Should You Include an Address on a Cover Letter?

It is crucial to spend time doing the things that matter during a job search. Do you include an address on a cover letter? Don’t worry about it too much. Following outdated conventions that have no functional purpose is a waste of time.

Protocol dictates that a business letter should contain the full postal address of the writer and the postal “inside address” of the recipient. Many job search websites still include these legacy rules in their cover letter examples. They are giving poor and outdated advice. You definitely don’t need an employer “inside” address on a cover letter.

Times have changed, and modern cover letter guidance is changing with them.

Let’s consider both types of addresses. Firstly, the candidate’s home address:

A candidate needs to include their town (and maybe country for an international search) in the address section, but there are two reasons why anything more could be detrimental. Discrimination is a scientifically proven fact. Including the actual address could result in discriminatory judgements for all sorts of reasons. Secondly, with the amount of hacking and data insecurity globally, would you want your full address on hundreds of ATS databases? I wouldn’t.

Inside address on a cover letter

Then, the most significant time suck, the “inside address” of the employer:

The recipient’s address in a business letter is an age-old rule that should still be obeyed if you are sure that it is correct, and you want an ideal application. However, in a recent poll of 1,000+ career experts, 93% stated that this was not required. Trying to find the right inside address takes a lot of time, there is a high risk of getting it wrong, the hiring manager doesn’t care if it is there. It takes up valuable cover letter space that could contain a few more lines of career story. Include the hiring manager’s name, their position, and company name. That is more than enough.

Conventions are changing, and job seekers need to be confident to choose how they apply for jobs. A well-written cover letter can absolutely complement a CV. Many career experts are even questioning whether it should be seen as a “letter” that is addressed to one individual. Many people read it, it resides on a general ATS database, and it can often stay there for years, long after that individual may have left the business. In my view, it should be addressed to an appropriate person where possible. You don’t need to include their address. Save yourself a lot of time. Don’t do it.

This is not cutting corners; it is being efficient.

Think carefully about how you frame your cover letter. Your choices about addressing it are more important than you think.

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This blog is shared with Job Seeker Duetists.

Written by former recruitment ghostwriter Paul Drury (not AI).