How to write an email in Spanish in 4 simple steps

You may probably need to write an email in Spanish at some point as a Spanish student.

There are particular terms and phrases that you need to master, whether you need to communicate with an internet friend, close a crucial deal, or simply send an email wishing your Spanish-speaking coworkers a happy new year.

This post will cover both professional and informal communications to help you write an email in Spanish for all audiences.

Spanish email format for formal communication with a colleague or professor

Are you enrolled in a Spanish-language program? Are you keen to demonstrate your friendliness to others at your new job? You should be aware of a few things initially.

Although you might eventually grow to know your professors and coworkers by first names, it’s best to play it safe and keep things professional while you’re still getting to know them.

Do not end a professional email with “Kisses,”. The level of formality you chose for your message will also be reflected in the terminology you employ and the grammatical forms you use to address your recipient.

No matter how comfortable speakers are with one another or how formal they try to sound, there is only one “you” form in English. Instead of the more informal tú, individuals use usted to convey respect and establish a formal tone in Spanish.

However, that is not the challenging part. The verbs and possessive adjectives switch from the first person singular to the third person singular when we use usted. Let’s examine it using a Spanish email as an example.

Informal:

Estás invitado al evento del miércoles. Puedes traer a tu pareja. Te envío mi dirección.

Formal:

Está invitado al evento del miércoles. Puede traer a su pareja. Le envío la dirección.

English:

You’re invited to the party on Wednesday. You can bring your partner. I’m attaching the address below.

How do you start an email in Spanish?

How you start an email in Spanish will depend on how much you know about your addressee and the degree of familiarity between you two. If you don’t know the recipient’s name, you should begin your letter by saying:

A quien corresponda: (To whom it may concern,)
(Spanish speakers use a colon, not a comma, after the addressee’s name)
Sometimes, even if you are aware of the other person’s name, you choose not to address them by their first name. This typically occurs when writing to someone for the first time or when there is a hierarchical relationship between them.

Whatever the reason, begin your email with these if you don’t want to sound too casual.

Estimado(title) (surname),
Example:
Estimado señor López:(Esteemed Mr. López)

Spanish adjectives are gender-specific, meaning they differ significantly from English adjectives. As a result, use Estimada seora López while writing to women.

Juan, one of our best Spanish instructors, claims that he constantly has his students concentrate on a peculiar disparity between capitalization in English and Spanish.

As a common noun in the middle of a sentence, seor is not capitalized in Spanish. Only if the term is at the start of a sentence should you capitalize it. “Mister” or “Mr” is always capitalized in English.

It’s also helpful to be aware that titles in Spanish emails are typically truncated, much like in English.

Examples:
Señor – Sr. (Mr.)
Señora – Sra. (Mrs.)
Señorita – Srta. (Miss)
Doctor – Dr. (Doctor – masculine)
Doctora – Dra. (Doctor – feminine)

Abbreviations are always capitalized in Spanish, regardless of where they appear in a sentence. You should therefore say “Estimado Sr. Lopez” or “I agree wholeheartedly with everything the Dra. Gonzalez.”

Imagine for a moment that you have been employed by a corporation (or are taking classes!) for a few weeks. You can use the word “dear,” as in these examples from Spanish emails if you feel comfortable calling someone by their first name but still want to maintain a formal tone.

Querida Matilde: Espero que tus cosas estén bien. (Dear Matilde, I hope everything is going well.)
Querido Julio: Gracias por enviarme la información con tanta puntualidad. (Dear Julio, thank you for sending me all the information with such punctuality.)

Finally, you should choose the most appropriate register for your correspondence according to how official or informal you feel you can be with the recipient of your email to discover the greatest opening for your Spanish emails. Any greeting you choose will be well-received by your Spanish-speaking coworkers. We can promise you that.

While you’re at it, consider why it is so adamant about utilizing Spanish in workplaces with many languages.

How to end an email in Spanish

English farewells are frequently used as the final sentence in emails. We say phrases like “Best regards,” “Yours sincerely,” or “Have a pleasant day” to end our message on a polite, friendly note. It’s the same for Spanish email closings. All you need to do is choose the best Spanish email salutation from the list below, depending on whether you want to bid a formal or informal farewell (which should be obvious by now! ):

Formal farewell greetings for your emails in Spanish:

Informal farewell greetings for your emails in Spanish:

Write an email in Spanish to friends or family: the informal way

It would be best if you stopped using the formal usted form and only use the informal t form when writing to friends and relatives. Remember that the verbs and grammatical terms you place next to the pronoun will change. For instance, you would say “he ledo tu anuncio” in place of the third person singular form “he ledo su anuncio,” as in the example above (second person singular).

Continue reading to learn the ideal openings and closings for your informal Spanish emails.

Friendly greetings for your emails in Spanish

Are you looking for original Spanish greetings for emails to surprise your friends and family? Pick one of these vibrant expressions to try:

How to sign off an informal email in Spanish

A fun technique to use the terms of the language you’re studying is to imagine a lovely conclusion for an email in Spanish. Why not try an energetic, positive greeting in place of “Nos vemos” (see you)? These are only a few recommendations from Juan, our Spanish instructor. Any of them can be followed by your first name in a new line, and you’re set to go!

You can see that Spanish emails can be as official, informal, or imaginative as you choose. Don’t worry if you require more help with a particularly challenging email. We are prepared to assist.

Our fluent Spanish tutor can create a customized course plan based on your requirements so you can master email composition.

Suppose you get in touch with us right away. In that case, we’ll put you in touch with a certified Spanish teacher so you can impress your colleagues and fellow writers with your writing abilities. Try these free  Spanish lessons with no obligations.