How to write a developer CV that actually gets read

A developer CV has one job: to let a busy, sceptical reader decide in a few seconds that you are worth a conversation. Most CVs fail not because the person is weak, but because the evidence is buried.

This guide covers structure and writing, and includes a Markdown template you can copy and build on.

The rules that matter most

• Tailor every time. The same CV sent everywhere reads as generic. Reordering a few bullets to match the role is usually enough.
• Lead with evidence. "Reduced checkout errors 30% by replacing a fragile queue" beats "responsible for the checkout service".
• Clarity over cleverness. No gimmicks, no columns, no infographics. A clean document that parses well and reads fast wins.
• One page for most engineers, two only if every line earns its place.
• Most relevant first. If your strongest work is not your latest role, reorder.

What goes where

• Header: your name, and contact details in the body, written out: email, phone, location, LinkedIn URL, GitHub URL.
• Summary: two or three lines on what you do, your stack, and the kind of role you want. Not "passionate developer".
• Experience: reverse-chronological roles. Each entry is company, title and dates, then three to five bullets pairing an action with a technology and a result.
• Skills: a short, truthful list that mirrors the job's vocabulary, grouped if it helps readability.
• Education and certifications: concise. Certifications belong here even when no degree is required.
• Projects: only if they strengthen the story, especially for career changers and junior developers.

Writing bullets that land

Use a simple shape: action + what + technology + outcome.

• Weak: "Worked on the payments API."
• Strong: "Rebuilt the payments API in Laravel, cutting failed transactions 18% and p95 latency from 600ms to 220ms."

Start with a verb - built, led, migrated, reduced, automated. Quantify where you can, honestly. If you do not have a number, describe the scale or the difficulty instead.

Keep it ATS-friendly

Design and parsability are not enemies. Follow the simple rules: single column, no tables, standard headings, consistent dates, full URLs in the text, and a text-based PDF. The deeper reasoning is in how ATS systems read your CV.

A Markdown template to build on

Write your CV in Markdown, keep it in version control, and export it to a clean PDF when you apply. Copy this and fill it in:

# Your Name

Location · you@example.com · +00 000 000 000
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/your-handle
GitHub: https://github.com/your-handle

## Summary

Backend engineer with 6 years in PHP and Go, focused on payments and
high-throughput APIs. Looking for a remote-first product team.

## Experience

### Senior Backend Engineer - Acme (Remote)
2021 - Present

- Led migration of the billing service to Go, cutting p95 latency 60%.
- Designed an idempotent payments API that removed a class of duplicate charges.
- Mentored two mid-level engineers and introduced a PR review checklist.

### Backend Engineer - Northwind
2018 - 2021

- Built a Laravel and MySQL order platform handling 2M requests a day.
- Automated deploys with GitHub Actions, from weekly to on-demand.

## Skills

Languages: PHP, Go, TypeScript
Frameworks: Laravel, Symfony
Data: MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis, Kafka
Cloud: AWS (ECS, RDS, S3), Docker

## Education & Certifications

- BSc Computer Science - University Name (2014)
- AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate (2022)

Turning Markdown into a PDF

Keep it simple and free. Pandoc converts Markdown to a clean PDF from the command line, and most editors do it too, for example the "Markdown PDF" extension in VS Code. Export to a text-based PDF, then check it: if you cannot select and copy the text, a parser cannot read it either.

Avoid online converters that upload your CV to unknown servers, and skip resume builders that lock your own content behind a subscription.

Check before you send

Run your finished CV through the free ATS Resume Checker to see what the machine reads, then use the listing-reading approach so the top third of your CV speaks directly to the role.