IT Skills for a Resume in 2026: List by Role
Which IT skills to put on a resume in 2026 for help desk, networking, systems administration, security, and cloud roles, how to group them, and how to show your level.
Updated October 30, 20267 min readWritten by the MatchResume.ai team
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Which IT skills to put on a resume in 2026 for help desk, networking, systems administration, security, and cloud roles, how to group them, and how to show your level.
- IT skills are the tools, systems, and methods you use to keep technology running: support, networks, servers, security, cloud, and productivity suites.
- Group skills by area and put the areas the job posting names first.
- Show level with context (environment size, years, certification) instead of star ratings.
What Counts as IT Skills
IT skills are the tools, systems, and methods used to keep an organization's technology working: supporting users, running networks and servers, securing accounts and data, and managing cloud services. They overlap with developer skills but are not the same: an IT resume is judged on what you can keep running, not on what you can build.
Recruiters for IT roles scan the skills section first, so it should show the areas the job needs in the first two lines.
IT Skills List by Area
| Area | Skills to list | Typical roles |
|---|---|---|
| Help desk and support | Ticketing (ServiceNow, Jira Service Management, Zendesk), remote support tools, Windows and macOS troubleshooting, hardware setup, SLA handling, knowledge base writing | Help desk technician, IT support specialist, desktop support |
| Operating systems | Windows 11 and Windows Server, macOS, Linux (Ubuntu, RHEL), PowerShell, Bash, imaging and deployment (Intune, SCCM) | Desktop support, systems administrator |
| Networking | TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VLANs, VPN, firewalls, Wi-Fi, Cisco or Juniper configuration, network monitoring | Network technician, network administrator |
| Identity and access | Active Directory, Entra ID (Azure AD), Group Policy, SSO, MFA, Okta, user lifecycle | Systems administrator, IT administrator |
| Security | Endpoint protection (Defender, CrowdStrike), patch management, vulnerability scanning, backup and recovery, security awareness | Security analyst, systems administrator |
| Cloud and virtualization | Microsoft Azure, AWS, VMware, Hyper-V, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace administration | Cloud administrator, IT administrator |
| Scripting and automation | PowerShell, Python, Bash, Ansible, scheduled tasks, monitoring alerts | Systems administrator, IT operations |
How to Group IT Skills for Your Target Role
Use three to five labelled lines. Put first the areas the job posting mentions most, and use the posting's names for tools when they match what you know.
IT support specialist skills section
Before
Skills: Computers, Windows, troubleshooting, networking, Office, customer service, teamwork, Active Directory
After
Support: ServiceNow, remote support (TeamViewer), hardware setup, SLA tracking Systems: Windows 11, macOS, Intune, Active Directory, Group Policy Networking: TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VPN troubleshooting Productivity: Microsoft 365 admin (Exchange Online, Teams)
How to Show Your Level
Star ratings and percentage bars mean nothing to a recruiter and many applicant tracking systems cannot read them. Show level with context instead:
- Scale: "Administered Microsoft 365 for 250 users"
- Time: "3 years of Windows Server 2019 and 2022"
- Proof: a certification next to the skill, for example CompTIA Network+
- Outcome: a bullet in experience that uses the skill, for example "Cut ticket backlog from 120 to 35 in two months"
IT Skills for Non-IT Jobs
Office, operations, and admin roles also ask for IT skills. Name the advanced level, not the basics:
- Excel: pivot tables, XLOOKUP, Power Query, dashboards
- Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace: shared drives, permissions, Teams or Meet setup
- CRM and ERP: Salesforce, HubSpot, SAP, NetSuite
- Data and reporting: Power BI, Looker Studio, SQL basics
- Automation: Power Automate, Zapier
IT Skills Section Checklist
- ✓Three to five labelled areas, the job's main area first
- ✓Tool names spelled the way the posting spells them
- ✓Only skills used in the last three to four years
- ✓No star ratings, bars, or icons
- ✓Certifications in their own section, with issuer and year
- ✓Every key skill also appears in an experience bullet with a result
See which IT skills a posting expects and which ones your resume is missing: Run the free ATS checker
FAQ
What are IT skills on a resume?
IT skills are the technical abilities you use to support, run, and secure an organization's technology: troubleshooting, operating systems, networking, identity and access, cloud services, security tools, and administration of suites like Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace.
How many IT skills should I list?
Ten to twenty, grouped into three to five areas. Keep only skills you have used recently and could discuss in an interview; cut anything the target job does not need.
Should I list basic computer skills like Microsoft Word?
Not for IT roles: they are assumed. For non-technical roles, name advanced use instead, for example Excel pivot tables and Power Query, or Microsoft 365 administration.
Do IT certifications go in the skills section?
Put them in a separate Certifications section with the issuer and year, and mention the skill they prove in the skills section, for example Networking: TCP/IP, VLANs, Cisco IOS (CCNA).
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