Choosing the right CV typography in the United Kingdom affects readability for a hiring manager and how applicant tracking systems interpret your document. This guide to CV typography covers practical choices, sizing, spacing, and testing so you can present your experience clearly and confidently within the UK job market.
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Why CV font matters
Your CV font influences readability and perceived professionalism, which affects how long a reviewer spends on your page. A clear font helps highlight your most relevant skills and reduces formatting errors when the file is uploaded to a UK employer system.
Readability and scanning
Most UK recruitment teams scan CVs quickly, so letters should be distinct and spacing should be consistent. Fonts with open shapes and moderate x-height improve scanning and reduce reader fatigue during a brief review.
Top readable CV fonts
Use widely available fonts that render consistently across devices to avoid substitution issues. Good sans‑serif choices include Arial, Calibri, and Helvetica; good serif choices include Garamond, Georgia, and Times New Roman.
Stick to one or two fonts for headings and body text to keep your layout clean and focused.
When to choose serif versus sans-serif
Sans-serif fonts look modern and read well on screens, making them a safe choice for most roles that value clarity and a contemporary style. Serif fonts can feel more traditional and may work well for roles in law, academia, or publishing where a classic tone suits the field.
Using CV typography to create hierarchy
Create visual hierarchy by using a slightly larger size for section headings and a consistent weight for body text. Avoid switching fonts for emphasis, and prefer size, bold, or small caps to indicate headings and section separators.
Font size and line spacing for CVs
Set body text between 10 and 12 points depending on the font; denser fonts like Garamond can sit at 11 points while more open fonts like Calibri may work at 10.5 or 11 points. Use 1.15 line spacing for compactness and add a bit of extra spacing before headings to help sections breathe.
Margins and white space
Keep margins around 1.0 cm to 2.0 cm to balance content and white space while ensuring no information is cut off when printing. White space improves readability, so avoid shrinking margins too far just to fit more content.
UK CV file formats and embedding fonts
Save your CV as PDF to preserve layout and ensure fonts are embedded. Some UK recruiters still accept Word documents, but provide a PDF as the default.
If you must use Word, keep formatting simple and avoid complex text boxes or tables that ATS may struggle with. Where possible, provide a plain text version for applicant tracking systems.
Additional Tips
- 1If space is tight, use slightly smaller heading sizes rather than shrinking body text below 10 points on a CV.
- 2For UK creative roles, provide a plain‑text CV for ATS parsing and a designed PDF CV as a portfolio sample; ensure both include your contact details and a clear objective.
- 3Avoid text boxes, text frames, and excessive tables that can break when parsed by ATS or UK recruitment systems.