How to fit your resume on one page
When a one-page resume makes sense, what to cut first, and the layout adjustments that recover space without making the page hard to read.
For most people early or mid-way through their career, a one-page resume is the expectation: it forces you to keep only your strongest material, and it is quicker to read. Two pages are reasonable with many years of relevant experience, and academic CVs are often longer by design.
If your resume spills a few lines onto a second page, here is how to bring it back.
1. Cut content before you shrink it
Shrinking the font is tempting, but a page that is hard to read defeats the purpose. Trim first:
- Old or less relevant roles: keep one or two bullets, or just the title line.
- Bullets without results: keep the ones with a number or a clear outcome.
- Repetition: if three bullets show the same skill, keep the strongest.
- Long bullets: aim for one idea per bullet, ideally on one or two lines.
- Skills everyone assumes: drop items like "Microsoft Word" unless the posting asks for them.
2. Then recover space with layout
Small adjustments add up:
- Slightly smaller margins (about half an inch is common for resumes).
- A slightly smaller base font size, 10 or 11 point rather than 12.
- Tighter spacing between list items and sections.
- Combining short lines, such as putting the location and dates on the same line as the employer.
3. Let Resume Studio find the smallest change
Resume Studio shows the page count above the preview. When your resume runs onto a second page, a Fit to one page button appears. It tries a sequence of gentle adjustments to the margins, font size and spacing in your LaTeX and stops at the first one that fits, so the result stays as readable as possible. If nothing fits without cramping the page, it tells you to trim content instead. Any change it makes can be undone with Ctrl+Z, and the version before is kept in Version history.
4. Check it still reads well
After fitting, read the page once at normal size. Make sure headings still stand out and bullets are not crowded. Then run Review to confirm the resume still parses cleanly for applicant tracking systems.
See also: How to write an ATS-friendly resume and the one-page resume templates.