There are many ways to write the date of a letter. How you write it depends on the type of letter. For example, there are strict rules if you are writing a formal letter. The location of writing the date in an informal letter is relatively less important than a formal letter. Choosing the right format can be confusing at times, but it's actually easy when you understand the difference.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Writing the Date on a Formal Letter
Step 1. Place the date in line with the left margin
For formal letters, use the block format. In block format, the entire content is stuck to the left edge of the page for a neat appearance. Different parts of a letter are separated by spaces and are not indented.
Cover letters for job applications or complaint letters are usually written using a block format
Step 2. Write the date a line or two below the return address
Once the return address is written, space it a line or two down to give it a neat space before writing the date. If you are typing a letter, press the enter key once or twice.
- Use a uniform format in one letter. For example, if you spaced one line between the address and the date, you should also space one line between the date and recipient information. A uniform format will make your letter look neat and organized.
- If you're using official letterhead that has the return address on top, the date is the first thing you write down.
Step 3. Write the full date without abbreviations
For formal letters, don't abbreviate months or numbers. For example, “January” should not be written as “Jan” or “01”. Make sure you write the full month name.
- If you and the recipient are in the United States, Belize, or Micronesia, enter the date in month-date-year format. For example, if the date of your letter is 2019-23-02, write "February 23, 2019."
- In other places, including Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, or most of Central America, the format used is date-month-year, such as "23 February, 2019." If you and your recipient live in countries in the area, choose this format.
- If you and the recipient are in a country with different formats, you can choose one of the formats. You can also work around this issue by selecting the year-month-date format, or "2019 February 23," if you prefer.
Method 2 of 3: Writing Dates on Semiformal Letters
Step 1. Write the date one tab to the right from the middle of the semiformal letter
Semiformal letters usually use a modified block format. Using this format, the return address, date, final greeting, and signature are to the right of the letter.
Semiformal letters are commonly used to write letters to professional people you know, such as former employers or co-workers
Step 2. Skip one or two lines after the return address to write the date
Similar to the block format, put a space between the return address and the date. The spaces you use must be uniform in one letter.
- If you are typing a semi-formal letter, the templates provided by a data processing application can help you organize your letter.
- If you are writing the recipient's address, or inside address, as is often done in semi-formal letter writing, write two lines below the date. If you don't use it, the next line is the greeting including the recipient's honorary title.
Step 3. Write the date using the format you choose
Write the full month name and avoid abbreviations or number formats. For example, your date would be "31 January 2019" or "January 31, 2019." Don't write "Jan" or "01."
If you wish, you can write "2019 January 31."
Method 3 of 3: Writing the Date on an Informal Letter
Step 1. Open the letter by writing the date at the top
In an informal letter, you do not need to write your name and address in advance, or the address of the recipient in it. Begin your letter by writing the date.
Step 2. Write the date on the left or right side of the letter
You usually write informal letters to people you know well, such as friends. So, the structure and format is more flexible. You can choose to write the date to the left of the letter or one tab to the right from the center of the letter.
After the date, skip 1-2 lines, then write the greeting
Step 3. Write the date as you like
There are no rules on how to write the date on an informal letter. You can choose a number format, such as "01-31-2019," or an abbreviated version, such as "31 Jan 2019." Choose the format you like.
- There are several ways to write a date using a number format. You can separate numbers using a hyphen (-), a slash (/) or a period (.). For example, "January 31, 2019" could be written using the United States format as "01-31-2019," "2019-31-01," or "01.31.2019."
- You can also shorten numbers in informal letters. " January 31, 2019" could be written as "1/31/19," removing zeros and part of the year digits.
Tips
- If you frequently write formal letters to work, check to see if there are any office guidelines you should follow.
- Use numbers that represent quantity (1, 2) rather than order (1st, 2nd). For example, write "November 2, 2019" or "November 2, 2019, " instead of "November 2nd, 2019" or "November 2nd, 2019."
