51 Perfect Email Greetings and Ways to Start an Email (2022)

When writing a professional email greeting to a stranger, I recommend using 'Hi' or 'Hello' followed by 'Mr./Mrs./Ms. (name)' if your recipient is a higher ... 51EmailGreetings&WaystoStartanEmailThatArePerfectforanyOccasion byJaysonDeMers|5comments TweetShare1ShareStartinganemailseemslikenobigdeal,butyourchoiceofwordscanhaveamassiveimpactonhowtherestofyourmessageisreceived. Inthisguide,we’llanalyzetheimportanceofemailgreetings,andgiveyoumorethan50examplesofhowtostartanemail. You’resuretofindasuitableemailgreetingoropeningforjustaboutanyoccasion. TableofContentsHowtoStartanEmailProfessionally(HowtoStartaBusinessEmail)1.Hi/Hey(name)2.Hello(name)3.Dear(name)4.Greetings5.(Name)6.All/everyoneHowtoStartanEmailGreeting:Comma,Colon,orExclamationPoint?WaystoStartaFormalEmail7.Ihopethisemailfindsyouwell.8.Goodmorning/afternoon/evening.9.Allowmetointroducemyself…10.Howareyou?11.Howwasyourvacation/weekend/etc.?12.Ihopeyourweekisgoingsmoothly.13.I’memailingyouto…14.I’mhopingtogetyourinputon…15.It’smypleasuretoinformyou…FormalWaystoStartanEmailResponse16.It’sgreattohearfromyou.17.Thanksforyouremail.18.Thankyouforthequickresponse.19.Thanksforgettingintouch.20.Iappreciatetheupdate.21.Iapologizeforthedelay.HowtoStartaFollow-upEmail22.Justcheckingin…23.Iwantedtofollowupwithyou.24.Aswediscussedinourlastmeeting.25.Aspromised…26.Couldyouprovidemewithanupdate?27.Iwantedtogetbacktoyouabout…28.Thankyouforyourtime.29.Areyoustillinterested?InformalWaystoStartanEmail30.Congratulationson(accomplishment)!31.Howarethekids?32.Isawyourposton(socialmedia).33.Howwasthetrip?34.Iwasjustthinkingaboutyou.35.Itwasgreattoseeyouat(event).36.Isawthis(media)andthoughtofyou.37.(Contact)suggestedIgetintouchwithyou!38.Sorryittookmeawhiletogetbacktoyou.FunnyEmailGreetingsandPersonalWaystoStartanEmail39.Yep,it’smeagain.40.XdaysuntilFriday.41.Don’tworry,I’llkeepthisbrief.42.Yetanothermessagetobogdownyourinbox.43.Hopefully,you’vehadyourcoffeethismorning.44.Areyousurvivingyetanotherworkweek?45.Ihopeyou’resittingdown.46.[Anyinsidejoke].Bonus:EmailGreetingsandOpenerstoAvoidatAllCosts47.[Anythingthat’smisspelled].48.Hey(nickname)!49.Towhomitmayconcern.50.Dearsirormadam.51.HappyMonday!WhyEmailGreetingsMatterQuickEmailGreetingsFAQHowdoyouaddressaprofessionalemail?Howdoyoustartaprofessionalemailtoastranger?ShouldIuse'Dear'inmyformalemailgreeting?Relatedposts: HowtoStartanEmailProfessionally(HowtoStartaBusinessEmail) Let’sstartwithsomeofthetried-and-truebusinessemailgreetings—thesnippetsoftextyouincludeatthebeginningofeveryemail.Thesearesomeofthemostcommonlyusedemailgreetings,andforgoodreason—they’resomeofthesimplestandmostreliablewaystostartabusinessorprofessionalemail. 1.Hi/Hey(name) Short,sweet,andsimple,itdoesn’tgetmucheasierthanthis.“Hi”isinnocuousandfriendly,withoutsacrificingformality,andtheadditionofaperson’snamemakesitpersonal.Dependingonthesetting,youmaywishtouseaperson’sfirstnameortitleandsurname;thisistrueforanyinstancesof“name”inthislist. 2.Hello(name) Thisemailgreetingservesthesamepurpose,buttheadditionallengthoftheword“hello’makesitabitmoreformal. 