The Complete ATS Resume Guide: How to Beat Applicant Tracking Systems in 2025

75% of resumes are rejected by Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) before a human ever sees them. This comprehensive guide will teach you everything you need to know to create an ATS-proof resume that actually reaches recruiters and hiring managers.

1. Understanding ATS Systems: Why Your Resume Gets Rejected

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are software applications that scan, parse, and rank resumes before human recruiters ever see them. Over 99% of Fortune 500 companies and75% of all employers use ATS to filter applications.

How ATS Actually Works

When you submit your resume, here's what happens:

1. Parsing: ATS extracts text from your resume and organizes it into fields (name, contact info, work experience, education, skills)
2. Keyword Matching: The system compares your resume against the job description, looking for specific keywords and phrases
3. Ranking: Resumes are scored based on keyword matches, relevant experience, and other criteria
4. Filtering: Only the highest-scoring resumes (usually top 25%) are forwarded to human recruiters

The problem? If your resume isn't formatted correctly, the ATS can't parse it properly. Your contact info ends up in the "skills" section. Your work experience becomes gibberish. You're automatically rejected—not because you're unqualified, but because the robot couldn't read your resume.

Want to understand exactly why resumes get rejected? Read our detailed breakdown: Why Your Resume Gets Rejected by ATS (And How to Fix It)

2. ATS-Friendly Resume Templates

The fastest way to ensure ATS compatibility is to start with a template designed specifically for ATS systems. Here's what makes a template ATS-friendly:

Essential Features of ATS-Friendly Templates

• Single-column layout: No sidebars, no columns
• Standard fonts: Arial, Calibri, Helvetica, Times New Roman, Garamond
• No tables or text boxes: Content in the main document body only
• No images, graphics, or charts: Text-based only
• Standard section headings: "Work Experience," "Education," "Skills" (not creative variations)
• Simple formatting: Bold and italics only, no underlines or special characters

Best Fonts for ATS Resumes

Not all fonts are created equal when it comes to ATS. Some fonts are easily readable by ATS software, while others cause parsing errors. We tested 15 popular resume fonts to find the best ones for ATS compatibility.

Top ATS-friendly fonts:

• Arial (99% compatibility)
• Calibri (99% compatibility)
• Helvetica (98% compatibility)
• Garamond (97% compatibility)
• Georgia (96% compatibility)

Full analysis and testing results: Best Resume Fonts for ATS Systems (15 Fonts Tested)

3. ATS Formatting Rules: The Do's and Don'ts

File Format

Best: .docx (Microsoft Word format)

Usually safe: .pdf (only if the job posting allows it)

Never use: .pages, .jpg, .png, .txt

While many modern ATS systems can read PDFs, some older systems can't. Unless the job posting specifically requests PDF, use .docx to be safe.

What NOT to Include in Your ATS Resume

Contact Information Placement

Right way: At the top of your resume, in the main document body

Wrong way: In the header or footer

Section Headings That ATS Recognizes

Use standard, ATS-recognized section headings:

4. Writing Each Resume Section for ATS

Resume Summary or Objective?

The top of your resume should include either a summary or an objective statement. Which should you choose?

• Resume Summary: 2-3 sentences highlighting your experience, skills, and value proposition. Best for candidates with 2+ years of experience.
• Resume Objective: 1-2 sentences stating your career goals and what you're looking for. Best for entry-level candidates, career changers, or those with employment gaps.

Complete guide with 20+ examples: Resume Objective vs Summary: Which Should You Use?

Skills Section

Your skills section is critical for ATS. This is where you pack in the keywords from the job description.

ATS-optimized skills section structure:

Pro tip: Use the exact keywords from the job posting. If the job says "project management," don't say "managing projects." ATS systems are literal.

Complete guide with 200+ examples: Resume Skills Section: What to Include + 200+ Examples by Industry

Work Experience Section

Your work experience is the most important section for both ATS and human recruiters.

ATS-friendly format:

Need powerful words to start your bullet points? 185+ Resume Action Verbs That Transform Your Resume

Education Section

Simple and straightforward for ATS:

Include: Degree, major, university name, graduation year, GPA (if 3.5+)
Don't include: High school (unless you're a recent graduate with no college), irrelevant coursework

Certifications Section

99.7% of recruiters filter by certifications. If you have relevant certifications, they need their own section for maximum ATS visibility.

How to list certifications for maximum ATS impact: How to List Certifications on Resume: Complete Guide + 50+ Examples

5. Keyword Optimization: The Secret to Beating ATS

Keywords are the single most important factor in ATS ranking. Here's how to optimize them:

Step 1: Extract Keywords from the Job Description

Read the job posting and identify:

• Hard skills: Specific technologies, tools, methodologies (e.g., "Python," "Agile," "SEO")
• Soft skills: Leadership, communication, problem-solving
• Certifications: PMP, AWS Certified, Google Analytics
• Industry terms: Specific jargon used in that field
• Required experience: Years of experience, specific accomplishments

Step 2: Mirror the Language Exactly

Don't paraphrase. Don't use synonyms. Use the exact phrases from the job description.

