63 Best Email Sign-Offs for Every Situation
Did you know that how you write your emails shows a lot about you? Generation Z (Gen Z), who are new to email communication, express that they feel scared when they talk to someone who speaks in corporate language. They even sometimes call to ask their supervisor, “Are we good?” after they send seriously toned email sign-offs such as “Best Regards”. Even though it seems funny to think about, it is true.
Best Email Sign-Offs
If you want to end your email properly, sign-offs are the answer. Before moving forward with the article and learning which sign-off is best for each context, we've compiled the best email sign-offs according to response rates for you. Keep in mind that professional sign-offs might have higher response rates compared to informal ones due to contextual requirements, but we assure you that by the end of this article, you'll know how to properly add sign-offs to each message—and have lots of fun reading it.
Email Sign-Off | Response Rate (%) | Best for |
---|---|---|
Thanks in advance | 65.7 | Gratitude for future help. |
Thanks | 63.0 | Simple and effective. |
Thank you | 57.9 | Formal and appreciative. |
Kind regards | 53.9 | Polite and professional. |
Regards | 53.5 | Neutral and standard. |
Best regards | 52.9 | Warm and versatile. |
Best | 51.2 | Friendly but less engaging. |
[No Sign-Off] | 47.5 | Often impersonal. |
Professional Email Sign-Offs
Communication skills are something learned, so if you are new to these business attire, do not be frustrated. You can learn to leave a professional yet still genuine impression with email signoffs.
Sign-offs are one of the most important parts of a written email. Using them in the true setting is essential since they are used even in expressing hierarchy or respect to your elders. For instance, while you are talking to your supervisor, you must show that you are a respected and professional communicator. However, if you are sending a welcoming email to your new interns, you must show how you are in a higher position than them, but also be genuine to the newbies and not make them scared. Ok, everything might seem too detailed, but with our examples, things will settle way better.
For every example, we will have related keywords that you can find. So you can match these alternative email sign-offs with the keywords for later occasions. You can even note them and add them to your bulletin board to always keep them in front of you.
Email Sign-Offs When Communicating with Clients
Our first keyword is trusted and has the best email sign-offs. While talking to your clients, you would want to give them a sense of professionalism and a trusting personality. In face-to-face communication, you can achieve this with a firm handshake, so think the right attitude email sign-off is equivalent to that. Here are some examples you can use:
- Sincerely,
- Best Regards,
- Respectfully,
- Yours faithfully,
- With appreciation,
As you can see, there is also a sense of respect and appreciation for these email signoffs. Thus, keep in mind that you can show that you are a trustworthy business person to work with, even in small details.
Email Sign-Offs for Internet Communication with Colleagues
Our second keyword is balance. Since best email sign-offs for work should include a balance between professionalism and a genuine tone, you should place yourself in the middle. Yes, during the lunch break, you can make sincere jokes to each other; however, since emails are considered to be documentation of conversations, you must still keep a clean tone. Other than that, you can still plan on that fun weekend football game together. Here are some examples that are not very strict but still keeps a respectful language:
- Best,
- Thanks,
- Kind Regards,
- Cheers,
- Talk soon,
Email Sign-Offs When Sending Reports or Official Documents
Email correspondence in professional environments is crucial, and ensuring a smooth process can greatly benefit you; therefore, our keyword will be acknowledgment. Since you want the recipient to be careful about the situation you are writing about or the attachment you have added, you should mention the action you require. However, be careful not to sound demanding. Otherwise, your simple formal document sharing might turn into a lesson on how to write appropriate assignment emails to a professor.
Here are some of the best professional email sign-offs you can use:
- Please review the attached,
- Looking forward to your feedback,
- Awaiting your response,
- Thank you for your attention to this matter,
- Let me know if you have any questions,
Email Sign-Offs for Appreciation or Acknowledgment
Every sincere action should be appreciated in the proper way. So, we have already given a clue for our next keyword: appreciation. Simple acts such as celebrating or acknowledging someone's participation, assistance or support can build a big difference in teamwork. Whether they are your colleague, coming from a different discipline, or a class teamwork partner, sending this email will also show how sincere you are as well. You may find the thankful email sign-offs below:
- Thank you for your assistance,
- I appreciate your help,
- Many thanks,
- Gratefully,
- With sincere thanks,
Email Sign-Offs for Follow-up or Next Steps
Our keyword for this one is simple: ongoing communication. If you are waiting on a quick response or just want to focus on the upcoming actions, you can use these sign-offs. This also prevents any misunderstanding of the job going back and forward is done. You can also use this to show a business partner that you are eager to work with them on future projects as well.
