Writing emails in German: greetings, sign-offs and phrases

A German email has a fixed frame. A formal email opens with Sehr geehrte Frau Becker, or Sehr geehrter Herr Becker, and closes with Mit freundlichen Grüßen. An email to colleagues usually opens with Hallo and closes with Viele Grüße. After the comma in the greeting, the first line starts with a small letter. In between, a handful of German email phrases covers most work and official mail: thanks, requests, attachments and next steps.

#How do you start a formal email in German?

The greeting sets the tone, so choose it first. This table runs from the most formal to the most relaxed.

Academic titles stay in the greeting: Sehr geehrte Frau Dr. Hoffmann. If you do not know how a person wants to be addressed, Guten Tag with the full name, such as Guten Tag Kim Schulz, is a safe and increasingly common choice. You will also see an extra comma after Hallo or Guten Tag, as in Hallo, Frau Becker,; both versions are common in emails.

The greeting ends with a comma, and the text starts on the next line with a small letter, unless the first word is a noun or Sie.

#How do you end an email in German?

The sign-off should match the greeting. A formal opening with a casual close looks odd, and the other way round too.

#Which phrases do you need for the body of the email?

Most emails need only three moves: say why you are writing, say what you need, and close politely. These phrases cover all three.

Saying why you are writing

Asking for something

Requests in emails are almost always in Konjunktiv II. Könnten Sie is the workhorse; Ich wäre Ihnen dankbar, wenn ... is for when you need to be extra polite. There is more in polite requests in German.

Attachments and closing lines

The subject line, der Betreff, should say what the email is about in a few words, such as Rückfrage zu Ihrer Rechnung (a question about your invoice) or Termin am Dienstag.

#What does a full German email look like?

Here is a short formal email that moves an appointment. Notice the small letter after the greeting, the reason with weil and the verb at the end of that clause, and the sign-off without a comma.

Your full name follows on the next line. Between colleagues who use du, the same email shrinks to a few friendly lines:

#Du or Sie in emails?

Answer in the form you were written to. If someone writes Hallo Frau Okafor and Sie, stay with Sie, even if the tone is friendly. The rules for choosing are in du or Sie.

Sie, Ihnen and Ihr are always capitalised when they mean "you" and "your". With du, you have a choice: in letters and emails, du and dein may be written with a capital letter as a sign of respect, or with a small letter. Both are correct; just stay consistent within one email.

#How does Linota help with German emails?

Write a short email in Linota and the writing feedback points out your mistakes and explains them, from a missing comma before weil to the wrong ending after für. When you meet a phrase you want to reuse, such as Bescheid geben, tap it and save it: the study note explains how it is used, and review cards bring it back when it is due. The German for work guide shows the other situations worth preparing in your first months.

#The short version

• Formal: Sehr geehrte Frau ..., or Sehr geehrter Herr ..., and Mit freundlichen Grüßen.
• Colleagues: Hallo with the name and Viele Grüße.
• After the greeting's comma, start with a small letter.
• No comma after the sign-off.
• Ask with Könnten Sie ...? and announce attachments with Im Anhang finden Sie ....
• Capitalise Sie, Ihnen and Ihr every time.

For letters from offices and authorities, read reading official German letters.

This post teaches the German for the situation. It is not legal, tax, medical or financial advice, and rules change: for your own case, ask the office, your employer, a doctor or a qualified adviser.