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Resume Keywords: Best Words to Land a Job in 2023 [List]
To write a resume which gets jobs, you must use good resume keywords. Which resume words to use? Use our tips & bonus PDF resume keywords list to find out.
If you’re looking for a free resume template for your next resume, you’re right where you need. Word, Google Docs, InDesign resume templates. We have them all. And much more.
Cut to the chase—
We’ve scoured the Internet to bring you the best, most accessible, and really free resume templates.
Plus, we’ll show you how to use some of the best online template editing tools, and where to find even more resume templates.
So, let’s jump right in.
In this guide:
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Jump right to the free templates you’re looking for:
Microsoft Word is easily one of the most (if not the most) popular word processors out there.
In fact, the latest survey from Spiceworks shows that an overwhelming 82% of companies use an on-premises version of MS Office, and 53% of companies use the cloud-based version of MS Office suite.
So—
Chances are that free resume templates for Word are just the thing you’re looking for.
What are the pros of free Word resume templates?
They’re super accessible.
The only thing you need to do is launch the latest version of MS Word, click on New, and either type in “resumes and cover letters” in the search box, or click on the search suggestions.
And—
As you can see, there’s quite a number of free resume templates for MS Word available directly in MS Word itself:
All you need to do is find a free resume template you like, click on it, and start editing.
The cons?
Sometimes the formatting gets a little tricky, so it’s best to find a template where the content length is more or less similar to what you want to include in your resume.
Here’s a couple of examples of free resume templates for Word you can find inside MS Word itself:
This free creative resume template comes from the design company Moo.
It combines subtle graphical elements with modern resume fonts and a reader-friendly resume format.
It’s a perfect resume template for a graphic- and art-related resumes.
If you like this template, you don’t have to look for it, just click here and download it for free.
This free modern resume template works great for more experienced job seekers.
It offers quite a lot of space for your professional experience resume section.
Also, it allows you to display your resume skills on a nice graphical scale that quickly shows how proficient you are.
Here’s a link to the template’s download page.
This modern and attractive resume template uses an eye-catching combination of colors, graphical elements, and fonts to stand out from the crowd.
The resume header draws the reader’s attention to your name and job title. You’ve got plenty of space for your resume profile statement, and your skills are extra visible thanks to the use of bullet points and green font.
You can quickly download it from here, and start outlining your resume right away.
Expert Hint: Remember, it’s never enough to simply find a free resume template, you must know how to write a job-winning resume.
Now—
If you want to explore more free resume templates for Microsoft Word, go to the official MS Office template gallery. Or see our selection of the best free resume templates for Microsoft Word.
Once there, select the resumes and cover letters category, and start exploring.
When you find a template you like, download it and start editing.
OK—
All’s fine and dandy if you have your MS Office subscription or an on-premises version of MS Word.
But what if you don’t?
Well, here’s the good news:
You can use MS Word entirely free of charge.
And no.
There’s no need to subscribe to any premium service.
The only thing you will need is a free OneDrive account, and access to the Internet.
Here’s how to use free resume templates for Word in combination with a free online version of MS Word:
Expert Hint: Not sure whether to send your resume as PDF or DOC, our in-depth guide has all the answers you need.
Here’s the thing:
Gmail had over 1.8 billion monthly active users in 2022, all of whom have free access to Google office suite.
In other words:
You could be very much interested in using free Google Docs resume templates.
So—
What are the pros of using free Google Docs resume templates?
They’re easy to access, and you can start writing your resume immediately.
The problem is there are only 5 of them available via Google Docs, and they don’t stand out visually in comparison to what you can find online.
That being said—
Here comes a selection of our favorite built-in free Google Docs resume templates:
This simple free resume template is an embodiment of minimalism. It’s divided into four main resume sections.
Thanks to the use of different fonts and colors, it's super easy to scan, which is particularly important as the recruiter will only spend 7 seconds initially scanning your resume.
This free one-page resume template uses a two-column layout, thanks to which you can include quite a lot of information without making your resume look cluttered.
Remember: you can change the section order and put education on your resume first thus making this free resume template suitable for an entry-level resume, too.
Each section can be quickly identified and the entire resume is very reader-friendly and scannable.
