Do You Need a Cover Letter? When to Send One (6 Samples)

By CVBooster Team · Published 2026-11-02 · Updated 2026-11-02

6 min read

Yes, if the posting asks for one. If it says not to send one, do not. If it says nothing, a short, specific letter still helps in the cases where your resume alone leaves a question open: a career change, a gap, a move to a new city, or a role you want badly. Below are six complete short letters for those cases, then the rules for deciding.

The honest answer is "it depends", and that answer is useless until you know what it depends on. It depends on three things: what the posting says, what your resume cannot explain by itself, and how much you want this particular job.

Six short cover letters for the cases where one helps

Each letter is complete and under 200 words. Change the names, the role and the one fact that proves your point.

Complete Entry level: First job, no experience example, 86 words, laid out as it would sit in the application form

Entry level: First job, no experience (86 words)

Dear Ms. Brennan,

I am applying for the Barista position at Harbor Coffee. I have not had a paid job yet, but I have run the bake sale table for my school's music club for two years, handling cash and counting the float at the end of each sale.

I live a ten-minute walk from your Maple Street shop, I can work weekends, and I learn quickly. I would be glad to come in for a trial shift.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely, Jake Morales

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Complete Mid level: Career change example, 96 words, laid out as it would sit in the application form

Mid level: Career change (96 words)

Dear Mr. Osei,

I am applying for the Customer Success Specialist role. For seven years I taught middle school science, and I now want to use the same skills in a software company: explaining difficult things simply, spotting who is confused, and following up.

Last year I completed a certificate in customer support tools and handled live chat for a local nonprofit on weekends. A teacher's resume does not say any of this, which is why I am writing.

I would welcome a conversation about how my classroom experience fits your team.

Best regards, Laura Vance

Complete Mid level: Employment gap example, 93 words, laid out as it would sit in the application form

Mid level: Employment gap (93 words)

Dear Hiring Manager,

I am applying for the Accounts Payable Clerk position. My resume shows that I left work in 2022 to care for a family member. I returned to full availability in March, and during that time I kept my skills current with a bookkeeping course and volunteer work for a community garden's accounts.

Before the break, I processed about 150 invoices a month with a 99 percent match rate to purchase orders. I am ready to do the same for your team.

Thank you for considering my application.

Sincerely, Marcus Bell

Complete Mid level: Relocating example, 93 words, laid out as it would sit in the application form

Mid level: Relocating (93 words)

Dear Ms. Alvarez,

I am applying for the Project Coordinator position at Lakeview Builders. I am moving to Minneapolis in August to be closer to family, and I can start on September 1. I am telling you now so the address on my resume does not cause a question.

For the past four years I have coordinated residential renovation projects in Phoenix, scheduling trades and tracking budgets of up to $300,000. I would like to bring that experience to Lakeview.

I can join a video interview at any time.

Kind regards, Dana Whitfield

Complete Senior: Applying to a role you really want example, 97 words, laid out as it would sit in the application form

Senior: Applying to a role you really want (97 words)

Dear Mr. Lindqvist,

I am writing about the Director of Operations role. I have followed Redwood Health since your expansion into home care, and I want to be part of it.

In my current post, I run operations for 220 staff across four clinics. Last year I rebuilt our scheduling so that appointment wait times fell, and I did it without adding headcount. Your posting says you are opening three new sites, and that is the work I do best.

I would like to talk about how I would approach the first site.

Yours sincerely, Helen Park

Complete Mid level: Referred by an employee example, 98 words, laid out as it would sit in the application form

Mid level: Referred by an employee (98 words)

Dear Ms. Nguyen,

Carlos Rivera, a senior analyst on your data team, suggested that I apply for the Data Analyst position. We worked together at a previous employer, where I built the weekly sales dashboard that his team used.

Since then, I have moved to a retail company and automated the monthly reporting in SQL and Python, which saves about two days of manual work each month. I am keen to work on a larger data set.

Carlos mentioned your plans for a new reporting platform, and I would like to hear more about them.

Sincerely, Ivan Kowalski

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When a cover letter is needed, and when to skip it

Use this order of decisions:

The posting asks for one. Send it. Leaving it out is the quickest way to look like you did not read the post.
The posting says not to. Do not send one. Follow the instruction exactly.
The form has no place for one. Put the key sentence in the summary at the top of your resume, or in a short note if the form allows it.
The posting is silent and the match is obvious. A letter is optional. A short one costs you little.
The posting is silent and the match is not obvious. Send a letter. This is the case for career changers, gaps, relocation and any role where your title does not match the post.

What the university career offices say

The MIT career office says in its guide to writing an effective cover letter: "Be sure that each cover letter is specifically tailored to the company you are writing to." A generic letter is the one kind worse than none.

MIT also says: "Try not to simply repeat your resume in paragraph form, complement your resume by offering a little more detail about key experiences." So the letter has to add something. Each sample above adds one fact the resume cannot carry.

Harvard's career services, in its guide to a strong resume and cover letter, says "Address your letters to a specific person if you can." Yale's Office of Career Strategy also keeps a page on cover letters and correspondence if you want a second set of examples.

How to keep it short

Three short paragraphs. Why this job, one proof, a close.
One page at most. MIT puts it plainly: "A cover letter should be no longer than one page with a font size between 10-12 points."
No repeats. If a fact is already in the resume, only use it in the letter to explain it.
Plain text. The same font as your resume.

For layout and spacing, see the cover letter format guide. For a role-specific letter, see the accounting cover letter. The matching best resume format page covers the document that goes with it.

Frequently asked questions

Is a cover letter necessary?

It is necessary when the posting asks for one. When the posting is silent, it is optional, and it is most worth the effort when your resume leaves a question open.

Are cover letters necessary for every job?

No. Skip it when the posting says not to send one, or when the application has no place for it. Do not skip it for a career change or a gap.

Do you need a cover letter if you are applying through an online form?

Only if the form asks for one or has an upload field for it. If there is a free text box, use it for two or three sentences that do the same job.

Can a bad cover letter hurt you?

A generic one can, because it shows you did not read the post. Send a short, specific letter or none at all.

Can I build my resume and letter for free?

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