UseResume

Generate professional PDF resumes and cover letters via the useresume.ai API. Supports creating, tailoring (AI-optimized for a job), and parsing documents.

Security Scan

The skill's requirements and instructions match its stated purpose (a CLI wrapper for useresume.ai) and request only the expected API key and binary; the only notable risk is the usual npm package/supply-chain risk from installing @useresume/cli.

Purpose & Capability

Name/description (generate/tailor/parse resumes via useresume.ai) align with declared requirements: a USERESUME_API_KEY and a 'useresume' CLI binary. The npm CLI package is a fitting way to provide that binary.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md commands and examples are limited to creating, tailoring, parsing resumes/cover letters and credential testing. It asks for local file paths only when parsing local files and points to the useresume.ai domain for API keys — no unrelated file paths, credentials, or external endpoints are referenced.

Install Mechanism

Install uses an npm formula (@useresume/cli) which is expected for providing the required 'useresume' binary; npm packages carry standard supply-chain risk (postinstall scripts, malicious package versions). This is not disproportionate but worth verifying the package provenance (publisher, repo, reviews) before global install.

Credentials

Only USERESUME_API_KEY is required and declared as the primary credential, which is appropriate for an API-backed resume service. No unrelated credentials, secrets, or config paths are requested.

Persistence & Privilege

Skill is not always-enabled and does not request persistent system-wide privileges. It's instruction-only and relies on an external CLI; nothing in the spec modifies other skills or agent-wide settings.

Assessment

This skill appears coherent: it simply invokes the useresume.ai CLI and requires a USERESUME_API_KEY. Before installing, verify the npm package @useresume/cli is the official package (check the publisher, package page, repository link, recent versions and reviews). Prefer installing in a confined environment (non-root or container) if you have supply-chain concerns. After installing, run 'useresume credentials:test' to confirm the API key operates as expected. Only provide an API key whose scope/access you trust (avoid sharing broad/long-lived credentials if possible).

useresume CLI

Generate professional PDF resumes and cover letters via the useresume.ai API.

Setup

npm install -g @useresume/cli
export USERESUME_API_KEY=ur_your_key_here

Get an API key at https://useresume.ai/account/api-platform

Verify credentials

useresume credentials:test

Returns account status on success, including credits and expiry. Invalid keys return JSON with success: false and a non-zero exit code.

---

Commands

All commands output JSON to stdout. All --input flags accept a path to a JSON file.

resume:create (1 credit)

useresume resume:create --input <path-to-json>

Input JSON schema:

{
  "content": {
    "name": "string (optional, max 1000)",
    "role": "string (optional, max 1000)",
    "email": "string (optional, max 250)",
    "phone": "string (optional, max 250)",
    "address": "string (optional, max 1000)",
    "photo_url": "string (optional, valid URL, max 2000)",
    "summary": "string (optional, max 5000)",
    "date_of_birth": "string (optional)",
    "marital_status": "string (optional)",
    "nationality": "string (optional)",
    "visa_status": "string (optional)",
    "pronouns": "string (optional)",
    "employment": [
      {
        "title": "string",
        "company": "string",
        "location": "string (optional)",
        "short_description": "string (optional)",
        "start_date": "YYYY-MM-DD",
        "end_date": "YYYY-MM-DD (optional if present=true)",
        "present": "boolean",
        "responsibilities": [{ "text": "string" }]
      }
    ],
    "education": [
      {
        "degree": "string",
        "institution": "string",
        "location": "string (optional)",
        "short_description": "string (optional)",
        "start_date": "YYYY-MM-DD",
        "end_date": "YYYY-MM-DD (optional if present=true)",
        "present": "boolean",
        "achievements": [{ "text": "string" }]
      }
    ],
    "skills": [
      {
        "name": "string",
        "proficiency": "Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Expert",
        "display_proficiency": "boolean (optional)"
      }
    ],
    "certifications": [
      {
        "name": "string",
        "institution": "string (optional)",
        "start_date": "YYYY-MM-DD (optional)",
        "end_date": "YYYY-MM-DD (optional)",
        "present": "boolean (optional)"
      }
    ],
    "languages": [
      {
        "language": "string",
        "proficiency": "Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Fluent",
        "display_proficiency": "boolean (optional)"
      }
    ],
    "references": [
      {
        "name": "string",
        "title": "string (optional)",
        "company": "string (optional)",
        "email": "string (optional)",
        "phone": "string (optional)"
      }
    ],
    "projects": [
      {
        "name": "string",
        "short_description": "string (optional)",
        "start_date": "YYYY-MM-DD (optional)",
        "end_date": "YYYY-MM-DD (optional)",
        "present": "boolean (optional)"
      }
    ],
    "activities": [
      {
        "name": "string",
        "short_description": "string (optional)"
      }
    ],
    "summary_section_name": "string (optional, default 'Summary')",
    "employment_section_name": "string (optional, default 'Employment')",
    "skills_section_name": "string (optional, default 'Skills')",
    "education_section_name": "string (optional, default 'Education')",
    "certifications_section_name": "string (optional)",
    "languages_section_name": "string (optional)",
    "references_section_name": "string (optional)",
    "projects_section_name": "string (optional)",
    "activities_section_name": "string (optional)"
  },
  "style": {
    "template": "TEMPLATE enum (see below)",
    "template_color": "COLOR enum (see below)",
    "font": "FONT enum (see below)",
    "background_color": "BACKGROUND enum (see below, optional)",
    "page_padding": "number 0-2 (optional)",
    "gap_multiplier": "number 0.5-1.5 (optional)",
    "font_size_multiplier": "number 0.8-1.2 (optional)",
    "profile_picture_radius": "rounded-full | rounded-xl | rounded-none (optional)",
    "date_format": "LLL yyyy | LL/yyyy | dd/LL/yyyy | LL/dd/yyyy | dd.LL.yyyy | yyyy (optional)",
    "document_language": "en | es | fr | de | it | pt | nl | pl | lt (optional)",
    "page_format": "a4 | letter (optional)",
    "resume_structure": [
      { "section_id": "string", "position_index": "number 0-25" }
    ]
  }
}

