Are you looking to create a new resume but don’t want to go through the painstaking process of creating one from scratch, section by section?
To save a lot of time, you can use a Microsoft Word resume template instead.
Why would you want to do that?
For one, MS-Word comes with a lot of pre-built resume templates that can have you up and running with a fully customized resume in a matter of minutes.
There’s quite a lot of variety as well. So, you can really pick a resume template that both you and the HR manager will love.
Are you a marketer or a designer? Pick a creative resume and show off your imagination!
Applying for a finance position in a bank? One of the conservative, black & white word resume templates will work for you.
Word comes with a number of free templates, and there are other hand-crafted premium options available online.
Do you want a winning Word template that’ll have the HR manager glued to your beautiful resume?
Here’s what you need to know:
- How to Use Word Resume Templates
- 10+ Free Word Resume Templates
- 10+ Premium Word Resume Templates
- How to Make a Resume the Easy Way
How to Use Word Resume Templates
There are two ways you can get your hands on a Word resume template.
You can either go with a pre-customized Word template that comes with the software, or you can use an external template made by designers and career experts for Word specifically.
Let’s start with the resume templates that come with the software.
In-Build Microsoft Word Resume Templates
To access these templates, here’s what you do:
- Open MS word
- Click file from the menu bar on top of the screen
- Select new
- From there, you can select a number of different formats (resumes, flyers, cards, cover letters, and more)
In this case, we’re focusing on resume templates, so you can type that in the search bar to see the different kinds of templates available.
As you can see, there’s plenty of choice here and a lot of different design options.
From there on, you find the one you like, and just fill it in to your liking!
Each of the templates come with a brief description as well, based on the theme and what kind of impression you want to leave with that specific template.
Here’s what you’d be getting with the free Pink floral resume:
Present your resume with this easily customizable template. Edit your experience and information with this and know that you’ll be making a statement with the design choice. This template also includes information on how to build an effective resume:
Not sure what to put on your resume? We feel you! Picking the right template is only the first step. Check out our complete guide on how to make a resume and you’ll be an expert in no time!.
10+ Free Word Resume Templates
The best things in life are free, right?
Let’s see if the best free Word resume templates also stack up.
Functional Resume (Simple Design)
Who's it for: Any entry-level position
Creator: Microsoft
Where to find it: Microsoft Templates
Want something super simple for free?
Microsoft Word comes with a number of ready-to-go resume templates that are one click away.
All you have to do is go to Microsoft Templates, where you’ll find a number of different templates for resumes, cover letter, newsletters, and more.
There, you’ll find a number of good starting resume templates, like this functional resume by Microsoft.
When to Use This Template
Depending on your achievements and background, you’ll want to list your qualifications in a specific order. With this functional resume, you can list your objective, professional achievements, skills, and work history - in that specific order.
You can use this resume if you’re switching jobs to a different career, or as your no experience resume.
With just a bit of color to stand out and clear sections within the layout, you can’t go wrong with this template.
It’s a simple, and effective starting point for most job-seekers.
Though, the design might be all too common and easy to blend in with other candidates applying for the same job.
Modern Chronological Resume
Who's it for: Mid-level job-seekers
Creator: Microsoft
Where to find it: Microsoft Templates
Most resume formats you find are going to be in chronological order.
That is, starting from your most recent job experience, going down to your previous jobs.
You can’t go wrong with this format, and if you want something that’s professional, but also has a bit of flair to it, check out the Modern chronological resume by Microsoft:
When to Use This Template
The standard way to list your work experience is in chronological order. With this modern resume, you can start with your latest job experience to help the HR manager easily find what they’re looking for.
This is a very straightforward approach, and it also has a color scheme and a design that can help you stand out from other candidates.
Just because it’s professional, doesn’t mean it has to be boring.
Though, if you want to take a more creative approach with your resume, you could use the...
Infographic Word Resume
Who's it for: Marketers and social media experts
Creator: Microsoft
Where to find it: Microsoft Templates
Are you applying for a marketing or a design job where you’ll be creating a lot of web content?
Then you can make your resume a part of your portfolio with the infographic resume.
