Ideal Resume Word Count

Resumes

Apr 20

With the ever-increasing competition for jobs, it's important to make sure your resume stands out from the crowd. One of the often-overlooked aspects of creating a winning resume is the word count. While there's no one-size-fits-all answer to how many words a resume should be, we conducted a study to find out if word count really does matter when writing a resume. The short answer is yes, it does.

Much of the data out there comes from a TalentWorks study which is several years old. We were curious about whether the attention spans of hiring managers and recruiters have changed so we studied over 2,200 resumes based on word count to see if there were any patterns that emerged. This article is a summary of that study.

Note that this study did not include academic or federal resumes which are typically different in nature from private industry resumes.

What is the Ideal Resume Word Count

Past research has shown us that the ideal word count for a resume was between 475 and 600 words. Our study also found that the majority of the best-performing resumes, regardless of career level or industry, were between 300 and 500 words with the average word count of the successful resumes landing at 474 words. We defined a successful resume as one that obtained at least a 1:10 interview-to-application ratio. Sixty-five percent (65%) of all successful resumes were between 300 and 500 words.

The range found for all effective resumes was 306 to 760. The lower word counts for successful resumes came from entry-level resumes that did not have much experience to write about and from mid-career resumes targeting sales and marketing jobs. The highest word counts came from executive-level resumes and healthcare resumes which typically have more technical information included.

Percent of Successful Resumes by Word Count

Resume Word Count by Career Level

When we examined word count by career level, we found that the average word count of the highest-performing resumes increased with career level. Entry-level job seekers had an average of 306 words and executive-level job seekers had an average of 618 words.

Here’s the breakdown of word count in successful resumes by career level.

Average Resume Word Count by Career Level

Resume Word Count by Job Function

When we factored in job functions, there were also some interesting trends. Successful resumes for sales, marketing, and learning and development had the lowest average word count between 410 to 418 words. Successful human resources resumes had an average of 433 words. Successful operations, accounting, and finance resumes had the highest average word counts ranging between 541 and 601. Again, we defined a successful resume as one that obtained at least a 1:10 interview-to-application ratio.

When accounting for job function, the more technical roles had higher word counts. Departments such as sales and marketing are composed of employees who must communicate concisely and briefly. When you think about great sales and marketing experiences, they were never lengthy or verbose. They were concise and to the point. It appears that the managers of these departments also favor resumes that show these qualities.

Average Resume Word Count by Job Function

How Many Words Do Most Resumes Have

When we examined all of the resumes that have ever been submitted to Optim since 2019 we found that forty-two percent (42%) of all the resumes fell outside of the word count range from our study’s successful resumes. The majority of the outlier resumes were greater than 700 words.

This presents an enormous opportunity for job seekers who can streamline their thoughts into a concise, cohesive resume.

Why Do Resumes with Fewer Words Obtain More Interviews

Communication is a prized skill in today’s job market. Resumes reflect an individual’s communication abilities. Many resumes are a laundry list of bullet points that do not tie together into a centralized message. They are essentially random information in random order. What happens to many job seekers is because they lack a controlling message and resume framework, they end up packing their resume with as much information as they can think of hoping that something works.

This strategy would work great if the ATS bot was real and it was only a matter of matching keywords, but that is not how recruiting is done. When hundreds of resumes flood in for one job, the employer has to be able to understand what you are all about and what you can do for them quickly. Brevity is your friend. Recruiters don’t have time to read through lengthy resume documents filled with irrelevant or excessive information. Oftentimes, for many roles, it takes much less than we think to grab an employer’s attention.

The recipe for interviews has two ingredients. Clarity and curiosity. A successful resume needs to have enough material so the employer knows you are qualified for the job and can help them solve their specific problems. But many people try to replace their interview with a resume, thinking they have to add every possible thing to it. Unfortunately, if you remove all curiosity, you may find yourself being eliminated before receiving an interview.

It’s important to note that there we believe there are exceptions to shorter resumes. We found that successful resumes for highly technical roles typically had higher word counts and oftentimes exceeded three pages. For example, healthcare resumes may include additional materials such as clinical experience, affiliations, publications, and associations. Most resumes don’t need these additional sections. If you’re unsure about the ideal word count for you, consult a qualified resume writer.

How Do I Shorten My Resume if It’s Too Long

If your resume is longer than the ideal resume word count, between 300 and 800 words, there are some quick ways to eliminate any unnecessary material.

Eliminate any resume cliches or buzzwords. These are unnecessary words that take up space in a resume. They may sound smart, but using them sacrifices clarity.
Come up with a controlling message for your resume. What is the central theme or problem that you help this employer solve?
Identify three to four ways that you solve that problem so you can wireframe your resume and keep it concise and on message.
Include measurable metrics whenever possible.
Replace generic skills sections and incorporate key skills into your summary or replace the skills section with a Key Achievements section instead.
Limit each job’s bullet points to three or five maximum.
Consider cutting your job experiences off between eight to ten years depending on relevancy. Include older, relevant job experiences in a brief “Previous Experience Includes” or an “Early Career Experience Includes” section.
Stick to the main 5 resume subtitles that most successful resumes utilize.
Use a resume template to help you organize your thoughts and keep them organized.
Don’t try to “keyword stuff” your resume. More keywords don’t equate to getting an interview. Instead, focus on having a concise message and aim for quality over quantity. How you use your words matters more than how many keywords you use.

In Summary:

The word count range for successful resumes is between 306 and 760 words.
The average word count for successful resumes was 474 but varies by level and job function.
Over half of all the successful resumes were between 300 and 500 words.
The greater the level of responsibility for a job typically increases the average word count for a resume.
For the private industry roles we sampled, shorter tends to be better. Aim for quality over quantity.