Simple Resume Examples: 6 Plain Resumes That Get Read
By Mustafa Tarabya, founder of CVBooster · Published · Updated
7 min read
A simple resume is one page, one column and four or five plain sections: your name and contact line, a short summary, experience, education and skills, in a standard font with no graphics. The one constraint is that simple means plain in layout, not thin in content, so every line still has to say what you did. MIT's Career Advising and Professional Development explains why plain wins: "Recruiters don’t have time to search your resume for information, so they appreciate familiar formats." Six complete simple resumes follow. Written by Mustafa Tarabya, who hired for his own company, read every application himself and now writes CVBooster's guides.
There is a version of you that spent Sunday adjusting the kerning on your name. That version did not get more calls. The resumes below are plain on purpose, and each one would survive being printed on a broken office printer.
A simple resume example for a first job
Entry level: simple resume for a first job, no work history (115 words)
Emily Carter Columbus, OH | (614) 555-0139 | emily.carter@email.com
Summary High school senior looking for part-time weekend work in retail or food service. Reliable, comfortable with customers, and available Friday evenings and weekends.
Experience Volunteer, Mid-Ohio Food Collective, Columbus, OH | 2025 to present - Sort and pack donations for weekly family pickup, about four hours each Saturday - Greet families at the pickup table and check names against the list
Babysitter, private families | 2024 to present - Care for three children ages 4 to 9 for two neighborhood families
Education Westland High School, Columbus, OH | Expected graduation June 2027 | GPA 3.5
Skills Cash handling (school store), Google Docs, Spanish (conversational)
Five sections, no photo, no colors, and the reader knows in ten seconds what she can do and when she can work.
What makes a resume simple
- One column, top to bottom. No sidebars, text boxes or tables.
- Standard headings. Summary, Experience, Education, Skills. A tracking system and a person both find them instantly.
- One font, two sizes. A larger size for your name, one size for everything else.
- Bullets that start with a verb. MIT's advice: "Start descriptions with a strong action verb like built, managed, developed, wrote, etc."
- Nothing personal that the job does not need. MIT adds: "Photos are generally not preferred for U.S. resumes."
Harvard's Mignone Center for Career Success asks for the same plainness in its formatting list: "Use consistent spacing, underlining, italics, bold, and capitalization for emphasis".
Simple resume example for retail
Mid level: simple resume for a retail sales associate (116 words)
Marcus Johnson Phoenix, AZ | (602) 555-0176 | marcus.johnson@email.com
Summary Retail sales associate with three years in a busy sporting goods store. Strong on product advice, register work and keeping the floor stocked during peak season.
Experience Sales Associate, Desert Sports Outlet, Phoenix, AZ | 2023 to present - Help customers choose running shoes and fitness gear; regularly asked for by name - Run the register and process returns, with no drawer shortages in 2025 - Restock and reset displays every Monday from the weekly planogram
Cashier, Fry's Food Stores, Tempe, AZ | 2022 to 2023
Education Mesa Community College, Business coursework | 2022 to 2023
Skills POS systems, inventory counts, merchandising, bilingual English and Spanish
Simple resume example for a warehouse job
Mid level: simple resume for a warehouse associate (115 words)
Luis Ortega Indianapolis, IN | (317) 555-0158 | luis.ortega@email.com
Summary Warehouse associate with four years of picking, packing and forklift work in high-volume distribution centers. Certified forklift operator with a clean safety record.
Experience Warehouse Associate, Midwest Fulfillment, Indianapolis, IN | 2022 to present - Pick and pack orders with RF scanners, meeting the daily rate set for the shift - Operate sit-down and stand-up forklifts to load trailers for outbound routes - Train new hires on scanner use and safe lifting during their first week
Package Handler, Crossroads Parcel, Plainfield, IN | 2021 to 2022
Certifications Forklift operator certification, 2022 | OSHA 10-Hour General Industry, 2023
Skills RF scanning, WMS, pallet jack, cycle counts
Simple resume example for a nurse
Experienced: simple resume for a registered nurse (99 words)
Hannah Kim, RN Portland, OR | (503) 555-0194 | hannah.kim@email.com
Summary Registered nurse with five years on a medical-surgical unit. Experienced with post-operative care, patient education and precepting new graduate nurses.
