Email Greetings & Sign-offs In Other Languages

You won’t get very far in another language without knowing how to say hello and goodbye. Most language apps, teachers and textbooks will have you covered on that front from day one. But who’s going to have your back when you’re struggling to come up with the appropriate email salutations in your target language?

This sort of thing has implications, by the way. It’s hard enough to decide between “Sincerely,” “Best” and “Thank you!” in English. And directly translating the email greetings you’re used to using in your native language won’t land the same way to a speaker of a different language. One study found that 40 percent of Koreans thought Australian emails were impolite, versus 28 percent of Australians who thought Korean emails were rude.

If you’ve ever aced a quiz on how to answer the phone in another language, then you’re probably hip to the fact that phone and email etiquette calls for slightly different language than spoken communication does. Here are a few examples of email salutations in other languages that might feel a little more natural rolling off the fingertips than “sincerely” or “best.”

Email Salutations In Other Languages

Spanish

Estimado/a ___, — Dear ___, (formal)
Querido/a ___, — Dear ___, (informal)
Buenos días/tardes — Good day/afternoon
Hola — Hello
Buenas — Hey (casual)

Polish

Szanowni Państwo — Dear Sir or Madam (formal, unknown recipient)
Szanowny Panie (m)/Szanowna Pani (f) ___, — Dear Mr./Dear Mrs. ___, (formal)
Dzień dobry — Good morning
Cześć — Hi

French

Bonjour — Hello
Bonsoir — Good evening
Bonjour monsieur/madame — Hello sir/madam (formal)
Salut ___, — Hey ___, (casual)

German

Sehr geehrter Herr ___/Sehr geehrte Frau ___ — Dear Mr./Dear Mrs. ___ (formal)
Hallo — Hello/Hey
Lieber (m)/Liebe (f) ___, — Dear ___, (for friends and relatives)

Japanese

いつもお世話になっております。— I’m always grateful for your help. (yes, even if you’ve never met)
お世話になっております。株式会社〇〇（社名）の〇〇（名前）です。— Thank you for your patronage. This is (name) of (company name). (formal business email)

Italian

Ciao — Ciao (informal)
Buongiorno — Good day/Hello
Egregio Sig./Egregia Sig.ra ___, — Dear Mr./Mrs. ___,
Gentile Sig./Gentile Sig.ra ___ — Dear Mr./Mrs. ___,

Russian

Уважаемый (m)/Уважаемая (f) ___, — Dear ___, (formal)
Здравствуйте — Hello
Добрый день — Good day

Arabic

الفاضل ___, — Virtuous ___, (like “Dear ___,”)
السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته — May the peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon you (standard formal opening, used after addressing the recipient by name)

Email Sign-Offs In Other Languages

Spanish

Saludos or Un saludo — Regards (informal)
Un abrazo or Un beso — Hug or Kiss (for people you’re close to)
Cordialmente — Cordially
Saludos cordiales — Best regards
Atentamente — Sincerely/attentively

Polish

Z poważaniem — With respect
Wyrazy szacunku — Expressions of respect
Łączę ukłony — I combine the bows (think: an actor taking a couple bows on stage)

French

Mille baisers or Bisous — A thousand kisses or XOXO (for close friends)
Bonne journée — Have a good day
Cordialement or Très cordialement — Cordially or Very cordially
Amicalement — Kindly

German

Liebe Grüße — Best regards
Mit freundlichen Empfehlungen — With friendly compliments
Mit freundlichen Grüßen — With friendly regards
Mach’s gut! — Take care! (informal)