- Looking forward to our meeting,
- Let’s discuss further,
- Talk to you soon,
- Until our next discussion,
- More to come,
Email Sign-Offs When Communicating with Senior Management
As it can be guessed, our next keyword is respect. When you need to talk with a supervisor, executive or any stakeholder that has a high level of formality, you should keep respectful language. By avoiding using any informal email sign-offs, you can show how careful you are with every detail. Some examples of best professional email sign-offs:
- Respectfully,
- Yours sincerely,
- With respect,
- Best regards,
- Cordially,
By using these sign-offs and keeping the same attitude in the email text, you will keep a respectful presence in the eyes of your supervisors or professors. An easy bonus plus for you!
Best professional Email Sign-Offs
If all of these scenarios seem confusing and complex, we also have the simplest examples for you. Here is a list of professional sign-offs that are suitable for a lot of workplace or academic scenarios:
- Best regards,
- Sincerely,
- Kind regards,
- Respectfully,
- Thank you,
Tips for professional Sign-Offs
As we keep giving tips and examples on the scenarios, here is a simple formulation for you to read the room. By following these tips, you can come up with your own ideas for your professional sign-offs according to your unique situation.
Keep it Simple and Formal: Even though you are close and joking with your supervisor or professor in the workplace or class, you must still avoid casual language. Since these emails are the written documentation of your communication, your attire must carry a sense of professionalism.
Match the Tone: Your tone should be consistent for the whole email. For instance, if you are sending an appreciative email for someone's help, you can keep this gratitude in the sign-off as well. Or do not use “cheers” after telling someone of their miscommunication issues in a team since it will break the seriousness of the context.
Avoid Abbreviations: We believe that this is what differentiates emails from text communication the most. Using emojis and abbreviations such as “Thx” instead of “Thank You” or “c u there” instead of writing “See you there” changes a lot about your approach.
Consider Company Culture: Every company has its own culture and communication attire. For instance, if you are working in a start-up company founded by Gen Z, there is a great chance that you will use one-word signoffs such as:
- Bye,
- Thanks,
- Yours,
Without breaking the professional codes, you must follow the flow of communication in there.
Casual Email Sign-Offs (Informal)
When to Use Informal Sign-offs? Emails are not only used in professional communication in block offices. You can also send emails to your colleagues or friends about the upcoming costume party or the new vacation details. As long as you are concerned about the sincerity of your relationship with the recipients, you can use informal or unique email sign-offs.
Casual and Trendy Sign-Offs
When you are talking with your teammates or classmates about your project, you can use informal and casual sign-offs. You can even place a bit of inner jokes here. Here are some examples:
- Catch you later,
- Stay woke,
- Peace out,
- Later gator,
- Keep it real,
As long as your recipient won’t get offended by your casual tone, these email sign-offs serve a sense of familiarity and genuineness between you and them.
Humorous and Memetic Sign-Offs
This is where generational comedy comes out. You can use memetic signoffs to put a smile on your recipient's face. However, make sure that they know about the meme culture you are talking about. Just imagine how an early millennial would feel if you wrote “keep slaying queen” without any context. Also, make sure that you are being culturally appropriate when writing so as not to offend anyone over a joke or break their heart. We believe that you can create very funny email sign-offs by using pop culture slogans, but here are some examples we have put together:
- Don’t stop believin’,
- To infinity and beyond,
- Thank you, Beyonce,
- You are Kenough,
- Honey, I’m home,
Warm Email Sign-Offs
Warm email sign-offs are mostly used when you are thanking someone or celebrating a special occasion with them. These scenarios may include sending them a gift card, online webinar invitation or thanking them for sharing information for the class. You can also send these sign-offs to a friend you haven’t been talking to for a long time.
Research on email statistics shows that people choose email over text when they are inviting a group of their friends to parties or weddings, with a statistic of 86%. Think of them as a genuine sounding letter sign-off and check our examples:
- Warm regards,
- Take care,
- All the best,
- Have a great day,
- Cheers,
Cool and Unique Email Sign-Offs
You can reflect your own personal style in your emails. Like a graffiti signature, your unique email sign-offs can be a memorable image of you. Of course, creating your own signature would be better; however, if you want any examples as a starting point, you can check our examples:
- Stay awesome,
- Shine baby shine,
- Adventure awaits,
- Carpe diem,
- Stay inspired,
Funny and Creative Email Sign-Offs
Humor is what connects us together. You can make your friends and colleagues laugh with the right ratio of genuineness and humor. However, you should avoid all the time joking about cultural, racial triggers or gender orientation, all of which would directly be rude. By keeping the communication clean, you can have fun between you and your recipients. Here are some favorite examples:
- May your coffee be strong and your Monday short,
- Counting down to the weekend,
- Stay sassy and classy,
- Very demure, very mindful,
Sign-Offs to Avoid
As we have mentioned, the difference between email communication and texting is that you must keep a clear division. Thus, when you are talking in any professional context, you must keep formal language and clarity. This means that any informal email sign-off or offensive-sounding jokes would be understood as rude. We have provided you with examples you can check out and be aware of not to use in inappropriate situations.