When to Use This Template
Use this infographic resume to list your qualifications in a way that’s easy to follow. The icons highlight your skills and the sections follow a clear direction.
This is a good example of custom tailoring your resume to the job.
It goes without saying that the content inside the resume has to be up to par as well.
But as far as standing out goes, this infographic resume is guaranteed to attract eyes from a stack of resumes.
FREE Resume Template by Fernando Báez
Who's it for: Graphic and web designers
Creator: Fernando Báez
Where to find it: Behance
What could be better than a free resume template that has already been tried and tested?
After using and getting a few jobs with the very same template as a freelance UI/UX designer, Fernando is now giving away his secrets in the form of a free template.
When to Use This Template
In the resume pack, you’ll find your resume template in .ai format (Adobe Illustrator), all resume fonts used in the design, and a free icon set by Brankic. In it, you can customize the infographics to help represent your specialties, knowledge, language skills, or hobbies.
(Need help with any of those sections? Read our guide on what to put on a resume.)
Whether or not you’re a designer, you can customize the above template to truly represent you and make it uniquely yours.
There’s nothing wrong with using a template - it’s not plagiarism.
It’s inside the resume what matters, which is going to be unique each time (at least it should be).
Bold Monogram Resume
Who's it for: Any general-level position
Creator: Microsoft
Where to find it: Microsoft Templates
A resume objective is a short 1-2 sentence elevator pitch that provides an overview of your experience, skills, and motivations.
In it, you explain why you’re the right person for the job.
With this Bold monogram resume, your resume objective is guaranteed to stand out and be one of the first things the HR manager will notice.
When to Use This Template
Present your qualifications in a stylish way that’s also professional and guaranteed to stand out. This template includes an editable color scheme, and instructions on how to build an effective resume.
While the focus is definitely on the resume objective, the rest of the resume follows a smooth flow in an order that makes sense.
Need some inspiration on your resume objective? Check out our real-life resume objective examples guide.
Simple and Clean Resume Template
Who's it for: Creative directors
Creator: ZokiDesign
Where to find it: ZokiDesign
This simple and minimalistic resume template has a clean aesthetic, is easy to format and covers a lot of sections.
You can show off your work experience as well as your background (resume summary or objective), education, skills, and even your hobbies.
Though you can change the color scheme, the format and the layout makes this resume ideal for creative roles.
When to Use This Template
With a clean and modern aesthetic, this resume is a great way to quickly sum up your qualifications and also stand out from other resumes with its design. It has a minimal look to it, and still contain a lot of information while staying under 1 page. If needed, it can also be converted into a cover letter.
In short, the above resume covers just about everything you’ll need in a template and more.
The best part about it, like with most Word templates, is its customizability.
So, if you’re applying to a more conservative job, you can change the colors into a calmer tone - like black and white.
Creative Resume, Designed by MOO
Who's it for: Anyone in a creative role
Creator: Microsoft
Where to find it: Microsoft Templates
Created with a neutral color scheme, this creative resume template by MOO was made to show off your creativity.
Yet, it won’t distract the viewers from the actual content within it.
So, depending on the company you’re applying to and your experience, you can draw eyes with this template.
When to Use This Template
This accessible resume template is for job seekers who want to show off their creative side and stand out from other candidates. It has all the important sections you’ll need and an editable color scheme.
If you don’t necessarily have a lot of work experience, you can go with a creative template approach to stand out from other candidates and stay memorable.
In that case, you have to make sure your resume objective, skills, and other sections clearly display your motivation for the role.
Fully Editable Creative Resume Template by Omer Korkmaz
Who's it for: Senior graphic, UI/UX Designers
Creator: Omer Korkmaz
Where to find it: Behance
If you’re a graphic designer and know you’re way around AI, this fully editable creative resume template by Omer Korkmaz might be for you.
This template has everything you’d need applying for a graphic design role:
- A place for your contact information
- Education
- Skills
- Work experience (with plenty of space)
- Certifications
- And some extra space for other optional sections
When to Use This Template
This resume template is fully editable, and ideal for graphic designers. The free download includes a PowerPoint and Adobe Illustrator format, and the Open Sans font - everything you’ll ever need.