3.Dear(name) Avestigialgreetingfromthedaysofhandwrittenletters,“dear”isusefulifyouremailhasaletter-likestructure.Itcanalsobeusedtodistinguishyouremailsfromthoseofotherprofessionals,ortoappealtocustomerswithafriendlyopening. 4.Greetings Forme,“greetings”feelsalittletooMartian-like,butit’sanacceptableandcommonemailopening.It’sbestwhenintroducingyourselfforthefirsttimeorreachingouttosomeoneforthefirsttimeinawhile. 5.(Name) Evensimpler,youcansimplystartwiththeperson’sname.Itmightreadasabitcold,andit’snotthemostcreativeemailgreeting,butit’swidelyused. 6.All/everyone Ifyou’reemailingmultiplepeopleatonce,youwon’thavetheopportunitytocalloutaspecificname.Instead,youcangreettheentiregroupwithsomethinglike“Helloall,”or“Hieveryone.”It’sasimplemodificationtoaccommodateyourneeds. Therearesomeotherexamplesofbasicprofessionalemailgreetingsyoucanuse,butunlessyou’rebeingcheeky,oryou’reeagertostandoutinsomedistinctway,it’sbesttostickwithoneofthese. HowtoStartanEmailGreeting:Comma,Colon,orExclamationPoint? Whetheryou’reusingoneoftheabovegreetingsinemailoroneofyourown,you’llbeleftwithacriticalpunctuationdecision:shouldyouuseacomma,acolon,oranexclamationpointtoendyourgreeting? Fromapureetiquettestandpoint,there’snotaboopunctuationmark.Youaren’tgoingtooffendsomeonebyaddinganexclamationpointtotheendofyourgreeting.However,therearesomesubtleconnotationstoeachpunctuationmarkyou’llwanttoconsider. Thecolonisveryformal,butalmostoverlyso.Acolonmightbegoodforstartingsomethingespeciallyserious,orforemailingwithapersonororganizationyouknowisold-fashioned.However,formostotherpeople,itmightfeelalittlecoldandimpersonal. Attheotherendofthespectrumistheexclamationpoint.Anexclamationpointconveysexcitement,andcanbeusedtoindicateenthusiasm.Forpersonalcontactsandinformalconversations,thiscanwork,butinaprofessionalsetting,itcanmakeyouseemovereagerorimmature.Useitwisely. Thebeststandby,andtheperfectchoiceifyou’renotsurewhattodo,isthecomma.It’sformalwithoutbeingcold,andissocommonlyusedyoucanguaranteenobody’sgoingtoscrutinizeit. WaystoStartaFormalEmail Nowthatyourgreetingisoutoftheway,youcanworkoncreatinganintroduction.Theseintroductorysentencesanemailstartersareidealwaystostartanemailforformaloccasions—whichshouldbeyourdefaultifyoudon’tknowthepersonwithwhomyou’reengaging.They’reagoodseguefromyourgenericgreetingtothecorecontentofyourmessage: 7.Ihopethisemailfindsyouwell. Thisisasimplegestureofwell-wishesthatcaninstantlymaketherestofyourmessageseemwarmer.It’salsovagueenoughthatyoudon’tneedtobepersonallyinvolvedinyourrecipient’slife,orsacrificeformalityforfriendliness. 8.Goodmorning/afternoon/evening. Shorteropeningsaregenerallybetter,especiallywhenoneofyourprioritiesispreservingformality.A“goodmorning”(substitutedwiththeappropriatetimeofday)isallittakestomakeyourgreetingwarm. 9.Allowmetointroducemyself… Thisonlyworksifyou’reactuallyintroducingyourselfinagreetingemail;yourbossof10yearsprobablywon’tfindthisfunny.It’salsoawaytosoftenwhateveryourrequestis.Besuretoseeourcompleteguideonhowtointroduceyourselfinanemail. 10.Howareyou? Youprobablywon’tgetananswer,butthat’snotreallythepoint. 