UK CV Layout Examples: Eight Layouts Compared on the Same CV, and Which Ones Software Can Read
A good CV layout for the UK is a single main column, your name and current role at the top, reverse-chronological experience with dates aligned on every role, and nothing important in a sidebar, header or footer. That answer covers most people. The rest of this guide shows why, using one real CV set in eight different layouts from our template library, so you are comparing layouts rather than sample text. The layouts look similar on screen; what separates them is how each reads to a person scanning it and to software extracting its text.
CV layout, CV format and CV design: three different decisions
People use these words interchangeably, and that causes bad advice. The CV format is the structure: reverse-chronological, skills-based, academic. The CV layout is how that structure sits on the page: one column or two, where the name goes, whether dates sit in a margin. CV design is the visual layer on top: typeface, colour, rules, the shape of a header.
Format comes first, and for most UK applicants it is reverse-chronological; our guide to the five CV formats and who each suits covers the exceptions. This page is about layout, which is where most of the real risk lives, and design, which matters less than its share of attention suggests.
How these UK CV layout examples were made
Every example below is the same synthetic candidate, a senior marketing manager with five roles, rendered through ConnectIQ's renderer into one template from each layout family. Nothing is a mock-up, so what you see is what the export looks like.
Choosing a layout is partly about software. Commercial parsers are sophisticated, but they all start from the text stream, and a layout that lets that stream come out in the wrong order makes every downstream step harder. Our explainer on what an ATS actually reads from your CV covers the rest of that pipeline.
The eight layouts, one by one
Template names refer to our CV template gallery, where each one can be previewed as a real render.
| Layout | Example template | Suits | What to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classic single column | Camden, Islington | Almost everyone; the safest UK CV layout | Nothing: the safest choice for online forms |
| Minimal | Barbican | Senior specialists, consultants, anyone whose record speaks for itself | Keep headings standard so each section is easy to identify |
| Banner header | Shoreditch, Victoria | Commercial and creative roles that want a bit of presence | Keep contact details as text in the header band, never inside an image |
| Timeline | Richmond, Greenwich | Steady careers where the shape of the timeline is the argument | Dates stay on the job line, which is what this family is built around |
| Curved header | Aldwych | Creative and client-facing roles | The curve is decoration; the name and contact line stay as plain text |
| Compact | Holborn | Long careers that need to fit two pages | Dense type: check it still reads at a glance when printed |
| Sidebar (left or right) | Bank, Covent Garden | Technical CVs with long skill lists, read by people rather than software | Some text extractors read across both columns, so keep essential facts in the main column for upload forms |
| Executive | Mayfair | Board and director-level CVs | Spaced capitals look formal; keep the spacing modest so software reads the name as one word |
Examples of a good CV layout, and when one is risky
Single-column layouts read in the order you wrote them, every time. That is the whole case for them. A reader sees the same thing a parser sees, so there is nothing to go wrong in between.
Two-column layouts are where text order can break. Software that reads a page line by line across both columns can mix a sidebar into the job beside it, so a skills list ends up inside your current role. On screen the document looks perfect, which is the trap: you cannot see the problem by looking.
Decorative typography has its own cost. Wide letter-spacing on a name or heading looks elegant, but some extractors read each spaced letter as a separate word. The name is the one field you most need read correctly.
None of this makes sidebar or executive layouts wrong. A CV handed to a person, or sent to a recruiter who will reformat it anyway, is read by eye. But if your CV is going into an online application form, a single-column layout removes a whole class of risk.
Which CV layout suits you
A short way to choose, based on who will read the CV first.
- Applying online through a job board or company careers site: a simple CV layout with one column (classic, minimal, timeline or a banner header). This is the recommended CV layout for most UK applications.
- Students and graduates: classic or timeline, education first, one page if there is not enough for two. A good CV layout for students looks deliberate when sparse rather than stretched.
- Senior and executive roles: an executive CV layout or minimal, two pages, with a short profile and the last ten years in detail. Keep the name in normal letter-spacing if the CV may be uploaded.
- Career changers: a skills-based CV layout can lead with capability, but keep a dated employment list on page one; removing dates is what makes recruiters suspicious.
