Cover letter format
A cover letter has a standard shape, and following it lets the reader spend their attention on what you say instead of how it is arranged. The order is a header with your contact details, the date and the employer, a greeting, three or four short paragraphs, and a sign off. The details change a little depending on whether you upload a file or paste the letter into an email or a form.
The header
At the top, put your name, then your phone number, email address, and city and state on one or two lines. A link to a portfolio or a professional profile can go here if it helps the application.
Below that, add the date and, if you know them, the hiring manager's name, title, company, and the company's city. In an email, leave out the date and the employer block, and put your contact details under your name at the end instead.
The greeting
Use the hiring manager's name if the posting or the company site gives it. If you are not sure which title they use, write the full name, such as Dear Morgan Lee. If you cannot find a name, Dear Hiring Team or Dear Hiring Manager is fine. Avoid To whom it may concern, which reads as if you did not look.
Check the spelling of the name and use the title they use for themselves.
The body: three or four paragraphs
The opening names the role and gives one honest reason you want this one. The middle paragraph gives your best proof: one real example from your work that matches the most important duty in the posting, with what you did and what changed. An optional fit paragraph adds one or two more things from the posting you have done. The closing paragraph says you would welcome a conversation and how to reach you.
Keep paragraphs to a few sentences each. A reader should be able to take in the whole letter on one screen.
The sign off
Sincerely, Best regards, or Thank you are all fine. Follow it with your full name. In an uploaded file you can add a typed name only; a scanned signature is not needed.
In an email, add a short signature with your phone number and a link if you have one.
Length, font, and file
Aim for well under a page, about half a page of text or a few hundred words. Use the same font as your resume at a size between ten and twelve points, margins of about an inch, left aligned text, and a single blank line between paragraphs and between the header blocks. Write the date in full, such as the month, day, and year.
Save as a PDF unless the application asks for a Word file, and name it with your name and the words cover letter, so it is easy to find. If the form has a text box instead of an upload, paste the body only, starting from the greeting.
Format a cover letter
Write the header
Your contact details, the date, and the employer if you know them.
Find a name for the greeting
Use Dear Hiring Team if you cannot find one.
Write three or four short paragraphs
Opening, proof, fit, and close.
Sign off with your name
Add a contact line in an email.
Match your resume and save
Same font, a PDF unless asked otherwise, and a clear file name.
Cover letter format example
A complete letter laid out for an uploaded file, then the layout of the same letter sent as an email. The person, company, and results are invented, so write your own.
Laid out letter (invented example)
Jordan Rivera [phone] | jordan.rivera@example.com | Austin, TX [Month Day, Year] Morgan Lee Operations Manager Example Outdoor Goods Denver, CO Dear Morgan Lee, I am applying for the Operations Analyst role at Example Outdoor Goods. Your posting puts late orders and inventory accuracy at the center of the job, and that is the work I have done for the past few years. At Example Supply Co., late orders were discussed every week without anyone agreeing on the cause. I built a report that split late orders by stage, and it showed most delays started at receiving, not packing. The warehouse leads now use that report to plan staffing each week. Your posting also asks for process mapping and work with vendors. I mapped our returns process with the support team and removed two manual handoffs, and in my previous role I scheduled inbound deliveries for a three shift warehouse. I would welcome a conversation about the role. I am reachable at the email and phone number above. Sincerely, Jordan Rivera
Email layout, paragraphs shown by name
Subject: Operations Analyst application, Jordan Rivera Dear Morgan Lee, [Opening] [Proof] [Fit] [Close] Best regards, Jordan Rivera [phone] | jordan.rivera@example.com
Related reading
Questions
- What is the correct format for a cover letter?
- A header with your contact details, the date and the employer, a greeting, three or four short paragraphs, and a sign off with your name.
- How long should a cover letter be?
- Well under a page. Three or four short paragraphs are enough for most roles.
- How do I format a cover letter in an email?
- Put the role and your name in the subject line, start with the greeting, and put your contact details under your name at the end.
Where ApplyASAP fits
When you are applying to many roles, ApplyASAP can tailor your resume to each posting and submit the applications for you.
ApplyASAP is one option when you want the sending done for you. It finds openings for the titles and places you name, tailors your resume to each posting, and does not invent employers, dates, degrees, titles, numbers, certifications, or people you managed. It answers the application questions, and the team sends and tracks each application. Skills it adds are ones your role and level usually carry, and you can take any of them off. The resume still has to be true.
Want to see how one resume lines up with one posting? Try the free resume keyword checker. It runs in your browser and saves nothing.