One Woman, Title Preference Unknown

Dear Ms. Malloy:
Dear Ruth Malloy:

Several Persons

Dear Mr. Anderson, Mrs. Brodsky, Ms. Carmino, Mr. Dellums, and Miss Eustace:

Dear Friends (Colleagues, Members, or some other suitable collective terms):

Gender Unknown

Never, ever make a guess as to the gender of the person to whom you are writing the letter. If the name is not gender specific, or if it is an ethnic name that you do not know the gender rules, do not guess. There are many people named "Chris," for example, who are very annoyed by being called the wrong gender. When in doubt, play it safe and use the full name instead of a courtesy title.

Married Couple, Wife Uses Maiden Name

Dear Mr. (husband´s surname) and Ms. (wife´s maiden name)

Writing to Teenagers

Girls:
Address them as "Miss" or "Ms." and respect the individual´s preference if you know it. For girls younger than 13, "Miss" or "Ms." may be omitted.

Boys:
Address as "Mr." For boys younger than 13, omit the title. ("Master" is now rarely used except with the names of very young boys.)

Name & Gender Unknown

Dear Sir or Madam:
Dear Madam or Sir:
To Whom It May Concern:

Married Couple, Wife Has Special Title

Dear Senator and Mr. (husband´s surname):

Business Letter Salutation

Technically, in a formal business letter, the greeting or salutation should be followed by a colon. Therefore, "Dear Mrs. Brown:" is the correct option. However, you will find some businesses straying from this formal version and beginning to use to comma after the salutation.

Two or More Men

Dear Mr. Gelb and Mr. Harris:
Dear Mssrs. Gelb and Harris: (more formal)
Gentlemen: (more formal)
Sirs: (more formal)

Two or More Women

Dear Mrs. Allen, Ms. Ott, and Miss Day:

Dear Mrs. Jordan and Mrs. Kent:
Dear Mesdames Jordan and Kent: (more formal)

Dear Ms. Scott and Ms. Gomez:
Dear Mses. (or Mss.) Scott and Gomez: (more formal)

Dear Miss Winger and Miss Rossi:
Dear Misses Winger and Rossi: (more formal)

Name Known, Gender Unknown

Dear Marion Parker:
Dear R. V. Moore:

Married Couple, Both Have Special Titles

Dear Drs. (husband´s surname)

or

Dear Major and Professor (husband´s surname)

(or whatever the personal titles are)

Organization of Men

If there are "only" men in the organization:

Gentlemen:

Married Couple--Husband Has Special Title

Dear Dr. and Mrs. ... (husband´s surname)

Hyphenated Names

If you write to a person with a hyphenated last name, the complete name needs to be listed in the salutation.

Example (letter is to John Smith and Jane Jones-Smith):
Dear Mr. Smith and Ms. Jones-Smith

If the name is not hyphenated, treat it as a middle name.
Example (letter is to John Smith and Jane Jones Smith):
Dear Mr. and Ms. Smith

Name & Gender Known

Courtesy Title Preference Known:

Dear Mr. Smith:
Dear Mrs. Gray:
Dear Ms. Simpson:
Dear Miss Wells:

Organization of Women

If there are "only" women:

Mesdames:

or

Ladies:

Hyphenated Names

If you write to a person with a hyphenated last name, the complete name needs to be listed in the salutation.

Example (letter is to John Smith and Jane Jones-Smith):
Dear Mr. Smith and Ms. Jones-Smith

If the name is not hyphenated, treat it as a middle name.
Example (letter is to John Smith and Jane Jones Smith):
Dear Mr. and Ms. Smith

Name Unknown, Gender Known

Dear Madam:

or

Dear Sir:

Name & Gender Unknown

Dear Sir or Madam:
Dear Madam or Sir:
To Whom It May Concern: