A study of 450 CVs by Personal Career Management found 81% had spelling or grammar errors and 13% used "irrelevant or clumsy language".
Julian Acquari, managing director of Monster UK and Ireland, said: "Many employers only need to see one mistake to send CVs straight to the recycle bin."
And Corinne Mills, author of You're Hired! How to Write a brilliant CV, added: "Many of the people whose CVs end up in the wastepaper bin are perfectly capable of doing the job. But a poor CV means they will not get the opportunity to prove it.
"Why would anyone want to employ a lawyer or secretary who makes spelling mistakes or errors? If they can't pay attention to their own CV, why would you trust them to work on any of your company's documents?"
Nine out of ten CVs get binned before interview
More than nine out of 10 CVs (94%) do not make it through to the next stage of the recruitment process.