Step 3: Integrate Keywords Naturally

Don't just list keywords. Weave them into your bullet points and descriptions:

✓ Good example:

✗ Bad example (keyword stuffing):

Step 4: Don't Overdo It

Modern ATS systems can detect keyword stuffing. Aim for natural integration. If a keyword appears 2-3 times in your resume (across different sections), that's sufficient.

6. ATS Resumes for Special Situations

Entry-Level Resumes with No Experience

No professional experience? ATS doesn't care about your summer job at Starbucks unless it's relevant. Focus on:

• Academic projects
• Internships
• Volunteer work
• Relevant coursework
• Skills acquired through bootcamps or self-study

Complete guide: How to Write an Entry-Level Resume with No Experience

20+ entry-level summary examples: Resume Summary Examples for Entry-Level & New Graduates

Career Change Resumes

Switching industries? ATS makes this harder, but not impossible. The key is to:

• Emphasize transferable skills over industry-specific experience
• Use a functional or hybrid format (but still ATS-friendly)
• Reframe your experience using the new industry's language and keywords
• Lead with a strong summary that explains your transition

Should you use a functional vs chronological resume? Functional vs Chronological Resume: Which Format for ATS?

Complete career change guide: Career Change Resume: How to Write One (With 9+ Examples)

15+ career change summary examples: Resume Summary Examples for Career Change

Tech Industry Resumes (Software Engineers, Developers, IT)

Tech resumes have unique ATS considerations:

• Technical skills section: List specific languages, frameworks, tools
• GitHub/Portfolio links: Include them (ATS won't scan them, but humans will)
• Projects section: Showcase side projects, open source contributions
• Avoid acronyms without spelling them out: "CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment)"

20+ tech resume summary examples: Tech Resume Summary: Examples for Software Engineers & IT Professionals

7. Tailoring Your Resume for Each Job

Here's the harsh truth: Generic resumes have a 3% response rate. Tailored resumes have a 25-30% response rate.

"Tailoring" doesn't mean rewriting your entire resume for each job. It means strategically adjusting keywords and emphasis to match each specific job description.

The 15-Minute Tailoring Process

1. Identify 5-10 key requirements from the job posting
2. Update your skills section to include those exact keywords
3. Reorder your bullet points to lead with most relevant achievements
4. Adjust your summary to highlight experience relevant to this specific role
5. Add any relevant projects or certifications that match the job requirements

Complete tailoring system: How to Tailor Your Resume for Each Job in 15 Minutes

8. Common ATS Mistakes That Get You Auto-Rejected

Even with the best qualifications, these mistakes will get you filtered out by ATS:

Mistake #1: Using Tables for Layout

Tables look clean to humans, but ATS reads content left-to-right across the entire row. Your carefully organized resume becomes scrambled text.

Mistake #2: Putting Contact Info in Header/Footer

Most ATS systems skip headers and footers entirely. If your phone number and email are there, the recruiter can't contact you even if they want to.

Mistake #3: Using Creative Section Names

"My Journey" instead of "Work Experience"? "Superpowers" instead of "Skills"? ATS won't recognize these and will misfile your information.

Mistake #4: Submitting as PDF When Not Requested

Some ATS systems can't read PDFs. Unless the job posting specifically asks for PDF, use .docx.

Mistake #5: Using Images for "Visual Interest"

Headshots, company logos, skill bars, infographics—ATS can't read any of them. They're invisible to the system.

Mistake #6: Keyword Stuffing

Don't hide white text with keywords. Don't create a "keyword dump" section. Modern ATS systems detect this and penalize it.

Mistake #7: Not Matching Job Title Keywords

Job posting says "Senior Product Manager"? Your resume should say "Senior Product Manager" somewhere, not just "Product Lead" or "PM III."

Full breakdown of all ATS mistakes: 10 Resume Mistakes That Are Costing You Interviews

9. ATS Testing Tools: Check Your Resume Before Applying

Before submitting your resume, test it with an ATS scanner to identify issues.

10. Putting It All Together: Your ATS Resume Checklist

Before submitting your resume, verify:

Next Steps: Go From ATS-Friendly to Interview-Ready

Having an ATS-friendly resume is the baseline. To actually get interviews, you need to go beyond ATS compliance:

1. Optimize for Humans, Not Just Robots

Once your resume passes ATS, a human recruiter reads it. Make sure it's compelling, not just keyword-stuffed.

2. Tailor Every Single Application

Generic resumes fail. Spend 10-15 minutes customizing your resume for each job. The difference in response rates is massive.

Use our Interactive Tailoring tool to do this in 2 minutes instead of 15.

3. Complement with a Strong Cover Letter

Cover letters aren't dead. When done right, they increase your chances by 40%.

Guide: How to Write a Cover Letter in 2025

4. Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile

87% of recruiters use LinkedIn as their primary recruiting tool. Your LinkedIn profile needs to complement your resume.

Read: LinkedIn Profile vs Resume: Key Differences + What Recruiters Actually Use

Related Resources