Expert Hint: Your resume shouldn’t be too long or too short. Find out what the perfect length of a resume is.
This free resume template for Google Docs is straightforward and clean.
Each section is separated from the surrounding ones with a horizontal line, which makes it very easy for the reader to find what they’re looking for.
Even though the skills section comes up top, you may want to simply replace it with a resume summary or professional objective and list your skills somewhere closer to the bottom of the document.
Now—
How to access these free resume templates in Google Docs?
Well, since you’re already here, just follow this link. It will take you directly to the official free Google Docs template gallery.
All you need to do is scroll down until you see the section with resume templates:
Simply click on the resume you like and start editing.
Once you finish writing your resume, you can download it by clicking File > Download.
Expert Hint: If you find writing your resume challenging, we have a selection of 50+ resume writing guides for various occupations. Find one just for you.
Listen—
Even though there is a plethora of free Google Docs resume templates out there, most of them are of substandard quality, to say the least.
That’s why we found this gem of a free resume template just for you.
It’s available for free on Behance, and comes bundled with a cover letter template. By the way, we have a great cover letter writing guide you may want to take a look at.
You can download the free resume template from here.
Canva is a simple graphic-design website that comes packed with a free editor.
As you can guess, Canva has myriad templates for just about any visual project you can imagine.
This obviously includes free resume templates.
What are the pros of using Canva?
Access to, dare I say, thousands of free resume templates.
The cons?
Not all resume templates available in Canva are free. Plus, quite a number of them may not be fully compatible with Applicant Tracking System (ATS) software.
And you need to know that 98% of Fortune 500 companies rely on ATSs to initially screen resumes.
What does this mean in practice?
It means that your resume could be unreadable to the system that scores resumes before they reach a human reader. And that’s a bummer.
So if you decide to use a free resume template from Canva, make sure you send your resume directly to the recruiter’s inbox to bypass the ATS screening stage.
Here’s a couple of examples of what templates you can find in Canva:
This free professional resume template combines minimalism with top-notch graphic design.
It’s super readable and crisp.
Great for those who already have some professional experience under the belt, and would like to show it off in the form of elegant bullet points.
If you find this free resume template to your liking, you can find it right here.
Expert Hint: Before you send it to the recruiter, check out our resume tips and tricks to make sure you’ve got everything right.
This free resume template from Canva could work great for experienced and inexperienced candidates alike.
It makes great use of its two-column layout. The section on the left is great for less wordy sections, such as volunteer experience, and the one on the right gives you a lot of space to give proper exposure to your achievements on a resume.
You don’t need to search for it inside Canva, just follow this link to start editing.
Another one from Canva.
This free infographic resume template is one of many Canva has to offer.
It’s great for all sorts of creative resumes.
But beware.
Of all kinds of resumes, infographic resumes are sure to fail any ATS scan (here is a list of ATS-friendly resume templates). Especially, if you export them to image file formats (e.g. JPG or PNG).
If you like this free infographic resume template, you can find it here.
Expert Hint: Including hobbies and interests on a resume may be a good idea. Our guide will tell you how to get this section right.
So—
How to find free resume templates on Canva?
All you have to do is follow this link, or go to canva.com, click Browse and select Resume in the Templates section:
Here are some more examples of what free resume templates you can find in Canva:
To start editing a resume template on Canva, you need to sign up for a free account. And once you do, you can browse free resume templates from within Canva’s web app:
To identify which resume template is free, look for the Free badge in the bottom right corner of a template when you hover the mouse pointer over it.
When you’re done editing, you can download your resume as a PDF file.
The ResumeLab builder is more than looks. Get specific content to boost your chances of getting the job. Add job descriptions, bullet points, and skills. Easy. Improve your resume in our resume builder now.
Nail it all with a splash of color, choose a clean font, and highlight your skills in just a few clicks. You’re the perfect candidate, and we’ll prove it. Use our resume builder now.
Good-Resume.com is a treasure trove of free resume templates.
What you get here is a ton of beautifully designed resumes for each and every walk of life.
The pros?
Access to a huge library of quality free resume templates.
The cons?
You may need additional software packages to edit the files. For example, some resume templates are only available as PSD or INDD file formats which require Adobe Photoshop or InDesign to open.
