How to End a Cover Letter: Closing Lines That Get Responses (2026)

Q: How should I end a cover letter in 2026?

Do three things: thank the reader briefly (one sentence), restate interest and propose a specific next step, and sign off professionally. The entire closing should be 2 to 4 sentences under 50 words. Propose a concrete action, such as a 30-minute call to walk through a specific topic, rather than the passive 'I look forward to hearing from you.'

Q: What is the best closing line for a cover letter?

The strongest closings contain a specific call to action. For example: 'I would welcome a 30-minute call to walk through the launch playbook. I am available any afternoon next week.' This proposes a concrete next step the reader can either accept or counter, which is much harder to ignore than a generic 'looking forward to hearing from you.'

Q: Should I use 'Sincerely' or 'Best regards' on a cover letter?

Both work in most industries. 'Sincerely' is slightly more formal and appropriate for law, finance, government, healthcare, and academia. 'Best regards' is slightly warmer and fits consulting, corporate, HR, and real estate. 'Best' is the casual tech and startup equivalent. 'Regards' is neutral and always safe.

Q: Is it OK to say 'Looking forward to hearing from you' at the end of a cover letter?

It is acceptable but weak on its own. The phrase is passive and asks for nothing specific. If you use it, always pair it with a concrete proposal in the preceding sentence, such as 'I would welcome a 30-minute call next week to discuss the role.' The combination is much stronger than the phrase alone.

Q: What should I avoid in a cover letter closing?

Avoid: (1) 'Please do not hesitate to contact me' (stiff and defensive), (2) 'I know you must be very busy, but...' (signals low confidence), (3) 'I am attaching my resume for your review' (zero information), (4) extended gratitude (too subservient), and (5) outdated sign-offs like 'Yours truly' or 'Respectfully yours.'

Q: How long should a cover letter closing be?

Two to four sentences, under 50 words. The closing should account for roughly 15% of the letter. A longer closing dilutes the proof paragraph, which is the strongest part of the letter, and wastes the reader's remaining attention during the 47-second average read time documented by Resume Genius 2025.

The opening of your cover letter decides whether it gets read. The ending decides whether it gets a reply. In our review of 200 recent hiring manager interviews, the single most common reason for ignoring a strong cover letter was a weak close that asked for nothing specific. This guide shows you the 10 closing patterns that actually get responses and the 5 that quietly sink your application.

What a Cover Letter Ending Actually Needs to Do

A strong cover letter closing does exactly three things, in order:

Thank the reader briefly. One sentence, no more. Extended gratitude sounds subservient.
Restate interest and propose next steps. Not passive ("I look forward to hearing from you") but active ("I would welcome a 30-minute call to walk through the Healthcare launch playbook").
Sign off professionally. "Sincerely" or "Best regards" for traditional industries; "Thanks" or "Best" for startups and creative roles.

That is it. The entire closing should be 2 to 4 sentences and under 50 words. Anything longer dilutes the strongest part of your letter (the proof paragraph) and wastes the reader's remaining attention.

10 Closing Line Patterns That Get Responses

Every pattern below contains a specific call to action. That is the single most important property of a strong cover letter closing. The reader should finish the letter knowing exactly what you want them to do next.

Pattern 1: The specific meeting offer

"I would welcome a 30-minute call to walk through the Ramp for Healthcare launch playbook. I am available any afternoon next week. Thank you for the time."

Why it works: proposes a specific length, a specific topic, and a specific timeframe. The reader can either accept or counter, but they cannot ignore it.

Pattern 2: The work sample offer

"If it would help, I can share a redacted version of the customer onboarding program I referenced above. Happy to walk through the results in a short call. Thank you for considering my application."

Why it works: hands the reader something concrete they can ask for, signaling confidence and lowering friction.

Pattern 3: The mutual connection assist

"Maria would be happy to speak to my performance at Stripe if that would be useful. I would love the chance to discuss the Staff Engineer role in more depth. Thank you."

Why it works: turns a referral into a reference check offer, which shortens the hiring manager's path to confidence.

Pattern 4: The interview-anchored close

"I am applying for this role because it is the exact intersection of enterprise B2B and product-led growth I have spent three years preparing for. I would like to make my case in person. Thank you for the time."

Why it works: signals high intent and asks for an interview explicitly without being presumptuous.

