Here are the key formatting errors to avoid:
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Stick to Standard Dates: Avoid abbreviations with apostrophes (e.g., ’21) or missing months. Use clear formats like MM/YYYY or Month YYYY to ensure the system accurately calculates your years of experience.
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Use Web-Safe Fonts: Stick to classics like Arial, Calibri, or Georgia. Custom fonts or “clever” icons (like a 📞 icon) often turn into gibberish or “[NULL]” during the parsing process.
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Avoid Headers, Footers, and Text Boxes: Many ATS “scrapers” ignore information tucked away in these layers. Keep your vital contact details and skills in the main body of the document.
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Use Traditional Section Headings: Avoid creative titles like “My Journey” or “The Toolkit.” Use industry-standard headers like “Work Experience,” “Education,” and “Skills” so the ATS can categorize your data correctly.
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Ditch Columns and Graphics: Multi-column layouts often scramble the reading order, and charts or images (like skill level bar graphs) are unreadable. Use a clean, single-column layout for maximum compatibility.
Are ATS resume formatting mistakes hurting your chances of landing your dream job?
Stop sabotaging your own job search with layouts the software literally cannot read. The most common ATS resume formatting mistakes—like hiding your contact info in a header, using apostrophes in your dates, or choosing a custom font—will cause the parser to scramble your data or delete it entirely.
If your application pipeline has gone cold, it’s time to audit your document and permanently eliminate these critical, application-killing errors.
To learn how these errors affect the applicant tracking system, explore how ATS software works.
The 5 most common formatting mistakes to avoid
According to a Jobscan survey of 384 recruiters, 99.7% of recruiters use an ATS to filter candidates. If your resume can’t be read by the software, it won’t be seen by a recruiter.
Before you send out your resume, check to make sure it doesn’t contain one of these formatting errors that could cost you a job opportunity.
Mistake 1. The “missing data” error: why your dates aren’t parsing
Dates might seem like a trivial detail, but they matter, especially when it comes to applicant tracking systems (ATS).
Recruiters often filter candidates based on years of experience, and if your dates aren’t formatted clearly, the ATS might not be able to interpret them.
It’s also important to be consistent with your date formatting. Using different formats on the same resume can confuse the ATS.
The symptom: You upload your resume, and the system leaves your “Work History” section completely blank, or it thinks you worked at your last job from “January 1” to “Present” with no year attached.
The error: Using non-standard date formats or complex tables to align dates.
- Jan ‘21 – Mar ‘23 (apostrophes can confuse ATS)
- 2021 – 2023 (missing months)
- 1/2021 – 3/2023 (month should be two digits)
The fix:
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- Jan 2021 – Mar 2023
- January 2021 – March 2023
- 01/2021 – 03/2023
Here’s how to use the resume scanner:
Step 1: Upload your resume into the scanner.
Step 2: Paste the job description into the scanner.
Step 3: Click the “scan” button.
You’ll then receive a match report that points out any formatting errors. The report also tells you how to optimize your ATS resume for the job you’re applying to.
Mistake 2. The “gibberish” error: what happens when you use custom fonts
This mistake occurs when people want to personalize their resumes too much. Remember, keep it simple (especially with your resume font.)
The Symptom: You open your saved application profile only to find your name has been replaced by [NULL], or your professional summary looks like a broken encrypted message—where “Profile” becomes “Pro?le” and bullet points turn into random letters like f or q.
This isn’t a glitch in your computer; it’s a parsing failure.
The Error: Using non-web-safe fonts or “clever” icons (like a tiny phone icon for your number). Most ATS software “scrapes” text; if the font isn’t embedded or standard, the scraper assigns a random character to the shape it doesn’t recognize.
Copy all the text in your PDF and paste it into a Plain Text (.txt) file. If the result looks like a coded transmission from deep space, the ATS is seeing the same thing.
Always choose fonts that are widely available and commonly used. We recommend the following fonts:
- Cambria
- Garamond
- Georgia
- Palatino
- Arial
- Calibri
- Helvetica
- Tahoma
- Verdana
Replace icons with text (e.g., “Phone:” instead of 📞)
Jobscan’s resume scanner also checks for font issues.
Mistake 3. The “invisible text” error: headers, footers, and text boxes
Job seekers sometimes put additional details or design elements at the very top (header) or bottom (footer) of their resume.
Using headers and footers can cause parsing issues for the ATS, which only focus on the content within the main body of the resume.
The Symptom: You have a 10/10 resume, but the recruiter says they can’t find your contact info or your “Skills” section.
The Error: Placing vital information inside Text Boxes or the Header/Footer layers of a Word document. Many ATS parsers ignore these layers entirely.
Check that your resume doesn’t have content in the header and footer by doing the following in a word processing document:
- Click “Select All” (Ctrl+A).
- If the text in your header or your sidebar doesn’t highlight along with the rest of the body, the ATS likely won’t “see” it.
- Move your contact info into the main body of the document.
- Use simple bolding and font size increases for hierarchy instead of floating text boxes.
Jobscan’s resume scanner will tell you if your page setup might cause problems with the ATS.
Mistake 4: The “unrecognized category” error: creative headers
Sometimes job seekers like to get creative with their resume section headings. Don’t!
When you use non-standard headings, the ATS may struggle to identify the relevant sections.
The Symptom: Your “Work Experience” is categorized under “Education,” or your “Professional Summary” disappears.
The Error: Using “cute” or “creative” section titles. An ATS is programmed to look for specific keywords to bucket your data.
- “Where I’ve Been” or “My Journey”
- “Where I Studied”
- “The Toolkit” or “My Superpowers”
- Use the industry standards.
- The ATS is looking for “Work Experience,” “Professional Experience,” “Education,” and “Skills.”
- Don’t make the machine guess.
Jobscan’s resume scanner will also point out any problems with your section headings.
Mistake 5. The “columns & graphics” error: the reading order fail
Some job seekers try to make their resumes stand out with colors, graphics, and ATS tables and columns. The problem is that most ATS have trouble reading these elements.
The Symptom: The ATS reads your resume out of order. It might read the left column, then the right, but mix the sentences together like a deck of cards.
The Error: Multi-column layouts or using images/infographics to show skill levels (e.g., a bar graph showing “80% Java”).
If you have two columns, the ATS often reads “Line 1 Left” then “Line 1 Right.”
- Use a single-column layout.
Avoid any graphics or charts. - If you want to say you are an expert in Java, simply write “Java (Expert).”
Even recruiters aren’t fans of overly designed resumes. They make your resume hard to skim. If recruiters can’t find what they need in seconds, they’ll move on.
To make sure your resume can be read by the ATS, run it through Jobscan’s resume scanner. It will automatically flag any formatting issues.
How to fix a broken resume document fast
If your resume is currently “broken,” don’t try to patch it. Follow these steps for a clean slate:
- The “Plain Text” Test: Copy your entire resume and paste it into Notepad (Windows) or TextEdit (Mac).
- Nuke the Formatting: Delete all remaining icons, weird spacing, and tabs.
- Rebuild in a Clean Doc: Open a fresh Word or Google Doc. Use a standard 1-column template or try Jobscan’s resume builder.
- Check Your Layers: Ensure no text is inside a box or the header/footer.
- Save as PDF: Unless the job description specifically asks for a .doc, a PDF is the safest way to preserve your layout while remaining readable—provided you followed the rules above.
As you prepare your resume to apply to your next target job, you have two choices for success:
- Learn the deep strategy to build your ATS resume
- Use a software shortcut and convert resume to ATS format.
