German Cover Letter: How to Write an Anschreiben for a Job

A cover letter in Germany (Anschreiben) remains an important part of an application: it shows not only your motivation, but also how carefully you have read the job posting and understood the employer’s expectations. A good letter does not repeat your CV, but explains why your experience is a good fit for the specific position.

German applications particularly value a clear structure, a professional tone, a personalised greeting, and specific examples. Even if a company accepts documents through an online form, an Anschreiben helps connect your skills, motivation, and the job requirements into one compelling argument.

What an Anschreiben is and why you need one

An Anschreiben is a formal letter to an employer, usually one page long. Its purpose is to answer three recruiter questions quickly:

• why you are applying for this particular position;
• which skills and achievements make you a suitable candidate;
• what value you will bring to the team or company.

A cover letter should not be a retelling of your CV. The CV shows the chronology and facts, while the letter explains the connection between your experience and the responsibilities in the job posting. This is especially useful for Russian-speaking candidates: you can briefly explain international experience, a move between countries, a career change, or your motivation for working at a German company.

Example structure of a German cover letter in English

If you are applying to an international company, you can often write the letter in English. For German-language vacancies, it is better to use German unless the posting says otherwise. In both cases, the structure is similar.

Sample English cover letter for a job application in Germany

The typical structure of the letter is:

1. Contact details for the candidate and the company.
2. The date and subject line.
3. A personalised greeting.
4. A brief, motivated introduction.
5. One or two paragraphs about relevant experience and achievements.
6. A connection to the company’s work.
7. A conclusion, availability, and signature.
8. A list of attachments if the letter is prepared as a separate PDF.

Format and layout: what matters in Germany

A German cover letter looks more formal than a letter for many English-speaking markets. It is usually prepared on DIN A4 paper and saved as a PDF unless the employer requests another format.

Practical layout rules:

• keep it to one page;
• leave enough white space; do not fill the page with an unbroken block of text;
• use a simple professional font at a readable size;
• include your email address and phone number in the contact section;
• add the company’s address and the contact person’s name if known;
• place the application date next to the address block or before the subject line;
• save the document as a PDF with a clear file name.

Business correspondence often follows the DIN 5008 standard. It describes the layout of German business letters, including the placement of margins and address blocks. You do not have to follow the standard to the millimetre, but a familiar structure helps the letter look professional.

Example format for a German cover letter

Approximate margins for a DIN A4 letter:

Margin	Practical guideline
Left	about 2.5 cm
Right	about 2 cm
Top	about 4.5 cm with a traditional address block
Bottom	about 2.5 cm

If you use a modern template, keeping the layout neat, readable, and predictable matters more than mechanically copying every standard specification.

How to write an Anschreiben section by section

1. Subject line

The subject should immediately show which vacancy you are applying for. It is usually bold and worded specifically:

Application as Marketing Manager, reference number 12345

If the vacancy includes a posting number, department, or city, add it to the subject line. This helps the recruiter match the letter to the open role more quickly.

2. Greeting

A personalised greeting works better than a generic one. If the job posting names a contact person, use their name. In German culture, it is safer to use a surname and a formal tone until the company clearly uses a more informal style.

If no name is provided, you can write to HR or call the company to ask for a contact. If it is impossible to find a person, use a neutral greeting such as Dear Hiring Team for an English letter or Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren for a German one.

3. Introduction

The first paragraph should be brief: state the position, where you found the vacancy, and your main reason for applying. Do not start with general phrases about “looking for new opportunities.” Instead, connect yourself to the role immediately.

Poor:

I think I could be a good fit for your company.

Better:

I am applying for the Product Analyst role because my experience in data-driven feature prioritization matches the responsibilities described in your vacancy.

4. Experience and achievements

In the second section, select two or three of your strongest relevant arguments. Do not list everything already included in your CV. Show how your experience has solved similar problems.

You can use a short list if it makes the text easier to read:

• improved a process, metric, or outcome;
• worked with tools named in the vacancy;
• led a project similar to the responsibilities of the future role;
• collaborated with an international or German-speaking team.

Specific examples work best: the scale of the project, type of task, result, and responsibility. If you cannot disclose exact figures, describe the impact qualitatively.

5. Connection to the company

The third main section answers the question: why this particular company? You do not need to retell the employer’s website. It is enough to show that you understand the product, industry, culture, or the team’s current challenges.

Appropriate approaches include:

• mentioning a product or project of the company;
• linking your experience to the responsibilities in the vacancy;
• explaining your interest in the industry;
• showing that the team’s way of working appeals to you.

Avoid overly broad phrases such as “your company is a market leader” if you do not add any specifics.

6. Closing

The final paragraph should be polite and professional. It usually states your availability to discuss details at an interview, a possible start date, and salary expectations if the employer explicitly asks you to state them.

End with a signature using your name. For a separate PDF, you can add an Enclosure or Anlagen line and list the attachments: CV, diplomas, certificates, and references.

Sending it by email and through an online system

If the employer accepts applications by email, there are two workable options:

• make the email body the cover letter itself;
• attach the letter as a separate PDF and write a short email mentioning the vacancy and attachments.

If the letter is pasted directly into an email, you do not need address blocks or a date as in a paper letter. Move the vacancy subject to the email subject line. If the letter is sent as a separate file, retain the formal document format.

Use PDF for attachments unless the employer specifies a different format. File names should be clear, for example:

• Ivan_Petrov_CV.pdf;
• Ivan_Petrov_Cover_Letter.pdf;
• Ivan_Petrov_Certificates.pdf.

Common mistakes

• sending the same letter to every company;
• starting with a long biography instead of responding to the vacancy;
• repeating the CV without explaining your motivation;
• writing too informally for the German business environment;
• failing to state the specific position;
• forgetting the signature, attachments, or clear file names;
• using template text that is not connected to the employer’s needs;
• adding salary expectations when they were not requested.

Before sending, check the letter against three questions: can you do the job, do you want this particular role, and are you a good fit for the team? If the answers are clear in one page, the Anschreiben has done its job.

A short checklist before sending

• The subject line names the specific position.
• The greeting is personal or neutrally formal.
• The first paragraph immediately explains your motivation.
• There are two or three examples of relevant experience.
• The text relates to the vacancy rather than sounding generic.
• The letter is no longer than one page.
• The PDF opens correctly and the file name is professional.
• The CV and cover letter do not contradict each other.

Conclusion

A German cover letter is neither a formality nor a retelling of your CV. Its purpose is to show why your experience suits a specific role and why you are consciously choosing this company. The more closely the letter relates to the vacancy, the more likely the recruiter is to move from your documents to an interview invitation.