What format should your portfolio be in 2026?
Chapters
Portfolio Clinic is our series tackling the portfolio questions emerging creatives are actually asking — with insight from the people reviewing work every day. For our first edition, we started with a big one: what format should your portfolio be in for 2026?
Peter Larkin
Creative Director at Nice and Serious
Choose the format that fits your work
PDFs still seem to be the most common format we see, but it’s much more of a mix these days – with portfolio websites still being quite popular, as well as Figma, Google Slides and Canva presentation links popping up more and more.
I can only really speak for our agency, but I wouldn’t say the format influences our decision. As long as it’s quick to load and easy to navigate, the main thing is that it tells an interesting story about the applicant and helps us quickly get a sense of their skills.
What to avoid
The one thing I would probably avoid is password-protected websites, as it’s easy to lose track of the password when sharing with colleagues or revisiting at a later date. If you’ve got private work to share, stick to a PDF or unlisted link.
Think about the viewing experience
I wouldn’t say the format itself can hurt someone’s chances but definitely think through the experience from the employers perspective. If it’s a PDF, have you optimised it so it's quick to load or are you making them download a 200MB file? Have you tested your portfolio site and worked out all the bugs? Is it easy to navigate, and do people read things in the order you want them to?
“Avoid password-protected websites. If you’ve got private work to share, stick to a PDF or unlisted link.”
Peter LarkinCreative Director at Nice and Serious
Match the format to your work
Make sure you’re picking a format that’s appropriate for the type of work you do. Lots of film experience or motion work? A website with embedded videos is going to show off your skills much more seamlessly than having to open lots of separate links.
One final piece of advice
With the amount of applications we receive, it can sometimes only be a couple of minutes spent reviewing each portfolio.
Time yourself and see how much you can absorb in that amount of time. What could you cut to make it stronger?
“With the amount of applications we receive, it can sometimes only be a couple of minutes spent reviewing each portfolio.”
Peter LarkinCreative Director at Nice and Serious
Start with the story you want your portfolio to tell and then pick the format that works best for the type of work that you do. But above all, test it with friends, family, mentors – whoever you can – and make sure it’s easy for them to use and understand quickly.
The last thing you want is for your application to be overlooked because the download was too big or the website didn’t load properly.
James McLearie
Design Recruiter at Represent
Where your portfolio lives matters less than you think
You’re going to hear so much contradictory advice about this type of thing.
But from my perspective, thinking about great junior designer portfolios we’ve placed over the years – it doesn’t matter so much where it lives. It could be a PDF, it could be a Figma.
Why websites can be trickier
Websites are a tricky one because it’s harder to have a linear story – you’re less in control of what the viewer is doing.
If you have a document, for example in Figma, you’re in control of who’s seeing what and when.
“Thinking about great junior designer portfolios we’ve placed over the years – it doesn’t matter so much where it lives.”
James McLearieConsultant at Represent
Match the format to the type of work you do
If you’re an editorial or publication designer, a PDF is going to be the best tool for the job. If you’re a UX or UI designer, a website’s going to be the way to go. If you do a bit of everything, Figma or InDesign Publish is great.
You just need to pick the best tool for the job and lead with your work.
Why Figma can signal fluency
Most clients and design studios are using Figma every day. Sending a deck in Figma does show you know how to use it – you’re already ticking boxes subconsciously for the client.
Joe Cooper
Head of Design & New Business at Represent
What most portfolios look like now
Most portfolios we receive now are on Figma. As motion and video work has become quicker to load, Figma has become a more practical format for sharing it.
“These days we send far more decks than websites because you can control the narrative and the order in which the viewer sees the work.”
Joe CooperHead of Design & New Business at Represent
Why decks are replacing websites
These days we send far more decks than websites because you can control the narrative and the order in which the viewer is seeing the work.
With a deck you can quickly amend or edit for a particular instance – for example, reorder projects to suit a specific studio.
You can curate and tailor a deck much more easily than a website, which has to be one-size-fits-all.
Do’s and don’ts from the people reviewing portfolios
✅ Do
- Choose a format that fits the type of work you do.
- Make sure it’s quick to load and easy to navigate.
- Time yourself and see what’s clear in the first few minutes.
- Test it with friends, family or mentors to make sure it’s easy to understand quickly.
- Consider whether Figma could work for your discipline as a signal of fluency in the software.
❌ Don’t
- Don’t assume the format itself will influence the decision.
- Don’t slow reviewers down with large files or awkward downloads.
- Don’t use password-protected links that are hard to revisit or share.
- Don’t pick a format that works against the type of work you’re showing.