11.Howwasyourvacation/weekend/etc.? Becarefulwiththisone;youdon’twanttoseemintrusive.Butifthispersonmadeitcleartheyweregoingonvacation,it’sfine(andcompliantwiththerulesofformality)toaskaboutit.Feelfreetoaskabouttheirweekendtoo—again,aslongasitisn’tintrusive. 12.Ihopeyourweekisgoingsmoothly. Questionscanbeintrusive,butstatementscan’t.Asaferbetmaybetosaysomethinglike,“Ihopeyourweekisgoingwell!” 13.I’memailingyouto… Thisisgreatifyou’retryingtocuttothechase.Mostprofessionalsappreciateconciseness,sousethisintroductiontogettoyourmainpoint. 14.I’mhopingtogetyourinputon… Thisisalsoawaytogettothepoint,especiallyifyou’remakingarequestoraninquiry. 15.It’smypleasuretoinformyou… Somewhatsituational,thisworksgreatifyou’reinformingsomeonethatthey’vewonabid,orthatthey’vebeenselectedforajob. FormalWaystoStartanEmailResponse Ifyou’rerespondingtosomeoneelse’semail,you’llneedtomodifyyouropeningslightly.Theseformalemailgreetingsarewell-suitedforaresponse: 16.It’sgreattohearfromyou. Youcantinkerwiththisopeningtogetitjustright,solongasyou’reconveyingthesameidea;you’regladthispersonemailedyou. 17.Thanksforyouremail. Thisofferssomethingsimilar(andyou’llseeitcomingupagainandagain).Expressinggratitudecanhelpyouwitheverythingfromlandingabetterimpressiontogettingmoresales. 18.Thankyouforthequickresponse. Situationally,thiscanhelpyouacknowledgetheperson’seffortsinrespondingtoyouorreactingtoanewprompt. 19.Thanksforgettingintouch. Anothervariantonthe“thankyou”themethatmightsuityourneedsperfectly. 20.Iappreciatetheupdate. Ifsomeoneprovidesyouwithrawinformationandyoudon’tknowwhattosay,thiscanhelpyoufillinthegap. 21.Iapologizeforthedelay. Ifyoudidn’trespondtothemessagerightaway,thisshortresponsecouldhelpyoucleartheair. HowtoStartaFollow-upEmail Therearemanysituationsthatnecessitateorinviteanemailfollow-up.Thesecanbetricky,sincetheyoftendemandabalancebetweenoutreachandrestraint.Generally,you’llsticktobeingformalinthissituation,withanemailopeninglikeoneofthese: 22.Justcheckingin… You’llneedtoaddabitmoretothistomakeitwork,butit’safairlyunassumingopeningthatcanhelpyouestablishyourmainpriorityinreachingout. 23.Iwantedtofollowupwithyou. Similarly,thisphraseestablishesyourmaingoal.Assumingyouroriginalmessageisclear,thereshouldn’tbeanymiscommunication. 24.Aswediscussedinourlastmeeting. Incaseyouaren’tsurethepersonremembersyourlastmeeting,orifyouwanttorecapyourlastdiscussion,thisisagoodlead-in. 25.Aspromised… Ifyouhavesomethingdeliver,orsomenewinformationtoshare,thesimple“aspromised”phrasegivesyouagoodsegue. 26.Couldyouprovidemewithanupdate? Ifyou’remakingasimplerequest,youmaynotneedmuchmorethanthisinthebodyofyourmessage. Improveyourteam'semailresponsetimeby42.5%WithEmailAnalytics35-50%ofsalesgotothefirst-respondingvendor.Followingupwithinanhourincreasesyourchancesofsuccessby7x.Theaverageprofessionalspends50%oftheirworkdayonemail.TRYITFREE 27.Iwantedtogetbacktoyouabout… Thisisidealifyouhavesomethingtoadd,orifyou’velearnednewinformationyoudidn’thaveinthepast. 28.Thankyouforyourtime. Remember,expressinggratitudecanhaveamassiveimpactonhowwellyou’rereceived.Thankingsomeonefortheirtime,whetheritwasspentinameeting,phonecall,orjustanemailexchange,canmakeyourfollow-upseemwarmer. 