How to Address a Cover Letter (and Who to Address)

Table of Contents

Rating

Your cover letter greeting is the very first thing employers see when they read your cover letter. If you want to make a good first impression, start your cover letter by addressing it to the hiring manager or HR manager.

This helps you quickly establish a personal connection and shows that you’ve done your research.

Don’t have the hiring manager’s name? No problem – we’ll show you exactly what to do.

How to write a cover letter

Dread writing cover letters? Read our guide to learn how to write a great cover letter that convinces hiring managers you’re the ideal person for the job.

Read Our Guide

How to find out who to address a cover letter to

If the hiring manager’s name isn’t mentioned in the job description, you should still make an effort to find it.

Before you go with a generic greeting, check the following places first:

The company website: See if you can locate the hiring manager on the “About Us” or “Company Directory” page of the company’s website.
LinkedIn: Use filters such as position title, location, and personal names to find out who heads the hiring team.
Google search: Simply insert the company website and relevant title into Google in the following format: site:resumegenius.com “position title”

As a final effort, contact the company to request the hiring manager’s name. Email the company and ask for the contact person’s name (and direct email address if you don’t have it already). Explain that you’re applying for a position and you’d like to address your cover letter to someone responsible for filling that position.

How to address a cover letter without a name

If you still can’t find the hiring manager’s name, or you don’t want to risk addressing the wrong person, here are the most common ways to address a cover letter without a name:

How to address a cover letter without a name

Dear Human Resources Director,
Dear Hiring Manager,
Dear Recruitment Manager,
Dear [Marketing] Department/Manager,

Salutations to avoid

To ensure you make a good first impression on recruiters, you should avoid generic greetings that make you appear old-fashioned or unprofessional.

Salutations to avoid

To Whom it May Concern,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Sir/Madam,
Esteemed Hiring Manager,
Hey/Hello,

How to address a cover letter with a name

If you have the hiring manager’s name, there are a few different ways to address your cover letter.

Use the right salutation

The proper salutation is “Dear” followed by the hiring manager’s name.

How to address a cover letter with a name

Dear Mr./Ms. [Last Name],
Dear [First Name Last Name],
Dear Prof./Dr. [Last Name],
Hello Mx. [Last Name],

“Hello” plus the first name is acceptable if you’re applying to a job with a casual office culture or you know the hiring manager personally.

Not including a salutation and just starting your cover letter with the hiring manager’s first and last name is also acceptable.

Use their academic, professional, or gendered title

In some cases, it might be unclear what title to use when addressing the hiring manager.

If the hiring manager has a gender-neutral name, it’s best not to assume what title they use and risk making a mistake. In this situation, simply write out their first and last name to avoid any ambiguity.

When you address a cover letter to a hiring manager with a professional or academic title (like Doctor or Professor), include their title in your salutation. You can write out the full title or use an abbreviation. For example, “Reverend” and “Rev.” are both fine.

How to address a cover letter letter with titles

Dear Sam Jones,
Dear Mx. Lopez,
Dear Ms. Patel,
Dear Prof. Tsai,

The only time it’s acceptable to address the hiring manager with only their first name (for example, “Dear Mollie,”) is if you’re writing a cover letter for an internal position or promotion in the same company, and you already know the hiring manager.

Frequently asked questions about how to address a cover letter

Still have questions about how to address a cover letter? We’ve answered some of the most common questions below.

How must I address a company in a cover letter?

Remember that an individual at a company will read your cover letter and be responsible for following up, so try to personalize your greeting with their name or their department.

What address must I put on a cover letter?

Because most cover letters are sent via email now, there’s no need to add an address to your cover letter.

However, you can add your town and state in your cover letter header if you want to communicate to employers that you’re already local to the area and wouldn’t need to relocate for the job.

How do I address a generic cover letter?

Always aim to make every cover letter as personalized as possible, and avoid sending out generic applications.

However, it’s acceptable to use “Dear Hiring Manager,” or “Dear [Name of] Department if you don’t have the person’s name at hand.

The Resume Genius Team

The Resume Genius Team is a tight-knit crew of career coaches, hiring managers, and staff writers who are passionate about providing the best, most up-to-date career advice possible and helping job seekers land their dream jobs. Every article is reviewed by either Geoff Scott, Samuel Johns, Eva Chan, Corissa Peterson, or Dominique Vatin, our team of in-house Certified Professional Resume Writers. Resume Genius and its authors' career and resume advice have been featured in major publications such as CNBC, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and Fortune.

View Resume's Profile