How long should a CV be? A UK guide to CV length

A UK CV should usually be two sides of A4. If you are a student, a recent graduate or have only a few years of work behind you, one page is often enough. Longer CVs are normal only in academic, medical and research roles, where employers expect full lists of publications, training or clinical experience. Whatever your stage, a shorter CV full of relevant evidence beats a longer one padded with things the employer did not ask for.

The right length is the length that shows this employer what they need to see and nothing that gets in the way. This guide explains how to decide, what to cut first, and how to make two pages work without cramming.

The short answer by career stage

• Student or school leaver: one page. Education, any part-time work, volunteering and a short skills section usually fit comfortably.
• Graduate or early career (up to about five years of work): one page, or two if you have several relevant roles or a substantial placement.
• Experienced: two pages. This is the most common length for UK CVs and is what most employers expect.
• Senior or highly specialised: two pages is still the aim. A third page is acceptable only if every line on it is relevant to the role.
• Academic, research or medical: as long as the format requires. An academic CV with publications and grants can run to several pages, and that is expected.

Why length matters less than relevance

Nobody rejects a CV for being one page instead of two. What costs people interviews is a CV where the important evidence is hard to find. A recruiter reading a pile of applications looks first at your profile and most recent role. If those do not show a match with the job, extra pages rarely rescue it.

So start by asking what this employer needs to see. Read the job advert, pick out the three to five requirements that matter most, and check that your first page shows evidence for each one. Our guide on how to tailor your CV to a job description walks through this step by step.

What to cut first when your CV is too long

Work through this list in order. Most CVs drop to two pages before you reach the end.

1. Personal details you do not need. In the UK you do not need your date of birth, a photo, marital status or your full address. Your name, town, phone number, email and a LinkedIn link are enough.
2. "References available on request." Employers assume this. Delete the line.
3. Older roles. Jobs from more than ten to fifteen years ago, or roles unrelated to this application, can shrink to a single line: job title, employer and dates. Keep the dates so there is no unexplained gap.
4. Duties that repeat. If three jobs all say "answered customer queries", say it once, in the role where you did it best.
5. Generic phrases. "Hard-working team player with excellent communication skills" takes up a line and proves nothing. Replace it with evidence or remove it.
6. Long skills lists. Six to ten relevant skills is usually enough. Our guide to skills for a CV explains how to choose them.
7. School qualifications, once you have a degree or several years of work. A single line such as "9 GCSEs including English and Maths" is plenty.

What to keep, even when space is tight

• A short personal profile, three to five lines, aimed at this job. See how to write a CV personal profile.
• Your most recent and most relevant roles in full, with the bullets that best match the advert at the top.
• Real numbers you can stand behind, such as how many people you trained or how many customers you served a day. Never round up or invent a figure to fill space.
• Qualifications and licences the advert asks for.
• Honest dates for every role, in month and year.

When one page is the right choice

One page works well when you have limited experience and every line is relevant. Stretching a short history across two pages with large headings and wide margins looks thin. If your CV fills around one and a half pages, either tighten it to one or add genuinely useful detail, such as a project, a placement or volunteering that matches the job. Avoid leaving a second page with only a few lines on it.

Formatting that helps two pages read well

• Use a clear font at 10 to 12 point. Shrinking the text to fit more in makes the CV harder to read, not stronger.
• Keep margins of around 2 cm and leave space between sections.
• Put your name and contact details at the top of page one only.
• Make sure no section heading sits alone at the bottom of a page.
• Save it as the file type the employer asks for. If they do not say, a Word document or PDF is usual in the UK.

Check your CV for free

Length is easier to judge once you know which parts of your CV match the job. Check your CV against a job description for free. It shows how your CV lines up with the advert, so you can see what to keep at the top and what can go.

FAQs

Is a three-page CV too long?

For most UK jobs, yes. Two pages is the usual maximum. Three pages can be acceptable for senior, academic, medical or highly technical roles, but only if every section is relevant to the job.

Is a one-page CV OK in the UK?

Yes, especially for students, graduates and people early in their careers. One full, relevant page is better than two half-empty ones.

Does a CV have to be on A4?

UK employers expect A4. If you are applying to a US employer, they will usually expect a shorter document called a resume, on US letter size.

Should a cover letter make my CV shorter?

A cover letter is the place to explain why you want the job and to give context, such as a career change. It does not replace evidence on your CV, but it means your CV does not need a long introduction.

How Evident helps

Deciding what to cut is easier when you know what the employer is looking for. Evident compares your CV with the job advert, asks up to five targeted questions to find relevant experience you may have left out, and drafts wording only from your own answers, for you to approve line by line.