Because of the format versions that come with the template, you can really fine-tune the resume to perfection. You can change the design, the color schemes, and any other detail within Adobe Illustrator.
So, if you’re applying for a senior UX/UI designer role, you can really make sure that your resume reflects your qualifications with this creative template.
Minimal Resume - Free by Sovon Halder
Who's it for: Web developers and designers
Creator: Sovon Halder
Where to find it: Behance
This minimal resume template has an interesting color scheme and a font system to it that can make you stand out easily.
It stays just under one page, with all the necessary sections intact.
The resume also comes with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and PDF formats.
So, formatting shouldn’t be a problem as you can just edit it and quickly send it to an employer.
When to Use This Template
Minimal design, A4 Size, print ready, and editable. The template focuses primarily on your work experience, and your soft and hard skills. And you can always edit it based on your qualifications. Once you’re done editing, the resume is already print ready, so, all you have to do is customize the resume based on the job you’re applying to.
Despite its minimalistic approach, there’s a lot going on in the resume and you can easily summarize yourself in one page.
There’s plenty of white space as well.
So, in short, it’s easy on the eyes and the readability within the layout is on point as well. Now, what matters is what actually goes within it.
Resume for Recent College Graduate
Who's it for: Recent college graduates
Creator: Microsoft
Where to find it: Microsoft Templates
Finally, we’ve covered just about every type of resume scenarios, except this one.
This Word template for recent college graduates prioritizes your objective, education, skills, and ends with experience (which you can include if you have any).
The design and the layout is fairly simple, and most of the resume is already filled in with examples. All you have to do is modify it based on your background -
When to Use This Template
This resume was made with college graduates in mind. If you don’t have a lot of work experience, you can use this template to prioritize other sections (e.g. your education, skills, abilities, experience).
It’s simple and straightforward.
And sometimes, that’s what it takes to get your foot in the door when you’re a recent college grad with not a lot of experience.
Still confused on how to structure your resume when you don’t have a lot of experience?
See our full guide for student and graduate resumes for a detailed guide on what you can include.
Clean Resume Template by HalfCircle
Who’s it for: Graphic and web designers
Creator: HalfCircle
Where to find it: CreativeMarket
Price: $6
This clean resume template by HalfCircle comes with a DOCX MS Word file and an Adobe Photoshop File for easy customization.
It also includes three different color schemes, a cover letter, all the fonts used, and it’s also ready-to-print.
When to Use This Template
The resume includes a clean layout with an easy-to-read font choice. The colors, along with the rest of the resume, are customizable and you can edit everything in even more detail with the Photoshop PSD file. The cover letter section, meanwhile, includes plenty of space for your text and has a contact information section as well.
The best thing about this template is how clearly the sections are separated.
Nothing in it feels too close to each other and it’s just as easy for the HR manager to find or jump to any specific section they’re looking for.
There’s not much else to say about this resume other than that it’s very straightforward and simple - living up to its name clean resume template name.
Professional Resume / CV Template by Classic Design
Who’s it for: Web and graphic designers
Creator: Classic Design
Where to find it: Behance
Price: $7
Looking for something more professional?
The professional resume template by Classic Design might be what you’re looking for.
The colors aren’t as vibrant here but the colors and the typography suggest that it’s more for a senior job role in a more traditional working environment.
When to Use This Template
This professional resume template has a more faded gray color scheme to it, and a font style that’s easy to follow. The template comes with Word, Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator formats, and a cover letter - all of which are easy to customize.
Though the default resume text is suited for a design role, you can easily to your career field and it won’t be out of place due to its design.
The template has all the sections you’d ever need, for both a creative and a more traditional job, and the HR manager will have an easy time following it top to bottom.
Professional Resume Template
Who’s it for: Marketers and bloggers
Creator: Mukhlasur Rahman
Where to find it: Behance
Price: $8.47
Want your resume to be personally tailored to your personality and job role?
This professional resume template by Mukhlasur Rahman might be for you then.
