18+ Creative CV Templates to Download in 2023

Sometimes a bog-standard CV template just won’t cut it. If you work in graphic design, art, tech, marketing, media or other visually led careers, you need a CV that instantly sells your creative cred. Finding a template that’s just right for you can be a nightmare.

But now you can rest easy. We’ve done all the hard work for you and assembled an amazing selection of creative CV templates as expressively ingenious as you are. And they don’t just look good, you’ll find everything necessary to impress recruiters and make an outstanding first impression.

Want to save time and have your CV ready in 5 minutes? Try our CV builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ CV templates and create your CV here.

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Sample CV made with our builder—See more templates and create your CV here.

Creative templates aren’t for you? Then check out our other listicles:

• 18+ Basic CV Templates to Download
• 18+ Model CV Templates to Download Now
• 20 Free CV Templates to Download
• 18+ Modern CV Templates to Download Now
• 10+ Canva CV Templates (+ Alternatives to Canva CV Maker)

1. Cascade

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Our first contender is a creative CV that goes by the name of Cascade. The left-hand column showcases a pleasing blend of tones and makes good use of health bars to show attainments in software skills and languages. A great choice for tech professionals. In the psychology of colour blue denotes calmness and serenity. But if that doesn’t take your fancy, you can fully customise your CV in our builder with a choice of 400 colours. Enough for the most discerning of ‘palettes’. 

It’s not just about the perfect colour scheme, your CV content has to be great to. Learn how to write the perfect CV with our guide: How to Write a CV: Professional UK Examples

2. Concept

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As a creative professional, you know all about the importance of having a solid concept when you pitch to a client. Our concept creative CV works as a solid pitch for you. Recruiters will love its easily-scanned layout that follows the classic chronological CV format. Note how the sidebar follows a timeline to emphasise the progression of your career. 

Like all of our CVs its fully compatible with ATS scanning software, the pesky algorithms that can scan and reject your CV before a human ever sees it. That’s something you can’t guarantee with other free creative CV templates.

Not sure if the chronological CV format will work to your advantage? See: CV Formats (With Examples)

3. Crisp

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You better believe this creative CV template does what it says on the tin. It’s as crisp as a fresh stick of celery and a perfect example of simple, monochrome style. It would look great printed out on high-quality CV paper, but is bound to impress onscreen too. Experienced candidates will love the ample space afforded by the two-column format. As with all of our CVs you can customise font size and type too.

Want to learn more about CV fonts? Read more here: Best Font for a CV: Most Professional Font Choices

4. Cubic

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Our next challenger is Cubic. Sure, the name’s a bit ‘square’, but you won’t be if you submit this creative CV. The header bar is a bold dark slash that illuminates your name in lights. You won’t be forgotten and dumped in the “no” pile with this template. Then the sidebar uses a complementary pastel shade, neatly framing the all-important content in the main body of the CV. 

Good CV content starts with a powerful personal statement. Learn how to write it here: How to Write a CV Personal Statement: CV Profile Example.

5. Diamond

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This jewel of a creative CV is Diamond. As you can see, the name is inspired by its dominant leitmotif. Gem-like icons emphasise each section and act as bullet points, all strung together to the left to help draw the eye down the page. Line, space, shape and form all have powerful psychological effects, a fact that this creative CV example definitely uses to its advantage.

Our templates are easily adapted for different CV formats. You change the order of sections with ease and the builder does the rest, keeping your layout intact. 

Want to learn more about CV layout? Read more here: CV Layout: How to Lay out a Professional CV

6. Enfold

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Wow! Such CV! Much creative! But you don’t have to be doge to see what a fab creative CV this one is. Witness how it ‘Enfolds’ you in a warm embrace of job-winning content, ably assisted by a judicious use of colour. 

This template has plenty of room to fit your CV onto a single page. But what’s the ideal CV length? Read more here: How Long Should a CV Be? Best Page Length

7. Iconic

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Icons are a great way of transforming a plain CV into a creative one. Each icon is an infographic representation of the section it accompanies. Also note another very important design element. White space, and lots of it. It’s considered one the most important aspects of good design as it improves visual appeal and enhances readability.

Once you’ve finished creating your CV, our builder lets you download it in PDF format. It’s the best filetype for CVs as it preserves all of your carefully crafted creative layout.

