CV Format UK: Layout, Section Order, Fonts and File Type

The short answer

The standard UK CV format is reverse-chronological (most recent first), in a single column on A4, in this order: name and contact details, a short profile, work experience, education, then skills (plus certifications or interests if they help). Use a clear font at 10.5 to 12 point, keep it to two pages (one for a first CV), and send it as a PDF unless the employer asks for Word. Leave off your photo, date of birth, age, marital status and nationality.

The three CV formats, and which to use

You'll see three formats described in most guides. In practice, one of them suits nearly everyone.

Reverse-chronological (the default)

Your experience is listed from the most recent job backwards, each with dates and bullet points. It's what UK recruiters expect, it's the easiest for them to scan, and applicant tracking systems read it reliably. Use it unless you have a strong reason not to.

Skills-based (functional)

The CV is organised around skills ("Project management", "Customer service") with examples under each, and the job history is cut down to a short list at the end. It's sometimes suggested for career changers or people with gaps, but many recruiters are wary of it because it makes it hard to see what you did, where and when. Use it with care.

Hybrid (combination)

A short "Key skills" or "Relevant skills" section near the top, with two or three evidence-backed bullet points, followed by a normal reverse-chronological work history. This gives career changers and returners the benefit of a skills-led opening without hiding the timeline. If you're tempted by a skills-based CV, try a hybrid first. Our career change CV guide shows how to write one.

The right section order for your situation

If you have a few years of work experience

1. Name and contact details
2. Profile (three to five lines)
3. Work experience
4. Education
5. Skills
6. Certifications, training or memberships (if relevant)
7. Interests (optional)

If you're a school leaver, student or recent graduate

Move education above experience, because your qualifications are currently your strongest evidence. The National Careers Service gives the same advice for people early in their careers. Experience here includes part-time work, volunteering and responsibilities.

If you're changing career

Profile, then a short key skills section with evidence, then work experience, then training that supports the change. Put a relevant new qualification close to the top if it's your main proof that you can do the new job.

If you're returning after a break

Use the normal order and add the break as a one-line entry in your work history, so the timeline stays clear. See how to explain gaps in your CV for wording.

What goes in each section

Name and contact details

Your name as the heading (not "Curriculum Vitae"), then on one line: your town or city, mobile number, a professional email address, and a LinkedIn or portfolio link if it's up to date. The National Careers Service advises against including your age, date of birth, marital status or nationality. Employers don't need them to shortlist you, and leaving them off reduces the room for bias.

If you have the right to work in the UK but your background might make an employer wonder, a short line such as "Full right to work in the UK" can save a question. Employers have to check your right to work before you start anyway, so you never need to attach documents to a CV.

Profile

Three to five lines on who you are, what you offer and what you want next. Lead with the fact the employer will care about most, and name the role you want.

Work experience

For each role: job title, employer, location (optional), and dates on one line, then three to six bullet points that focus on results rather than duties. Keep the layout identical for every role so the reader's eye knows where to look.

Education

Qualification, institution and dates. Add grades where they help (a 2:1 or First, strong A levels for graduate roles, GCSE English and Maths where an advert asks for them). Professional qualifications can go here or in their own section.

Skills

A short list or a few grouped lines ("Software: Excel (advanced), Sage 50, Power BI") of 8 to 15 skills that match the job. Our skills section guide explains how to choose them.

What the top of a well-formatted CV looks like

Here's the opening of a CV for a fictional applicant, Jordan, in a standard UK format. Notice the consistent pattern for each role: title and employer, then dates, then results-focused bullet points.

JORDAN ELLIS
Nottingham | 07700 900208 | jordan.ellis@example.com | linkedin.com/in/jordanellis-example

Profile
Marketing executive with four years in B2B software, running email, paid search and events for a 60-person company. Grew marketing-sourced pipeline by 40% in two years on a flat budget. Looking for a marketing manager role in a growing tech business.

Work experience
Marketing Executive, Brightfield Software, Nottingham | Mar 2023 to present
- Planned and ran 14 email nurture campaigns, raising demo requests from email by 55%
- Cut paid search cost per lead by 30% by rebuilding campaign structure and negative keywords
- Organised three customer events a year for up to 120 guests, on time and within budget

Marketing Assistant, Hartley & Rowe Recruitment, Derby | Jul 2021 to Feb 2023
- ...