The Word template follows a consistent color scheme and layout that’s been specifically designed for designers and bloggers.
When to Use This Template
This professional and creative resume template has been tailor made for designers and online bloggers. It includes a contact section, social media, education, skills, profile, work experience, and awards. The template also comes with a separate cover letter, a reference page, and a free icon set.
If you’re going to be working closely with social media and other relevant online channels, you might want to include a whole section for it on your resume.
In it, you can include the following sections, depending on how relevant they are to you:
- Medium
- Personal site or blog
- Quora
- Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram
If the job requires you to be a social media expert, this might also be the perfect place to mention how you managed to grow your social media channel 0 to 10K.
Resume Template & Cover Letter by Opu;ent Studio
Who’s it for: Any senior role
Creator: Opu;’ent
Where to find it: Behance
Price: $9
If you’re applying for a more senior role this Word resume template & cover letter by Opu;ent Studio might be more up your alley.
The template is easy to edit in Adobe InDesign and Microsoft Word, and covers the following sections:
- Biography (though you can edit this for resume summary or objective)
- Work experience
- Education
- Technical Skills
- Contact information
- Cover letter
When to Use This Template
With a clean and unique look to the resume, this template is more suited for professionals and senior-level positions. There is a lot of space for work experience, and you can just as easily transform the biography section into a resume summary.
And if you think the template looks short, don’t worry. Everything you can’t mention in it goes in the cover letter.
Look at the cover letter as a one-page document that briefly summarizes your background.
A good cover letter is a supplement to your resume and can get the HR manager to call you back.
Wondering if you should also include your picture on the resume like in the above template? That may depend on your location.
Check out our guide to see if you should include a picture on your resume or CV.
Clean Resume/CV + Cover letter by Tamzid Hasan
Who’s it for: Web, IT developer
Creator: Tamzid Hasan
Where to find it: Behance
Price: $5
If you are indeed looking for a more professional resume, this clean resume/CV combo by Tamzid Hasan might work great.
When to Use This Template
Clean one page resume that also comes with a cover letter and a reference template. It follows a professional black and white color scheme and a layout that focuses on work experience. Main features include:
- A4 & US Letter size
- Clean & professional design
- Microsoft Word (Docx) files
- CV/Resume + Cover Letter + References
- 1 & 2 page version
- Paragraph style
- Free font
Of course, ideally, your resume should fit within one page. But if you have 5+ years of experience, you can break that rule and go with the two page version the template comes with.
If you are indeed going to go over the one page rule, since you’ll have more space in your overall resume, you can also include:
- Hard skills
- Soft skills
- Languages
- Certifications
- References
One page is ideal, but depending on the job role and your experience, you can also include some extra sections to back up your background.
Modern Resume Template for Microsoft Word by ResumeCoverPro
Who's it for: Any professional and creative role
Creator: ResumeCoverPro
Where to find it: Etsy
Price: $11
Looking for something that’s modern and professional?
Check out the professional resume package by ResumeCoverPro which includes - resume and cover letter templates, an icon pack, free fonts, effective customer support and more.
When to Use This Template
This template focuses on the main categories: education, profile, skills, work experience, and awards. You can edit each section to customize it but for the most part, it follows a very straightforward layout and color scheme. All you have to do is edit in the blanks and send it in.
This template wasn’t designed with any one specific job role in mind, so, it’s a great general-purpose approach with its design and layout.
As long as you have Word (or Google Docs), you can customize it to make it truly yours.
And if for some reason you need further help, the template comes with additional instructions and even customer support.
Optimized 1-page Edition Resume by TheResumeCoach
Who's it for: PR, Marketers
Creator: TheResumeCoach
Where to find it: Etsy
Price: $15
This optimized 1-page edition resume is an attempt at perfecting the resume layout with the bare essentials.
For most jobs, regardless of the seniority level or the career field, this template will allow you to get all of your qualifications on paper, in a classic A4 one page format.
When to Use This Template
This template allows you to highlight your key skills and qualifications, all in one page. No need to worry about going overboard with this as this has been specifically designed for a 1-page approach.
This is a clear attempt at optimizing for the 1-page resume format.