resume:create-tailored (5 credits)

useresume resume:create-tailored --input <path-to-json>

Input JSON schema:

{
  "resume_content": {
    "content": { "...same as resume:create content..." },
    "style": { "...same as resume:create style..." }
  },
  "target_job": {
    "job_title": "string (max 250)",
    "job_description": "string (max 10000)"
  },
  "tailoring_instructions": "string (optional, max 2000)"
}

resume:parse (4 credits)

useresume resume:parse --file-url <url> --parse-to json
useresume resume:parse --file <local-path> --parse-to markdown

Provide exactly one of --file-url (public URL, max 20MB) or --file (local path, auto base64-encoded, max 4MB) — passing both is an error. --parse-to is required: json returns structured resume data, markdown returns text.

cover-letter:create (1 credit)

useresume cover-letter:create --input <path-to-json>

Input JSON schema:

{
  "content": {
    "name": "string (optional, max 1000)",
    "address": "string (optional, max 1000)",
    "email": "string (optional, max 250)",
    "phone": "string (optional, max 250)",
    "text": "string (optional, max 15000) — the main body",
    "hiring_manager_company": "string (optional, max 250)",
    "hiring_manager_name": "string (optional, max 250)",
    "role": "string (optional, max 1000)"
  },
  "style": {
    "template": "CL_TEMPLATE enum (see below)",
    "template_color": "COLOR enum (see below)",
    "font": "FONT enum (see below)",
    "background_color": "BACKGROUND enum (see below, optional)",
    "page_padding": "number 0-2 (optional)",
    "gap_multiplier": "number 0.5-1.5 (optional)",
    "font_size_multiplier": "number 0.8-1.2 (optional)",
    "document_language": "en | es | fr | de | it | pt | nl | pl | lt (optional)",
    "page_format": "a4 | letter (optional)"
  }
}

cover-letter:create-tailored (5 credits)

useresume cover-letter:create-tailored --input <path-to-json>

Input JSON schema:

{
  "cover_letter_content": {
    "content": { "...same as cover-letter:create content..." },
    "style": { "...same as cover-letter:create style..." }
  },
  "target_job": {
    "job_title": "string (max 250)",
    "job_description": "string (max 10000)"
  },
  "tailoring_instructions": "string (optional, max 2000)"
}

cover-letter:parse (4 credits)

useresume cover-letter:parse --file-url <url> --parse-to json
useresume cover-letter:parse --file <local-path> --parse-to markdown

Same flags as resume:parse. Exactly one of --file-url or --file is required.

run:get (0 credits)

useresume run:get <run-id>

Returns the status of a previous run. Response includes status: "success", "error", or "in_progress".

credentials:test (0 credits)

useresume credentials:test

Tests API key validity and returns account status including available credits and key expiry. Use this before expensive operations to check if the account can afford the call.

