TL;DR
A sick leave email should let your manager know you won't be in, give a rough timeline if you can, name your coverage if any, and avoid sharing medical details. You don't owe a diagnosis. For same-day notice, send it before your scheduled start time. For extended leave, write a longer message that lists what's in flight and who can cover.
Use this template when you're calling in sick — for one day, a few days, or extended leave. Send it to your manager (and team if your workflow expects that), not just an auto-reply. Auto-reply variants below handle the public-facing message separately.
Scenario 1
Subject
Out sick today
Body
Hi [Manager name], Not feeling well today — going to take the day to rest. I'll keep an eye on email for anything urgent, but otherwise plan to be fully out. [Coverage detail, if any: 'Sarah is covering the [meeting/deliverable] at 2 PM' or 'Nothing time-sensitive on my plate today.'] Will update tomorrow morning on whether I'm back. Thanks, [Your name]
Scenario 2
Subject
Out sick — back [tomorrow / Monday]
Body
Hi, I'm out sick today and will respond to your email when I'm back, [date]. For anything urgent, please contact [colleague] at [email]. Thanks, [Your name]
Scenario 3
Subject
Out sick this week — coverage plan
Body
Hi [Manager], I'm going to be out sick for the rest of the week — [expected return date] is the target but I'll confirm by Wednesday. Wanted to get ahead of coverage. What's in flight: • [Project / deliverable] — [person] can cover, I've sent them context • [Meeting] — please cancel or have [person] attend • [Decision needed] — can wait until I'm back, OR [person] has the context to call it I'll check email once a day for anything genuinely urgent. Otherwise, please loop me in only as needed. Thanks for the flexibility, [Your name]
Aeralis writes sick leave emails — and every other type — directly in your Gmail inbox. It learns your writing style from your sent emails, so drafts sound like you wrote them, not like a template.
Free tier: 15 emails/month. No credit card required.
No. Your manager doesn't need a diagnosis or symptom list. 'Not feeling well,' 'sick,' or 'under the weather' is enough. The only time more detail helps is when you're requesting accommodations or your HR policy requires it (e.g., contact-tracing during an active outbreak). Otherwise, less is more.
Match your team's norm — if you usually communicate over Slack/Teams, send the message there *and* a short email to create a written record. Email matters for any leave longer than a day, for HR documentation, and for situations where the absence might be questioned later. For same-day calls, both is best.
Set up an auto-reply that's firm without being defensive: 'I'm out on medical leave and not checking email regularly. For urgent matters, [colleague] is covering. I'll respond when I'm back.' If your manager continues to pressure, that's an HR conversation. In the US, FMLA protects against retaliation for medical leave; check your local equivalent.
Set up an out-of-office (auto-reply) email when you'll be away from work for a full day or longer — vacations, parental leave, business trips, extended PTO, or personal leave. Most email clients let you schedule the start and end dates.
Use a medical leave email for planned procedures (surgery, scheduled treatments), unexpected medical needs (illness requiring multiple days off), or extended treatment (cancer treatment, mental health recovery). For same-day sick calls, use the sick-leave-email template instead.
Use an apology email when you or your company have missed a deadline, delivered something wrong, experienced a service outage, or caused a customer problem. The goal is to restore trust through clear ownership and a specific fix.