36 Modern CV and Resume Templates to Get Hired
A good CV gets read; a great one gets you the interview. Below are 36 modern CV and resume templates, from minimal one-pagers to bold creative designs, plus a dedicated section of art director resumes. Each one is editable in Word, Illustrator or Photoshop and comes with a matching cover letter. We also explain the difference between a CV and a resume and how to write a CV for a job application.
Every template on this page:
- A4 size, with a CV or resume page and a matching cover letter
- Editable in Microsoft Word (DOC), Adobe Illustrator (AI) and Adobe Photoshop (PSD)
- Free fonts included; text, colors and images are editable
- Preview photos are not included in the download.
Contents
- What makes a CV modern?
- CV vs resume: what is the difference?
- Modern minimal CV templates
- Art director and creative director resumes
- What to put on an art director resume
- Creative and colorful resume designs
- Professional and corporate resume templates
- Simple resume templates
- Resume templates with a photo
- Resume and portfolio sets
- How to write a CV for a job application
- How to choose the best resume template
- FAQ
What makes a CV modern?
A modern CV is a CV with a clean, current layout: clear section headings, plenty of white space, one or two accent colors, a readable sans serif font and a structure that lets a recruiter find your job title, experience and skills in seconds.
The modern CV format is usually one page (two at most), with your name and title at the top, a short profile, work experience in reverse order (latest job first), education and skills. Many modern layouts use two columns: a narrow sidebar for contact details, skills and languages, and a wider column for experience. Older CV styles, by contrast, tend to be long, text-heavy and in a single serif font.
Typography does a lot of the work. A clean sans serif keeps a CV looking modern; see our list of the best sans serif fonts if you want to change the font.
CV vs resume: what is the difference?
In the US and Canada, a resume is the short document you send for most jobs, and a CV (curriculum vitae) is a longer academic record. In the UK, Ireland, Europe, Asia and Australia, “CV” is the everyday word for what Americans call a resume. The templates on this page work for both.
| Resume | CV (curriculum vitae) | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | Usually 1 page, 2 at most | 1 to 2 pages in the UK and Europe; academic CVs can be much longer |
| Purpose | A short, targeted summary for one job | A full record of your career, or the general term for a resume outside North America |
| Content | Selected experience, skills and results | Full work history, education, and for academics: publications, research, grants |
| Tailored per job? | Yes, every time | General UK and Europe CVs yes; academic CVs mostly stay the same |
| Where the word is used | US and Canada | UK, Europe, Asia, Australia, and academia worldwide |
Modern minimal CV templates
Clean layouts with lots of white space, thin rules and one accent color at most. A modern minimal CV is the safest choice for most job applications: it looks current, prints well and keeps the attention on your experience.
1. Abstract Circle CV
A white page with a small square photo, two neat columns and a few small colored dots in the corners. Modern without being loud, and easy to adapt to almost any job.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
2. Carissa Devine Classic CV
A thin black frame, an arched photo, a QR code and serif headings, with a soft sage panel for experience. A refined modern CV with a slightly classic feel.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
3. Justin Chad Bailey CV
A navy header and sidebar with a serif name and no photo, next to a clean two-column body. A strong choice when you prefer to leave the photo out.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
4. Jonatan Timothy CV
Black and white only, with black section bars and skill sliders down the left. Simple, structured and very easy to scan.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
5. Ricard Connor CV
A dark curved header with a round photo and spaced-out capital letters for the name. A tidy modern resume with a little more character.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
Art director and creative director resumes
An art director resume has two jobs: it lists your experience like any other resume, and it shows that you can design. These templates are named for art directors, creative directors and advertising roles, and the first three come with a portfolio page for your best work.
6. Roberto Silva Art Director Resume
A teal header band over a dark sidebar, with a portfolio page full of image boxes and a matching cover letter, per the preview. Bold enough for an art director, still easy to read.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
7. Jessica Jane Art Director Resume
A calm black and white layout with a thin-letter name, a portfolio page with project photos and a cover letter. Lets your work samples do the talking.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
8. Steve Carter Art Director Resume
A bright yellow sidebar with blue accents, a portfolio page and a cover letter. Confident and colorful for agency and advertising roles.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
9. Rushel Jhonson Art Director Resume
A black header bar with the name in white capitals and a plain two-column body. A sober art director resume for corporate or in-house design teams.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
10. John Missandre Creative Director Resume
A round photo, a dark brown sidebar for skills and education, and a cover letter with the same sidebar. Senior and polished.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
11. Mike Sanders Creative Director Resume
A full orange sidebar with a round photo and icons, plus a matching cover letter. Warm and energetic, it stands out in a pile of white resumes.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
12. Eduard Laurentinus Creative Director Resume
A light blue sidebar with a square photo and a clean white body, titled creative director and developer. Fresh and friendly for digital creative leads.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
13. Brent Smith Advertising Expert Resume
Black and white with a boxed name, a centered round photo and an achievements strip at the bottom. A classic, symmetrical resume for advertising and marketing roles.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
What to put on an art director resume
- A clear title and a one-line pitch: “Art Director, branding and campaigns” under your name, then two or three lines on what you do best.