Response:

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "api_platform_user_id": "user_abc",
    "api_credits": 96,
    "expires_at": "2026-12-31T00:00:00Z"
  }
}

Invalid key / unauthorized response:

{
  "success": false,
  "data": {
    "valid": false,
    "status": 401,
    "message": "Unauthorized"
  }
}

---

Enums

TEMPLATE (resume, 29 options)

default, clean, classic, executive, modern-pro, meridian, horizon, atlas, prism, nova, zenith, vantage, summit, quantum, vertex, harvard, lattice, strata, cascade, pulse, folio, ridge, verso, ledger, tableau, apex, herald, beacon, onyx

CL_TEMPLATE (cover letter, 11 options)

atlas, classic, clean, default, executive, horizon, meridian, modern-pro, nova, prism, zenith

COLOR (32 options)

blue, black, emerald, purple, rose, amber, slate, indigo, teal, burgundy, forest, navy, charcoal, plum, olive, maroon, steel, sapphire, pine, violet, mahogany, sienna, moss, midnight, copper, cobalt, crimson, sage, aqua, coral, graphite, turquoise

FONT (9 options)

geist, inter, merryweather, roboto, playfair, lora, jost, manrope, ibm-plex-sans

BACKGROUND (16 options)

white, cream, pearl, mist, smoke, ash, frost, sage, mint, blush, lavender, sky, sand, stone, linen, ivory

SECTION_ID (for resume_structure)

summary, employment, skills, education, certifications, languages, references, projects, activities, or a custom string for any custom sections

---

Response Formats

Create response

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "file_url": "https://...",
    "file_url_expires_at": 1234567890,
    "file_expires_at": 1234567890,
    "file_size_bytes": 54321
  },
  "meta": {
    "run_id": "run_abc123",
    "credits_used": 1,
    "credits_remaining": 95
  }
}

Parse response (json)

{
  "success": true,
  "data": { "...structured resume/cover letter object..." },
  "meta": { "run_id": "...", "credits_used": 4, "credits_remaining": 91 }
}

Parse response (markdown)

{
  "success": true,
  "data": "# Jane Doe\n\n## Summary\n...",
  "meta": { "run_id": "...", "credits_used": 4, "credits_remaining": 91 }
}

Run status response

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "id": "run_abc123",
    "status": "success | error | in_progress",
    "endpoint": "/resume/create",
    "credits_used": 1,
    "file_url": "https://...",
    "file_url_expires_at": 1234567890,
    "file_expires_at": 1234567890,
    "file_size_bytes": 54321,
    "created_at": 1234567890
  }
}

Error response

{
  "success": false,
  "error": {
    "code": "HTTP_401",
    "message": "useResume API Error: ..."
  }
}

---

Common Agent Workflows

0. Check budget before calling

useresume credentials:test
# Read .data.api_credits — compare against the cost of your next command
# If credits < cost, tell the user to top up at https://useresume.ai/account/api-platform

1. Create a resume from user data

# 1. Write the JSON input to a temp file
cat > /tmp/resume.json << 'EOF'
{ "content": { "name": "...", ... }, "style": { "template": "clean", "template_color": "blue", "font": "inter" } }
EOF

# 2. Generate the PDF
useresume resume:create --input /tmp/resume.json
# Returns JSON with file_url to the PDF

2. Parse an existing resume, tailor it for a job

# 1. Parse to get structured data
useresume resume:parse --file ./existing-resume.pdf --parse-to json
# Save the returned data.content

# 2. Use parsed data + job description to create a tailored version
cat > /tmp/tailored.json << 'EOF'
{
  "resume_content": { "content": { ...parsed data... }, "style": { "template": "clean", "template_color": "navy", "font": "inter" } },
  "target_job": { "job_title": "Senior Engineer", "job_description": "..." }
}
EOF
useresume resume:create-tailored --input /tmp/tailored.json

3. Poll for async completion

Some operations may return in_progress. Poll with:

useresume run:get <run-id>
# Check .data.status — repeat until "success" or "error"

---

Credit Costs

Command	Credits
resume:create	1
resume:create-tailored	5
resume:parse	4
cover-letter:create	1
cover-letter:create-tailored	5
cover-letter:parse	4
run:get	0
credentials:test	0