Best Resume Font, Margins, and Spacing in 2026 (ATS-Safe)
Font and spacing decisions affect both human readability and ATS parsing. Stick to system-safe, ATS-readable typography and 0.5–0.7in margins with generous but tightenable spacing — then export as PDF.
Fonts that pass ATS everywhere
Use sans-serif or serif system fonts: Inter, Arial, Calibri, Garamond, Times. Avoid decorative, script, or narrow fonts that render poorly when parsed. Size 10–11pt for body, 14–16pt for name, 10–11pt bold for section headings.
Do not embed icons as images for contact details; use text ('Email: name@example.com') so parsers capture it. Our templates use semantic text, not icon fonts, for that reason.
Margins and spacing that fit one page
Margins 0.5–0.7 inches, line height 1.1–1.3, section spacing 8–12pt. FreeResume.me density controls let you toggle compact vs comfortable without breaking ATS structure.
If you exceed one page by 2–3 lines, try compact density before cutting content; you often save a quarter page with no readability loss.
Export as PDF correctly
Always send PDF unless JD says .docx. Export Letter or A4 as needed; our Playwright render ensures print-safe typography. Keep filename as Firstname-Lastname-Resume.pdf.
Test with ATS checker after formatting changes — spacing should never drop keywords or section headings.
Related: How to make a resume. Template to try: Modern Minimal. Author: Anwar Rahim.
Written by
Anwar RahimFounder
Founder of FreeResume.me. Builds ATS-safe resume tools and writes the career guides on this site.
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