29.Areyoustillinterested? Ifyou’renotsurethispersonwantstocontinuetheconversation,asimple“areyoustillinterested?”cangivethemaneasyout.Italsoworkswellasasalesemailsubjectline—butyoucanreadmoreaboutsalesemailsubjectlinesinourcomprehensiveguide. Ifyou’reinterestedinafullerguideonsales-relatedfollow-upemails,besuretoreadourarticleonsalesemailfollow-uptemplates, aswellasourarticleonsalesemailtemplatesyoucanuse. InformalWaystoStartanEmail Ifyouknowthepersonyou’reemailing,orifyourcompanycultureisrelativelyrelaxed,youcangetawaywithsomeoftheseinformalandcreativeemailgreetings: 30.Congratulationson(accomplishment)! Youmightnotwanttogetinvolvedinthedetailsofsomeone’spersonallifeorprofessionalsuccessesunlessyouknowthem.Butinaninformalsetting,itcanworkwonders.Congratulatesomeone,andthey’lllikelyreadtherestofyourmessagewithasmileontheirface. 31.Howarethekids? Again,askingsomeoneabouttheirpersonallifeisdangerousterritoryifyoudon’tknowthem.Butifyou’vehadfriendlyconversationsinthepast,thiscanbeagoodthing. 32.Isawyourposton(socialmedia). Thisworksifthere’sacontextuallinkbetweenthepostandyourmessage.Forexample,iftheyrecentlypostedanarticleabouttheimportanceoftimemanagement,youcantellthemaboutanewtoolyou’vefoundtoanalyzetheamountoftimethey’respendingeachday. 33.Howwasthetrip? Ifyouknowthepersonwellenoughtoknowtheywentonatrip,youcanaskaboutit. 34.Iwasjustthinkingaboutyou. Assumingyouhaveagoodreasontoreachoutotherthanthis,thismessagecanbeanear-perfectopening. 35.Itwasgreattoseeyouat(event). Hypothetically,eventfollow-upslikethiscanworkinaformalsetting.However,it’sincludedherebecauseit’softendoneinacasualway. 36.Isawthis(media)andthoughtofyou. Youmightthinkofincludinganattachment,gif,orYouTubelink—especiallyifyouhaveagoodreasonforbringingitup. 37.(Contact)suggestedIgetintouchwithyou! Asanetworkingemailinaninformalsetting,thisopeninglineisawesome.Ifyouneedhelppolishingtherestofyourapproach,youcanreadmoretipsinthisguideonsubjectlinesfornetworkingemails. 38.Sorryittookmeawhiletogetbacktoyou. Alessformalversionofthe“delayapology,”thisopeningcanhelpyouacknowledgealengthypassageoftimebetweenyourlastmessageandthisone. FunnyEmailGreetingsandPersonalWaystoStartanEmail Ifyou’refriendswiththepersonyou’reemailing,orifyou’retryingtocomeacrossasfriendlyandsociable,youcanuseoneofthesefunnyorhighlypersonalwaysofstartinganemail.Justmakesureyou’renotusingthesewithsomeoneyoudon’tknowverywell,andentirelyavoidtheminsituationsthatdemandseriousnessorformality. 39.Yep,it’smeagain. Ifyou’reemailingsomeoneinhighvolume,thiscanmakelightofthesituation. 40.XdaysuntilFriday. Yes,weallloveFridayandcountdowntoit.Youmightaswellacknowledgeit(evenifit’sabittrite). 41.Don’tworry,I’llkeepthisbrief. Afunwaytoinsistyouwon’tbewastingthisperson’stime,it’sagoodintroductiontoashortemail. 42.Yetanothermessagetobogdownyourinbox. Weallwrestlewithoverflowinginboxes,butthismessageletstherecipientknowthatyouunderstandtheirplight. 43.Hopefully,you’vehadyourcoffeethismorning. Ican’tsayI’mabigfanofthisjoke,butifthispersonisthetypetodescribethemselvesintermsofpre-caffeineandpost-caffeinepersonalities,itmightworkwell. 44.Areyousurvivingyetanotherworkweek? Ifworkseemslikeadrudgerysomedays,thisopeningcanmakethingsalittlelighter. 