- A link to your portfolio: put the URL or a QR code near the top. For an art director, the portfolio matters more than the resume.
- Campaigns and results, not duties: name the brands, the campaigns and what they achieved (launches, awards, growth), for each role.
- Team and leadership: how many designers, copywriters or photographers you led, and which agencies or in-house teams you worked with.
- Tools and skills: Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, motion or 3D tools, plus skills such as concept development, art direction on shoots and brand systems.
- Awards and clients: a short list of awards and well-known clients builds trust fast.
- A design that shows taste: clean, well spaced and consistent. A messy resume is the worst portfolio piece an art director can send.
The same advice works for creative directors, senior designers and other design roles: lead with your portfolio, keep the resume design clean and let the work prove your skills.
Creative and colorful resume designs
Big color blocks, bold type and playful shapes. These are the resumes for designers, illustrators, marketers and anyone applying to a creative company where the CV itself is part of the pitch.
14. Memphis Monroe Colorful CV
Navy and hot pink blocks with the name set vertically down the side. A bold, poster-like CV for creative designers.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
15. Lauren Silvyna Colorful CV
Yellow, orange and purple bands with a large name, an arrow and an arched photo. Loud in the best way, for graphic designers and creative roles.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
16. Charles Midleton Creative CV
Primary blue, yellow and red blocks with circles and dots. A playful CV that still keeps the sections in clear boxes.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
17. Audrey Ellish Geometric CV
A navy page topped with a colorful geometric pattern and a QR code near the bottom. Striking for creative and marketing jobs.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
18. Alexey Kursichov Red CV
A red sidebar with a round photo, tab-style section headings and software icons for skills. Bright and graphic for designers.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
19. Sylina Regina Green CV
Dark green and yellow with rounded boxes, a software skills block and a star shape. Friendly and modern for designers and illustrators.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
Professional and corporate resume templates
Quieter layouts in navy, grey or a single brand color, with clear headings and room for long job histories. Good for business, management, HR, finance and other corporate roles where a conservative resume is expected.
20. Ben Sweiss Business Resume
A grey header with a spaced-out name, contact details in a box and small red markers. Formal and very organized.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
21. Darius Earnest Project Manager Resume
A white page with a thin border, a square photo and a simple two-column layout. A no-nonsense professional resume.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
22. Ricard Robinson Professional Resume
Navy and gold with a slanted gold name banner and a navy sidebar for contact and education. Looks premium without being flashy.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
23. Laurent Clara HR Resume
A green header with the photo on the right and a career numbers strip at the bottom. Clean and credible for HR and people roles.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
24. Michael Moonlight Resume
A dark grey sidebar with a red corner, a round photo and a timeline for work experience. Professional with a touch of color.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
Simple resume templates
Plain, mostly black and white layouts with no heavy color or graphics. They print well on any printer and suit traditional employers and anyone who wants the content to do all the work.
25. Richard Albert Simple Resume
A rounded header box with a small round photo and black section labels. Simple, but with enough structure to look designed.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
26. Armstrong Fadeyka Simple Resume
One clean column of sections with a small photo next to the job title and thin dividing lines. About as simple as a resume gets.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
27. Ben Smith Simple Resume
Light grey with diagonal stripes at the top and bottom, a boxed name and tidy columns. Simple and well ordered.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
28. Mather Raymond Simple Resume
A thin black frame with a curved corner, a small round photo and a timeline for education and experience. Minimal and easy to edit.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
Resume templates with a photo
In many countries a photo on the CV is expected; in others, such as the US and UK, it is usually left off. If you do include one, these designs make it a feature rather than an afterthought.
