How to send a report in an email with 8 samples and a template

We all love reports, right?

Regular reporting is critical for keeping companies working hard and achieving objectives.

They're a great way to show we've accomplished something, and that's worth shouting about!

So if you've spent time collating figures and creating a report, make sure to craft a clear report email to deliver it.

A professional report email offers insights into the information, provides crucial context, and clarifies any issues that need attention. Writing report emails is a solid skill and easy for everyone to learn.

Report emails follow a standard format with a logical structure that's simple to master — and we will show you how.

In this guide to writing report emails, we outline the report message format and provide 8 samples you can use immediately.

How to write a report email

Before we explain how to send a report, here's what not to do...

Inexperienced emailers will create long messages which go into a massive amount of detail to prove they've done something. This is a rookie error that takes time and wastes effort.

Effective reports emails should provide the following (and nothing more):

• Details of what the report is (and why it matters)
• Dates, times, and information covered in the report
• A breakdown of key issues (in professional terms, this is called a precis)
• Highlight any problems, anomalies, challenges, or successes
• Set out the next steps

This provides a simple snapshot of essential information for your boss, customer, or client.

Following this format works because you're adding value to the email, sifting through it to provide what they need.

If they want more, they can read the report, right?

But how do you deliver this information? Thankfully, there's a widely accepted format which we outline below (you're welcome!).

Report email format

The report email format provides a standard structure to introduce your report, include all the details above, offer contact details for further conversations, and include a polite and professional sign-off.

To make it as simple as possible, we can break down the report email format into three parts:

1. Report email subject line
2. Report email body
3. How to end a report email

1. Report email subject lines

Keep your report email subject lines as easy to follow as possible. It's essential to outline what's included in the email. You can also add extra information, such as the dates or times covered and any actions you may require.

Here are some report email subject line examples:

• Daily report – (Insert date)
• May Progress Report & Project Update
• Monthly Sales Report – Month –
• (Time/Date) Incident Report – Action Required
• Urgent Incident Report – PLEASE READ

2. Report email body copy

We'll assume that if you send someone a report, they'll know who you are and why you're messaging. This enables us to ignore some (but not all) pleasantries associated with professional emails.

We still start each message with a professional greeting (Hi, Hello, etc.) along with the person's name, and then hit them with the purpose of the message:

• Attached here is my daily activity report. This covers the date (insert date).

As we've explained above, it's worth providing a short breakdown of what's included:

• To make it easy, I've outlined some of the key things you should know here:
• (Bullet points are a great way to list information)

3. Ending a report email

You've delivered the detail, data, and information, so your job is almost done.

At the end of each email, it's polite to offer the chance to chat about the report and its contents:

• I'm happy to provide any additional information or answer any questions you might have about this report. You can contact me at (insert details).

Now, finish with a professional sign-off (kind regards, yours, etc.), and you're (nearly) done.

Our final piece of advice is: ALWAYS REMEMBER TO INCLUDE ATTACHMENTS.

We've all rushed off an email and hit send without remembering to send the related documents. No matter how great your report messages are, they're worthless without the attachment!

8 report email examples

Understanding how to write a report email and doing it are two different things, which is why reviewing our samples is so important.

In this section, we share 8 report email samples and an explanation about each email, including what we include and why.

Check out these report email messages and learn how to put these principles into practice. We break these samples into subsections covering monthly reports, daily reports, and incident reports.

How to write a monthly report email

Monthly reports are a major headache for many of us, but at least writing emails should now be much simpler.

Our monthly report sample messages make it clear what's being included and pick out the highlights for your time-poor boss.

1. Sample email to send a monthly report

Monthly reports can include performance, sales, and attendance figures. Your boss will be expecting your monthly statement, so we highlight the essentials and leave them to read the report for more info.

2. Monthly working hours report email sample

Logging your hours is the most important email you'll send each month because it'll ensure you get paid.

Like the report email sample above, we provide a breakdown of the essential information your boss will need to know. We also push for the next steps – such as getting your salary sorted out and payment date.

3. Monthly performance report email sample

Performance reports are a chance to highlight what's gone well and what could be improved. In this monthly performance report email sample, we skip over the details and keep things short and sweet.

How to write a daily report email

The daily report email format is similar to those used to send a monthly report. However, you can make some minor tweaks to ensure it's the right length. Given that you'll be sending these every day (the clue is in the name), it's worth developing a template you can use. This will provide consistency your boss will welcome and cut down massively on time spent creating them.

How do you create a template? Here are two daily report samples to get you started...

4. Sample email to send daily report

This daily report email sample focuses more on details and completed tasks. In contrast, the previous monthly report sample focuses more on the bigger picture and outcomes that were accomplished.

5. Daily activity report sample email to boss

Activity reports provide a snapshot of everything you've achieved that day. It could cover calls answered, clients messaged, deliveries made, or something else. This sample provides a standard and formal way to deliver your activity report. You can cut and paste this each day; just remember to fill in the gaps.

Sample emails for submitting a report

Depending on your job, you may be required to send special reports at some time. Examples can include incident reports, inventory logs, and bug reports.

These are different from the transactional messages above but will require some context, explanation, and information about the next steps. Check out the samples below to see how this is done.

6. Incident report email sample

If you've identified a fault or experienced an outage, you'll need to provide an incident report. These reports clarify the causes of an incident, its impact, and the actions you're taking to ensure it never happens again.

7. Inventory report email sample

Inventory reports provide details on the stocks and supplies you have in your business (and those that are running low!). Here's how to write an email to send an inventory report

8. Bug report email sample

Next time you find a pesky bug affecting software, use this sample email for a bug report. Raising awareness of bugs is great, but your customer or colleague will want to know what action you're taking to fix the problem.

Report email template

If the report email samples here aren't hitting the spot, this template is what you need. This customizable report email template can be cut, pasted, edited, and updated to suit your circumstances.

Writing report emails using Flowrite's AI-assisted email writer is the fastest way to do your duty of sending reports. This is how it works:

Our Chrome extensions works where you work (Gmail, Outlook, WhatsApp, etc.) so you can stay efficient while working on your reports.

Final report

OK, so now we are on the same page.

While writing report emails isn't exciting, they are pretty easy, so they shouldn't take too long to create (especially if you use our samples or customizable template).

The core of an excellent report email is the same as any piece of professional correspondence: being clear, consistent, and conveying essential information as quickly as possible.

Write it, send it, and get on with the rest of your day.