The skills section: what to list, how to group it and what to leave out
How many skills to list, how to group them so they are easy to scan, and how to prove them elsewhere on the page so the list is not just a claim.
By Avowly · Last reviewed 6 November 2026 · 7 min read · How we write these
In short
- List mostly hard skills that can be checked, and show soft skills through evidence in your bullets.
- Keep the list to roughly eight to fifteen items, grouped under plain, specific labels.
- Show a level by naming what you do with the skill, not with bars, stars or "expert".
- Every skill should be something you could discuss, and most should appear again in your experience.
A skills section is a quick way to tell a reader what you can do. It is also the section most likely to be filled with padding. A long list of everything you have ever touched makes the real strengths harder to see, and it makes the reader doubt the whole list.
A good skills section is short, grouped and honest. It names the skills the role needs, in words the reader will recognize, and it points to the places elsewhere on your page where you used them.
What counts as a skill here
Two kinds belong on a resume, and they need different treatment.
Hard skills are specific, teachable abilities that can be checked: a programming language, a tool, a method, a license, a language you speak, a type of analysis, a machine you can operate. They are what most skills sections are made of.
Soft skills are habits and traits: communication, teamwork, leadership, problem solving. They matter, but listing them as words gives the reader nothing to hold. Anybody can write "good communicator". What is believable is the evidence: a line in your experience that shows you explaining something to a client, or training a team.
So the skills section should mostly be hard skills. Let the soft ones appear in your bullets, where they come with proof.
Before
Skills: good communication, teamwork, customer service.
After
Till and cash-up, card refunds and voids, stock counts, opening and closing the store.
Why it works: Asking what she was trusted to do on her own turned three soft words into skills a manager can check. The customer service now shows in her bullets instead.
No idea what your skills are?
People in hands-on jobs often say they have no skills to list, when they use dozens every shift. Three questions bring them out:
- What do you use? Machines, tools, systems, vehicles, software, equipment.
- What are you trusted to do alone? Opening up, cashing up, handling a complaint, signing off a delivery, giving medication.
- What did you have to be trained or signed off on? Every sign-off is a checkable skill.
Write down everything, then keep the ones this job asks for.
How many to list
Aim for a short, focused list. Something like eight to fifteen items covers most roles. If you have more, choose the ones that matter for the job and drop the rest.
A long list does two bad things. It hides your strongest skills among ones that everybody has, and it invites questions about each one. If you list a tool, expect to be asked how you used it.
Group them
A single run of fifteen words is hard to scan. Grouping them under a few clear labels makes it quick to read, and lets the reader find what they care about. On the page, grouping looks like this:
A skills section grouped the way this guide teaches, on a real page drawn with the Builder's own templates. A fictional sample.
- Languages and tools: Python, SQL, Excel (pivot tables, lookups), Tableau
- Methods: Data cleaning, A/B testing, dashboard design
- Languages spoken: English (fluent), Spanish (fluent), German (basic)
The labels should suit your field. A designer might group by design, prototyping and tools. A nurse might group by clinical skills, equipment and certifications. A chef might group by cuisines, kitchen roles and food safety.
Before
Plumbing, heating, boilers, pipes, tools, hard working, punctual.
After
Installation: combination boilers, unvented cylinders, underfloor heating. Fault finding: gas and oil boilers. Certificates: gas safety (current), unvented hot water (valid to 2027).
Why it works: The groups came from asking what he installs and what he repairs, and the expiry year is on his card. "Hard working" and "punctual" went, because no reader can check them from a list.
Before
Clinical skills, patient care, documentation.
After
Clinical: cannulation, wound care, catheter care. Equipment: syringe drivers, infusion pumps, ward ECG. Records: electronic patient notes and fluid charts.
Why it works: Each item came from her signed competency booklet, so each one has already been checked by someone else.
Keep the labels plain. "Core strengths" and "Competencies" tell the reader nothing. Say what the group is.
One long run
Hard to scanTeamworkPythonHard workingSQLExcelCommunicationTableauFast learnerData cleaningTypingA/B testingEmailDashboards
Grouped
Easy to scanTools
PythonSQLExcelTableau
Methods
Data cleaningA/B testingDashboard design
Languages spoken
English (fluent)Spanish (fluent)German (basic)
Soft skills such as teamwork show best in your bullets, where they come with proof.
Show the level, but only when it helps
Some people add levels, such as stars, bars or the words beginner, intermediate and expert. Be careful.
- Bars and stars are drawn as shapes, which software may not read, and they mean different things to different readers.
- Words like "expert" are hard to defend if the interviewer knows the field.
If the level matters, state it in plain words that can be checked: what you actually do with the skill. For languages, use one plain scale: fluent, professional working, conversational and basic.
Before
Excel: 5/5.
After
Excel (pivot tables, lookups, simple macros)
Why it works: A five out of five invites a test she might fail. Naming what she does in Excel every week is a level anyone can check.
Match the posting truthfully
Read the job posting and notice the skills it asks for most. If you have them, name them using the same words the posting uses, where that is accurate. This helps both a person scanning quickly and a system that searches for terms.
Do not list a skill you do not have in order to match the posting. It may get you an interview, but you will be asked about it, and the conversation will not go well. If you have a skill that is close but not identical, describe what you have done instead of using the exact name.
Prove the skills elsewhere
A list says you have a skill. A bullet shows it. The best resumes use both: the list for a quick scan and the experience section for the evidence.
If a skill appears in your list but nowhere else on your resume, ask whether it belongs. If it is a skill you use often, find the bullet where it appears. If you cannot find one, it may be a skill you hardly use, and you can leave it out. Your education section can back up skills learned in a course.
What to leave out
- Skills everyone is assumed to have. Typing, email and basic office software rarely need a mention, unless the job is clerical and the posting asks for them specifically.
- Outdated tools. A tool that has not been used in your field for years suggests that your knowledge is old.
- Vague claims. "Hard working" and "fast learner" are not skills.
- Anything you could not discuss. If you would struggle to talk about it for a minute, leave it off.
Software reading the section
Skills are one of the things software looks for. Keep the section as plain text, with commas between items, under a clear heading such as "Skills". Avoid pictures, charts and tables for this section, since they may not be read at all.
Spell out an abbreviation the first time if it may not be well known, with the short form in brackets, for example "Search engine optimization (SEO)". This helps people and software that search for either form. How software reads your resume shows the whole picture.
Common questions
- Should I put soft skills in the skills section?
- A few can fit if they are specific and important to the role, but most are better shown through what you did. A bullet that describes training a team says more than the word "teamwork".
- Is it worth listing a skill I only know a little?
- If the job asks for it and you can describe your level truthfully, such as "basic" or "used for one project", it can help. If you could not discuss it in an interview, leave it out.
- Where should the skills section go?
- Near the top for roles where skills are the main selling point and for people with little experience. Lower down for people whose experience tells most of the story.