About this template
The Slate Professional template is a professional cover letter in Inter with a charcoal-slate header band, white body and a thin grey rule under the contact line. The most neutral letter in the professional library — designed to disappear behind the words. Compatible with every ATS on the market (Workday, SuccessFactors, Greenhouse, Lever, iCIMS, Cornerstone, Taleo, Ashby).
Who is it for?
It suits candidates who want a clean, ATS-friendly professional letter with no sectorial signal — software engineers, product managers, data analysts, generalists. The default to send when you do not yet know what the recruiter's aesthetic preference is. Particularly fit for tech, SaaS, product, engineering and independent consulting applications.
How to use it
The charcoal band occupies the top 4 cm. The name in Inter Bold 22 pt in white on the band, current title in Inter Regular 11 pt just below. The contact line (email + phone + LinkedIn + location) in Inter 9 pt below the band. The body in Inter 10.5 pt, line spacing 1.5. For a tech application, mention the stack mastered in paragraph 2 ("Backend Node.js + TypeScript, frontend React + Next.js 15, PostgreSQL and Redis, infra Kubernetes and AWS"). For product, list frameworks (RICE, Now-Next-Later, JTBD, OKR) and tools (Linear, Productboard, Mixpanel, Amplitude).
Frequently asked questions
Why Inter and not another sans-serif?
Inter is designed for the screen (Variable Font, fine hinting), free (Open Font License), and adopted by default by Vercel, Notion, Linear and most modern SaaS tools. A tech candidate recognises the font at first glance — a signal of fluency with their ecosystem. Helvetica or Arial fallback when Inter is unavailable.
Is it suitable for non-tech applications?
Yes, one of its strengths. The template is neutral — it works for an account manager at a media agency, a project manager in construction or a procurement lead in industry. The charcoal colour remains sober and reads as professional across sectors. The Inter font does not penalise non-tech recipients.
Should I personalise for each application?
Paragraph 1 (company motivation) and paragraph 4 (request) must be personalised for each submission. Paragraphs 2 and 3 (experience, stack/skills) can reuse 70-80% of the content. For tech, adapt the stack mentioned to that of the target company — a strong signal of preparation that recruiters notice.
