What Is An Infographic Resume & How to Create One [Examples]

Modern resumes average 300 to 500 words. That's not much room to convince someone to hire you.

Fortunately, you can use the idea a picture is worth a thousand words to create a resume with impact. Using pictures and words can give your resume a more complete snapshot of who you are—depending on your situation.

A resume that incorporates graphics is called an infographic resume. With the right mix of color, images, and data, you can showcase your skills in a fun and memorable format.

Infographic resumes can be super effective, but they aren't right for every person...or job. You have to use extreme caution. So let's go over what an infographic resume is, when to actually use one, and how to make one if it's best for your needs.

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Struggling with resume design? Use Teal's Resume Builder to create an eye-catching, ATS-friendly resume.

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What is an infographic resume?

An infographic resume is a type of creative resume template that combines visual design with text to present your skills, experience, and personality in a unique format. 

There isn’t a standard infographic resume template. Some templates use star ratings, bar charts, or timelines. Whenever you see icons and images, you’re looking at an infographic resume.

Unfortunately, an infographic resume can’t replace a regular resume. You need both for a successful job search.

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How do infographic resumes differ from traditional resume formats?

Infographic resume templates use visual elements while standard resumes only use text, basic formatting, and occasionally color to showcase your skills and experience. They both have the same goal: to help you get a new job. However, they differ in what settings they’re best suited for.

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When to use an infographic resume

There are a few limited instances when an infographic resume is appropriate:

• In-person interviews as a visual aid to better explain data related to your work experience after a prospective employer has seen your skills and experience
• Networking events or career fairs where an unusual printed resume can stand out
• Personal website or online profiles when you have a captive audience to read your resume
• Informal jobs like dog-walker or math tutor

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Creative professionals, like graphic designers, can have both an infographic resume and a standard resume. They should use the standard version for online applications. Then, they can bring a printed copy of an infographic resume to an in-person interview to show their design skills.

Certain industries, like banking, medicine, and federal, don't use creative resumes at all. You should always reference resume examples and best practices in your industry to apply correctly and with confidence.

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Infographic resumes and the ATS

Simple, traditional resume templates are best for online applications because infographic resume formats are often difficult for an applicant tracking system (ATS) to parse.

The ATS is a way for recruiters and hiring managers to store, sort, and track resumes throughout the hiring process, and they do that by parsing the text from your resume. Data from your graphics-heavy resume won’t parse properly, meaning your resume won't be readable.

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Pro Tip: If you need a resume that's visually appealing and scans correctly into ATS systems for online job applications, use Teal’s Design Mode to simplify and speed up the process.

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Teal's flexible design offers:

• Aesthetics: Over 10 modern, classic, or modern templates compatible with ATS systems
• Personalization: Adjustable fonts, colors, and line spacing
• Customization: Fully customizable resume section order and titles
• Flexibility: Flexible layout for dates, locations, and work history

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How to create an infographic resume

If you've made it this far and still decided an infographic resume is something that makes sense for you, here's a 12-step guide on how to do it.

To start, when creating an infographic resume, you can be bold, confident, and creative—but you should still remember this is a resume, not a graphic design project.

Use your LinkedIn profile or existing resume as a reference for what to include. If you don’t have one, check out this comprehensive guide on resume best practices (with examples). Working from a list will help keep the focus on your qualifications, not a fancy resume template.

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1. Plan your strategy

What is the most important story you want to tell? What is the best way to tell it?

Consider your job target, preferred resume template service, and budget. Write down your goal. Stick to it.

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2. Choose the right information to include

To create a good infographic resume, choose the right information to showcase. Follow the basics of how to make a resume, even when you’re using an infographic format. 

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3. Select an appropriate infographic resume template

There are countless options for resume builders and resume templates, and it’s easy to get caught up in the sheer number of resume examples online.

Evaluate your search results to see if they are playful, polished, or professional. Pick a design and layout that makes sense for you and your job target. 

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4. Research your template or builder service

You can either download a template or use an infographic resume builder. Before you invest your time adding your information, make sure you can customize the resume template exactly how you want. Read resume builder reviews to determine if users liked this infographic resume template or found it challenging. 

Make sure you know how much it will cost to download your resume. Many options appear free but require a small fee to download your resume.

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5. Plan your layout to showcase your best qualifications

Use infographics sparingly. Leverage your graphic design skills to highlight your most important information. Balance visual elements like art and charts with text and white space. 

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6. Add your information

Start with your contact information and location. Most infographic resume builder tools and resume templates will have common resume sections for your skills, education, and work experience.

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7. Customize your infographic resume

Use the right colors and fonts to complement your resume content. Don’t overload it with too many visuals—that can make a graphic resume overwhelming instead of engaging.

Your work experience is often a good opportunity to substitute complex bullet points with simple infographics.

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8. Optimize for readability

Use bullet points, stylized fonts, and contrasting resume colors to ensure your resume is easy to read.

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9. Proofread

Many templates and professional infographic resume services don't have a built-in spellcheck. Edit carefully!

