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How Long Should a Resume Be? A Real Answer, Not a Fixed Rule
The usual advice is one page early in a career and two pages once you have years of relevant work behind you. That is a hiring convention, not a rule anyone enforces, and the honest test is simpler: every line should help the reader decide to call you. A short resume with padding is worse than a two-page one with none.
When one page is right
If you are a student, a recent graduate, or changing fields, one page is usually enough, because most of what you have is not yet directly relevant. Recruiters skim, and a single page shows you can choose what matters.
When two pages are normal
With several roles that each have something specific to say, a second page is common and expected. The thing to protect is the top of page one: your name, title, a short summary and your latest role should be there, because some readers will not turn the page.
When longer is fine
Academic CVs, and some government or research applications, list publications, grants and teaching, and often run several pages. That is a different document with different rules. If the posting asks for a CV in that sense, length follows the content.
What to cut first
Roles from long ago, or unrelated to the job, can shrink to one line or go. Descriptions that list duties anyone in the role would have can become one sentence about what you changed. Interests and similar extras are the first sections to remove when space is tight. Only after that does it make sense to change the layout.
What the resume builder can and cannot tell you
The resume builder shows your resume on a single, continuous sheet that grows as you type. It does not count pages and does not draw page breaks, so the preview alone will not tell you whether you are at one page or two.
The print dialog does. Select Export PDF, and your browser's print preview shows how many pages the A4 output takes. Look at that number before you save. If it is one line over, the layout settings help: in the Text menu, Spacing set to Compact reduces the page padding, and Text size set to Small makes the text a little smaller. The Compact template also tightens the gaps between entries and sections. Close the dialog, change one setting, and export again to see the new count.
Because the tool saves as you type in this browser, you can try a shorter version safely. Make a Backup from the More menu first, and Load a backup brings the longer version back.
If you are on page two by a few lines, cut a line before you shrink the text. A reader notices tiny text sooner than a missing sentence.
For the full walkthrough of the form and the export, see how to build an ATS-friendly resume.