When a creative CV helps, and when it hurts

A creative layout works as a small design sample, but only when a person sees it. Use one when:

  • you send your CV straight to a person, by email or through a contact;
  • you apply to a studio, an agency or a smaller company where the hiring manager reads every CV;
  • you bring printed copies to an interview, a portfolio review or a careers fair;
  • the role is about visual communication: design, art direction, content, brand or marketing.

Choose a plain layout instead when:

  • you apply through a large employer’s online job portal, where software reads your CV first;
  • the sector is conservative, such as law, finance or the public sector;
  • the job advert asks for a simple or text-only CV.

Not sure? Prepare both: a creative PDF for people and a simple version for portals. It’s the same content in two layouts.

The creative layouts

Six layouts with a bold character, shown with a fictional sample CV in their default colour schemes. Each card includes an honest note on job portals.

  • Preview of the Creative Block CV template in the Terracotta colour scheme, filled with a fictional sample CV: a terracotta colour block header with large circles, a round photo beside the name and filled skill tags in a pale pink side column.
    Photo slot

    Creative Block

    Bold colour block header with geometric shapes and skill tags.

    • Colour block header with geometric shapes
    • Optional round photo beside your name
    • Filled skill tags in a tinted side column

    Best for: Design, media, marketing and other creative roles.

    Photo: Round, beside your name in the colour block.

    Job portals: Built to impress a person. Send it by email or bring it to an interview, and use a simpler layout for online portals.

    Use with my CV: Creative BlockPreview with a sample CV: Creative Block
  • Preview of the Magazine CV template in the Blush colour scheme, filled with a fictional sample CV: a pale pink editorial page with a huge black serif name under a red top rule, a pull-quote profile with a large red first letter, ruled lines between roles and a narrow side column for skills and languages.

    Magazine

    Editorial style with a huge serif name and a pull-quote profile.

    • Huge Playfair Display name
    • Pull-quote profile with a large first letter
    • Strong horizontal rules between roles

    Best for: Journalism, publishing, communications and PR.

    Job portals: Usually fine for online job portals. If a portal is strict or you’re unsure, a single-column layout is the safer bet.

    Use with my CV: MagazinePreview with a sample CV: Magazine
  • Preview of the Split Screen CV template in the Charcoal colour scheme, filled with a fictional sample CV: a dark charcoal panel on the left with a round photo, contact details, skills and languages, and a light content area with a large name.
    Photo slot

    Split Screen

    Dark colour panel on the left, light content area on the right.

    • Full-height dark panel for photo, contact details, skills and languages
    • Light content area with a large name
    • Strong contrast between the two halves

    Best for: Bold personalities, creative directors and designers.

    Photo: Round, at the top of the dark panel.

    Job portals: Usually fine for online job portals. If a portal is strict or you’re unsure, a single-column layout is the safer bet.

    Use with my CV: Split ScreenPreview with a sample CV: Split Screen
  • Preview of the Infographic CV template in the Cobalt colour scheme, filled with a fictional sample CV: a deep blue page with an extra-large name, a round photo at the top right, experience on a timeline with yellow markers and language-level dots.
    Photo slot

    Infographic

    Extra-large name, timeline markers and visual language levels.

    • Extra-large name in a colour header
    • Experience on a timeline with markers
    • Skill tags
    • Language-level dots when you add a CEFR level (A1–C2)

    Best for: UX and UI designers, marketers and other creative roles.

    Photo: Round, at the top right of the header.

    Job portals: Built to impress a person. Send it by email or bring it to an interview, and use a simpler layout for online portals.

    Use with my CV: InfographicPreview with a sample CV: Infographic
  • Preview of the Badge Style CV template in the Forest colour scheme, filled with a fictional sample CV: a dark green banner with a slanted lower edge and a round photo beside the name, above a light body with a tinted side column.
    Photo slot

    Badge Style

    Your name in a colour banner with a slanted edge.

    • Colour banner with a slanted bottom edge
    • Optional round photo beside your name
    • Light body with a tinted side column, even with dark colour schemes

    Best for: Sales, events, hospitality and other outward-facing roles.

    Photo: Round, beside your name in the banner.

    Job portals: Usually fine for online job portals. If a portal is strict or you’re unsure, a single-column layout is the safer bet.

    Use with my CV: Badge StylePreview with a sample CV: Badge Style
  • Preview of the Card Layout CV template in the Frost colour scheme, filled with a fictional sample CV: a blue header with a rounded-square photo and every section in its own white rounded card on a tinted page.
    Photo slot

    Card Layout

    Every section in its own rounded card on a tinted page.

    • Each section and each role in its own rounded card
    • Soft shadows on a tinted background
    • Two-column card grid

    Best for: Product managers, start-ups and modern tech companies.

    Photo: Rounded square, at the top right of the header.