45.Ihopeyou’resittingdown. Thisisacommonphraseusedbeforerevealingsomesurprisingorexcitingnews.Ifyouhavesomethingimportanttoshare,thismaybeagoodwaytoleadintoit.Justmakesureyou’renotusingemailforgossipingpurposes. 46.[Anyinsidejoke]. Doyouhaveaninsidejokewithaclosecolleagueorafriendlyboss?Feelfreetouseitasawaytoleadintoanemail—solongasthatemailisn’tveryseriousorimportant.Ajokecanmakealightmessageeasiertoreceive,butcanturnaseriousemailintoanobjectofridicule. Bonus:EmailGreetingsandOpenerstoAvoidatAllCosts ThesemaytechnicallybreaktherulesIlaidout,butIfeelthey’revitaltodiscussinthiscontext.Inthefirstsection,Iwroteabouttheimportanceofemailgreetings,andinthesecond,Igaveexamplesofsometried-and-truegreetings. Onthedarkside,therearesomeemailgreetingsandopenersyoushouldavoidatallcosts.Theseemailsalutationsareworsethanneutral;theycoulddoactiveharmtoyourreputation,orjeopardizethereceptionofyourmessage. 47.[Anythingthat’smisspelled]. Godhelpyouifyoumisspellyourprospect’sname.Seeingyourownnamemisspelledgivesyouthatcold-and-pricklyfeeling,andinstantlysetsabadtonefortheconversation.Ontopofthat,itshowsthatyoudon’tpayattentiontodetails,orthatyou’renotproofreading.Spellingerrorsinthebodyofyourmessagemightbemoreeasilyforgiven,buttoleaveoneintheintroductionispracticallyunforgivable. 48.Hey(nickname)! Ingeneral,the“Hey(name)!”formulaisn’tagreatlook.It’sokayforusewithpeopleyouknowwell,orifyouwanttoestablishacasual,friendlyrelationship,butotherwise,it’sbesttabledinfavorofatried-and-truegreeting.It’smadeevenworseifyouincludeanicknameforsomeone(unlessyou’vepersonallyverifiedthatthisnicknameistheirexclusivepreference).Ingeneral,youshouldn’tgivesomeoneanicknameorshortentheirnameunlesstheytellyouto;Nicoledoesn’tautomaticallybecomeNicki,andMichaeldoesn’tautomaticallybecomeMike.Ifyou’renotsurewhatthispersonprefers,watchtheiremailsignature,anderronthesideoffullnamesandformality. 49.Towhomitmayconcern. Aphraseofchoiceformassmessagesandanonymouscomplaintletters,“towhomitmayconcern”isinmostsituations,acoldandlazychoice.Ifyoucan,findthenameofthepersonyou’reemailing.Ifthisnameisunavailable,atermlike“everyone”or“all”willprovideabetterfit. 50.Dearsirormadam. Again,thisiskindofacop-out.Doyourresearchtofindthenameofthepersonyou’reemailing,orsubstituteabetterphraseifyou’retalkingtomultiplepeople.Otherwise,you’rebetteroffwithsomethingvague,like“Hello.” 51.HappyMonday! Justdon’t.Trustmeonthisone. WhyEmailGreetingsMatter Doemailgreetingsreallymatterthatmuch?Whydoesthissubjectwarrantacomprehensive,multi-thousand-wordarticle? Makingafirstimpression.Whetheryou’remarketingtoyourtargetaudienceorjustreachingouttoanewcontact,it’simportanttomakeagoodfirstimpression.Technically,yoursubjectlineisgoingtobethefirstthingtheyread,butassumingyou’vemasteredthatandthey’veopenedyouremail,yourgreetingandopeningfewlineswillsetthemwithanimmediateimpressionofwhoyouareandhowyouoperate. Settingatone.Youremailgreetingisalsoanopportunitytosetthetonefortherestofyourconversation.Dependingonthecircumstances,youmaywishtosetaformal,serioustone,orsomethinginformaltothepointofbeinglighthearted.Thiscanshapehowtherestofyourmessageistaken. Buildingapersonalbrand.Choosingemailgreetingsandopeningscanalsohelpyoushapeandrefineyourownpersonalbrand.Asyoucommunicatewithpeopleregularly,they’llpickuponthecommongreetingsyouliketouse,andwillrollthoseintotheirunderstandingofyourpersonality,goals,andvalues.It’sasubtleeffect,butoneworthconsidering. Yetdespitetheseimportanteffects,emailgreetingsandsalutationsremainanareathat’scommonlyneglected.Manymodernworkerswriteemailswithoutgivingtheiropeningssomuchasasecondthought. Butnotyou!Becausenowyou’reequippedwiththislistoftop-notchemailgreetings😃 