How to Write a Resume That Beats ATS in 2026

A hiring manager at a Fortune 500 company receives an average of 250 applications for every corporate job posting, according to Glassdoor's research. She has time to personally review maybe 10 of them. The other 240 are filtered by software before she ever sees them. That software — the Applicant Tracking System, or ATS — is the first gatekeeper between your resume and a human being, and most job seekers have no idea how it works or how to get past it.

Jobscan's 2025 analysis found that 75% of resumes are rejected by ATS before a human reviewer sees them. Not because the candidates are unqualified — because their resumes are formatted in ways the software cannot parse, or missing the specific keywords the system is looking for. The good news is that ATS optimization is entirely learnable, and the changes that make the biggest difference are not complicated. Here is exactly what to do.

How ATS Systems Actually Read Your Resume

Understanding what happens to your resume when you hit "submit" changes how you think about every formatting and content decision.

When you upload a resume, the ATS parser extracts the text from your document and attempts to categorize it into structured fields: name, contact information, work experience (employer, title, dates, responsibilities), education, and skills. It then compares the extracted content against the job description, scoring your resume based on how well it matches the required and preferred qualifications.

The parsing step is where most resumes fail. ATS parsers are sophisticated but not infallible — they rely on recognizing standard document structures and section headers. When a resume uses non-standard formatting, the parser may misread or drop content entirely. A resume with your contact information in a header field (outside the main document body) may have that information dropped by parsers that do not read headers. A resume with experience listed in a two-column table may have the right column scrambled or ignored. A resume saved as a PDF with embedded fonts may have text extracted incorrectly.

The keyword matching step is where most qualified candidates are filtered out. ATS systems match your resume against the job description using exact or near-exact keyword matching. If the job description says "project management" and your resume says "project coordination," many systems will not count that as a match — even though the skills are essentially identical. If the posting lists "Salesforce CRM" and your resume says "CRM software," you may not match on that requirement even if you have used Salesforce extensively.

This is why tailoring your resume to each job posting — using the exact language from the job description — is not optional. It is the fundamental requirement for ATS success.

The ATS-Safe Resume Format

The safest resume format for ATS compatibility is also the simplest: a clean, single-column document with standard section headers, no graphics, and no complex formatting elements.

Use standard section headers that ATS systems are trained to recognize: "Work Experience" or "Professional Experience" (not "My Career Journey"), "Education" (not "Academic Background"), "Skills" (not "What I Bring to the Table"). ATS parsers look for these specific terms to categorize your content — non-standard headers may cause your content to be miscategorized or ignored.

Avoid these formatting elements that commonly cause ATS parsing failures: tables (even simple ones), text boxes, headers and footers (content in these areas is often not parsed), columns (two-column layouts frequently scramble in parsing), graphics and icons, and decorative lines or borders that are part of the text layer rather than the background.

Use a standard font — Arial, Calibri, Garamond, or Times New Roman — at 10-12 points for body text and 14-16 points for your name. Exotic fonts may not render correctly when parsed, and some ATS systems substitute characters incorrectly.

For file format, follow the employer's instructions if specified. If not specified, .docx is the safest choice — it is the format ATS systems are most reliably able to parse. PDF is acceptable for most modern ATS systems but can cause issues with older systems or those that use optical character recognition rather than text extraction.

Keyword Strategy: Matching the Job Description

Keyword optimization is the highest-leverage ATS improvement available to most job seekers, and it requires a systematic approach rather than guesswork.

Start by reading the job description carefully and highlighting every specific skill, tool, qualification, and responsibility mentioned. Pay particular attention to terms that appear multiple times — repetition signals importance. Distinguish between required qualifications (which you must match) and preferred qualifications (which improve your score but are not eliminators).

Create a list of the key terms from the job description and compare it against your current resume. For every term on the list that is not in your resume, ask: do I have this skill or experience? If yes, add it using the exact language from the posting. If the job description says "Python" and you have Python experience, make sure the word "Python" appears in your resume — not "programming languages" or "scripting."

The placement of keywords matters. ATS systems weight keywords more heavily when they appear in certain sections — particularly the skills section and the most recent work experience. A keyword buried in a job from eight years ago carries less weight than the same keyword in your current role's description or your skills section.

Use a tool like Jobscan, Resume Worded, or SkillSyncer to automate the keyword gap analysis. These tools compare your resume against a specific job description and show you exactly which keywords you are missing and how your overall match score compares to the threshold most ATS systems use. Running this analysis before submitting each application takes 10 minutes and significantly improves your pass-through rate.

One important caution: do not keyword-stuff your resume with terms you do not actually have experience with. ATS gets you past the software; the human interview is where you have to back up every claim. Misrepresenting your skills wastes everyone's time and damages your professional reputation.

Writing Experience Bullets That Work for Both ATS and Humans

Your work experience section needs to satisfy two audiences simultaneously: the ATS parser that is looking for keywords, and the human reviewer who is evaluating whether you can do the job. The format that works best for both is the achievement-oriented bullet with specific metrics.

