ATS CV template: make sure the software reads your CV

What is an ATS and how does it read your CV?

An applicant tracking system is software that stores job applications. When you upload a CV, the ATS extracts the text, tries to identify sections such as experience and education, and saves fields like your name, email, job titles and skills. Recruiters then filter and search those fields, for example “show me candidates with CPA and IFRS” or “nurses with BLS in Lagos”.

The ATS does not reject you because your CV is ugly. Problems happen when it cannot read parts of your CV (text in images, odd columns, text boxes) or when your CV does not contain the words recruiters search for. An ATS-friendly CV solves both problems.

ATS CV formatting rules

• Use a single-column layout for online portals. Multi-column designs can be read left-to-right across columns, mixing up your content.
• Use standard headings: Professional Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills, Certifications, Languages, Referees.
• Keep all text as real text. No text inside images, logos, charts or icons.
• Put contact details in the main body, not only in the page header or footer.
• Use common fonts such as Helvetica, Arial, Calibri or Times, at 10 pt or more.
• Avoid tables and text boxes for layout.
• Write dates consistently, e.g. “Mar 2022 – Present”.
• Save as PDF or .docx, whichever the portal asks for. Both are readable when built correctly.

How to use keywords in an ATS CV (without keyword stuffing)

1. 1

   Collect keywords from the advert

   Highlight the skills, tools, qualifications and job titles in the job advert. These are the words recruiters will search for.

2. 2

   Match the exact wording

   If the advert says “Microsoft Excel”, write “Microsoft Excel”, not just “spreadsheets”. Include both the abbreviation and the full term once, e.g. “Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)”.

3. 3

   Place keywords where they make sense

   Put the most important ones in your title, summary and skills section, then show them in action inside your experience bullets.

4. 4

   Never claim what you cannot do

   Recruiters and interviewers will test you. Only include keywords for skills you genuinely have.

5. 5

   Check what is missing

   Our CV check compares your CV with a job advert and lists the important keywords you have missed.

ATS-safe vs ATS-friendly designs

We label every design so you can choose with confidence. ATS-safe designs (Classic, Harvard, Engineer, Minimal, Executive, Corporate, Accra, Kigali, Kampala, Addis, Cairo, Abuja, Mombasa, Gaborone, Durban and Graduate) are single column and follow every rule above. ATS-friendly designs (Modern, Nairobi, Lagos, Cape Town, Dakar, Lusaka and Kinshasa) use real text but add a sidebar; they are perfect when emailing a CV directly to a person, but for large online portals choose an ATS-safe design.

Because your content is stored separately from the design, you can keep a two-column version for emailing and switch to an ATS-safe version for portals in one click.

Myths about ATS CVs

Walkthrough: the ATS-safe sample CV

The customer service CV above is built to be read perfectly by software. It is a single column, the headings are the standard words an ATS expects (Professional Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills, Certifications, Languages), and every piece of text is selectable. The contact details are in the body of the page, not in a header graphic.

It also contains the keywords a customer service advert typically uses: Zendesk, Freshdesk, live chat, complaint resolution, CSAT and first-contact resolution, each backed up by a result in the experience section. A recruiter searching their ATS for “Zendesk” or “customer satisfaction” will find this CV, and when they open it they will see numbers that prove the skills are real.

How our live ATS score works

While you edit, the score checks the things ATS software and recruiters care about: complete contact details, a professional email, a title under your name, a summary of the right length, 8–14 skills, achievements with numbers, bullets that start with action verbs, dates on every job, a sensible length and an ATS-safe layout. Paste a job advert in the Tailor & check tab and it also measures how many of the advert's important keywords appear in your CV. You see a rating of Poor, Fair, Good or Excellent and a list of the exact fixes to make.

ATS CV checklist before you apply

• Single column, standard headings, real text.
• Job title and summary match the advert.
• Key skills and tools from the advert are included (where true).
• Every job has dates, employer and location.
• File named clearly: Firstname_Lastname_CV.pdf.
• Spelling checked, phone number with country code, professional email.

Frequently asked questions