Farewell messages for a coworker, by how well you know them

A good farewell message for a coworker thanks them, names one thing you'll miss and wishes them well. How warm it gets depends on how well you knew them. The sections below run from the person you only greet in the hallway to the friend you'll still text next year. After those come the group card, a boss who's leaving, your own last day and a few things to leave out.

An example: Maud had sat at the desk next to Bernie's for six years. A fern on the windowsill between them always leaned toward her side. On her last afternoon, with the fern packed in a cardboard box, the team card had already gone around with twenty-two names and a lot of "Good luck!" Then Bernie held out a second card he had written on his own: "Take the fern. It always leaned your way anyway, and so did the rest of us. Bernie, the desk to your left." Maud laughed so hard she nearly dropped the box. A week later she sent him a photo of the fern on a new windowsill: "Still leaning. Toward the window this time."

Someone you only know from the hallway

You've shared a lift, a fire drill and maybe one long meeting. Keep the note light and friendly, and don't pretend you were closer than you were.

• "Good luck with what comes next, Priya. The hallway won't be the same."
• "We only ever talked by the coffee machine, but those talks were always a nice break. All the best."
• "Wishing you a good start in the next place."
• "Thanks for the friendly 'morning!' every day for three years. Take care, Joel."

The coworker at the next desk

You know how they take their tea and which weekly meeting makes them sigh. One of those small daily things will make the card sound like it came from you.

• "Three years of sharing a desk lamp and a cold radiator. I'll miss you more than the radiator."
• "Who's going to tell me it's lunchtime now? I'll miss you, Ana."
• "The desk next to mine is about to get very quiet. I don't like it."
• "Thanks for every pen you lent me and never got back. I owe you about forty."
• "You made Mondays bearable and Fridays fun. Good luck in the new place."

A work friend who's moving on

A work friend knows more than your coffee order. They know about your weekend, your family and the coworker who annoys you most. Write to them as a friend, and say plainly that you want to keep in touch.

• "See you on Saturdays now instead of Mondays. Same table, new day."
• "You were the best part of this job, and you're not getting rid of me that easily."
• "Lunch at our usual place, first Friday of every month. It's already in my calendar."
• "I came here for a job and found a friend. Thank you for both."
• "Call me after your first week and tell me everything."

Staying friends after one of you changes jobs takes a little more effort than before, and work friends has a section on keeping it going.

A remote coworker you know from calls

Some coworkers you've never met in person. You know them from a small box on the screen, the plant behind their chair and the way they say "sorry, I was on mute." A message in the team chat or a short email works best for them.

• "We've never been in the same room, and you still made this team feel close. Good luck."
• "I'll miss your 'good morning, everyone' at the start of every call."
• "If you're ever in my city, the first coffee is on me."
• "From one small box on the screen to another: it was a real pleasure working with you."

Signing the team's farewell card

When the card reaches your desk, look at the names above yours first. If everyone wrote "Good luck!", one line about something the person did will stand out. Write small, sign with your first name and pass it on.

• "Thanks for making the hard weeks easier. We'll all miss you."
• "The team lost its best problem solver today. Good luck, Theo."
• "You always knew where everything was. We may never find the stapler again."
• "It was a pleasure working with you. The next team is lucky."

If the team is also planning a send-off, going away party has ideas for games and a keepsake everyone can sign. When the coworker is retiring, retirement party ideas plans the party around the life they're starting.

When your boss is the one leaving

A farewell message to a boss works best when it thanks them for one specific thing: a chance they gave you, the way they backed the team or a lesson you still use. Keep it warm and a little formal, especially in a card the whole team signs.

• "Thank you for trusting me with work I didn't think I was ready for."
• "You always gave the team the credit and took the blame yourself. We noticed."
• "I learned more in two years with you than in the five before. Thank you, and good luck."
• "Your door was always open, even on the busiest days. We'll miss that."
• "Thanks for being the kind of boss people tell their friends about."

If they did something big for you, a separate thank you card gives you room to say more.

Short goodbye messages for a chat or a card

• "It was great working with you. Keep in touch."
• "We'll miss you around here, Lena."
• "Thanks for everything. The next place is lucky."
• "Good luck, and write to me sometime."
• "Leaving the desk, never the group chat."

If they've told you about the new job and you'd like to congratulate them, congratulations messages has lines for that.

Funny farewell messages that stay kind

Tease yourself, the office or the coffee machine. Their work, their looks and their reasons for going stay out of it.

• "Who's going to laugh at my jokes now? I'm told the waiting list is empty."
• "You're leaving, and nobody else knows how to water the office plant."
• "Good luck at the new place. I hope their meetings are shorter than ours."
• "I'm keeping your chair. It's the only one that doesn't squeak."

For a joke to tell at the send-off itself, work jokes has clean ones the whole team can laugh at.

What not to write when someone leaves

• Why they're going. Even if you know, the card isn't the place for it.
• Complaints about the company. Their last day is a bad time to agree that everything here is a mess.
• Private details. Anything they told you over lunch stays between you.
• "Let's stay in touch" when you won't. A simple "all the best" is kinder than a promise you won't keep.

Most of the same rules apply to birthday wishes for a coworker. They hold for work anniversary messages too.

Your own goodbye note on your last day

When you're the one leaving, a short note to the team closes things kindly. Keep it to a few lines: a thank you, one warm memory and a way to reach you. Leave out the reason you're going and any old complaints. Here's a sample you can change:

"Hi everyone, today is my last day here. Thank you for six good years, for the help in the hard weeks and for the cake in the good ones. I'll miss our Friday lunches most. My personal email is below if you'd like to stay in touch. Take care of each other, and of the fern."

Who wants a big send-off and who wants one line

Some people want a speech, a card with every name on the floor and a long goodbye by the lift. Others would rather leave at five with a quiet wave. Type is part of the reason. Here's how six types tend to take it, in the order of the types page:

• Ideator enjoys a send-off full of jokes and plans, and likes lines about what's ahead more than looking back.
• Mentor loves an emotional goodbye, may give a little speech and keeps every card that made them cry.
• Commander prefers a firm handshake and one plain sentence about the work you did together.
• Dreamer treasures a quiet line about a small moment you shared, and reads it more than once.
• Guardian values a private, sincere word over a public fuss, and remembers who keeps in touch afterward.
• Craftsman would rather skip the fuss. A short line and help carrying the box to the car mean more.

Maud is close to a Dreamer. Bernie's card is taped above her new desk.

What kind of friends you two could be outside work

Some coworkers stay friends for years after the job ends, and others drift apart within a month. With Typeza, two coworkers can see their relationship type and which parts of a friendship come easily to them. It begins with the free friendship compatibility test. Your result includes a link to send to the coworker who's leaving.

Questions people ask

What do you write in a farewell card for a coworker?

Their name, a short wish for what comes next and one line about something only they did, like the help they gave or a joke you shared. Two or three lines are plenty in a card the whole team signs.

What is a short farewell message for a coworker?

"It was great working with you. Keep in touch." Or "We'll miss you around here, Lena." Both fit a chat message or a crowded card.

What do you say to a coworker who is leaving?

Tell them you enjoyed working with them and name one thing you'll miss. If you'd like to stay in touch, ask for a way to reach them before their last day.

How do you write a goodbye message to colleagues on your last day?

Keep it short: thank the team, share one good memory and leave a way to reach you. Skip the reason you're leaving and any complaints, and send it early in the afternoon so people have time to reply.

Written by Virko Kask, founder of Typeza
Written with the help of AI tools.