The standard formula is: Action verb + specific task + measurable result. "Managed social media accounts" becomes "Grew Instagram following from 12,000 to 47,000 in 18 months by implementing a data-driven content calendar, increasing engagement rate from 2.1% to 6.8%." The first version tells the reader what you did. The second version tells them what you achieved and gives them specific numbers to evaluate.

Metrics are important for two reasons. First, they make your accomplishments concrete and credible — anyone can claim to have "improved sales," but "increased quarterly sales revenue by 34% ($2.1M) through implementation of a consultative selling framework" is specific and verifiable. Second, numbers stand out visually when a human reviewer is skimming — they draw the eye and signal that you are results-oriented rather than task-oriented.

For each role, aim for 4-6 bullet points that cover your most significant responsibilities and achievements. Prioritize bullets that include keywords from the job description you are targeting. Lead with strong action verbs — "Spearheaded," "Engineered," "Reduced," "Generated," "Launched" — rather than weak ones like "Helped," "Assisted," or "Worked on."

Quantify wherever possible, but do not fabricate numbers. If you do not have exact figures, use ranges or approximations: "reduced processing time by approximately 40%," "managed a team of 8-12 contractors." Honest approximations are better than no numbers and far better than invented precision.

The Skills Section: Your ATS Keyword Anchor

The skills section is the most important section for ATS keyword matching, and most job seekers underutilize it. A well-constructed skills section serves as a keyword anchor — a place where you can include all the relevant technical skills, tools, and competencies from the job description in a format that ATS systems parse reliably.

List skills as individual items rather than in prose sentences. "Proficient in Salesforce, HubSpot, and Marketo" is better than "I have experience with various CRM and marketing automation platforms." The individual tool names are what the ATS is matching against.

Organize your skills into categories if you have many: Technical Skills, Software and Tools, Languages, Certifications. This makes the section easier for human reviewers to scan and helps ATS parsers categorize your skills correctly.

Include both hard skills (specific technical capabilities: Python, SQL, Adobe Creative Suite, GAAP accounting) and relevant soft skills that appear in the job description (cross-functional collaboration, executive communication, agile methodology). Soft skills are increasingly included in ATS keyword matching, particularly for management and leadership roles.

Update your skills section for each application to prioritize the skills most relevant to that specific role. The order of items in your skills section signals priority — put the most relevant skills first.

Key Takeaways

• 75% of resumes are rejected by ATS before a human sees them — most because of formatting issues or keyword mismatches, not because the candidate is unqualified.
• Use a clean single-column format with standard section headers. Avoid tables, text boxes, headers/footers, columns, and graphics — these commonly cause ATS parsing failures.
• Mirror the exact language from the job description rather than synonyms. If the posting says "project management," your resume should say "project management," not "project coordination."
• Use achievement-oriented bullets with specific metrics: action verb + specific task + measurable result. Numbers draw the eye and make accomplishments credible.
• Run your resume through a keyword analysis tool like Jobscan before each application to identify gaps between your resume and the specific job description.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an ATS and how does it screen resumes?

An Applicant Tracking System is software that employers use to collect, parse, and rank job applications. It extracts text from your resume, matches it against the job description's keywords and requirements, and scores your application before a human ever sees it. Resumes with poor keyword match, complex formatting, or non-standard section headers often score low and are filtered out automatically — which is why 75% of resumes never reach a human reviewer, even for positions where the candidate is qualified.

What resume format works best for ATS?

A clean, single-column format with standard section headers works best. Avoid tables, text boxes, headers and footers, graphics, and columns — ATS parsers often cannot read these correctly and may scramble or drop your content. Use a standard font like Arial or Calibri at 10-12 points. Save as .docx for maximum compatibility, or PDF if the employer specifies it. The safest approach is a plain Word document with no design elements beyond bold text and standard bullet points.

How do I find the right keywords for my resume?

Read the job description carefully and identify every specific skill, tool, and qualification mentioned — especially those that appear multiple times or are listed as required. Mirror the exact language used in the posting rather than synonyms. Use a tool like Jobscan to compare your resume against the job description and identify keyword gaps before applying. This analysis takes 10 minutes and significantly improves your ATS pass-through rate.

How long should a resume be in 2026?

One page for candidates with under 10 years of experience. Two pages for candidates with 10-20 years of relevant experience. Three pages only for senior executives or academics with extensive publication records. ATS systems handle multi-page resumes without issue, but human reviewers prefer concise documents. Every line should earn its place — if a bullet point does not demonstrate a relevant skill or achievement, cut it.

Should I use a resume template?

Use a simple, ATS-friendly template rather than a visually complex one. Many popular resume templates from Canva or design sites use tables, text boxes, and graphics that ATS systems cannot parse correctly. The safest approach is a plain Word document or a template specifically designed for ATS compatibility. If you want visual polish, add it through clean typography and consistent spacing rather than design elements that interfere with parsing.