“To Whom It May Concern” Alternatives
To whom it may concern is becoming increasingly outdated, especially if the name of the recipient is known or can be found online. Depending on what you’re writing, other options you can use instead are:
- Hello
- Greetings
- Dear [Name of Recipient]
- Dear [Job Title]
- Dear [Department]
To whom it may concern is a salutation often used at the start of formal letters or emails. In the age of the internet and easily accessible information, to whom it may concern is sometimes considered old-fashioned. Below, we’ll give you five other ways to say to whom it may concern.
Phrases You Can Use Instead of “To Whom It May Concern”
Keep in mind that the following alternatives can take the place of to whom it may concern, depending on what you’re writing.
1. Hello
This one is pretty straightforward, and should only be used in less formal correspondence with coworkers and colleagues in which a professional relationship has already been established.
Hello Sarah,
Can you please do me a favor and forward me the emails you received from John?
2. Greetings
This option is perfect if you’re writing a company-wide email or memo. You can also personalize this alternative by specifying who will be receiving it.
Greetings Accounting Department,
Please be advised that the weekly meeting has been rescheduled from 1:00 to 1:30 PM.
3. Dear [Name of Recipient]
If you know the name of the recipient, then there’s no reason not to include it in your salutation. Just remember to use correct spelling and titles.
Dear Dr. Cabell,
Thank you for presenting your new findings to our students.
4. Dear [Job Title]
If you’re not sure about the name of the recipient, you can also use their job title. This is commonly found when writing cover letters.
Dear Hiring Manager,
Attached to this email are my cover letter and resume.
5. Dear [Department]
This alternative works for formal company-wide emails or memos, as well as cover letters.
Dear Human Resources Department,
On behalf of the entire company, we want to thank you for your hard work.
Bonus Tip
The last three alternatives are perfect for cover letters and formal emails. Besides using proper salutations when writing these, you’ll also want to ensure you’re using proper tone and style. LanguageTool can help rephrase your sentences to be more formal, more fluent, and even shorter. Try it today.
Using “To Whom It May Concern”
Even though it’s becoming less and less frequent to come across the salutation to whom it may concern, some people do still use it, and that’s okay.
If you’re writing an email or cover letter and aren’t sure who is receiving it, then use this option. But before you do, try to find the name of the person (or department) who will be receiving your email or letter. If you do happen to find it, then it’s recommended to use the alternatives listed above.
