How to Address a Cover Letter With or Without a Name

Use the recipient's verified name when you have it. If you do not, "Dear Hiring Manager," or a relevant team greeting is a professional option. Do not guess someone's gender, title, or responsibility for the vacancy just to make the letter look personalized.

The University of Washington recommends identifying the audience and addressing a specific person where possible. A name is helpful only when it is accurate.

Choose the greeting from what you know

Situation	Suitable example
The posting names the recipient	Dear Jordan Lee,
The recipient uses a verified professional title	Dear Dr. Lee,
The instructions identify a committee	Dear Search Committee,
You know the relevant function, not the person	Dear Customer Support Hiring Team,
No recipient or team is identified	Dear Hiring Manager,

These examples use English-language business conventions. A full name avoids assuming an honorific. If the person has stated how they prefer to be addressed, follow that.

Where to check for a name

Start with the job posting and application instructions. Then check any email from the recruiting contact and the employer's relevant team page. If you already have a contact, you can ask, "Is there a particular person or team I should address the cover letter to?"

Keep the search proportionate. Do not delay an application while trying to identify a name that the company has chosen not to publish. The most senior person on a department page is not necessarily the hiring manager, and a recruiter coordinating applications may not be the letter's intended reader.

If you cannot verify the recipient, use a team greeting and spend the remaining time improving the letter's content.

Does the letter need a postal address?

For a conventional attached business letter, you can include the employer's relevant mailing address if the format or instructions call for it. Verify the location rather than automatically using a distant headquarters. An email body or application text box generally does not need a postal address block unless requested.

The greeting and postal block serve different purposes. Not knowing a street address does not prevent you from addressing the hiring team correctly.

Check the reused details

Before sending, check the person's spelling, the company name, the role, and any job reference. A leftover name from another application is more damaging to clarity than a neutral greeting.

After the salutation, get to the role and your relevant evidence. For help with that part, use our entry-level cover-letter guide. The greeting should make the letter easy to receive; it does not need to do the work of the entire application.