Creative professionals with gig and project-based experience are often advised to write functional CVs. Would it work for you? Find out here: Skills Based CV Template [Writing Guide & Examples]

8. Influx

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This creative CV template couldn’t be named better. You’ll need to prepare yourself for an influx of interview requests, when you choose this template. The striking dark header complements nicely with the clean professional font and the single-column format gives a sense of space.

Like all of our templates, Influx gives you plenty of room to highlight your skills. But how do you choose which skills to include? Find out here: Key Skills to Put on a CV [Best List of Top Skills]

9. Initials

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When it comes down to it, your CV is an advert for you. And the clearly identifiable branding is your name. Highlight it effectively by putting your initials in a striking monogram as featured here. There’s plenty of other creative features too, including small but effective CV icons and another example of health bars for software and language skills.

Need some quick tips on how to write your CV? Look no further: 20+ Job-Winning CV Tips and Advice

10. Minimo

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So minimalist it would make Marie Kondo weep with happiness. Minimo sparks joy with its wonderfully simple layout. If clutter isn’t your thing and icons leave you cold, this creative CV is the choice for you. Simple it may be, but like every one of our CVs it contains all the sections that recruiters look for.

Speaking of sections, are you writing a graduate CV? Then put your education section first. Our builder makes customisation easy.

When making a CV in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional CV template here for free.

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When you’re done, Zety’s CV builder will score your CV and tell you exactly how to make it better.

11. Modern

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This ‘Modern’ creative CV is a stunner. It makes use of a clever visual design element in the form of dark bars to the top left and bottom right. Apart from adding a pleasing sense of balance, they direct the gaze in a broad sweep across the page. Considering recruiters only spend 8 seconds looking at each CV, it’s important to make sure they scan everything.

12. Muse

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Every good artist needs a muse for inspiration. So let our Muse template inspire you to achieve new heights of job-hunting success. Another two-column design with more than enough space to showcase your unique talents, it’s also white space rich and easy to read.

13. Nanica

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Nano can be defined as a combining form with the meaning ‘very small, minute’. Nanica draws inspiration from that meaning in its name and design alike. No large brash features here, just small but perfectly formed text that soothes the eye with its bare-bones brilliance.

14. Newcast

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Take Minimo and jazz it up with pops of colour and snazzy CV icons. What do you get? Newcast. And a spiffing creative CV example it is! Why not punch in your own details and see what you think? Our builder is free to try, and if you’re satisfied with what you see you can subscribe and download a printable CV file.

15. Primo

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Ask our American cousins across the pond and they’ll tell you that Primo means ‘of top quality or importance’. Which is exactly the message you’ll convey when you use this creative CV template. There’s a tasteful monogram followed by a string of round icons in a neatly arranged timeline. Primo indeed.

16. Simple

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Don’t want to complicate your creativity? No problem. Like the timeless design adage says, keep it simple, stupid. Though stupid is the last thing you’ll be with this highly creative CV template. 

17. Valera

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Personally, I love Valera. So uncomplicated yet such a creative CV. Your name and the section titles are neatly picked out in cursive script while the body text is in a simple sans-serif font. It’s a great example of the often-overlooked design element of font pairing. I’d recommend this youthful template as a great choice for a student CV.

18. Vibes

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Time to finish off our creative CV roundup. It’s good Vibes only with this template. All the design elements you’ve come to expect are included here. Effective use of colour, CV icons, health bars and two-column layout, it’s all there waiting to land you your dream job.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your CV will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

Key Takeaway

There are thousands of creative CV examples out there and it’s tempting to go with the first one that catches your eye. But ultimately, this is a document that needs to be functional as well as creative. Don’t be caught out, make sure your CV template of choice fulfils all of the following requirements:

• Simple, easily readable layout that doesn’t get disrupted when you rearrange sections and tweak design elements.
• Lots of options for colour and fonts to fully personalise your CV.
• The ability to be downloaded as a PDF file to keep it looking perfect.
• An ATS-compatible format. Graphics should be used sparingly.
• A matching cover letter template to make your job application complete.

Luckily, Zety’s CV templates and builder tick every box!

Thanks for reading. Do you have any creative CV tips you’d like to share? Do you need any advice on writing your own creative CV? Don’t be shy, use the comments section and I’ll be happy to reply.