- Creative roles: a modern CV layout with a banner or curved header gives presence without breaking reading order. Save the portfolio for a link.
- Graphic designers: CV design is part of the evidence, so a designed layout is expected. Keep a plain single-column version too for online forms, and let the portfolio carry the visual work.
- Academics: an academic CV layout is long by design. Use one column, clear section breaks for publications, grants and teaching, and one citation style throughout.
- Going to an agency: any layout. The consultant will usually rebuild it on their own template, so spend the effort on content.
How do you lay out a CV in Word?
If you are looking for a CV layout Word template, Microsoft's own (File, then New, search for CV) are a reasonable start, but most professional CV layout templates online are built from tables and text boxes, which is where problems begin. If you are building a Microsoft Word CV layout yourself, the order of operations matters more than the template you start from. Set margins (2cm to 2.5cm) and the body font first. Create section headings with Word's Heading styles so the structure is real. Put dates on the same line as the job title using a right-aligned tab stop rather than a table or a text box. Then add content.
Avoid building columns out of tables or text boxes. Text boxes are frequently dropped entirely when software reads a Word file, and tables are a common cause of dates attaching to the wrong job. A blank CV layout built from styles and tab stops will survive every edit you make to it; one built from boxes breaks the first time you add a bullet.
Once it is done, run the two checks that catch most layout problems: paste the whole document into a plain text editor and read the order, and print page one in greyscale. The detailed formatting rules (fonts, sizes, dates) are in our UK CV formatting guide.
One page or two?
A one page CV layout works for school leavers, graduates and anyone explicitly asked for one. For most experienced UK applicants two sides of A4 is the expected length, and squeezing fifteen years onto one page by shrinking the type produces a CV that is harder to read, not shorter. If you are between the two, see how long a CV should be for what to cut first.
Seeing your own CV in each layout
The slow way to compare CV layout examples is to rebuild your CV in each one. The fast way is to keep your content and swap the layout, which is how our template gallery works: 57 templates across nine categories, each a real render from the same renderer that produces the export.
Your first conversion is free, with no card: upload your current CV, check each extracted value against the original page, and try it in any CV layout free of charge before exporting a PDF and Word version. If you want to keep switching layouts per application, Personal Pro is £5 a month for ten conversions. If you would rather design your own CV layout template, down to fonts, colours and section order, that is the template builder on the Starter plan.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best CV layout for the UK?
A single main column with your name and current role at the top, reverse-chronological experience with dates on every role, and education and skills after it. It reads well to people and keeps its order when software extracts the text, which two-column layouts often do not.
How do I find a CV layout in Word?
In Word, go to File, then New, and search for CV or resume to see Microsoft's built-in templates. Before you commit, check whether the template uses tables or text boxes for its columns, because both can scramble the text when the CV is read by software.
Are two-column CV layouts bad?
Not for a human reader, but they carry a risk with software: tools that read a page line by line across both columns can mix the sidebar into the first job. Use two columns when a person will read the CV, or keep the sidebar to supporting detail.
What does a good CV layout look like for students?
One column, education near the top, one page if there is not enough to fill two, and the same clear header and date format a professional CV uses. Part-time jobs and volunteering count as experience; list them with dates.
How do you layout a CV?
Name and contact line at the top, a three or four line profile, then experience in reverse-chronological order with title, employer and dates on every role, then education and skills. Keep it to one main column so it reads in the same order for people and software.
Is a CV layout the same as a CV format?
No. The format is the structure (reverse-chronological, skills-based, academic); the layout is how that structure is arranged on the page (one column, sidebar, banner). You choose the format first, then a layout that presents it clearly.
Should a UK CV have a photo or a colourful design?
No photo unless the role is acting or modelling. Colour is fine as an accent on headings or rules, but the CV must still read clearly when printed in greyscale, and the design should never compete with your name.
Try it on a real CV
Put your own CV through it: see the record a parser pulls out, fix what is wrong, and pick a layout that survives the machine. No card required, and every AI change is shown as a before-and-after you approve.
Related guides
ConnectIQ — branded CV formatting for recruitment teams. One free conversion, no card.