Do you even need a cover letter?
If the application marks it optional, write one anyway when you're genuinely excited about the specific company — it's one of the few places you can show that beyond a bullet list. Skip it (or keep it to two lines) for high-volume applications where you're applying broadly and speed matters more than a tailored pitch.
A simple four-paragraph structure
- 1Opening — the role you're applying for and one specific reason this company caught your attention
- 2Proof — one or two concrete examples that connect your background to what the role needs
- 3Fit — why this stage of your career and this company make sense together
- 4Close — a confident, short call to action inviting a conversation
The four-paragraph cover letter
A worked example
Opening paragraph
"I'm applying for the Business Analyst role at [Company]. I've used your budgeting product as a freelancer for two years, and the recent shift toward automated reconciliation is exactly the kind of workflow problem I enjoy solving."
Proof paragraph
"In my current role, I rebuilt a manual monthly reporting process into a set of automated dashboards, cutting report turnaround from four days to same-day and reducing manual entry errors by roughly a third."
Notice the proof paragraph uses a specific number, not "excellent analytical skills" — specificity is what separates a real cover letter from a template.
Tone and length
Tone and length checklist
- Keep it to 250–350 words — roughly three-quarters of a page
- Address a named person if you can find one; "Dear Hiring Manager" is a fine fallback
- Write like you'd speak in a confident interview, not like a legal document
- Avoid restating your resume line by line
Skip the generic opener
"I am writing to express my interest in the position of..." is the single most common opening line reviewers see. It wastes your strongest sentence on filler. Open with the role and a specific reason instead.
Matching your cover letter to your resume and the job posting
Pull two or three requirements directly from the job description and address them explicitly in your proof paragraph. This does double duty: it shows genuine attention to the specific posting, and it naturally works in keywords that some companies also scan cover letters for.
Building your resume alongside this letter? Keep both consistent in one place.
Build Your ResumeCommon cover letter mistakes
- Sending the exact same letter to every company with only the name swapped
- Focusing entirely on what you want from the job, not what you'd contribute
- Restating your resume instead of adding new context
- Overly formal, stiff language that doesn't sound like you
- Typos in the company name — an easy, avoidable red flag
