How to Build a Resume That Gets You Into FAANG Companies
The real strategies that got 1,000+ engineers into Google, Meta, Amazon, Netflix, and Apple.
What You'll Learn
The Format That Works
FAANG companies see thousands of resumes weekly. Recruiters spend 6 seconds on average scanning yours. That means if your resume doesn't instantly look professional, you're out.
Skip the creativity. No colors, no graphics, no multiple columns. Here's what works:
The Standard FAANG Format:
- Header: Name, phone, email, LinkedIn, GitHub (clean, one line)
- Experience: Most recent first, with quantified achievements (3-5 bullets each)
- Education: Degree, school, GPA (if >3.5), relevant coursework
- Skills: Languages, frameworks, tools—grouped by category
- Projects: 2-3 impressive side projects with links
Pro Tip: Font & Spacing
Use 10-11pt font (Calibri, Arial, or Times New Roman), 0.5-1 inch margins, and consistent spacing. ATS systems parse these fonts best. Avoid headers/footers—they often get stripped.
That's it. One page. PDF format. ATS-friendly. The simpler, the better.
Bullet Points That Get Interviews
This is where most people blow it. Your bullet points either make you look like everyone else, or they make you stand out. Here's the difference:
Bad Example
"Worked on backend services to improve performance and reliability. Collaborated with cross-functional teams."
❌ Vague, no numbers, passive language
Good Example
"Reduced API latency by 45% by implementing Redis caching and optimizing PostgreSQL queries, serving 2M+ daily requests."
✓ Specific tech, quantified impact, scale
The X-Y-Z Formula (Google's Own Advice):
"Accomplished [X] as measured by [Y], by doing [Z]"
X = What you did: Built, Designed, Optimized, Architected, Led
Y = How you measured it: 45% faster, 2M users, $500K saved
Z = How you did it: Redis caching, React migration, Kubernetes
More Before/After Examples:
"Developed features for the mobile app."
"Shipped 5 major features for iOS app (Swift), increasing user retention by 23% and achieving 4.8★ App Store rating."
"Managed the CI/CD pipeline."
"Redesigned CI/CD pipeline using GitHub Actions and Docker, reducing deployment time from 45 minutes to 8 minutes and enabling 50+ daily deploys."
"Worked on the recommendation system."
"Built real-time recommendation engine using Python and Apache Kafka, processing 10M events/day and improving click-through rate by 18%."
What FAANG Wants to See in Experience
FAANG companies evaluate your experience on three dimensions. Make sure every bullet point hits at least one:
1. Scale
Did you work on systems that served thousands or millions of users? Did you process terabytes of data? Scale matters. If your work had scale, mention it.
Example keywords: "1M+ users", "10TB dataset", "99.99% uptime", "global rollout"
2. Impact
What changed because of your work? Revenue increase? Performance improvement? User growth? Show the before and after.
Example keywords: "increased by 40%", "saved $2M annually", "reduced by 60%"
3. Technical Depth
Mention the actual technologies. Don't say "databases"—say PostgreSQL. Don't say "cloud"—say AWS Lambda and S3. Be specific.
Example keywords: "React 18", "Go microservices", "Kubernetes", "gRPC"
ATS Keywords That Get You Past the Robots
75% of resumes are rejected by ATS before a human ever sees them. Include these keywords naturally in your bullets:
Languages & Frameworks
Infrastructure & Tools
⚠️ Don't Keyword Stuff
ATS systems are smart. Only include technologies you can actually discuss in an interview. If you list "Kubernetes" but can't explain a deployment strategy, you'll fail the technical screen.
Projects That Actually Impress
Your side projects can make or break your application, especially if you don't have FAANG experience already.
🎯 What Makes a Project Impressive:
- ✓ Solves a real problem — not just a tutorial clone
- ✓ Has actual users — or at least could have users
- ✓ Shows technical depth — distributed systems, algorithms, architecture
- ✓ Clean GitHub repo — with README, tests, and documentation
- ✓ Deployed and live — bonus points if it's getting traffic
Project Ideas That Stand Out:
🔥 Real-time collaboration tool
Shows WebSocket expertise, state management, conflict resolution
📊 Data pipeline / ETL system
Shows distributed systems thinking, data engineering skills
🤖 ML-powered application
Shows you can deploy models, not just train them in notebooks
⚡ Developer tool / CLI
Shows you understand developer experience and tooling
Don't list "weather app using React" unless it does something unique. Build things that show you can think beyond tutorials.
Mistakes That Get You Auto-Rejected
🚫 Multiple Pages
Unless you have 10+ years of experience, keep it to one page. FAANG recruiters won't read page two. Seriously.
🚫 Fancy Formatting
No infographics, skill bars, or creative layouts. These break ATS systems and look unprofessional. Stick to simple, clean formatting.
🚫 Generic Descriptions
"Responsible for..." and "Worked on..." are automatic eye-glazers. Start with strong action verbs: Built, Designed, Optimized, Architected, Spearheaded, Reduced.
🚫 No Numbers
If you don't quantify your impact, your achievements don't feel real. Always include metrics: percentages, user counts, dollar amounts, time saved.
🚫 Listing Every Technology
A skills section with 40 technologies signals "I've touched everything, mastered nothing." Focus on 8-12 technologies you know deeply.
Company-Specific Tips
Each FAANG company has its own culture and priorities. Tailor your resume accordingly:
Emphasize scale and algorithmic thinking. Google loves seeing systems that handle millions of requests. Mention any work with distributed systems, large datasets, or complex algorithms.
Meta
Focus on impact and moving fast. Meta values engineers who ship quickly and iterate. Highlight times you delivered under tight deadlines or drove significant user growth.
Amazon
Align with Leadership Principles. Use their language: "customer obsession," "ownership," "dive deep," "deliver results." Every bullet should demonstrate at least one LP.
Apple
Highlight attention to detail and user experience. Apple cares deeply about polish. Show projects where you obsessed over quality and user-facing excellence.
Netflix
Emphasize ownership and senior-level judgment. Netflix hires experienced engineers who can operate independently. Show instances where you made impactful decisions without hand-holding.
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The Bottom Line
Getting into FAANG is competitive, but your resume doesn't have to be the weak link. Follow this format, write bullet points that show real impact, and make every word count.
Focus on what actually matters: clear formatting, quantified achievements, and technical depth. Skip the creativity. Just show you can build things that matter.
"Your skills got you here. Let your resume show it."