Most Thanksgiving email advice tells you to "show gratitude" and "add a clear call to action" and then stops. This post gives you the emails. Below are 9 Thanksgiving email templates with a send date, a subject line, preview text and body copy you can paste into your email tool and edit in five minutes.
Thanksgiving 2026 is Thursday, November 26. Black Friday follows on November 27 and Cyber Monday on November 30, so for most businesses Thanksgiving week is the busiest sending week of the season. The templates cover both kinds of email you will send that week: the ones that sell and the ones that only say thank you.
Replace anything in [square brackets] with your own details.
The 9 templates at a glance
| Template | Send | Subject line |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Thank-you note, no sale | Tue, Nov 24 or Thanksgiving morning | Thank you, [First name] |
| 2. Thanksgiving sale | Wed, Nov 25 to Thu, Nov 26 | Our Thanksgiving sale starts now |
| 3. Early Black Friday access | Wed, Nov 25 | You get Black Friday a day early |
| 4. Giving back | Mon, Nov 23 or Tue, Dec 1 | This Thanksgiving, we are sharing the table |
| 5. Year in review | Tue, Nov 24 | What we are thankful for this year |
| 6. B2B client thank-you | Mon, Nov 23 to Wed, Nov 25 | Thank you for a good year, [First name] |
| 7. Closed for the holiday | Mon, Nov 23 | Our Thanksgiving hours |
| 8. Recipe or Friendsgiving | Thu, Nov 19 to Sat, Nov 21 | 3 easy dishes for your Friendsgiving |
| 9. Last chance, Cyber Monday | Mon, Nov 30, afternoon | Last day: [Offer] ends at midnight |
For more options, see 100 Thanksgiving email subject lines, or generate variations for your own offer with the AI email subject line generator.
1. The thank-you email with no sale
When to send: Tuesday, November 24, or Thanksgiving morning before 10 a.m. in your readers' time zone.
Subject line: Thank you, [First name]
Preview text: No offer in this one. Just a thank you.
This is the email people remember, because it is the only one in their inbox that week that does not want anything. Keep it short, sign it from a real person, and leave out the coupon.
Hi [First name],
There is no sale in this email. I wanted to say thank you.
[Brand] started [this year / in 2019] with [a few customers / one small shop], and every order, reply and recommendation since then came from people like you. You are the reason we get to keep doing this.
However you spend Thursday, I hope it is with people you like and food you love.
Happy Thanksgiving,
[Your name]
[Title], [Brand]
2. The Thanksgiving sale email
When to send: Wednesday, November 25, in the evening, or Thanksgiving morning, so the sale is waiting when people pick up their phones after the meal.
Subject line: Our Thanksgiving sale starts now
Preview text: [25]% off everything through Sunday. No code needed.
Put the offer, the end date and the button in the first screen. Readers on a phone should not have to scroll to find out what the deal is.
Hi [First name],
Our Thanksgiving sale is live: [25]% off everything until Sunday, November 29 at midnight. The discount is applied at checkout, so there is no code to remember.
A few things people are already buying:
[Product 1]: [one line on why it is good]
[Product 2]: [one line]
[Product 3]: [one line]
[Shop the sale]
Orders placed by [date] arrive before [date]. Thank you for shopping with us this year.
[Your name] at [Brand]
3. The early Black Friday access email
When to send: Wednesday, November 25, the day before you open the sale to everyone.
Subject line: You get Black Friday a day early
Preview text: Subscribers shop first. The sale opens to everyone Friday.
Early access rewards people for being on your list, and it spreads your orders over two days instead of one. Make the early window and the public date explicit.
Hi [First name],
Our Black Friday sale opens to the public on Friday, November 27. You do not have to wait.
As a subscriber, you can shop it now: [offer] on [products / the whole store], starting today. [Popular item] sold out in [X] hours last year, so this is your head start.
[Get early access]
The link works until the sale ends on Cyber Monday, November 30.
