Job offer letter template, with the details in order.

A job offer letter template turns a hiring decision into a clear written offer. This free one asks for the details a candidate needs, such as the job title, start date, pay, hours, location and benefits, and builds a letter in a warm, formal or short tone. You can edit every word, copy it or download a PDF. Anything you leave empty shows in [square brackets] so nothing is forgotten. It is a starting point and not legal advice.

How to use the job offer letter template

1. Fill in Company, Your name (who signs), Candidate name and Job title offered, and pick the Start date.
2. Open Pay and hours and type the pay as a number, then pick the currency and whether it is per year, month, week or hour.
3. Open Role details to add who the role reports to, the location, the benefits (one per line) and an optional review conversation.
4. Open Conditions and reply to say what the offer depends on, set a Reply by date and tell the candidate how to reply.
5. Pick a Tone, read the letter, and type over anything you want to change.
6. Click Download PDF, Copy letter or Text file.

What a good offer letter includes

• The role. The job title, who it reports to and where it is based, so the candidate knows exactly what they are saying yes to.
• The start date. A real date, written out with the weekday so it is easy to check.
• The pay. The amount, the currency, what it covers and how often it is paid. Say whether the figure is before tax in your own words if you need to.
• Hours and type. Full-time, part-time, fixed-term, contract or internship, and the usual hours.
• Benefits. Only the ones you can really offer, listed plainly.
• Conditions. Anything the offer depends on, such as a background check or references.
• A reply date. A fair deadline and a clear way to accept.

Worked example: pay

If you type 65000 with Per set to Year and Paid set to Monthly, the letter says the pay is $65,000 per year, paid monthly. Split into twelve payments that is $5,416.67 a month before tax, because 65,000 divided by 12 is 5,416.67. If you pick Hour instead and type 25, the letter says $25 per hour. At 40 hours a week for 52 weeks that adds up to $52,000 a year, because 25 times 40 times 52 is 52,000. The letter shows the figure you typed and does not do this sum for you, so check it yourself first.

The three tones

Warm and friendly opens by saying you were impressed and are delighted to offer the role, and ends with a hope that they say yes. Formal opens on behalf of the company and asks for written confirmation of acceptance. Short and direct keeps the same details with fewer words. The details are the same in all three, so you can switch tone without retyping anything.

Before you send it

An offer letter can have legal effect depending on where you are and what it says. Have a lawyer or an HR adviser read it before you send it, and make sure it matches what was agreed in the interviews. The option Say that a written agreement will follow adds one line saying the full terms will come in a separate document. It does not replace that document, and this page cannot say what yours must contain.

Common problems

• [start date] or [pay] is in the letter. That field is empty. Fill it in, or type over the brackets.
• The pay shows no currency sign. Currency is set to No symbol. Pick one.
• The letter does not change when I type in it. After you edit the letter by hand the form stops rewriting it. Click Rewrite from the form to start again.

When the candidate accepts, say thanks with the thank you letter template. For the other side of the table, see the resignation letter template, and for the paperwork after the first day, try the invoice generator if you hire a contractor.