American résumé format guide (2026)

Applying in Canada? Read the Canadian version of this guide.

Short answer: A US résumé is one to two pages, focused on results, and tailored to each job. It leaves out a photo, age or birth date, marital status, race, religion, and your Social Security number, and does not list references. Federal jobs on USAJOBS now accept résumés of two pages at most.

This guide draws on US university career office advice from Pomona College and UNC Chapel Hill, the US Office of Personnel Management’s rules for federal résumés, and formatting practices that help your résumé get through applicant tracking systems (ATS).

How long should a US résumé be?

One to two pages. Pomona College’s career office puts it plainly: the résumé is “limited to 1-2 pages maximum.” If you are early in your career, one page is usually enough. Focus on recent, relevant experience and cut older roles that do not help this application.

What to leave out

US résumés leave out personal details that are common in some other countries. Pomona’s guidance is to not include your age or birth date, marital status, race, religion, or visa status, and to leave off a photograph. UNC gives the same advice on personal information and photos, with an exception for fields like acting where a headshot is expected.

Also leave out:

• Your Social Security number. No employer needs it on a résumé, and it puts you at risk of identity theft.
• Your current or desired salary. UNC advises avoiding it; if you must address pay, do it in the cover letter.
• A full street address. City and state are enough.

References

Do not list references on your résumé. UNC calls “references available on request” an outdated line and notes that employers ask for references when they need them. Keep a separate list ready.

Sections to include

A standard US résumé uses these sections, in roughly this order:

1. Contact information. Name, city and state, phone, email, and a LinkedIn link if you have one.
2. Summary. Two or three lines on who you are and the role you are targeting.
3. Skills. Specific tools and skills that match the job posting.
4. Experience. Most recent first, with job title, employer, city and state, and dates.
5. Education. Degree, school, and year. If your education is from outside the US, name the US equivalent when you know it.
6. Optional sections. Certifications, volunteer work, and languages. Pomona suggests listing language skills, such as “Native speaker of Mandarin and proficient in Spanish.”

How to write your bullet points

Start each bullet with an action verb, leave out “I” and “my”, and show results with numbers wherever you can. Aim for about 5 to 7 bullets per recent role.

Weak: Responsible for customer service.

Strong: Resolved 40+ customer inquiries a day with a 95% satisfaction score.

See more examples in Résumé bullet points: before and after.

Applying for federal jobs

Federal résumés now follow a strict limit. Since September 27, 2025, USAJOBS restricts résumés to two pages, according to the Office of Personnel Management. If the only résumé you submit is longer, your application is not considered.

OPM recommends a sans-serif font such as Calibri or Arial, 0.5-inch margins, 14-point titles and 10-point body text, and saving as a PDF of 5 MB or less.

Formatting for applicant tracking systems

Many employers screen applications with software before a person reads them. These habits make your résumé easier for that software to read:

• Use a single-column layout.
• Use standard headings: Summary, Skills, Experience, Education.
• Use common fonts and avoid putting text inside images, tables, text boxes, headers, or footers.
• Save as Word (.docx) or PDF, unless the posting asks for something specific.
• Use the same words the posting uses for key skills, where they honestly describe you.

American spelling

Use American spelling consistently: color, organize, center, license, check. “Resume” without accents is the most common US spelling; pick one form and stick with it.

Quick checklist

• One to two pages, recent experience first (two at most for federal jobs)
• No photo, age, marital status, or Social Security number
• No references listed
• Results with numbers in most bullets
• Summary and skills tailored to this posting
• Single column, standard headings, no text in images
• Proofread more than once

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