In short:“I look forward to hearing from you” is a polite closing that asks for a reply without putting pressure on the recipient. When they reply, thank them with “Thank you for your response” and add the next step. Below, you’ll find 20 alternatives in a table, both formal and informal, ready to copy.
The phrases in this article are templates for your emails to customers, applicants or business partners. That’s why the formal versions use a more formal tone and the informal versions a more casual one. Choose the tone that fits your previous correspondence.Last updated: October 19, 2026.
What “I look forward to hearing from you” means
The sentence tells the recipient two things: You expect a reply, and you want to continue the conversation. It works in any email that needs a reply or confirmation, including offers, meeting proposals, follow-up questions and applications.
The sentence has one weakness: It doesn’t say what you want a reply about or by when. If you ask three questions in an email and close with “I look forward to hearing from you,” you’ll often get an answer to the easiest one. A better closing repeats the one question that matters or gives a date.
20 alternatives: formal and informal
The table matches each alternative to a situation. The formal version is on the left, and the informal version is on the right. Replace the text in brackets and copy the sentence into your email.
Situation | Formal | Informal |
|---|---|---|
General request for a reply | I look forward to your reply. | Looking forward to your reply. |
Interested in their opinion | I’m interested to hear your thoughts. | I’m curious to hear what you think. |
Request for brief confirmation | A brief confirmation is all I need. | A quick okay is all I need. |
Reply by a deadline | Please let me know by [date]. | Let me know by [date], please. |
Offer sent | I’d be glad to hear whether the offer works for you. | Let me know if the offer works for you. |
Meeting proposal | Would [day of the week] at [time] work for you? If not, please suggest another time. | Does [day of the week] at [time] work for you? If not, just suggest another time. |
Documents sent | I’d appreciate a brief response to the documents. | Take a look and let me know what you think. |
Decision pending | Please let me know what you decide. | Let me know what you decide. |
Expecting follow-up questions | I’d be happy to answer any follow-up questions. | If anything’s unclear, just ask. |
Application submitted | I would be very pleased to have the opportunity to speak with you in person. | I’d be happy to have a conversation. |
After a job interview | I look forward to hearing about the next steps. | Looking forward to hearing what happens next. |
Contacting a candidate | If the role sounds interesting to you, I’d be glad to hear from you. | If the role sounds interesting, send me a quick message. |
Feedback on a draft | I welcome your comments on the draft. | I’d welcome your comments on the draft. |
Approval needed | Please approve this by [date] so we can meet [next step]. | Please give me the go-ahead by [date] so we can meet [next step]. |
Information requested | Thank you in advance for the information about [topic]. | Thanks in advance for the information about [topic]. |
Following up after a week | I’m following up on my message from [date]: Have you made a decision about [topic]? | Quick follow-up on my email from [date]: What do you think about [topic]? |
Letting them know you’ll follow up | If I haven’t heard from you by [date], I’ll follow up. | If I haven’t heard from you by [date], I’ll follow up. |
Thanking them for their time | Thank you for taking the time. | Thanks for taking the time. |
Looking ahead to working together | I look forward to continuing our work together. | Looking forward to working together. |
Hoping for a prompt reply | I hope to hear from you soon. | Hope we can speak soon. |
Two rules make every one of these options effective: Ask only one question per email, and give a date if you need a reply by a certain time.
Examples by situation
The phrase sounds more natural in a complete message when it connects to the email’s content. You can copy and adapt the following examples.
recruiting
“Thank you for your application. We’ll review your documents by [date] and get back to you then. I’d be happy to answer any follow-up questions.”
“Your profile is a good match for our [position] role. If you’re interested in a brief conversation, I look forward to hearing from you.”
Business partners and colleagues
“We have reviewed your suggestions. I look forward to hearing from you to discuss the next steps.”
“I’ve put together the information on [topic] and would welcome your thoughts by [date].”
Customer communication
“We’ve addressed your request and taken the necessary steps. Please let me know whether everything is now to your satisfaction.”
“I’ve sent you the offer. Please let me know by [date] whether it works for you or whether you have any questions.”
“Thank you for your response”: ways to reply
Once you receive a response, it’s your turn to say thank you. On its own, “Thank you for your response” can sound like the end of the conversation. It’s better to add some context or a follow-up question. You can copy the following sentences and simply replace the text in brackets.
Formal
- “Thank you for your response. I have taken note of your comments and will send you the revised version by [date].”
- “Thank you very much for your response. It helps me greatly to prepare [topic] in a targeted way.”
- “Thank you for your prompt response. I suggest that we implement [next step] as discussed.”
- “Thank you for your detailed response. Your point about [point] was particularly valuable to us.”
