The CV letter template

Copy it, replace everything in square brackets, delete the brackets. It fits on one page in any plain font at 11 or 12 point. Finished versions for retail, office and graduate roles are on the cover letter samples page.

Cover letter template (Ireland)

Four paragraphs, one page, square brackets to fill in.

[Your name]
[Town, Co. County] · [087 000 0000] · [you@email.ie]

[Date]

Dear [Ms Walsh / Mr Byrne / Hiring Manager],

I am writing to apply for the [job title] position at [employer], advertised on [IrishJobs.ie / LinkedIn / your website / the notice in the window].

[One or two results that match the ad, with a number in each. Example: "In three years at SuperValu, Ennis I ran the deli counter on my own at weekends and took its waste from 6% to under 3%." Pick the requirement from the ad you meet best and prove it. This paragraph is the interview.]

[One honest sentence on why this employer: something you know first-hand about the shop, the team, the product or the direction the company is going in. Not "market leader".]

My CV is attached. I am available [from date / for interview at any time that suits] and can be reached on [087 000 0000]. Thank you for your time.

Yours [sincerely if you named the person / faithfully if you wrote "Dear Hiring Manager"],
[Your name]

What the letter is actually for

Your CV proves you can do the job. The letter answers the two questions the CV can’t: why this job and why you, specifically, for it. If a line in your letter could be sent to any company, delete it. That’s CV material or filler.

The four-paragraph structure

  1. Opening: one sentence. The exact role and where you saw it: “I’m writing to apply for the Sales Assistant position at Brown Thomas, advertised on IrishJobs.ie.” No throat-clearing.
  2. Proof: the paragraph that gets the interview. Pick the one or two requirements from the ad you meet best and prove them with numbers: “At Arnotts I was top of my department for add-on sales six months running and trained four new starters.”
  3. Why them: one honest sentence. A real reason, not flattery: a product you use, a reputation you know first-hand, a direction they’re growing in.
  4. Close: make contact easy. CV attached, when you’re available, phone number, thank you.

Lines to steal (and their weak originals)

  • Weak: “I am a hardworking individual.” Strong: “In two years at SuperValu I missed one shift, and swapped it in advance.”
  • Weak: “I have excellent customer service skills.” Strong: “I handled 60+ customers a shift at peak and still got named on Google reviews twice.”
  • Weak: “Your company is a market leader.” Strong: “I’ve shopped in your Galway store for years. The floor team there is the standard I’d want to work to.”

Formalities that still matter in Ireland

  • Sincerely vs faithfully: named person → sincerely; “Dear Hiring Manager” → faithfully.
  • Find a name if you can. Thirty seconds on LinkedIn often turns up the store or hiring manager, and a named letter reads as effort.
  • Match the register. A law firm letter and a café letter shouldn’t sound the same. Mirror the tone of the job ad.
  • One page. Always.

Ready-made starting points

We keep three full Irish letters (retail, office and graduate) with copy buttons on the cover letter samples page. Adapt one, then pair it with a CV from the free builder so the two documents match.

Frequently asked questions

Is a cover letter the same as a CV letter?

Yes. "CV letter", "covering letter" and "cover letter" all mean the same one-page letter that travels with your CV and explains why you fit this specific job.

How long should a cover letter be?

One page, 3 to 4 short paragraphs, around 250 to 350 words. Recruiters read it after the CV interests them, so it should add a reason to call you, not repeat the CV.

Yours sincerely or yours faithfully?

Named the person ("Dear Ms Walsh")? End with "Yours sincerely". Didn’t name them ("Dear Hiring Manager")? "Yours faithfully". Getting this backwards is noticed more often than you’d think.

Do I always need a cover letter?

When the ad asks for one, always. When an application form has a "why do you want this role" box, that box is your cover letter. For speculative applications, the letter is the most important part: it explains why you’re writing at all.