How to Address a Cover Letter (Canada)
Fill the fields — get the exact address block, date and salutation in the format Canadian recruiters expect. Safe fallbacks if you don't know the hiring manager's name.
July 18, 2026 Dear Hiring Manager,
No name? We default to Dear Hiring Manager, — the safe modern Canadian standard. Avoid "To Whom It May Concern" and "Dear Sir/Madam".
Now generate the letter itself
You've got the address block. Use the free cover letter generator for a tailored 3-paragraph body — Canadian tone, no signup.
How to address a cover letter in Canada — the format recruiters expect
- Default salutation: 'Dear Hiring Manager,' — 'To Whom It May Concern' reads dated.
- Include your city + province, email and phone. Skip your street address.
- Include the date only for a formal PDF letter, not for an email body.
- Address the letter to a real name when you can find one — LinkedIn is the fastest source.
- Never write 'Dear Sir/Madam' on a Canadian application.
The 3-part Canadian address block
- Your header — name on line 1, then city/province · email · phone on line 2. No street address.
- Date — long format (e.g. 18 July 2026). Skip if you're pasting the letter into an email.
- Recipient block — hiring manager name, title, company, city. Then the salutation.
When you don't know the hiring manager
- Best: Search LinkedIn for the company + department (e.g. "Shopify head of marketing"). 5 minutes usually finds a name.
- Backup: Address the department — "Dear Marketing Team," or "Dear Engineering Hiring Team,".
- Safe default: "Dear Hiring Manager," — modern, gender-neutral, universally accepted.
- Avoid: "To Whom It May Concern" (dated), "Dear Sir/Madam" (gendered), "Hi!" (too casual for the address line).
Emailed vs PDF letters
For an emailed cover letter, drop the date and recipient address block — start with the salutation. For a PDF attachment, keep the full block. Either way, the greeting rules stay the same.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using 'To Whom It May Concern' — reads dated in 2026.
- Including your full street address — city/province is enough in Canada.
- Guessing a gender-specific title (Mr/Ms) without knowing.
- Copy-pasting a US-style address block with a 5-digit ZIP.
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