Everything a recruiter needs in the first ten seconds (who Jordan is, what level, which sector, what results) sits in the top third of page one.

Layout rules that keep a CV readable

• One column. Two-column designs can work for people, but some applicant tracking systems read across the columns and scramble the text. One column is the safe choice.
• Standard headings. "Work experience", "Education", "Skills". Creative headings ("Where I've been") are harder for both software and people to find.
• Bullet points, not paragraphs, for experience. One or two lines per bullet.
• Consistent dates. Pick one style and use it everywhere: "Mar 2023 to present" or "03/2023 to present". Put dates in the same place on every entry.
• No important text in headers, footers, text boxes, tables or images. These are the parts most likely to be skipped or misread by software.
• No photo, logos, icons for contact details, or skill bars. Skill bars ("Excel: 4 out of 5 dots") don't mean anything to a reader.
• Colour sparingly. One accent colour for headings is fine. Body text should be black or very dark grey on white.
• White space. A little space between sections makes a CV faster to scan, which is what you want.

Fonts and sizes

• Fonts: choose a clear, common font that every computer has: Arial, Calibri, Helvetica, Verdana, Georgia or Cambria all work. Use one font for the whole CV, or at most one for headings and one for text.
• Body text: 10.5 to 12 point. The National Careers Service recommends 11 or bigger with fonts like Arial or Calibri.
• Section headings: 13 to 16 point, bold.
• Your name: 18 to 26 point.
• Margins: about 1.5cm to 2.5cm on all sides.
• Line spacing: 1.0 to 1.15.

PDF or Word?

Send a PDF by default. It keeps your layout exactly as you designed it on any device, and modern applicant tracking systems read text-based PDFs well. Send Word (.docx) when the employer or agency asks for it: some recruitment agencies like Word so they can reformat CVs into their own template before sending them to clients.

Two checks before you send a PDF:

• Can you select the text? Open the PDF and try to highlight a sentence. If you can't, it's an image (often from a scan or a design tool), and software can't read it. Export it again from a word processor or CV builder.
• Is the file name sensible? Use your name and the role: Jordan-Ellis-CV.pdf or Jordan-Ellis-CV-Marketing-Manager.pdf, not "CV final v3 (2).pdf".

Our ATS guide goes deeper into how applicant tracking systems read files.

UK CV vs US resume

If you've used a template or advice from the US, adjust these:

• Paper size: set it to A4, not US Letter. Letter-sized PDFs print with odd margins in the UK.
• Spelling: British English throughout ("organised", "programme", "licence").
• Length: two pages is normal in the UK. The strict one-page resume is a US convention for early careers.
• Name: call it a CV. "Resume" is understood but sounds American.
• Qualifications: use UK names (GCSEs, A levels, BTEC, degree classifications such as 2:1). If you studied abroad, add a UK equivalent where you know it.

Common formatting mistakes

• Mixing styles: some dates on the left, some on the right; some job titles bold, some not. Inconsistency looks careless even when the content is good.
• Tiny text to squeeze onto two pages. Cut words instead.
• Contact details in the page header. Some software ignores headers, so your name and number may never reach the recruiter's system.
• Design-tool templates that export text as images or put sections in boxes. They can look good and still be unreadable to software.
• Underlining and capitals for emphasis. Bold is enough. Capitals for whole sentences are hard to read.
• Odd file formats. Pages, Google Docs links or image files. Export to PDF or .docx.

CV format checklist

• Reverse-chronological, one column, A4
• Name as the heading, then town, mobile, email (and LinkedIn if current)
• No photo, date of birth, age, marital status or nationality
• Sections in the right order for your situation (education first if you're early in your career)
• Standard headings and bullet points
• Consistent date format in the same position on every entry
• One clear font, 10.5 to 12 point body text, margins of at least 1.5cm
• Nothing important in headers, footers, tables, text boxes or images
• Two pages for most people, one for a first CV (see how long a CV should be)
• Saved as a text-based PDF with a sensible file name, or Word if requested

Want to see the format in action? Browse Mojo's CV examples by job, all laid out in a clean UK format. Then check your CV's layout and content for free: you'll get a CV Score out of 100, including a score for layout, and the fixes to make first.