Skills to put on a software developer resume

On a developer resume, the technology list is read first: it tells the team whether you speak their language. But a list alone proves nothing. What convinces is finding the same names in your experience and projects, along with what you built with them.

Write each technology the way job ads write it ("Node.js", "PostgreSQL", "REST API"): that is how the recruiter, the applicant tracking system and Trakrio's score make the connection. Keep the ones you have really used, and put first those the target job asks for.

Technical skills

Programming languages

• JavaScript The language of the web, in the browser and on the server: say what you built with it.
• TypeScript Often requested alongside JavaScript: mention it if it was the standard on your projects.
• Python Back end, scripting, automation: say in which context, as the use changes everything for the recruiter.
• Java Widely used in large companies, banks and insurers, often with Spring Boot.
• C# The language of Microsoft's .NET ecosystem, common in corporate and enterprise teams.
• PHP Still widely used on the web, often with Laravel or Symfony: name the framework.
• Go (Golang) Write "Go (Golang)": "Go" alone is an everyday word that searches can miss.
• SQL Often expected of back-end developers: show a query or a data model you designed.

Frameworks and libraries

• React Often requested for front-end roles; list Next.js separately if you have used it.
• Angular Common in large enterprises and consultancies: give the version if it is recent.
• Vue.js Write "Vue.js" rather than "Vue": the bare word is ambiguous for a search engine.
• Node.js Server-side JavaScript: name the API or service you wrote with it.
• Spring Boot The usual way Java teams use the Spring framework, and the form job ads write.
• Django A widely used Python web framework, often paired with Django REST Framework.
• Laravel A popular PHP framework, especially in agencies and small product teams.
• .NET Write ".NET" or "ASP.NET Core" as the ad does, next to C#.

Databases and APIs

• PostgreSQL A relational database often requested, especially on recent projects.
• MySQL Widely used on the web; MariaDB is a close variant.
• MongoDB A well-known document database: say what need made you choose it.
• Redis Caching, queues, sessions: a detail that shows you think about performance.
• REST API Designing and consuming APIs: expected of any back-end or full stack developer.
• GraphQL List it only if you set it up or used it day to day.

Cloud and DevOps

• Docker Containerizing an application has become a baseline, even for developers without a DevOps role.
• Kubernetes Mostly expected for senior back-end and DevOps roles.
• AWS Name the services you used (Lambda, S3, RDS…) in your experience: "AWS" alone stays vague.
• Azure Microsoft's cloud, common in organizations already built on Microsoft tools.
• Google Cloud Also written "GCP" in job ads: one of the two is enough, the other will be understood.
• CI/CD Continuous integration and delivery: name the tool (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins).
• Terraform Infrastructure as code: a clear plus for DevOps and cloud roles.
• Linux The operating system of many servers: useful to everyone, essential in DevOps.

Testing and ways of working

• Git Obvious to you, but recruiters search for it: it belongs in the list.
• Unit testing Name the framework (Jest, pytest, JUnit, PHPUnit) and what the tests prevented.
• E2E tests End-to-end testing (Cypress, Playwright, Selenium): a real sign of rigor on a front-end resume.
• TDD Test-driven development: only if it was your actual practice.
• Agile Many teams call themselves Agile: describe your role in the ceremonies instead.
• Scrum Sprints, reviews, retrospectives: say if you held a role (Scrum Master, team lead).
• Jira A widely used tracking tool: one mention is enough, no need to highlight it.

Soft skills

Soft skills are proven with facts: each one below with how to show it.

• Problem-solving Tell the story of a hard bug or an outage you diagnosed, and how.
• Written communication Documentation, clear tickets, pull request descriptions: the daily work of a remote team.
• Teamwork Code reviews, pair programming, helping others: show it with a fact rather than an adjective.
• Ownership A feature you took from spec to production says more than the word itself.
• Technical curiosity Side projects, open source contributions, keeping up to date: proof you keep learning.
• Product mindset Understanding the user's need before writing code: much sought after in startups.
• Mentoring Onboarding a new hire, explaining a technical choice to a non-developer.

Add these skills to my resume

Click the ones you really have: they join the resume kept in this browser by the resume builder, with no AI and nothing sent. Without a resume, the first click creates it.

Recognized certifications and qualifications

Put them in the Education or Certifications section of your resume, with the year, only if you hold them.

• AWS Certified Developer – Associate Amazon Web Services certification on building applications in its cloud.
• Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Cloud Developer Associate The Microsoft equivalent (exam AI-200), for building back-end and AI services on Azure. It followed the Azure Developer Associate, retired in 2026: if you already hold that one, it still belongs on your CV.
• Google Cloud Professional Cloud Developer Google Cloud certification on building and deploying applications on its platform.
• Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) Linux Foundation certification, a hands-on exam on Kubernetes.
• ISTQB Certified Tester Foundation Level The entry-level software testing certification, also useful to developers (offered by BCS in the UK).
• Software Developer Level 4 Apprenticeship An apprenticeship standard in England: worth listing in your education with the provider's name.

Where to put them on your resume

Add a short Skills section grouped by use (languages, frameworks, databases, tools): the recruiter sees in a few seconds whether your stack matches. A proficiency level only helps if it is honest and comparable; otherwise, years of use say more.

Then repeat the technologies in each job, where you used them: "Built a REST API in Node.js and PostgreSQL for…". That is where a skill becomes proof. For a first role, your projects (bootcamp, university, personal, open source) play that part: see the guide to a resume with no experience.

For each application, move to the top what the job asks for and you master, using the same words as the ad: that is the whole point of the guide to tailoring your resume to a job. The resume / job match checker shows you what is missing.

Example bullet points for your experience

Fictitious examples, built with the XYZ formula: replace them with your own results, and never make up the measure.

• Before Developed new features for the website.

  After Cut product page load time from 4.1 s to 1.8 s by moving rendering server-side with Next.js and caching images.

• Before Maintained the API.

  After Reduced 500 errors on the order API threefold in one quarter by adding integration tests (Jest) and monitoring slow PostgreSQL queries.

• Before Set up Docker.

  After Brought new-hire environment setup down from a full day to under an hour by containerizing five services with Docker Compose.

• Before Took part in deployments.

  After Went from one deployment a day to several by automating tests and releases with GitHub Actions.

Common mistakes

• Listing everything you have touched once. Twenty technologies with no hierarchy bury the three that matter for the job, and each one can become an interview question.
• Skill bars or star ratings. "4 out of 5 stars in Java" compares to nothing. Years of use or a project that shows your level work better.
• Names written differently from job ads. "Vue", "Postgre", "JS": write the full, official names, the ones searches find.
• Technologies missing from your experience. A skill that appears only in the list, never in a job or project, is not proven.
• Forgetting soft skills. A team also hires someone to work with: a fact about collaboration or mentoring in a job beats an adjective.

Frequently asked questions