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10. Review and evaluate

Keep your infographic resume achievement-focused. Your infographic elements should enhance your qualifications.

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11. Ask for feedback

Can a recruiter pick this up and understand what makes you special? Ask for impartial feedback.

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12. Download and share

Save your infographic resume as a PDF to preserve the design.

Remember, you shouldn’t use an infographic resume to apply for a job online. Instead, you might want to use an ATS-friendly template, like the ones Teal offers.

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Five infographic resume examples

1. Childcare infographic resume example

This resume from Venngage works really well for a babysitter. The challenge with using this resume template is that your information might not fit as neatly into the provided space.

• Pros: Eye-catching design, clear key points, and a good amount of space for job experience.
• Cons: The social media icons at the top appear to be designed for links when this resume would actually be best suited for printing out to give to potential employers.

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2. Creative infographic resume format

Another example from Venngage, this UX designer infographic resume template incorporates a color gradient and corresponding color for the headshot background. The language fluency charts are a nice representation of the applicant's skills. This resume template isn't the right choice for an online application, but it might be appropriate to send it to a contact in the tech industry for an informational interview.

• Pros: Balanced use of graphic elements and text, and the color is bold without being overpowering.
• Cons: Too much resume real estate is devoted to certifications and skills ratings, while not enough space is left for the professional work history.

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3. Online networking infographic resume sample

This interior designer resume from Visme is the type of resume you could email to a potential client. It uses too much color to print but successfully integrates graphic design elements, like shapes and contrasting colors, with information.

• Pros: The colored box for the awards draws a reader's eye. The contact details are clear and easy to find.
• Cons: The resume layout doesn't allow for enough relevant information or explain this person's career progression. The section header font choice and color is hard to read at a glance; one font would be better.

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4. Interview example of infographic resume

This infographic resume from Piktochart is an example of something you could bring to an interview. The hiring manager will already have seen your full resume--that's how you landed the interview! This version gives you something to reference during your interview and leave behind as a reminder of who you are and what you do.

• Pros: Plenty of room for you to explain your work history. The design is simple yet refreshing, with round icons and one accent color. The bar graphs compare foreign language fluency concisely.
• Cons: A US resume format doesn’t normally include a headshot, but you can include one on an infographic resume for networking or interviews.

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5. Online infographic resume templates

This resume template by Canva is bold and distinctive yet keeps the design simple. This is a useful visual resume template for when you don't want to say too much. The timeline is a creative way to explain some career milestones, for example, if you earned a degree during your career.

• Pros: The black background makes the rainbow color scheme feel subtle and sleek.
• Cons: It's missing a work history and an education section, so this isn't one of the best infographic resume templates for job seekers. There's only room for four skills. This template is fun but unlikely to catch recruiters' attention.

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Tips for an effective infographic resume

Your infographic resume needs to be simple and readable. Ensure your resume is easy to read with a big enough font, clear headings, and logical organization.

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Use design effectively and efficiently

As author Robin Williams notes in The Non-Designers Design Book, “Design should communicate its message effectively and efficiently.” When applied to resume writing, this means your overall design should still convey that you want a job and are qualified to have that job. 

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Limit icons and graphics

Limit your use of logos, icons, and graphics to ensure they’re helping people understand your resume, not distracting them. 

Normally, you shouldn't put a headshot on a US resume format due to ATS compatibility issues and discrimination concerns. However, you should put an image on a resume in certain countries or, in limited situations, some jobs.

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Test for ATS compatibility

Use a simple copy-paste test to check your resume’s electronic readability. If you can copy text onto a blank document and read the information, you pass the copy-paste test!

When your resume doesn't pass this test, that's still ok for certain direct communication settings.

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Keep the design consistent

Double-check that your font and stylistic design elements are the same from top to bottom. Inconsistent formatting comes across as unprofessional.

People often want to see how their resume looks on various templates. Teal’s resume builder is super helpful for this. Once you upload your resume, you can try out the smart template options to preview your resume formatting.

With Teal’s AI Resume Builder, you can rest assured your resume’s design and formatting are consistently perfect—without manual work.

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Common mistakes to avoid in an infographic resume

Avoid the most common mistakes in infographic resumes. These errors will catch the hiring manager's attention, but not in a good way.

• Hard-to-read fonts
• Visual clutter
• Inconsistent layout
• Spelling errors
• Poor color contrast
• Imbalanced white space
• Distracting visuals
• Unprofessional design
• Overcomplicated layout

You can manually fix these mistakes or use a tool that fixes them for you. One option is Teal's AI-powered Resume Builder. It's designed to prevent all of these common errors.

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Are infographic resume templates right for you?

Creative resumes might help you land the right job if you use them wisely. They can make your experience stand out or serve as an engaging supplement to your existing resume. However, you shouldn’t use them for online job applications or most job industries. Use an infographic resume strategically for in-person events, online profiles, and direct communication

To ensure your resume is both visually appealing and appropriate for online applications, check out Teal’s Resume Builder. It simplifies the process of creating an efficient, effective resume that appeals to the person that matters most: your potential employer!