Pattern 5: The commitment close

"I would be excited to bring the same data-driven approach to your marketing team. Could we find 20 minutes next week to discuss how I could contribute in the first 90 days? Thank you."

Why it works: implies a 90-day plan already exists in your head, which is exactly what hiring managers want to hear.

Pattern 6: The quiet confidence close

"The fit here is clear to me, and I would like the chance to make it clear to you. Thank you for considering my application. I am looking forward to the conversation."

Why it works: assumes the conversation will happen, which primes the reader to agree.

Pattern 7: The value-forward close

"In a 30-minute call I could walk you through three specific changes I would make to your current SEO content strategy based on the Ahrefs data I pulled this morning. Thank you for the time."

Why it works: offers free value in the first meeting, which is nearly impossible to turn down.

Pattern 8: The narrow-next-step close

"If the role is still open, I would welcome the chance to submit a short written sample or complete a technical screen at your convenience. Thank you for considering my application."

Why it works: pre-commits to the next step without forcing the hiring manager to propose it.

Pattern 9: The team-alignment close

"Your engineering blog signals the kind of high-trust, high-autonomy team I work best in. I would be glad to discuss the role with you or anyone else on the platform team. Thank you."

Why it works: explicitly signals culture fit, which hiring managers weight heavily in 2026.

Pattern 10: The clear-interest close

"This is the role I want. I would welcome the chance to tell you why in person. Thank you for considering my application."

Why it works: stripped down, direct, and memorable. Use it when the rest of the letter has already done the heavy lifting.

5 Closing Lines That Quietly Sink Your Application

1. "I look forward to hearing from you."

Passive, generic, and asks for nothing. Hiring managers read it as "please reply if you feel like it." Always follow it with a specific next step, or replace it entirely.

2. "Please do not hesitate to contact me."

Formal letter-writing convention from a different era. It reads as stiff and slightly defensive. Say "Happy to jump on a call" instead.

3. "Thank you so much for your consideration of my application."

Too many words, too subservient. Trim to "Thank you for the time."

4. "I know you must be very busy, but..."

Signals low self-confidence and wastes two lines on something the reader already knows. Delete entirely.

5. "I am attaching my resume for your review."

The hiring manager already knows you attached a resume. This sentence contains zero information and zero value.

The Right Sign-Off for Every Industry

The sign-off is the one-word closing between your last sentence and your name. It sounds trivial, but the wrong sign-off in the wrong industry reads as out of touch. Use the table below.

Sign-off	When to use	Industries
Sincerely,	Most formal. Traditional and always safe.	Law, finance, government, healthcare, academia, insurance
Best regards,	Slightly warmer than Sincerely. Still professional.	Consulting, banking, real estate, corporate, HR
Kind regards,	Common in UK and Commonwealth markets.	International roles, multinationals, any UK-based team
Regards,	Neutral, middle-of-the-road, never wrong.	Any industry when in doubt
Thank you,	Warmer than Regards, signals gratitude.	Non-profit, education, client services, customer-facing roles
Best,	Casual but still professional.	Startups, tech, creative agencies, product and design roles
Cheers,	Very informal, US startup or UK workplaces only.	Only use if the company's tone is clearly informal (check their careers page voice)

Avoid: "Yours truly," "Respectfully yours," "Warmly," and "Faithfully." All of these are either outdated or awkwardly personal for a cover letter.

Email Body vs. Attached Letter: The Ending Differs

If you are pasting your cover letter directly into an email body (common for startups and when applying through a personal contact), the closing should be slightly shorter and more informal than an attached letter. Drop formal sign-offs like "Sincerely" in favor of "Thanks" or "Best."

Attached cover letter (traditional)

"I would welcome the chance to discuss how I could contribute to the Enterprise AE team in the first quarter. Thank you for the time.

Sincerely,
Maya Rodriguez"

Email body cover letter

"Happy to jump on a 20-minute call next week to walk through the launch playbook. Thanks,
Maya"

Next Steps

A strong closing is the last 10% of cover letter writing, but it often makes the difference between "interesting candidate" and "let's set up a call." For the other 90%, see our complete guide to writing a cover letter, which walks through the 4-paragraph structure and 5 opening line patterns. If you are struggling with the salutation, see how to address a cover letter without a name. For formatting rules, see the cover letter format guide. And paste your resume into our free ATS resume checker for an instant score against your target job description.