Every template site will hand you a non-renewal letter. That's the easy half.
The half that decides whether it works is the part a template can't know: the date it has to arrive by, and the way it has to get there. A perfectly worded letter sent two days late, or emailed when the contract demands certified mail, is not notice — it's a nice piece of writing about your intentions.
Get the letter with your dates already in it
- The deadline calculator computes your notice deadline, then drafts this letter with the vendor, the reference, the renewal date, and the deadline filled in.
- Or copy the plain template below and fill it in yourself.
The template
[Your company letterhead]
[Date]
[Vendor legal name]
[Vendor address — use the notice address in the contract,
not the sales contact]
Re: Notice of Non-Renewal — [Agreement title, dated [date],
reference [contract number]]
To whom it may concern,
This letter constitutes formal written notice that [Your company]
will not renew the above-referenced agreement, which would
otherwise renew automatically on [renewal date].
This notice is given in accordance with the [60]-day notice
requirement set out in [Section X.X] of the agreement. The
applicable notice deadline is [deadline date], and this notice
is given on or before that date.
The agreement will therefore terminate at the end of the current
term on [end date] and will not renew.
Please confirm receipt of this notice in writing within five
business days. Please also confirm the process for [final
invoicing / data export / return of materials] so that the
wind-down is orderly.
Sincerely,
[Name]
[Title]
[Your company]What each part is doing
Nothing here is decoration. Every paragraph is defending against a specific way this goes wrong.
The "Re:" line — identifying the agreement
Title, date, and contract number. If you have three agreements with the same vendor, "our contract" identifies none of them. This is also what makes the letter findable in their system two years later.
"Will not renew" — the unambiguous statement
The single most important line. It must be a decision, not a sentiment. "We are reviewing our options", "we may not continue", "we'd like to discuss the renewal" — none of these are notice, and all of them have been used by vendors to argue no notice was given.
Naming the deadline and the end date
Stating both dates puts your arithmetic on the record. If the vendor later disputes timeliness, the letter itself shows what you computed and when you sent it. It also surfaces disagreements now, while there's still time, rather than after the window closes.
Requesting acknowledgement
Turns your one-sided act into a two-sided record. A vendor who benefits from your silence should not be allowed to supply it. If they don't respond in five business days, chase — the chase is itself evidence.
Asking about the wind-down
Practical, and quietly strategic: it frames the exit as a process already underway rather than an opening bid. It also gets your data export conversation started before you're a former customer.
Delivery is not a formality
The letter is only as good as its delivery, and this is where most of the real failures live.
- Use the method the contract names. Certified mail, courier, or email — check the notices clause, not your habits. Plenty of agreements signed years ago still specify certified mail, and it still binds.
- Use the contractual address. Not the rep who onboarded you. People leave; notice addresses don't.
- Send belt and braces. Required method plus an email copy. The second copy costs nothing and creates a second timestamp.
- Work backwards from receipt if you must. If notice is deemed given on receipt, your send date needs to be earlier than the deadline by however long delivery takes — plus a buffer. More on given-versus-received →
- Keep the proof with the contract. Tracking number, receipt, send record. Filed where the next person will find it, not in your personal inbox.
Don't explain yourself. Auto-renewal clauses require notice, not justification. A reason invites a retention pitch and can muddy whether you actually gave notice. Short, factual, done. You can have the friendly conversation separately, after the notice is on the record.
Before you send it, check the date twice
The letter is the last step, and it's the step people spend their time on — which is backwards, because it's the step least likely to be wrong. The deadline is where the errors are: counted forwards instead of backwards, counted in calendar days when the clause said business days, or counted from the wrong anniversary.
Run your dates through the calculator — it will hand you this letter with the arithmetic already done, plus a calendar reminder so the next one doesn't sneak up on you.
This template is a starting point for contract owners, not legal advice. Your agreement's notice clause governs — read it, and if the amount at stake is material, have counsel review the letter before it goes.