Which resume file formats are supported?
ResumeAdapter accepts PDF, DOCX, and images (PNG, JPG, WEBP) up to 5MB, one file at a time. DOCX parses most reliably. Scanned PDFs and photos are routed through OCR automatically. The older .doc format is not supported: open it in Word and save it as .docx first.
Accepted formats
- DOCX: The most reliable option. Text is read directly from the document structure, so nothing depends on layout detection.
- PDF: Works well when the PDF contains selectable text. If the PDF is a scan or an exported image, it is detected and sent to OCR instead.
- PNG, JPG, WEBP: Photos and screenshots of a resume are read with OCR. Accuracy depends on image quality: shoot straight on, in even light, with the whole page in frame.
- DOC (not supported): The pre-2007 Word format cannot be parsed. Open the file in Word or Google Docs and save a copy as .docx.
Why DOCX is the safest upload
DOCX carries the document structure with it, so headings, dates, and bullet boundaries survive parsing intact. PDF layout has to be inferred, and multi-column or heavily designed PDFs are where inference goes wrong most often.
This is also true of the applicant tracking systems you are applying through, which is why the same advice appears on our ATS guides.
The size and count limits
Files must be under 5MB, and you can upload one at a time. A resume over 5MB almost always contains embedded images or fonts that will also cause problems inside an employer ATS, so it is worth slimming down regardless.
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