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This free ATS resume checker for graphic designers compares your resume with the 20 keywords that appear most often in Graphic Designer job posts, then checks your sections, formatting, contact details and bullet points. Paste a real job description in the tool for an exact match.
Graphic designer job posts look for Adobe Creative Suite skills, brand and layout experience, and increasingly social media and motion design. Agencies and in-house teams use ATS tools to sort the large volume of applications, so your tools and deliverable types must appear as text, not just in your portfolio. Recruiters look for the range of work (print, digital, packaging, motion), brands served, and results such as engagement or campaign performance.
Top 20 Graphic Designer resume keywords
These are the skills and tools the checker looks for when you don't paste a job description. Add the ones you genuinely have to your Skills section and use them in bullet points.
- Graphic Design
- Branding
- Typography
- Layout Design
- Logo Design
- Color Theory
- Print Design
- Social Media Creatives
- Motion Graphics
- Packaging Design
- Illustration
- Visual Design
- Photoshop
- Illustrator
- InDesign
- After Effects
- Premiere Pro
- CorelDRAW
- Canva
- Figma
Sections to include in a Graphic Designer resume
Use standard headings so the ATS can map your information correctly. For graphic designers, these sections matter most:
- Summary: Mention your specialty (branding, social, packaging), main tools and notable brands.
- Skills: Separate design skills from software. Write full Adobe product names.
- Experience: Quantify output and results: creatives per month, campaign reach, engagement growth.
- Projects: Link to Behance or a portfolio site; name 3 flagship projects in the resume.
Common Graphic Designer resume mistakes
- Resume designed as an image, so the ATS reads nothing.
- Software proficiency shown as bars instead of text.
- No portfolio link.
- Listing duties ("made posters") instead of outcomes and brands.
- Not tailoring to print vs digital vs motion requirements.
Sample Graphic Designer resume bullet point
Designed 60+ social media creatives a month for 5 D2C brands, growing Instagram engagement by 35%.
Why it works: it starts with an action verb, names the tools a Graphic Designer ATS search looks for, and ends with a measurable result. Rewrite your own bullets in the same shape — action + tool or skill + result. Find more examples on our Graphic Designer keywords page.