If you’re looking for something that’s professional and you can use for multiple scenarios - the above template might be the way to go.
It’s easy-to-use and will look good for most people.
All you have to do is fill in the blanks and you’ll have a fully customized resume that’s guaranteed to stand out and attract eyes.
Elegant Resume by Horea Nicodin
Who's it for: Pretty much anyone
Creator: Horea Nicodin
Where to find it: Dribble
Price: $10
Everything about this elegant resume template screams fanciness and it’s guaranteed to get a second look from the HR manager - which is your chance to really draw them in.
If your background is half as good as how the resume looks, you’re guaranteed to get a call back (if not for an interview, just for them to compliment your resume).
When to Use This Template
This template is ideal if you want to leave a lasting impression. It’s functional as well as elegant - definitely the best of both worlds.
Fortunately, it doesn’t actually come with a cursive font, as that would just make the recruiter’s job harder.
Though, the resume template (and the cover letter) do come with any file format you’ll ever need - Word, Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
This one-page resume template is ideal for those who want to keep their resumes concise, with just the right amount of flair.
2-page Resume/CV Combo by Resume Templates
Who's it for: UX/UI Designers
Creator: ResumeTemplates
Where to find it: Dribble
Price: $7
If you’re going to be breaking the 1-page resume rule, you better have a good reason for it (i.e. a lot of experience).
And if that’s the case, then you could use the 2-page resume/CV package by ResumeTemplates.
When to Use This Template
Clean, modern and professional Resume with Letterhead design. Fully customizable, and easy to use and replace the color & text.
This 2-pager Word template also comes with a cover letter, 100% scalable files (Photoshop, Illustrator, Word), and is ready to print.
It follows a reverse-chronological order and even has a references section.
So, if you’re going to be using this template, make sure you have enough experience to fill it in with.
Modern Resume Template Package by ResumeFoundry
Who's it for: Online marketers
Creator: ResumeFoundry
Where to find it: Etsy
Price: $15
Last but not least, this is another take on the modern creative resume package by Resume Foundry.
The package follows an all-in-one approach and the feature of being able to customize it based on your experience.
When to Use This Template
This template comes with just about everything you’ll ever need, regardless of your experience level.This includes a 1-3 page template, a cover letter, references, instructions, and a ready-to-help customer support.
Everything you see on the template is editable, and you also have the freedom to continue over the 2nd page (if needed).
Though, if you’re going to take the one-page approach, you’ll find that it has all the sections you’d need for most jobs. And the design won’t be out of place for just about any career field either.
So, essentially, you’re getting everything you’d need for $15, all that’s left to do is edit them accordingly.
How to Make a Resume the Easy Way
That’s a lot of choice for a Word resume template.
While they might look good on paper, one common issue with building your resume with Word is that it can be super hard to format.
What do we mean by this?
Well, essentially, if you wanted to edit one specific part of your template (e.g. margin, design), there’s a chance that the whole formatting might break and spill over onto the 2nd page.
Sounds familiar? It happens to the best of us.
The reason this happens is because while Word is a powerful software on its own, it will always move your sections to the next page if the formatting isn’t just right.
Details matter to Word, sometimes a bit too much.
Do you want to simplify your resume building process down to its core?
Novorésumé template builder allows you to work and format your resume without having to worry about space, margins and other tiny details.
Everything is formatted based on the layout you choose and you won’t have to worry about your sections seemingly disappearing like in Word.
All this and more - for FREE.
Key Takeaways
So, to recap, here’s everything you need to know about using Microsoft Word resume template:
- You can use preloaded templates in Word by clicking File from the menu bar on top of the screen, then New, and from there, search for a “resume template” from the prompted search bar.
- The templates Word comes with are free, and you can also use premium templates, which you can find online.
- Though the premium templates cost money, the difference is noticeable as in most cases, they’ve been designed by career experts and artists all over the world.
- Once you find an ideal template that fits your qualifications, you can simply download it and edit it within Word.
- Though, if you’re looking for a smoother experience, you can simply use a powerful online resume builder for free, to represent your skills and qualifications based on how you want it.