Nowthatyouknowallabouthowtostartanemailwithtried-and-trueemailgreetingsandsalutations,areyouinterestedinlearningmoreaboutthepowerofyouremail? Doyouyearntounderstandhow,why,andwhenpeoplerespondtoyourmessages?SignupforafreetrialofEmailAnalytics,andstartyourjourneytoday. QuickEmailGreetingsFAQ Howdoyouaddressaprofessionalemail? Thisdependsonyourrelationshipwiththerecipient.Ifyourrecipientisaco-workerbutnotyourboss,then'Hi'or'Hey'isusuallyappropriate.Ifyou'readdressingsomeoneofhigherstatus,suchasyourboss,then'HiMr./Mrs./Ms.(name)'isasaferbet. Howdoyoustartaprofessionalemailtoastranger? Whenwritingaprofessionalemailgreetingtoastranger,Irecommendusing'Hi'or'Hello'followedby'Mr./Mrs./Ms.(name)'ifyourrecipientisahigherstatusthanyou(inwhichcaseit'ssafetoerronthesideofrespect).Otherwise,'Hi'or'Hey'(firstname)shouldbeappropriate. ShouldIuse'Dear'inmyformalemailgreeting? Itcanbe,buttherearegenerallybetteroptions.'Dear'feelslikeanold-schoolwayofaddressingsomeone,suchasinahand-writtenletter.Itmaycomeacrossasout-of-touchwithyourrecipient,unlesstheyarefromanerawhereitwasmorewidelyused. Relatedposts:WhenistheBestTimetoSendanEmail?BCCForEmail:WhatitMeansandWhentoUseit21ProblemswithEmailthatEveryoneCanRelateToJaysonDeMersJaysonisalong-timecolumnistforForbes,Entrepreneur,BusinessInsider,Inc.com,andvariousothermajormediapublications,wherehehasauthoredover1,000articlessince2012,coveringtechnology,marketing,andentrepreneurship.Hekeynotedthe2013MarketingProfsUniversity,andwonthe“EntrepreneurBloggeroftheYear”awardin2015fromtheOxfordCenterforEntrepreneurs.In2010,hefoundedamarketingagencythatappearedontheInc.5000beforesellingitinJanuaryof2019,andheisnowtheCEOofEmailAnalytics. TweetShare1Share 5Comments DesireeJadeVelasco on05/26/2021at9:12pm Nicearticle!I’vefoundlotsofgoodideas.I’maVirtualAssistantandneedingtheseemailgreetings.Thankyou! Reply AliciaBrackett on12/15/2021at9:04pm Canweuseaperiodinasalutation?Like,Hi,Gemma.Doesthiswork? Reply FionaBell on01/13/2022at3:13am FabquickIdeastostartdifferentlyeverytimethanks.LayoutProfessionalandquicktoreadanduse.Thanks Reply EdgarValentinodelaCruzTandas on02/08/2022at12:02am Iamveryenlightenedwithaproperwayofcommunicatingprofessionallythroughemail..thankyou. Reply DonnaStrzodka on03/10/2022at12:33pm Thankyouforthesegreatideas Reply SubmitaCommentCancelreplyYouremailaddresswillnotbepublished.Requiredfieldsaremarked*Comment*Name* Email* Website Δ Popularposts EmailProductivityBenchmarkReport(June2022) 20BestRemoteEmployeeMonitoringSoftwareTools EmailTracking:TheUltimateGuide+7BestTools 7WaystoMonitorEmployeesWorkingfromHome EmailResponseTime:HowtoMeasure+What’sNormal   35-50%ofsalesgotothefirst-respondingvendor. Howquicklydoesyourteamrespondtoleads?   STARTFREETRIAL