Ask Amanda: How Should I Format My Contact Information on a Resume?
Get a Free Expert Review6 min read. Updated on February 18, 2019
Table of contents
Table of contents
Table of contents
Table of contents
When hiring managers want to reach out, help them know where to look.
What is contact info, and why is it important to include it on your resume? As the name implies, resume contact information includes the details employers need to know to contact you for an interview or follow-up. When writing a resume, it's essential to include all that information at the top of the page so employers and recruiters can easily find it.
While this resume tip may seem obvious, a TopResume study found that one in four people either forget to include all of the necessary details or fail to format them in a way that can be detected by the software employers use to organize and manage their inbound applications.
What to include in your resume contact information section
Let’s now discuss what contact information should be on a resume, from your full name and location to your phone number and email address.
Full Name
Include your first and last name on your resume. If you have a very common name – think “James Smith” or “Maria Garcia” – consider including your middle name or middle initial to help distinguish you from the other 30,000+ professionals who share your full name.
Preferred Name: If you typically use a preferred name at work, it's perfectly acceptable to list that name instead of your legal name on your resume. For instance, some professionals continue to use their maiden name at work after they've married and legally changed their last name to that of their spouse. Others prefer to go by a nickname for their first name to avoid gender bias or racial discrimination during the job search.
Examples: How to Write Your Name on Your Resume
Maeve (Nelson) Hunter | Maeve Nelson | Maeve Hunter
William H. Keener, Jr. | Bill Keener, Jr. | William Keener
Allie Bostwick | Allison (Allie) Bostwick | Allison Bostwick
S. Schaffer | Sam Schaffer | Samantha Schaffer
Khalid “Kal” Hassan | Khalid Hassan | Kal Hassan
Credentials as Suffixes: If you have earned an advanced degree or certification that is required for or considered desirable in your field, be sure to include its initials after your name. By mentioning this credential at the top of your resume and elaborating on its details further down in the document, you're increasing the chances that recruiters will notice this important selling point during their initial, cursory review of your job application. For example:
Joshua Eggleston, RN
Avery Thiele, PMP, SSGB
Jesse Warch, MBA
However you decide to write your name on your resume, be consistent. Your name should be represented the same way on your business cards, cover letters, email signature, relevant social media channels, blog or portfolio, and so forth.
Address/Location
Avoid including your complete mailing address on your resume. Although this was once the norm, it is no longer the case. Today, employers typically expect to see only your city and state on your resume in most instances. However, there are a few nuances to bear in mind when it comes to adding location on your resume, including:
If you're conducting a long-distance job search or you're open to relocation, include your current city and state, as you would for a local job search. You can also indicate that you’re open to relocation in your cover letter or somewhere suitable on your resume, like in your resume summary.
If you’re applying for an international position, you might also include your country of origin.
If you prefer remote work, you can include “remote” as your location. That said, it’s still best to include your city and state, since some companies have location requirements for their remote positions.
Below are some examples of how to include your location on your resume based on different scenarios:
Traditional job
John Smith 123.456.7899 | Jsmith555@email.com | Houston, TX
Remote work
John Doe 123.456.7899 | Jdoecpa555@email.com | Remote worker in San Antonio, TX
John Doe 123.456.7899 | Jdoecpa555@email.com | Remote Work
John Doe 123.456.7899 | Jdoecpa555@email.com | Location Independent
John Doe 123.456.7899 | Jdoecpa555@email.com | San Antonio, TX
International position
Jane Doe 123.456.7899 | Jdophr5555@email.com | Morgantown, WV, United States
Related: The Essential Parts of a Resume, Explained
Email Address
Your email address is a vital piece of information to include with your contact information. If you're still using an old AOL or Hotmail address to manage your email, it's time for an upgrade. Create a new, professional-looking email address for all your job-search activities with a modern provider like Gmail. Where possible, incorporate your name or your specialty into your email address, such as:
jodi.a.lyon@email.com or jlyon.cpa@email.com
Phone Number
Along with your email address, your phone number is a crucial piece of information to include. It’s best to use your personal cell phone number here. That way, you have control over the voicemail message, who answers the phone, and when it is answered. When setting up your voicemail, be sure to include your name in the message so employers know they have called the right person. You also want to ensure it sounds professional and clear.
When it comes to listing your phone number on your resume, there are a number of different formats that are considered acceptable:
555-867-5309 | (555) 867-5309 | 555.867.5309
Though it’s not necessary, you can also choose to put a label in front of your phone number, such as “Tel:”, “Ph:”, “Phone:”, “C:”, or “M:” (for mobile).
Expert tip: Never use your work phone number on your resume– that's the quickest way to make your confidential job search not-so-confidential.
Social Media
Including social media on a resume has become commonplace. In fact, studies show that most recruiters will search for your online profiles before deciding whether to interview you. By including the most relevant social media links on your resume, you're saving recruiters time and providing them with the details they care about.
Start by adding the link to your public LinkedIn profile. Other social media accounts should only be mentioned on your resume if they're related to your profession. If you work in a creative field, for example, consider adding a link to your online portfolio or blog as well.
Whichever links you decide to include on your resume, be sure that they will support, rather than sabotage, your job-search efforts and that they are kept up to date.
Expert tip: Only include a link to your LinkedIn profile if it’s current and up-to-date.
How to format your resume contact information
Place your contact information at the top of your resume so recruiters can easily find it. Your name will go at the top of this section, using a larger font size than the other pieces of contact information, so that it stands out.
Depending on the space available, you can place the rest of your contact details in one or two lines, located immediately below your name. Below are a few examples of how you can format the contact information on your resume.
Expert tip: If you're using Word, be sure not to place your critical contact details in the header section of the document, as not all applicant tracking systems are able to properly read and parse information stored in this section of a Word document.
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Resume Contact Information Example 1:
Wanda Smith
firstandlastname@email.com | 555-555-5555 | Tuscan, Arizona | linkedin.com/in/firstnamelastname
Resume Contact Information Example 2:
John Jones, CPA johnjones@email.com | 555.555.5555 | Morgantown, WV linkedin.com/in/firstnameandlastname
Resume Contact Information Example 3:
Jaime Johnson firstlastname@email.com | 555.555.5555 | Remote worker in New York, NY www.jamiejohnsonmyportfolio.com
Expert tip: Click on the following link to view all of our resume samples and see the many ways you can format your name and address on a resume.
Resume contact information matters
Though it should go without saying, it’s essential to ensure that all your important resume contact information is on your resume and that those details are accurate. Otherwise, you might miss out on the perfect job opportunity!
Need help formatting your resume for success? TopResume's expert writers can help. You can also submit your resume for a free review to ensure your resume contact information is formatted correctly!
This blog was originally written by Amanda Augustine and has been updated by Ronda Suder.
Amanda Augustine is a certified professional career coach (CPCC) and resume writer (CPRW) and the resident career expert for Talent Inc.'s suite of brands: TopResume, TopCV, and TopInterview.
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