Today, , I am away from the office and back at my desk tomorrow morning. For anything that cannot wait a day, write to at .
Professional · short · 1 of 2
Also for your time off
Where does it go?
For a single day out, say it is today, say who to write to and promise an answer tomorrow; nothing else earns a place: "Today, October 6, I am away from the office and back at my desk tomorrow morning. For anything that cannot wait a day, write to Priya Nair at priya.nair@yourcompany.com."
A single day or an afternoon needs no reason in the reply, and a light joke fits most inboxes because the cost to the sender is one night of waiting.
All 12 replies on this page
Type your details in the writer and every reply below fills itself in.
Professional 4
Today, [Away from], I am away from the office and back at my desk tomorrow morning. For anything that cannot wait a day, write to [Who covers] at [Their email].
Short
Away for the day on [Away from]. Your message will get a reply on [Back on]; if it is urgent, [Who covers] ([Their email]) is covering until then.
Short
Thanks for your email, which reached me on a day off. I am out on [Away from] and will not be reading messages until I return on [Back on]. I will reply to you that morning. If your request is time-sensitive and needs an answer today, please write to [Who covers] at [Their email], who has the details of my current work.
Longer
Automatic reply: I am out for half a day on [Away from] and back online in the afternoon. Messages that arrive this morning will be answered before the end of the day. For anything that needs a person right now, [Who covers] is available at [Their email] and can either help directly or pass it on to me.
Longer
Warm 4
Just one day off! I am back on [Back on] and will reply then. If something cannot wait until tomorrow, [Who covers] at [Their email] has you covered.
Short
Hi, I am out this afternoon and back first thing on [Back on]. Your email is safe with me until then, and [Who covers] ([Their email]) can help with anything urgent.
Short
Thanks for writing. I have taken [Away from] off, so today the inbox is resting and so am I. I will be back on [Back on] and will work through messages in the morning, so expect a reply from me by lunchtime. Anything that cannot wait a day can go to [Who covers] at [Their email], who knows what I am working on.
Longer
Hello from a rare day off. I am away on [Away from], which means your email will wait one night before I read it. On [Back on] I will be back and replying. If you need help sooner, please get in touch with [Who covers] at [Their email]; they are expecting a few messages from my inbox.
Longer
Funny 4
I took a single day off, which my inbox will treat as a month. Back on [Back on] to answer you; [Who covers] at [Their email] is covering anything urgent.
Short
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
Today's forecast: zero emails answered by me. Normal service resumes on [Back on]. For urgent matters before then, [Who covers] ([Their email]) is on duty.
Short
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
My day off on [Away from] is so short that this reply took longer to write than the day will take to pass. I will be back on [Back on] and replying to everything in the order it arrived. If your message cannot survive twenty-four hours without me, [Who covers] is covering and can be reached at [Their email].
Longer
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
Good news: this is the shortest absence on record. I am away for the day on [Away from] and will be back on [Back on], possibly refreshed and certainly reading your email. Anything urgent in the meantime should go to [Who covers] at [Their email], who has agreed to hold the fort for exactly one day.
Longer
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
What to leave out
A reason. A dentist, a school play or a long weekend are your business; "out for the day" is complete.
A promise to check email "from time to time". If you do, nobody uses the cover; if you do not, you look unreliable.
Two cover contacts for one day. One name can handle a single day of urgent questions.
A reply time vaguer than "tomorrow". Name the morning or the date you will answer.
Leaving the reply switched on. Set an end time in your mail client so tomorrow's senders do not hear you are away.
Filling it in
Type the day you are out in Away from and the next working day in Back on; for a half day, use the same date in both and pick a reply that mentions the morning or the afternoon. Name one person who covers, copy the reply and schedule it to end when your day off does.
Questions people ask
What do you say in an out of office message for one day?
Say that you are out today, name one person who can help with anything urgent, and say you will reply tomorrow or on a named date. That is two sentences and needs no reason. A one-day reply can be lighter than a long-absence one, because the cost to the sender is a single night of waiting, so a warm or mildly funny version suits most inboxes.
Do I need an out of office for a half day?
Set one if people normally expect a reply within a few hours, as clients and support queues do. Say which half of the day you are out and when you will reply, usually later that day or the next morning. For a team that already sees your calendar, a status in Slack or Teams may do the same job without an email reply.
Should a one-day out of office mention the reason?
No. A day off, an appointment or a school event are all covered by being out of the office today. Adding the reason invites replies about it and tells strangers more than they need. Senders only want to know when you will answer and who can help before then.
To
Everyone leaving soon
From
Department of Being Elsewhere
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Before you go
The auto reply is one of five things. The other four take about ten minutes and prevent most of the emails you will read when you get back.