How Long Should a Cover Letter Be?
Quick answer: A cover letter should fit on one page — around 250 to 400 words, or three to four short paragraphs. Recruiters typically spend well under a minute on each one, so brevity isn't a limitation, it's the whole strategy.
Why shorter almost always wins
Nobody is disappointed by a cover letter that respects their time. A long, sprawling letter signals that you couldn't decide what actually mattered, and it forces the reader to do the editing work you should have done yourself. One tight page beats two rambling ones, every time.
A rough word-count breakdown
| Section | Approximate length |
|---|---|
| Opening hook | 1-2 sentences |
| Why you fit the role | 2-3 sentences |
| A specific example or achievement | 2-3 sentences |
| Closing and call to action | 1-2 sentences |
| Total | 250-400 words |
When it's okay to go slightly longer
Senior or executive roles, career-change situations that need extra context, or applications that explicitly request a detailed letter can justify pushing closer to a full page and a half. Even then, resist the urge to explain everything — pick the two or three points that matter most and cut the rest.
- ✓ One page, single-spaced, with reasonable margins
- ✓ Three to four focused paragraphs
- ✗ Restating your entire resume in paragraph form
- ✗ Long, unbroken blocks of text with no paragraph breaks
How to trim a cover letter that's running long
If your draft is spilling onto a second page, don't panic — almost every over-long cover letter can be tightened without losing anything important. Start by cutting any sentence that explains something your resume already shows; the cover letter's job is to add context, not duplicate facts. Next, look for warm-up sentences at the start of paragraphs ("I am excited to apply because...") and delete them, since the actual point usually comes right after. Finally, read through once more and remove any adjective that isn't doing real work — "very," "really," and "extremely" rarely add meaning and just take up space.
It also helps to read your draft as if you were the hiring manager, tired, on your fourth coffee, with forty more applications to get through. Would you keep reading past the first paragraph? If a sentence doesn't earn its place, cut it. That single mindset shift trims more words than any formatting trick.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a shorter cover letter ever a problem?
Not usually — as long as it still covers who you are, why you fit, and one concrete example. A two-sentence letter is too thin, but a tight, well-organized paragraph structure is fine.
Does cover letter length matter for online applications with a text box?
Yes. Even in a plain text box, aim for the same 250-400 word range — the reading experience matters more than the file format.
What if the job posting specifies a word or page limit?
Always follow it exactly. A specified limit is often used to test attention to detail, so treat it as a hard rule, not a suggestion.
Leave a Reply