- “Thank you for your honest response, even though you’ve made a different decision this time. I’d be happy to get in touch again at a later date.”
Casual but professional
- “Thanks for your feedback! I’ll incorporate the points and send you the new version by [date].”
- “Thanks for the quick reply. Let’s do that.”
- “Thanks for your assessment. That was exactly the information I was still missing.”
- “Thanks for the honest response. I’ll take that on board.”
With a follow-up question
- “Thank you for your response. So I can proceed correctly: should I prioritise [option A] or [option B]?”
- “Thank you for your response. Would [day of the week] at [time] work for a brief meeting to clarify the open points?”
- “Thank you for your response. Who else from your team should I involve so that we can finalise [topic]?”
- “Thank you for your response. By when do you need my answer on [point] to keep your timeline on track?”
Be specific about what you’re thanking them for. A thank-you without context reads like a template.
When to avoid “I look forward to hearing from you”
The phrase is polite, but it doesn’t fit every situation:
- When the matter is urgent. If you need an answer by tomorrow, say so: “I need your approval by 12 noon tomorrow.”
- When no reply is needed. An email that’s purely informational is better closed with “Best regards” than with a request no one needs to respond to.
- When it’s your third email in a row. After two follow-up emails, the phrase can feel like pressure. Instead, ask whether the topic is still relevant.
- In short chat messages. It sounds stiff there. More on that in the next section.
How to close a LinkedIn message
On LinkedIn, you write more briefly than in an email. A personal note with a connection request can be no longer than 200 characters, and without Premium, you can add a note to only three requests per month, according to LinkedIn Help’s Personalize invitations to connect (as of October 2026). There’s no room for a formal closing like “I look forward to your reply. Yours sincerely,” and it would feel out of place in a chat anyway.
On LinkedIn, replace the phrase with a specific question that’s easy to answer. Three examples you can copy:
“Would a quick chat next week work for you, [first name]?”
“Is [topic] relevant to your team right now?”
“Should I send you the documents on [topic]?”
If you don’t get a reply, a friendly follow-up after a few days can help. You’ll find templates and timing for email and LinkedIn in Follow-up email and LinkedIn message: 15 templates with timing. Before sending, use the free Message Check to see whether your message is too long or too formal.
Replies in sales, recruiting and job applications
This closing phrase comes up particularly often in three situations: when you’ve sent a sales proposal, when recruiters message candidates, and when job applicants are waiting for a reply. On LinkedIn, the same rule applies to all three: keep the message short, ask one question, then follow up if you don’t hear back.
CompLeadly supports this process. The desktop app runs locally on your computer. In sales, it uses a people search or Sales Navigator search as your target audience, sends a connection request and an opening message once it’s accepted, then sends follow-ups that stop as soon as someone replies. Recruiters with a Recruiter licence use Recruiter searches as their target audience; a follow-up is sent only if there’s been no reply after the number of days you set. Job applicants contacting hiring managers directly can follow the same process using a standard people search. In the free version, you start each step individually as a basic feature with a daily limit (for example, one follow-up per day). Continue the recruiting use case and Job searching on LinkedIn: ten mistakes.
Further reading: For advice on writing your first LinkedIn message, see Connect with or without a message. For wording that encourages people to take action, see Advertising copy: examples and copywriting techniques.
Frequently asked questions about “I look forward to your reply”
How do you reply to “I look forward to your response”?
Answer with the information they asked for, and put it first. “Thank you for your message” is polite, but it isn’t an answer. If you can’t answer yet, give a date by which you’ll get back to them.
Is “Thank you for your response” too formal?
The phrase fits formal business correspondence. If you’re on more familiar terms, “Thanks for your reply” or “Thanks for your feedback” sounds more natural. Match the tone of your previous correspondence.
What can I say instead of “Thank you for the information”?
For example, “Thanks, that helps,” “Thank you. I can now move ahead with [next step],” or “Thank you for the detailed information about [topic].” Your thanks will feel more meaningful if you say what you’ll do with the information.
How do I thank someone for a rejection?
Thank them for their reply, not for their decision: “Thank you for your reply and for explaining your decision clearly.” Don’t try to justify yourself. A short sentence that leaves the door open is enough.
How often can I follow up if there is no response?
Our recommendation: send no more than two follow-up emails, the first after about a week and the second after two to three weeks. Refer to your original email and repeat your specific question instead of just writing, “I wanted to follow up.”
How should I close a LinkedIn message?
With a short, specific question rather than an email sign-off, such as “Would a quick chat next week work for you?” You can also read how to get replies on LinkedIn in LinkedIn InMail: Increase replies.
