A graphic designer resume has a tricky job: it has to prove your eye for design while staying readable to software that has none. Your portfolio sells the visuals, so the resume itself should be clean, single-column, and quietly confident, not a showcase of every typeface you own.
Senior graphic designer with 8+ years shaping brand identity, marketing campaigns, and digital product visuals for consumer and SaaS companies. Led a full brand refresh that lifted email click-through by 27% and cut campaign production time by 35%. Fluent across the Adobe Creative Suite and Figma, with a portfolio spanning branding, print, and motion.
What hiring managers actually scan for is impact. They want to see brands you shaped, campaigns you shipped, and the measurable results that followed: engagement lifts, conversion gains, faster turnaround, a refreshed visual identity that moved the needle.
Tools matter too, but a list of Adobe apps proves nothing on its own. The strongest graphic designer resumes pair the right software (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Figma) with concrete outcomes, then link to a portfolio that backs every claim.
Because most studios and in-house teams screen applications through an ATS first, the wording has to match the posting. If the role asks for branding, motion graphics, or print production, those exact terms belong in your resume.
This page gives you a complete, recruiter-tested graphic designer resume example you can read top to bottom, plus a section-by-section guide for writing each part at your own level, whether you are a junior designer with two internships or a senior who owns a brand system. Use the example as a structure, swap in your own quantified wins, and mirror the language of the role you want.
Skip "creative and detail-oriented designer." Open with your level, years, and the single most impressive result you own, whether that is a conversion lift, an engagement gain, or a production-time cut. A recruiter decides in seconds, and a concrete metric in line one is what keeps them reading toward your portfolio.
A bullet that says "designed social graphics" tells a hiring manager nothing. Use the pattern: action verb plus what you designed plus measurable impact. "Designed motion assets for 40+ campaigns, growing engagement 22% YoY" proves you understand that design serves a business goal. Aim for 3–4 bullets per role, front-loaded with your biggest wins.
List concrete tools and disciplines, not vague traits. Mirror the exact wording from the posting: "Adobe Creative Suite," "Figma," "motion graphics," "branding." Group by type (software, design disciplines, production) so a human scans fast and the parser catches every term it is looking for.
Your portfolio is the whole point, so place the URL in your header next to your email, not buried at the bottom. Keep it clean and current, and make sure the work shown matches the roles you are applying for. The resume gets you the click; the portfolio closes it.
Keep a master resume, then trim and reorder skills and bullets to match each posting. If the role centers on packaging and print, those projects and tools belong at the top, not your motion work. A focused resume that mirrors the job reads as a direct fit.
Mirror the exact terms from your target job description. The ATS matches strings, so the words in the posting belong in your resume.
Per year. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics – Graphic Designers (OOH)
How long should a graphic designer resume be?
One page for most designers, including those with up to about 10 years of experience. The resume is a summary, not your portfolio, so keep it tight and lead with impact. Go to two pages only if you have deep, relevant senior or art-director work that genuinely needs the room.
Do I still need a resume if I have a strong portfolio?
Yes. The portfolio shows what you made, but the resume shows context: where you worked, what you owned, and the results your work drove. Most teams also screen resumes through an ATS before anyone opens your portfolio, so a clean, keyword-matched resume is what earns the click.
Should I make my resume highly designed and visual?
Keep it clean and single-column. Heavy graphics, multi-column layouts, and decorative tables confuse the ATS and can get your resume rejected before a human sees it. Show restraint and strong typography instead; that signals design maturity, and your portfolio is where you go bold.
How do I get past the ATS as a graphic designer?
Mirror the exact keywords from the posting (tools like Figma and the Adobe apps, plus disciplines like branding or motion graphics) in your skills and bullets. Use a single-column layout, save as PDF unless told otherwise, and avoid tables, columns, and embedded images the parser will mangle.
What's the most common graphic designer resume mistake?
Listing software and tasks instead of results. "Proficient in Photoshop and Illustrator" tells a hiring manager nothing about your impact. "Led a brand refresh that lifted email click-through 27%" shows scope, skill, and business value in a single line.