Below are several examples of free resume templates you can find on good-resume.com
This free resume template is available in dark and light versions.
Because of its non-standard layout and design, it’s recommended for more creative and artistic positions.
You can download this free resume template here.
This free resume template is a good choice for more traditional roles.
It has a super clean layout with toned-down colors and some subtle graphical elements.
Expert Hint: Learn how to make the most of your certifications on a resume.
It’s available for download here.
This free resume template brings together the best elements from infographic resumes and more traditional ones.
With some minor tweaks, it could be a great choice for a combination or a functional resume. As such, you may want to give it a go when making a career change resume, for example.
You can download it here, and start tweaking it right away.
This resume is one of many free InDesign resume templates available on Good-Resume.com.
It’s stylishly minimalistic and will work just great for many different positions.
Free download available here.
So—
Where to find all these (and many more) free resume templates?
Go to good-resume.com, click on Free Resume Templates in the menu, and find the template you like.
Hloom is a huge online repository of all sorts of templates.
And—
There’s no shortage of good resume templates available for free there.
What are the upsides?
Numbers. Hloom’s database is arguably the largest one. Plus, all the free resume templates are available in various popular file formats (including OpenOffice file formats).
The downsides?
To be honest, the templates you’ll find here aren’t the most inventive. That said, they’ll work fine for just about any position imaginable.
Here’s a quick look at several free resume templates from Hloom:
This free resume template from Hloom is simple and clean.
It's neatly divided into several resume sections, each of which consists of easy-to-follow bullet points.
This free resume template is universal enough to be used by just about anybody, regardless of the position they're pursuing.
Just follow this link to download your copy.
This free resume template follows a two-column pattern.
The left-hand column serves as a handy navigation bar of a sort, while the main body column on the right provides the reader with all the details.
Just like the previous free resume template, this one can be used when applying for a variety of positions.
You can download it here.
Another two-column template from Hloom. This time round, though, the left hand sidebar comes in fashionable teal.
The main body is nicely divided into reader-friendly parts, and all the dates and section headings can be found in the sidebar.
This versatile free resume template will work great in the vast majority of professional situations.
You can download it for free here.
Where to find more?
All the free resume templates shown here are available in Hloom's own repository. You can access it through this link, or through the website’s top menu.
Expert Hint: Not all Free Resume Builders are ATS friendly. To make sure your creative resume reaches a human reader, send it directly to the recruiter's inbox.
As the name rightly suggests, PSDFreebies is a place where you can find a lot of free resume templates in the PSD file format.
The advantages?
I assume you won't be surprised if I told you that you can find some really good looking templates here, as this is exactly the case.
The disadvantages?
All the templates you can find here are only available in the PSD file format. Plus, you have to wait 240 seconds to download them (unless you share the template on your social media).
Take a look at several free resume templates you can find there:
This beautiful resume template comes for free.
It’s been designed with creative professions in mind, such as UX/UI designers or visual artists.
What’s striking about this one are the neat-looking visuals. It has all the best things of a classic resume, e.g. spacious experience and education sections, but also a cool vibe of an infographic resume.
You can download it here.
This free resume template brings numbers into focus.
It uses colors, fonts, icons, and graphical elements to highlight the most important facts from your professional history.
Also, it has a designated space for a QR code that can send the reader directly to your portfolio page for example.
Download it here, and start making your resume right away.
Expert Hint: One of the places where you can look for even more free resume templates is Reddit. The users will not only share their templates, but will critique your document and give you feedback.
Finally—
If you’ve reached this point, and still haven’t found what you’re looking for, fret not.
There’s something you might want to check out.
Namely, online resume builders.
That’s right.
Online resume builders offer quite a number of free resume templates you may find to your liking. Plus, they turn text formatting into child’s play.
So head straight to our in-depth article about best free online resume builders to find out more.
Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter generator and make your application documents pop out.
Want to try a different look? There’s 18 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.
Here’s all you need to remember about free resume templates:
Do you have any questions on how to use free resume templates or where to find them? Or maybe you have your own sources of resume templates for free you’d like to share with others? We’re always happy to hear from you. Give us a shout out in the comments below!
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