Comma after “Regards” in Emails (Best Practice)

Signing off formal emails with words like “regards” is a great way to be respectful and show that you care about your audience. Of course, there are certain comma rules associated with them, and this article will explain what you need to know.

Should I Use A Comma After “Regards” In Emails?

“Regards” should always be followed by a comma when you are singing off an email with it. If you use it in the middle of a sentence, it’s unlikely that a comma is needed because a preposition usually follows it. Most emails require the comma to sign it off, though.

Comma after “Regards” in Emails

You’ll often find that emails are signed like this:

  • Best regards,
  • Jim

The idea here is to give your sign-off message (with “regards”) followed by your name. A comma should always come before your name in situations like this when a message is either wishing somebody hello or goodbye (i.e. “hi, Jim” or “bye, Jim”).

You might find that “regards” is used in the middle of a sentence, though this isn’t always common in emails.

  • Send my regards to Mark.

Here, “to” is a preposition that follows “regards,” so there is no need to include a comma after the word.

When “Regards” Is Used To Close An Email

“Regards” should always have a comma after it when it closes an email. The same rules apply no matter what word or phrase you use to sign an email off. If you’re not placing a comma directly after it, you’re using it incorrectly, and we do not recommend this.

The rules apply whether you’re using email or letter format. You should always include a comma when you want to sign off an email in an appropriate way that recognizes the formal rules associated with sentence structure.

  • Dear sir,
  • This is the email.
  • Best regards,
  • Martin
  • Dear ma’am,
  • This is my email body.
  • Kind regards,
  • Steve
  • Dear Mr. Fredson,
  • Welcome to my email.
  • Regards,
  • Joanna

No matter how you phrase your sign-off sentence, a comma should always come after it.

This applies whether you use multiple words (i.e. “kind regards”) or a single word (i.e. “regards”).

When “Regards” Is Used In A Sentence

In the middle of a sentence, “regards” does not need punctuation. It is often followed by a preposition that takes the place of the comma. You can use this form whenever you want to send regards to a specific person as part of a sentence or email body.

In this situation, you won’t often find that “regards” is used in emails. Sure, you could write something like the following:

While this is something that could occur, it’s not something that you’ll often come across. Instead, it makes much more sense to just write simple sentences that include the word “regards” in the middle of them:

  • I want to give you my regards to help you understand that we’re all behind you with this one.
  • Please, give me regards to Johnny before he tackles this big challenge.
  • Oh, give my regards to your mother! I feel like I haven’t seen her in years.

In very rare circumstances, you may place a comma after “regards” in this situation when it comes at the end of a clause (but not at the end of a sentence).

  • I’d like to extend my regards, but I’m not sure if you’ll receive them well.
  • I will give him my regards, so I’ll be seeing you later.
  • You have my regards, and I don’t think there’s much else for us to say.

What Does “Regards” Mean?

“Regards” means that you are considering someone or keeping them in your thoughts. It means that you have an opinion about them (usually a positive one) that reminds them that you respect them or consider them to be a partner or ally in some way.

The definition of “regards,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “to consider or have an opinion about something or someone.”

From this definition, it’s clear that phrases like “kind regards” and “best regards” are meant to keep you in good spirits. They mean that you are thinking highly of someone once you sign an email off with one of those two phrases.

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