Experience Registered Nurse, Medical-Surgical Unit, Providence Hospital, Portland, OR | 2021 to present - Care for five to six patients per shift on a 32-bed unit - Precept new graduate nurses through their orientation - Lead patient discharge teaching on wound care and medications
Licenses and certifications RN, Oregon State Board of Nursing | BLS and ACLS, American Heart Association
Education BSN, Oregon Health and Science University, 2021
Simple resume example for an administrative assistant
Mid level: simple resume for an administrative assistant (109 words)
Rachel Green Nashville, TN | (615) 555-0115 | rachel.green@email.com
Summary Administrative assistant with four years supporting a regional sales office. Manages calendars, travel and expense reports for a team of ten.
Experience Administrative Assistant, Volunteer State Insurance, Nashville, TN | 2022 to present - Manage calendars and book travel for the regional director and nine sales reps - Process monthly expense reports in Concur before the finance deadline - Order supplies and keep the office within its quarterly budget
Receptionist, Belmont Family Dental, Nashville, TN | 2020 to 2022
Education Associate of Applied Science, Office Administration, Nashville State Community College, 2020
Skills Microsoft 365, Concur, Salesforce, scheduling, phone etiquette
Simple resume example for an experienced manager
A simple layout works at every level. Senior resumes stay plain and add a second page only when the experience fills it.
Senior: simple resume for an operations manager (113 words)
Robert Davis Dallas, TX | (214) 555-0147 | robert.davis@email.com | linkedin.com/in/robertdavis
Summary Operations manager with twelve years in food distribution, leading teams of up to 80 across warehouse, transport and customer service. Known for reliable delivery performance and low staff turnover.
Experience Operations Manager, Lone Star Food Supply, Dallas, TX | 2019 to present - Lead warehouse, fleet and customer service teams serving 600 restaurant accounts - Introduced route planning software that reduced late deliveries across the fleet - Hire and develop supervisors; three of my shift leads were promoted to managers
Warehouse Manager, Lone Star Food Supply, Dallas, TX | 2014 to 2019
Education B.S. Business Administration, University of North Texas, 2013
Simple resume template in Word
Word has plain resume templates of its own. Microsoft's help page on creating a document in Word describes the route: open Word, then type the kind of document you want into the box that searches online templates. Search "simple resume" or "basic resume", then delete any table, text box or graphic the template adds. Our guide to Microsoft Word resume templates shows which built-in designs stay plain.
If you would rather not fight a template, CVBooster's layouts are already simple and single column: filling any of the 99 templates is free after you sign in, with the ATS score and the gap list; the PDF and Word download is Pro. For the format rules in more depth, see best resume format and how long a resume should be.
If you draft with an AI chat tool, our ChatGPT resume prompts keep the output plain and true. For care roles, the CNA job description for resume page has duty bullets by setting.
Frequently asked questions
What is a simple resume?
A simple resume is a one-page, single-column document with standard headings, usually a contact line, a short summary, experience, education and skills. It uses one font, no graphics, photos or tables, and short bullets that start with a verb. Simple describes the layout; the content should still be specific to the job.
Is a simple resume better?
For most jobs, yes. Plain layouts are easier for applicant tracking systems to read and easier for a person to scan, so your experience gets seen. Designed resumes can make sense for creative roles, where the design is part of the work, but even then the text should read in order.
How do I make a simple resume with no experience?
Use the same sections and fill Experience with volunteering, babysitting, school jobs, sports or projects, written as bullets with a verb and a result. Add your school and expected graduation date, and list practical skills such as cash handling, languages or software. Keep it to one page.
What should a simple resume include?
Include your name, phone number, email and city; a two or three line summary aimed at the job; your experience with dates and bullets; your education; and a short skills list. Add certifications or licenses when the job asks for them. Leave out photos, date of birth and references.
More in this series: related guides
- Canva Resume Template: How to Pick One and 6 Filled Examples
- Cover Letter Template Word: Where to Find It and 6 Letters
- Google Docs Cover Letter Template: 6 Filled Letters to Paste
- Harvard Resume Template: The Format and 6 Filled Examples
Related articles
- Abbreviation for Million: M, MM or Mil, and Which to Use
- Artist CV: Section Order, Format and 6 Complete Examples
- Biodata Format for Job: 6 Filled Samples and What to Include
- Canva Resume Template: How to Pick One and 6 Filled Examples
More articles
- Situational Interview Questions: 8 Full Sample Answers
- Sixth Form Personal Statement Examples: 6 Full Samples
- Skills Based CV Template and Format: 6 UK Examples
Looking for a worked example for your job title? Browse the resume examples by job title.