Out of Office Voicemail Greeting Generator

How it works

1. Pick a sample or type your own greeting with your name, dates and a backup contact. Free clips are up to 500 characters.
2. Andrew is preselected. Try a few voices, or switch the language menu to English (UK), English (Australia) or English (Canada).
3. Press generate, listen, and download the MP3. Upload it as your out of office greeting, or play it into your phone when it asks you to record.

What to say in an out of office phone greeting

A good out of office voicemail greeting answers the questions a caller has straight away. Keep it to 20 to 30 seconds, and say the dates the way people speak them.

• Who they reached: your name, and your team or company.
• That you are away, and the date you are back. A return date is more useful than "for a while".
• Who to contact for urgent matters, with their name and extension or the main number.
• Whether to leave a message, and when you will reply after you return.
• For an office closure: the reopening day and time, and any online option that still works.

Short out of office greeting examples

Need something quicker than the samples above? Copy one of these, change the names and dates, and paste it into the box.

• Vacation message: "Hi, you've reached Alex. I'm on vacation until the twelfth. Leave a message and I'll call you back when I'm home."
• Conference or travel: "This is Rosa from the sales team. I'm travelling for work this week with limited phone access. Please email me, or call the main office for anything urgent."
• Half-day closure: "Thank you for calling. Our office closes early today at one p.m. We'll be back tomorrow at nine. Please leave a message."
• Holiday voicemail greeting: "Our office is closed on Monday for the bank holiday. We reopen on Tuesday at nine. Thank you for calling, and enjoy the long weekend."
• Team member left: "Thank you for calling. The person you are trying to reach no longer works here. Please call our main number and our team will help you."

Holiday voicemail greeting and vacation message tips

• Record holiday greetings a few days early so you can listen to them before the office closes.
• Say the weekday and the date together, such as "Monday the fifth of January". It avoids confusion between US and UK date styles.
• Keep holiday wishes short and general. One line at the end is enough.
• Do not share personal details about why you are away. "On leave" is enough for sick or parental leave.
• Set a reminder to switch the greeting off on your first day back. An old vacation message makes callers think you are still away.

How to set it up on your phone

Many work phone systems keep the out of office greeting separate from your normal greeting, and you switch it on and off around your dates. Some let you upload an audio file in the web portal or app; others only let you record by phone. If you can only record by phone, play the MP3 from your computer speaker close to the handset in a quiet room.

Some systems, such as those that read typed text aloud, do not need a file at all. You can still use this page to hear how your script sounds before you type it in. Check your provider's help pages for the exact steps.

What this tool does and does not do

• It reads your out of office script in a natural AI voice and gives you an MP3.
• You can change the voice, pitch and speed, and add pauses in More options.
• It does not add music, sound effects or your own voice.
• It does not change settings on your phone or switch your greeting on and off. You do that in your phone system.

Frequently asked questions