Happy Thanksgiving,
[Brand]
Black Friday week is also when a sudden volume spike can push your emails into spam. If you send to large lists, my Black Friday email sending plan covers the volume ramp, mailbox provider rules and timing through Cyber Monday.
4. The giving-back email
When to send: Monday, November 23, to announce it, or Giving Tuesday, December 1, to report the result.
Subject line: This Thanksgiving, we are sharing the table
Preview text: Every order this week helps [cause].
Name a specific cause, a specific amount or rule, and a date when you will report back. Vague promises to "give back" read as marketing.
Hi [First name],
This week, [Brand] is donating [$5 from every order / 10% of sales] to [local food bank or charity], which [one line on what they do, e.g. provides meals to families in Springfield].
The donation runs from today until Giving Tuesday, December 1. On December 2 we will email you the total and a photo of the delivery.
If you would rather give directly, here is their donation page: [link].
Thank you for helping us do this.
[Your name], [Brand]
5. The year-in-review email
When to send: Tuesday, November 24.
Subject line: What we are thankful for this year
Preview text: 3 things you made possible in 2026.
A short look back gives the thank you some substance. Use real numbers from your own business, and give the credit to customers.
Hi [First name],
Before the holiday, here are three things we are thankful for in 2026:
1. [Milestone]. [e.g. We shipped our 10,000th order in August.]
2. [Thing customers asked for that you built]. [e.g. You asked for a smaller size, so we made one.]
3. [A person or team moment]. [e.g. Our team grew from four people to seven.]
None of it happens without customers who buy, reply and tell their friends. Thank you.
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us,
[Brand]
6. The B2B client thank-you email
When to send: Monday, November 23 to Wednesday, November 25. Business inboxes empty out on Thursday and Friday.
Subject line: Thank you for a good year, [First name]
Preview text: A quick note before the long weekend.
For clients, send it from the account manager or founder, as plain text, one email per person. Mention one thing you did together this year. That one specific line is what makes it read as personal.
Hi [First name],
Before everyone signs off for the long weekend, I wanted to thank you for working with us this year.
[Project or result, e.g. Launching the new onboarding flow with your team in June] was one of my favorite projects of 2026, and I appreciate the trust you put in us.
Our office is closed on November 26 and 27. If anything comes up, [name] is on call at [phone or email].
Have a great Thanksgiving with your family.
Best,
[Your name]
[Title], [Company]
To add a seasonal touch to your own signature for the week, see these Thanksgiving email signature ideas.
7. The closed-for-Thanksgiving email
When to send: Monday, November 23, so customers can plan around it.
Subject line: Our Thanksgiving hours
Preview text: Closed Thursday and Friday. Here is what that means for your order.
Answer the three questions people actually have: when you are closed, what happens to their orders or tickets, and who to contact if something is urgent.
Hi [First name],
Our team is taking a break for Thanksgiving. Here are our hours this week:
Wednesday, November 25: open until [2 p.m.]
Thursday, November 26: closed
Friday, November 27: closed
Monday, November 30: back to normal hours
Orders placed after [time] on Wednesday ship on Monday. Support emails sent while we are away will be answered on Monday in the order they arrived. For anything urgent, contact [email or phone].
Happy Thanksgiving,
The [Brand] team
8. The recipe or Friendsgiving email
When to send: Thursday, November 19 to Saturday, November 21. People plan Friendsgiving the weekend before Thanksgiving.
Subject line: 3 easy dishes for your Friendsgiving
Preview text: All of them take under 30 minutes. One needs no oven.
A content email earns attention before the sales week starts. Tie it to your business where you can: a restaurant can share a house recipe, a home store can share a table setup, a software company can share a team favorite.
