resume-cli is a command-line tool (CLI) written in Go, that helps create professional CVs from a YAML configuration file and an optional theme. The tool is inspired by JSON Resume and outputs the CV to PDF or HTML with just one command.

Problem Solved

Creating a CV with Word or design tools wastes your time on formatting. Each time you update information or change templates, you have to fix the layout, making it difficult to track change history, and it's easy to have multiple conflicting versions of your CV.

Existing "code-style CV" tools also have their own limitations:

• JSON Resume uses JSON. This format does not allow for comments, is prone to errors due to missing commas or brackets, and multi-line descriptions must be written as long strings with line break characters, which are hard to read and edit.
• LaTeX provides beautiful prints but requires a heavy toolset, has complex syntax, hard-to-understand compilation errors, and content is mixed with presentation commands.

resume-cli uses YAML: minimal extraneous characters, allows comments (#), and writes multi-line paragraphs in a natural and easy-to-read way, even for non-experts. Content is separated from the interface: you only update the data once, and the layout is handled by the theme. The data organization remains familiar thanks to inspiration from JSON Resume, but you do not need to install a LaTeX environment.

Main Features

• resume dev: runs a development server to preview the CV with the theme as you edit.
• resume generate: exports the CV to PDF (default, using headless Chrome) or HTML, with an option to minimize HTML.
• Flexible theming system: use local themes or clone from a remote git repository, supporting Go templates and Handlebars.
• Helper functions written in Go for themes; remote themes must enable --allow-remote-helpers proactively due to the risk of code execution.
• Configuration via resume.config.yaml, with the ability to override the theme using the --theme parameter.

Real-world Example

Minh is a backend engineer applying to three companies: a bank, a startup, and an outsourcing company. He keeps his CV in a Git repository on a single branch, with three configuration files: resume.ngan-hang.yaml, resume.startup.yaml, and resume.outsourcing.yaml. Each file emphasizes relevant experience: security and payment systems for the bank, while the startup prioritizes projects made from scratch. When he needs a CV for a specific company, he runs resume generate --config resume.startup.yaml and immediately receives a PDF with the unchanged layout.

Six months later, when updating his CV, Minh reviews the commit history to see what changes he made to each file over time. Each time he adds a new project, he only edits the necessary files and then commits once.

Who Should Use It

• Programmers and engineers who want to manage their CVs like source code using Git.
• Individuals who frequently update their CV or need multiple versions for different positions.
• Theme designers who want to build and share their own CV templates.

Getting Started

Supports macOS, Linux, and Windows (PDF creation requires Chrome or Chromium to be installed).

1. Installation: download the release or run go install from source.
2. Create resume.config.yaml based on sample_config.yaml and choose a theme.
3. Run resume dev to preview.
4. Run resume generate to export the CV into the generated directory.

Key Differences

• A single binary file, no need for Node.js or a complex environment.
• Themes fetched from git repositories, along with Go-written helpers.
• Includes a live preview server and PDF export in the same tool.
• Content is plain text, easy to version control and track changes.