Netherlands CV Maker — Free Dutch CV Builder
Build a CV in the Dutch format and export it as a PDF — with a reminder about the motivation letter employers expect alongside it.
Professional summary — AI draft
AI is used for this one field and nothing else. It reads your job title and the roles you have listed, drafts two or three sentences, and puts them in the summary box for you to edit. The rest of the form never leaves your device.
Download opens your browser’s print dialog — choose Save as PDF as the destination. That keeps a real text layer, which is what lets an applicant tracking system read your CV. Builders that export an image instead produce a file that looks correct and parses as blank.
How to use this tool
- Fill in the form on the left. The fields shown are the ones Netherlands employers expect — fields that would hurt you there are not offered at all.
- Add your roles and education with the Add buttons. The preview updates as you type.
- Optionally click Draft my summary to have AI write the professional summary, then edit it. AI touches nothing else.
- Pick a template — Classic, Modern or Compact — and check the preview on the right.
- Click Download PDF and choose Save as PDF in the print dialog.
Dutch CVs are short, plain and factual — one to two pages, no design flourishes. A photograph is common and entirely optional, which puts the Netherlands between the German convention of including one and the British convention of never doing so. The thing applicants from outside most often miss is that the CV is only half the application: a motivatiebrief, a motivation letter, is expected alongside it almost without exception.
Netherlands CV Maker — Free Dutch CV Builder — the specification
| Photo | Common and optional — either is fine |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | Conventional |
| Motivation letter | Expected alongside the CV |
| Length | 1–2 pages |
| Called | CV |
Netherlands CV Maker — Free Dutch CV Builder: what can go wrong
These are the failures that actually come up, in roughly the order they happen:
- Sending a CV with no motivation letter. In the Netherlands that is an incomplete application rather than a lean one.
- A heavily designed template. Dutch employers favour plain and factual over styled.
How it works
The form is built from a country rule set, not a single template with a different heading. Choosing a country changes which fields exist: the Gulf and German builders ask for a photo, date of birth and visa status, while the US, UK, Canadian and Australian builders do not offer those fields at all — because supplying them there does measurable harm.
The preview beside the form is the actual document. It renders as you type, and the download is your browser printing that same HTML to PDF. That matters more than it sounds: the alternative approach — drawing the resume to a canvas and wrapping the image in a PDF — produces a file that looks perfect and contains no text at all. An applicant tracking system reads it as an empty page. Printing keeps a real text layer, so the resume parses.
Your data is held in your browser's local storage so you can come back to it. It is never sent to us. The one exception is the AI summary draft, which sends only your job title and role list to generate two or three sentences.
Who needs Netherlands CV Maker — Free Dutch CV Builder
Anyone applying for jobs in the Netherlands, including internationals applying to English-language roles.
Netherlands CV Maker — Free Dutch CV Builder — frequently asked questions
Do I need a motivatiebrief?
Almost always. Dutch applications pair a short factual CV with a motivation letter explaining why this role and this organisation. Omitting it is the most common mistake internationals make here. There is a cover letter generator on this site if you want a starting draft.
Photo or no photo?
Either. A photograph is common and will not count against you, and leaving it off will not either. Pick one and do not overthink it.
Will the PDF pass an applicant tracking system?
It should. The export is your browser printing real HTML, which produces a genuine text layer that a parser can read. Builders that export an image instead produce a file that looks correct and parses as blank. Run the result through the ATS Resume Checker on this site if you want it confirmed.
Is my cv data sent anywhere?
No. Everything you type stays in your browser and is saved to your own device's local storage so you can come back to it. The only exception is the optional AI summary, which sends your job title and role list to draft two or three sentences — and nothing else from the form.
How do I download it as a PDF?
Click Download PDF. Your browser's print dialog opens — choose "Save as PDF" as the destination. This is deliberate: printing produces a real text layer, which is what makes the file readable by recruitment software.
Is this tool really free?
Yes. No account, no trial period, no watermark on the output and no cap on how many times you use it. The site is funded by advertising.
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Your CV stays on this device. It is saved in your own browser so you can come back to it, and it is never uploaded to us. Only the optional AI summary leaves the page, and only your job title and role list go with it.
Disclaimer. Hiring conventions described here are the prevailing norms in that market, not rules. Individual employers differ, and a specific job advert always overrides general advice. Full disclaimer.