diff --git a/backend/.env.example b/backend/.env.example
index 406a41b83..3bfb4a2a6 100644
--- a/backend/.env.example
+++ b/backend/.env.example
@@ -31,4 +31,5 @@ RAZORPAY_KEY_SECRET=your_razorpay_key_secret
 # linkedin
 LINKEDIN_CLIENT_ID=your_linkedin_clientId
 LINKEDIN_CLIENT_SECRET=your_linkedin_client_secret
-LINKEDIN_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:5000/api/auth/linkedin/callback
\ No newline at end of file
+LINKEDIN_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:5000/api/auth/linkedin/callback
+GEMINI_API_KEY=dummy-key-for-local-dev
diff --git a/backend/src/middleware/paginate.js b/backend/src/middleware/paginate.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d30b2ad6e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/src/middleware/paginate.js
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+import { asyncHandler } from './errorHandler.js';
+
+/**
+ * Pagination middleware
+ * Reads page, limit, sort from query params
+ * Attaches pagination helpers to req.paginate
+ * Usage: router.get('/', verifyToken, paginate(), asyncHandler(...))
+ */
+export const paginate = () =>
+  asyncHandler(async (req, res, next) => {
+    // Parse page (default 1, minimum 1)
+    const page = Math.max(1, parseInt(req.query.page) || 1);
+
+    // Parse limit (default 10, max 100)
+    const limit = Math.min(100, Math.max(1, parseInt(req.query.limit) || 10));
+
+    // Parse sort field and direction
+    // Usage: ?sort=createdAt or ?sort=-createdAt (minus = descending)
+    const sortParam = req.query.sort || '-createdAt';
+    const sortOrder = sortParam.startsWith('-') ? -1 : 1;
+    const sortField = sortParam.replace(/^-/, '');
+
+    const skip = (page - 1) * limit;
+
+    // Attach to req so route handlers can use it
+    req.paginate = {
+      page,
+      limit,
+      skip,
+      sort: { [sortField]: sortOrder }
+    };
+
+    next();
+  });
+
+/**
+ * Helper to build consistent paginated response
+ * Call this inside your route handler to send the response
+ */
+export const paginatedResponse = (res, { data, total, page, limit }) => {
+  const totalPages = Math.ceil(total / limit);
+
+  res.json({
+    success: true,
+    data,
+    meta: {
+      total,
+      page,
+      limit,
+      totalPages,
+      hasNextPage: page < totalPages,
+      hasPrevPage: page > 1
+    }
+  });
+};
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/backend/src/routes/resume.js b/backend/src/routes/resume.js
index e25f3db35..e60591c64 100644
--- a/backend/src/routes/resume.js
+++ b/backend/src/routes/resume.js
@@ -1,33 +1,31 @@
 import express from 'express';
 import { verifyToken } from '../middleware/auth.js';
 import { asyncHandler, ApiError } from '../middleware/errorHandler.js';
+import { paginate, paginatedResponse } from '../middleware/paginate.js';
 import Resume from '../models/Resume.model.js';
 
 const router = express.Router();
 
-// Get all resumes for a user
-router.get('/', verifyToken, asyncHandler(async (req, res) => {
+// Get all resumes for a user (paginated)
+router.get('/', verifyToken, paginate(), asyncHandler(async (req, res) => {
   const userId = req.user.uid;
-  
-  // Get resumes from MongoDB sorted by creation date (newest first)
+  const { page, limit, skip, sort } = req.paginate;
+
+  const total = await Resume.countDocuments({ userId });
+
   const userResumes = await Resume.find({ userId })
-    .sort({ createdAt: -1 })
+    .sort(sort)
+    .skip(skip)
+    .limit(limit)
     .lean();
 
-  // Transform _id to id for frontend compatibility
   const resumes = userResumes.map(resume => ({
     id: resume._id.toString(),
     ...resume,
     _id: undefined
   }));
 
-  res.json({
-    success: true,
-    data: {
-      resumes,
-      count: resumes.length
-    }
-  });
+  paginatedResponse(res, { data: resumes, total, page, limit });
 }));
 
 // Get a specific resume