Yours Sincerely vs Yours Faithfully – Letter Endings

Have you ever been writing a letter or an email to someone and are not sure whether to use ‘yours faithfully’ or ‘yours sincerely’? This is a topic that many people seem to get hung up on.

So, when do you use ‘yours sincerely’ instead of ‘yours faithfully’?. Let’s discuss and learn.

When to use Yours faithfully

If your letter begins with Dear Madam/Sir, then you should always finish your letter or email with ‘yours faithfully’.

For example:
Dear Sir,

“Your Letter Content”

Yours faithfully,

Morgan Irwin

When to use Yours Sincerely

If your letter begins with Dear, Mr’s Johnson, then you should close it with ‘yours sincerely’.

For example:

Dear Mr. Jones,

“Your Letter Content”

Yours sincerely,

Morgan Irwin

Keep in mind that you must always capitalize the ‘yours’ part.

For example:
Yours sincerely
Yours faithfully

Correct:                                                                                                     Incorrect:
Yours sincerely                                                                                     yours sincerely

Correct:                                                                                                     Incorrect:
Yours faithfully                                                                                     yours faithfully

Basically, you use ‘yours faithfully’ when you do not know the person and you use ‘yours sincerely’ when you do know the person.

These are just a few tips to keep in mind when you are writing a formal letter to someone you know or someone you don’t know.

Keep exploring EnglishBix to learn different writing tips.

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