Hi [First name],
Hosting or bringing a dish to Friendsgiving this year? Here are three our team makes every November:
[Dish 1] ([time]): [one line on why it works]. [Get the recipe]
[Dish 2] ([time]): [one line]. [Get the recipe]
[Dish 3] (no oven): [one line]. [Get the recipe]
[Optional: Everything you need for [Dish 1] is in our [product or bundle]. Shop it here.]
Reply and tell us what you are bringing. We read every answer.
[Your name] at [Brand]
9. The last-chance Cyber Monday email
When to send: Monday, November 30, in the afternoon, a few hours before the offer ends. Send it only to people who have not bought during the sale.
Subject line: Last day: [Offer] ends at midnight
Preview text: After tonight, prices go back to normal.
This is the shortest email of the week. Say what ends, when it ends, and give one button. A real deadline does the work, so do not extend the sale after you send this.
Hi [First name],
Our Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday sale ends tonight at 11:59 p.m. [time zone].
[Offer, e.g. 25% off everything] is still on until then. After that, prices go back to normal until next year.
[Shop before midnight]
Thanks for being with us this holiday season.
[Brand]
When to send Thanksgiving emails in 2026
| Date | Day | What to send |
|---|---|---|
| November 19 to 21 | Thu to Sat | Recipe or Friendsgiving content |
| November 23 | Monday | Holiday hours, giving-back announcement, client thank-yous |
| November 24 | Tuesday | Thank-you note, year in review |
| November 25 | Wednesday | Early Black Friday access, sale preview |
| November 26 | Thursday (Thanksgiving) | Short thank-you in the morning, or the sale launch |
| November 27 | Friday (Black Friday) | Sale open to everyone |
| November 28 | Saturday (Small Business Saturday) | Local or small-shop angle, store hours |
| November 30 | Monday (Cyber Monday) | Cyber Monday offer, last-chance email in the afternoon |
| December 1 | Tuesday (Giving Tuesday) | Donation results or a charity drive |
A few rules for the week:
- Send a thank-you email early in the day. On Thanksgiving itself, people check email in the morning and then go offline for the meal. A short note before 10 a.m. local time gets seen.
- Send in the reader's time zone. A 9 a.m. Eastern send lands at 6 a.m. in California. If your email tool supports time zone delivery, use it this week.
- Do not send every email to everyone. Skip the sale emails for people who already bought, and send the last-chance email only to people who have not.
- Keep the thank-you email separate from the sale. If the note ends with a discount code, readers stop believing the thank you.
For every other date on the calendar this year, see the 2026 marketing calendar.
What to send after Thanksgiving
The Monday after Thanksgiving is Cyber Monday, but it is also the first workday back for clients and coworkers. For a follow-up email after the holiday, open with one line and get to the point:
- Hope you had a good Thanksgiving. Picking up where we left off on [topic]...
- Welcome back from the long weekend. A quick update on [project]...
- I hope the holiday was restful. Before December gets busy, can we find 20 minutes for [topic]?
For customers, the email after Thanksgiving is usually the Giving Tuesday report (template 4) or a December plan for the rest of the holiday season.
Design and CTA tips that matter
- One email, one job. A thank-you email has no button, or a soft one. A sale email has one main button, repeated at the bottom if the email is long.
- Put the offer in the first screen. Many readers open holiday email on a phone. The discount, the end date and the button should be visible without scrolling.
- Keep key text out of images. Many email apps block images until the reader allows them. If your offer is only in a banner, some readers never see it.
- Use autumn colors sparingly. An orange accent or a small leaf icon is enough. Full-page turkeys and brown backgrounds make the text hard to read, especially in dark mode.
- Write button labels that say what happens. "Shop the sale" and "Get early access" beat "Click here" and "Learn more."
- Send yourself a test. Check it on a phone, in dark mode, and with images turned off before you schedule it.
Already an Octeth customer? Log in to the Octeth Client Area to download the latest version.
Sending holiday campaigns to large lists or for many clients? Fill in the form at octeth.com/demo/ and I will walk you through Octeth on a call.