    Job portals: Built to impress a person. Send it by email or bring it to an interview, and use a simpler layout for online portals.

    Use with my CV: Card LayoutPreview with a sample CV: Card Layout

All 18 layouts, including the plainer ones, are compared on our CV templates page.

Pair it with a portfolio link

For most creative roles, your portfolio does the heavy lifting and your CV gets people to it. Every layout shows your website with your other contact details, alongside your email and LinkedIn, so it’s one of the first things a reader sees. In the PDF, your website, LinkedIn and email are clickable links.

  • Use one link to a curated portfolio rather than a list of profiles, and put a handful of your best projects first.
  • Keep the address short and readable, because people also read CVs on paper: yourname.com/work beats a long link full of tracking codes.
  • Name projects in your bullet points, so the reader knows what to look for in the portfolio.
  • Check the link before every application, especially if it points to a password-protected page.
Example
  • Led the rebrand for [Client], from strategy workshop to launch; case study at [yourname.com/work/client].
  • Designed [X] campaign assets a month for [Brand]’s social channels, raising engagement by [X%].

Lines like these work because they describe outcomes, not just tools. Our list of CV action verbs helps you vary how each bullet starts.

Keep a plain version for portals

You don’t need to write your CV twice. In the builder’s Design tab, switch from a creative layout to a simple one and all your content comes with you: profile, roles, skills, languages and extra sections.

  • Minimal Clean keeps a little design, with a quiet side column and an optional photo.
  • Centred Header is the safest choice for strict portals, with everything in a single column.

Both are compared on our simple CV template page. Switching and previewing are free; you only pay when you download a PDF.

Colour schemes for creative roles

The bold family has 4 schemes with strong, saturated colours:

  • Bauhaus#E8D44D#1A1A1A
  • Terracotta#E07A5F#F4F1DE
  • Neon#0D0D0D#39FF14
  • Violet#2C0F3E#F7C948
  • Terracotta: a warm orange-red with a cream accent. Creative Block’s default.
  • Bauhaus: bright yellow with black accents.
  • Violet: deep purple with a golden-yellow accent.
  • Neon: near-black with an electric green accent.

Each creative layout’s own default is a good match too: Blush for Magazine, Charcoal for Split Screen, Cobalt for Infographic, Forest for Badge Style and Frost for Card Layout. You can try all 24 schemes with any layout.

Keep it readable

A creative CV still has to work as a CV. Before you send it:

  • Check where the colour goes. Creative Block keeps your text on white whatever scheme you choose. Split Screen and Badge Style keep the body light with every scheme except Bauhaus and Terracotta. Magazine and Infographic colour the whole page. Card Layout colours the page around white cards, and with a dark scheme, Neon or Violet the cards turn dark too.
  • Print a copy before an interview. Dark and saturated pages use a lot of ink and can print darker than they look on screen.
  • Step back from the screen. Your name, your current role and the section headings should still stand out at arm’s length.
  • Don’t let the design hide the content. If a reader has to hunt for your last job or your dates, switch to a calmer layout.
  • Use language levels in Infographic. Add a CEFR level, for example “Dutch (B1)”, and the layout shows it as dots on a scale of six; a language without a level, such as “German (Native)”, appears as text. The six levels, A1 to C2, are defined by the Council of Europe.

Creative CVs and job portals

Every PDF includes real, selectable text that applicant tracking systems can read. How easily software follows the layout depends on the design:

For a large employer’s portal, the safest choice is a single-column layout such as Centred Header. Our guide to an ATS-friendly CV explains what these systems do with your file.

Similar layouts

Looking for a different kind of character? Photo Header puts a large photo in a colour header, Minimal Clean adds a little design to a calm page, and Tech Terminal suits software roles. Your content carries over when you switch.

FAQ

Will a creative CV get through applicant tracking systems?

Nobody can promise that for every system. The text in your PDF is real and selectable, but design-first layouts are harder for software to follow. For online portals, switch to a simple layout; for people, send the creative one.

Should designers send a PDF portfolio instead of a CV?

Send both when you can. A one- or two-page CV lets the reader compare your experience quickly; the portfolio shows the work. If an advert asks for one combined PDF, follow the advert.

Can I use my own colours or fonts?

You can choose from 24 colour schemes, and change the font to DM Sans, EB Garamond, Georgia, Playfair Display, Space Mono, Arial or Times New Roman, or keep the layout’s own font. Custom colours aren’t available.

Can I add a photo to a creative CV?

Five of the six layouts here have an optional photo slot: Creative Block, Split Screen, Infographic, Badge Style and Card Layout. Magazine has none. Whether to add one depends on the country: leave it off for the UK and Ireland.

Can I switch back to a creative layout after making a plain version?

Yes. Layouts only change how your CV looks, never what it says, so you can move between them as often as you like.