The standard range: 0.5 inches to 1 inch on all sides.
Recommended:
- Top/bottom: 0.75" or 1"
- Left/right: 1"
- Tight (if needed): 0.5" all around
Why this range
- Below 0.5": looks cramped. Recruiters notice. Signals you're padding.
- Above 1": wastes real estate. Less content fits per page.
- 0.5"-1": professional balance. Readable, makes good use of space.
How to set in Word / Google Docs
Word:
- Layout → Margins → Custom Margins
- Set Top/Bottom/Left/Right to your chosen value
Google Docs:
- File → Page Setup
- Set margins → OK
LaTeX:
\usepackage[margin=0.75in]{geometry}
Other formatting that goes with margins
- Body text: 10-11pt minimum (Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Times)
- Headers: 12-14pt
- Line spacing: 1.0 to 1.15 (single is standard)
- Bullet indent: 0.25" from left margin
Common mistakes
- Cheating margins to fit one page. If you're below 0.5" all around, you have too much content. Cut.
- Wildly uneven margins. 0.3" left, 1" right, 0.4" top, 1.5" bottom — looks broken.
- Different margins on page 2. If you have a 2-page resume, keep them consistent.
The bigger pattern
Margins are a small detail. They matter for readability — recruiters read better-formatted resumes longer. They don't matter for the ATS.
Sorce auto-tailors your resume per application with proper formatting baked in. 40 free swipes a day.
For more: how long should a resume be, should a resume be one page, how many pages should a resume be.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What's the standard resume margin?
- 0.75" or 1" on all sides. 0.5" is acceptable if you need the extra space, but anything tighter looks cramped.
- Can I use different top/bottom and left/right margins?
- Yes. Common: 0.75" top/bottom, 1" left/right. Or 0.5" all around. Keep it visually balanced.
- Will the ATS reject my resume if margins are wrong?
- No. ATS doesn't care about margins; it cares about parsing the text. Margins matter for human readability.
- What's wrong with 0.3" margins?
- Looks cramped, signals padding. If you're cheating margins to fit, cut content instead.