Examples of Email Sign-Offs to Avoid
- Overly Casual and Slang: In a workplace or an academic context, using overly casual or slang nuances in the language might seem offensive to your professors or supervisors. Here are some examples to avoid.
- Later,
- Adios,
- Bye,
- L8r,
- Peace out,
- Abrupt or Lacking Warmth: Even when you are writing in an emergency, writing a simple appreciative sign-off should not be a hard addition to your writing. Thus, not showing enough effort can also be considered disrespectful when you are writing. Examples of this situation can be counted as:
- No signoff at all.
- Sent from my iPhone (without any signoff)
- Just the initials or a single letter
- Potentially Misleading or Confusing: Signoffs that include unintended intimacy can create confusion. Even though in real life, you can prevent any misunderstanding by the tone of your voice, in email, you must still keep a professional tone. So, avoid using such a list of email sign-offs:
- Love, (unless appropriate in personal contexts)
- Yours, (can be misinterpreted)
- Kisses,
- Overused or Cliché Phrases: Any signoff that could be understood as outdated and insincere could be considered a lack of effort. Thus, you should avoid using these:
- Yours truly,
- Very truly yours,
Email Sign-Offs Best Practices
Use the Right Sign-Off for the Right Context
Reading the room is one of the must-have abilities in corporate life. This includes observing the general relation's genuineness and reflecting the same energy. In Gen Z terminology, it is like matching the freak of the room. Here are things you must consider:
- Access the Relationship: You must consider how close you are to the recipient. For instance, if there are new clients that you are just meeting, using casual sign-offs would be considered as rude.
- Match the Tone: You should align your tone to the email’s content tone. Keeping the tone in the same vibe throughout the whole email allows you to give a consistent impression.
- Cultural Sensitivity: Every culture has a different understanding of phrases. Thus, while you are using any phrase you are not sure is appropriate, first make sure of it. If you know nothing about the recipient, you can use more neutral and general signoffs.
Include a Signature or Personal Information
- Personal Signature: Your full name and title give a more accessible and polished finish. Adding your personal information allows your recipients to get in contact with you whenever needed.
- Branding Elements: Adding a logo is a simple way to give personal information in your email sign-off examples. Maybe you can also add things like your branding elements, such as slogans or headers. However, make sure that images are as small as possible so that the email can easily load for the recipient.
- Social Media Links: Including professional links such as LinkedIn or Behance can be relevant information you can include. Make sure that the social media information you are sharing is only work-related.
Mention Attachments
- Reminder: If there are attachments that you want the recipient to not miss, you can remind them in the email sign-offs. Here are some examples:
- Please find the report attached,
- Attached is the proposal for your review,
- I’ve included the meeting agenda for tomorrow
Be Creative to Be Remembered
- Personal Touch: You can include a unique element to your sign-off that would reflect your personality. Or if your brand has a special slogan that could also grab attention. However, make sure that it does not break the professionalism.
- Motivational Quotes: Even if you don’t have any personal message that you can come up with, you can use the already existing ones. Using motivational email sign-offs should also come in a balance of relevancy and relatedness.
- The only way to do great work is to love what you do. —Steve Jobs
- Caution: We just wanted to remind you once again about the things you should consider before sending the email. First of all, you should balance the professionalism and creativity in your tone. This can help you leave an effective impression. Moreover, you should avoid mentioning anything that could be offensive in different cultures. You can use a neutral tone if you ever feel unsure about the content.
Conclusion
Email sign-offs are as effective as a firm handshake. Thus, you can use them to leave an effective impression on your recipient. You can build trust and express appreciation and gratitude by replying with relevant email sign-offs.
Through our blog, we have provided alternative email sign-offs so you can find the most related scenario. As long as you balance the genuineness and formality, you can personalize our examples. You should consider the context harmony, relationship, and desired tone while writing.
We hope that we were able to explain the basic formulation on how to write the best email offs for work.
Sincerely,
Keep slaying,
See you next time,
Happy emailing!