Resume Skills Section: What to Include in 2026
The complete guide to building a skills section that impresses recruiters and passes ATS scans. Includes skills lists by industry, formatting tips, and proficiency levels.
- The complete guide to building a skills section that impresses recruiters and passes ATS scans.
- Why Your Skills Section Matters More Than Ever.
- Covers hard skills vs soft skills.
- Covers skills to include by industry.
- Covers formatting your skills section.
Why Your Skills Section Matters More Than Ever
The skills section serves a dual purpose: it helps ATS systems match you to job requirements, and it gives recruiters a quick snapshot of your technical capabilities. In 2026, with AI-powered recruiting tools scanning for specific competencies, a well-structured skills section is essentially your keyword index.
Our Resume Builder offers two display modes for skills: pills (compact tags grouped by category) and bars (visual proficiency levels). Choose pills for breadth, bars for depth.
Hard Skills vs Soft Skills
Hard Skills (Technical)
These are measurable, teachable abilities: programming languages, software proficiency, certifications, data analysis tools, foreign languages. They’re what ATS systems scan for and what hiring managers verify.
-webkit-backdrop-filter alongside backdrop-filter for Safari support. Without the prefix, the effect is invisible to roughly 25% of mobile users.Soft Skills (Interpersonal)
Leadership, communication, problem-solving, time management. These are harder to quantify but equally important. The key: don’t just list them. Demonstrate them through your experience bullet points instead.
Skills to Include by Industry
Software Engineering
Programming languages (Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Go), frameworks (React, Next.js, Django), cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure), databases (PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis), DevOps (Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD), version control (Git).
backdrop-filter inside a position: fixed element can cause severe scroll performance issues. Test thoroughly on real iOS devices.Marketing
Google Analytics 4, Google Ads, Meta Ads Manager, HubSpot, Salesforce, SEO (Ahrefs, SEMrush), content strategy, A/B testing, marketing automation, CRM management, email marketing (Klaviyo, Mailchimp).
Finance
Financial modeling, Excel (VLOOKUP, pivot tables, VBA), Bloomberg Terminal, Capital IQ, SQL, Tableau, risk assessment, regulatory compliance, GAAP, IFRS.
Design
Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, After Effects), Webflow, prototyping, design systems, user research, accessibility (WCAG), motion design.
Formatting Your Skills Section
- Group by category: Separate “Frontend” from “Backend” from “DevOps” rather than dumping everything in one list
- Lead with strongest: Put your most relevant and proficient skills first in each category
- Match the job description: If the posting says “React”, use “React” — not “React.js” or “ReactJS”
- Be honest about proficiency: Claiming “Expert” in a language you barely know will backfire in technical interviews
The Resume Builder’s skills section lets you assign categories and proficiency levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert) to each skill, then toggle between pills and bars to find the best visual format for your industry.