How Long Should a Cover Letter Be? One Page, and Why
A cover letter should be one page or less, in about three to five paragraphs: that is what the UC Santa Cruz and Purdue OWL pages we opened recommend. One source gave a word count, under 400. These are conventions, and an employer's stated limit overrides them.
Disclosure: We make AIHawk. It appears on this page and we have a financial interest in it.
What each source recommends
The table lists the six pages we read on 2026-11-12, chosen from university career centers and Purdue OWL; it is not a survey of all advice. "Not stated" means the page gives no figure of that kind. Cover letter length is also searched as "cover letter word count" and "is one page enough for a cover letter"; the answer to both is in this table.
| Source | What it recommends | Date shown |
|---|---|---|
| UC Santa Cruz career center | One page, 3 to 4 paragraphs. Words: not stated | Last modified Jul 06, 2026 |
| Purdue OWL, quick formatting tips | One page: one introductory paragraph, one to three paragraphs on your skills, one closing paragraph. Words: not stated | Not shown on the page |
| Cal State San Marcos staff career resources | No more than one page; aim for half a page or about three short paragraphs. Words: not stated | Not shown on the page |
| The Muse, reprinted by the University of Virginia economics department | Less than one page, three to five paragraphs, less than 400 words | November 28, 2022 |
| Purdue OWL, academic cover letters | Academic jobs only: usually one and a half to two pages, not more than two, roughly five to eight paragraphs | Not shown on the page |
| UConn career center, academic cover letters | Academic jobs only: one to two single-spaced pages | Not shown on the page |
The range for an ordinary job is half a page to one page. Only the Muse reprint gives words, and it is a publisher's guideline, so treat "under 400" as one source's figure, not a standard. We also tried Indeed's career-advice page and the U.S. Department of Labor's CareerOneStop. Both failed to load for us (a missing page and a refused request), so the table does not include them.
What nobody has measured
We found no study showing that a particular length raises your chances of an interview. Chance of an interview by cover letter length: Unknown. Opinions are not outcomes: a recruiter's stated preference for a length is not a hiring result.
The employer's instruction beats every convention above. If the posting sets a word limit, a character limit in a text box, or says not to submit a cover letter, follow that. UConn says to "Follow any specific instructions on page length" and, if two pages are allowed, not to submit three. Whether you need a letter at all is a separate question, covered in do I need a cover letter.
Steps: how to cut a long letter
If your draft runs past one page, make three cuts in this order. The before and after sentences are examples we wrote, not quotes from a real letter.
- Cut the opener that repeats the job ad. Example before: "I am writing to apply for the Marketing Coordinator position that I saw posted on your website, and I am very excited about this opportunity." Example after: "I'm applying for the Marketing Coordinator role."
- Replace duties from your resume with one thing you did. Example before: "In my role at Acme I was responsible for managing social media accounts, writing email newsletters and reporting on campaign results." Example after: "At Acme I took over the monthly newsletter and rebuilt how we reported campaign results."
- Shorten the closing. Example before: "Thank you very much for taking the time to consider my application. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss my qualifications further at your earliest convenience." Example after: "Thank you for your time. I can talk any day this week."
Then check against the sources: under the Purdue structure you need one opening paragraph, up to three body paragraphs and one closing paragraph. If a body paragraph does not tie your experience to this job, delete it. For what the paragraphs contain, see how to write a cover letter; for margins, font and file type, see cover letter format.
When shorter is right
The table gives a ceiling, not a target. Cal State San Marcos suggests half a page or about three short paragraphs. The following three cases are our reasoning, not findings from the sources:
- An email body. The letter is the message, so a few short paragraphs fit better than an attached page, which the reader has to open.
- A text box on an application form. The box and any character counter set the limit. Write for the space you are given.
- A referral. If a person inside the company is passing on your application, a short note that names them and the role may be all that is needed. Ask them.
When longer is defensible
Academic applications. Purdue OWL says an academic letter is usually one and a half to two pages but not more than two, and UConn says one to two single-spaced pages. For federal applications we found no length guidance we could read, so we make no claim: follow the vacancy announcement.
Common mistakes
- Treating a convention as a rule. No source we read shows that a one-page letter beats a page and a quarter. The risk is ignoring the employer's limit, not missing the page count.
- Shrinking the font to stay on one page. This hides length without cutting it. Cut sentences instead.
- Repeating the resume. Restating each job in the letter takes space without adding information.
- Writing the same letter for every job. That shortens the work, but a letter that fits any posting says little about this one.
One thing about volume
Writing a tailored letter for each job takes time, and the time adds up when you apply to many jobs. Some tools take on parts of the application. We make AIHawk, so weigh what follows accordingly. AIHawk's README says it fills in and sends each job application on the company's own form, attaching your CV. The README does not mention cover letters, so we cannot say what AIHawk does with one. Check the README before you rely on it for that.
Sources
All pages were read on 2026-11-12.
- UC Santa Cruz Career Success, "Cover Letters": https://careers.ucsc.edu/student/resources/resume_cover_letters/coverltr.html
- Purdue OWL, "quick formatting tips": https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/job_search_writing/job_search_letters/cover_letters_1_quick_tips/quick_formatting_tips.html
- Purdue OWL, "academic cover letters": https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/job_search_writing/job_search_letters/academic_cover_letters
- California State University San Marcos, staff center career resources, "Cover letters": https://www.csusm.edu/staffcenter/career-resources/cover-letters.html
- UConn Center for Career Readiness, "Academic Cover Letters": https://career.uconn.edu/resources/academic-cover-letters/
- Regina Borsellino for The Muse, "What's the Ideal Length for a Cover Letter? Plus Tips to Get Yours There" (2022-11-28), reprinted on the University of Virginia Department of Economics site: https://economics.virginia.edu/whats-ideal-length-cover-letter-plus-tips-get-yours-there
- AIHawk README: https://github.com/feder-cr/Jobs_Applier_AI_Agent
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