29. Moore Jeannice Photo Resume
A large black and white portrait in a dark header, with the name running vertically beside it and a quote on the cover letter. Editorial and striking.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
30. Alex Jessica Photo Resume
A wide photo panel in teal and orange at the top, round skill badges and a matching cover letter. Bright and personal.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
31. Leonardo Marcuz Photo Resume
A large half-length photo at the top left, a yellow contact band and a navy block for education. Confident and corporate, with the photo front and center.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
32. Clara Holland Floral Resume
A round black and white photo, script-style text and small watercolor flowers in the corners. Soft and elegant for creative and lifestyle roles.
A4 · resume and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
Resume and portfolio sets
These templates add a portfolio page to the resume and cover letter, so you can send one file that shows your work. Ideal for photographers, designers, copywriters and art directors (see also the first three templates above).
33. David Brian Photographer Resume
A dark grey header with a large portrait, yellow quote marks and skill bars, plus portfolio and cover letter pages. Made for photographers.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
34. Billy Foster Photographer Resume
A full-height photo sidebar, orange skill bars and a portfolio page of landscape photos. Rugged and visual.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
35. James Brown Creative Designer Resume
A pink-to-purple gradient header with a round photo, a portfolio page and a matching cover. Vivid for designers and digital creatives.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
36. Eva Stephanie Copywriter Resume
A white resume with a soft blue curved edge and a portfolio page laid out with QR codes. Light and calm for writers and content roles.
A4 · resume, portfolio page and cover letter · Word, Illustrator, Photoshop
How to write a CV for a job application
- Read the job ad carefully. Note the job title, the main skills and the words the employer uses. You will mirror them in your CV.
- Pick a template that fits the job. Minimal or professional for corporate jobs, creative for design and marketing, a portfolio set if you need to show work.
- Write your contact details and title. Name, job title, phone, email, city and a LinkedIn or portfolio link. A full home address is no longer needed.
- Add a short profile. Two or three sentences on who you are, your experience and what you bring to this role.
- List your work experience, latest first. Job title, company, dates, then three to five bullet points with results, using numbers where you can.
- Add education, skills and extras. Degrees and courses, software and hard skills, languages, and certifications or awards if relevant.
- Keep it short and check it. One page is ideal for most jobs, two at most. Proofread, then save and send it as a PDF with your name in the file name.
- Write a matching cover letter. Every template above includes one in the same design, so your application looks like a set.
Going to interviews and networking events? A modern business card in the same colors as your CV is a nice finishing touch.
How to choose the best resume template
| If you are applying for… | Choose | From this page |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate, finance, HR, management | Professional or simple layout, one accent color | Professional and Simple sections |
| Most office and tech jobs | Modern minimal, two columns | Modern minimal section |
| Art director, creative director | A clean resume plus a portfolio page | Art director section |
| Graphic design, marketing, creative agencies | A creative, colorful design | Creative section |
| Photography, copywriting, content | A resume and portfolio set | Portfolio section |
| Jobs in countries where photos are expected | A layout with a clear photo area | Photo section |
- Readability first. A recruiter spends seconds on the first look; your name, title and latest job must jump out.
- Match the industry. The more conservative the employer, the quieter the design should be.
- Think about online applications. Many job portals scan CVs automatically. For those, a simple one-column layout in Word, saved as PDF, is the safest choice.
- Keep it consistent. Use the same template for your CV and cover letter, and stick to its fonts and colors.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best CV design?
The best CV design is the one that is easiest to read for the job you want: a clean modern layout with clear headings for most jobs, and a bolder creative design for design and marketing roles. The groups above show both.
What is a modern resume format?
A modern resume format has your name and title at the top, a short profile, work experience in reverse order, education and skills, usually on one page and often in two columns. It uses one or two accent colors and a clean sans serif font.
What should an art director resume include?
A clear title, a link to your portfolio, your main campaigns and their results, the teams you led, your tools and skills, and any awards or notable clients. See the full list above.
Is a CV the same as a resume?
Outside the US and Canada, yes: CV is the usual word for a resume. In the US and Canada a CV is a longer academic document, while a resume is the short version used for most jobs. See the comparison table above.
Can I edit these templates in Microsoft Word?
Yes. Each template includes a DOC file for Microsoft Word, as well as AI (Illustrator) and PSD (Photoshop) files. Fonts are free; preview photos are not included.
How long should a CV be?
One page for most jobs and for people with up to about ten years of experience; two pages for long careers. Academic CVs can be longer.
Looking for more resume designs?
Browse the full collection of CV and resume templates, each with a matching cover letter.