All guidesBy SuitedCV TeamUpdated
How long should a CV be, really
CV length is the most argued-about rule in job hunting, and most of the advice is stated as if it were law. The truth is more forgiving: length follows your content and your career stage, not a magic number. This guide is about deciding how long your CV should be, and how to get there without deleting the things that actually win interviews.
The real rule behind CV length
A CV is as long as it needs to be to show you are a strong fit, and not one line longer. In practice that maps to experience: early career fits on one page, a decade or more of relevant work often needs two. The number of pages is a result, not a target.
Recruiters do not reject a CV for having a second page. They lose interest when a page is padded, repetitive, or slow to reach the point. A tight two pages beats a padded one, and a focused one page beats a stretched two.
When one page is the right call
- You have under roughly ten years of experience, or are early in your career.
- You are a student, a new graduate, or writing a first CV.
- You are changing field, and only some of your history is relevant.
- You are applying somewhere that reads fast and values brevity, like most startups.
When two pages are fine
- You have a decade or more of relevant experience with real results to show.
- You are in a field where depth matters: senior engineering, research, medicine, law.
- You have publications, patents, or a project list a recruiter genuinely wants.
- Every line on the second page earns its place. If it does not, it belongs in the bin, not on page two.
How to cut a CV down without gutting it
Most CVs shrink by a third with no loss once you cut what was never working:
- Drop the objective statement and any generic summary of adjectives.
- Shorten old and junior roles to a line each; keep the detail for recent, relevant work.
- Cut duties that every person in the role obviously did, and keep results.
- Remove skills you would not want to be interviewed on, and long tool lists.
- Tighten wording: one strong line per achievement, not three that circle it.
How SuitedCV helps with length
The live preview shows exactly where each A4 page ends as you edit, and the status bar warns the moment your CV spills onto a second page, so length is never a surprise at export time. When content barely overflows, a one-click tighten reduces spacing to pull it back onto one page.
If you would rather keep everything on a single continuous page, the PDF export offers a single-page option for a multi-page CV. And because each application is a tailored version, you can run long for a senior role and tight for a startup from the same master CV.
Common questions
Is a one-page CV always better?
No. One page is right for early and mid careers, but forcing fifteen years of strong experience onto one page usually means cutting the very results that would land the interview. Let content decide.
Will a two-page CV get rejected by an ATS?
No. Applicant tracking systems read text regardless of page count. Length is a human judgement, not a parsing one. See the guide on writing an ATS-friendly CV.
Does a longer CV look more experienced?
The opposite, usually. Padding reads as an inability to prioritise. A short, sharp CV signals that you know what matters.
What should I cut first?
The objective statement, duties anyone in the role would list, roles from more than ten years ago, and any skill you could not discuss in an interview.