks messy and unprofessional. You can create emphasis and structure by using bold, italics, and different font sizes from the same font family.
Give Your Words Room to Breathe
White space is your best friend. A crowded resume is intimidating.
Putting It All Together
Your resume’s design is the silent partner to its powerful content. By choosing a clean font like Calibri or Georgia and applying simple formatting rules, you ensure your first impression is a professional one.
Once your formatting is flawless, you can focus on making your content shine. If you're looking for an easy way to build a professional resume from the ground up, the templates and format tools at resumost.com ensure your layout is perfect every time, letting you focus on what really matters—your accomplishments.