Onsite interview logistics email: everything a candidate needs to find the room
On this page
- What onsite logistics has to answer
- Subject lines
- Agency to candidate
- In-house recruiter to candidate
- Internal: notifying reception or building security
- Dress code: say something, even if it's "wear what you'd wear to work"
- Accommodations, arranged before the day rather than discovered on it
- What changes for a full day versus a single interview
- The common mistake
- Questions people ask
An onsite interview logistics email answers the questions a candidate has the morning of an in-person interview: where to park, how to get in the building, who to ask for, and what to wear. None of this is covered by the interview schedule or the invitation, and a candidate who has to guess at any of it arrives more stressed than the interview itself should make them.
This is distinct from the running order of who they're meeting, covered in our interview schedule template. Send both, but keep them as separate messages or clearly separated sections — a candidate scanning for "where do I park" on the morning of the interview shouldn't have to read through the full panel schedule to find it.
What onsite logistics has to answer
- Exact address, plus which entrance if the building has more than one.
- Parking — where, whether it's free or validated, and any time limit.
- Check-in — who to ask for at the desk, and any ID or visitor-list requirement.
- Dress code, stated plainly rather than left to guesswork.
- A day-of contact — a phone number for if they're running late or can't find the entrance.
Subject lines
Getting to your [Role] interview on [Date]: address and parking
Your onsite interview at [Company]: what to know before you arrive
[Company] interview day: logistics for [Date]Agency to candidate
Subject: Getting to your interview at [Client] on [Date]
Hi [Candidate name],
Here's what you need for Thursday's onsite interview at [Client]:
Address: [full address, including suite/floor]
Parking: [where, cost/validation, any time limit]
Entrance: [which door, if the building has more than one]
Check-in: ask for [name] at the front desk — bring a photo ID, [Client]
requires visitors to sign in
Dress: [Client]'s office is [casual/business casual/formal] — [note if
there's a reason, e.g. "most of the team wears jeans day to day"]
If you're running late or can't find the entrance, call or text me at
[phone] — I'll let the team know right away.
See you Thursday,
[Recruiter name]
[Agency name] · [Phone]In-house recruiter to candidate
Subject: Your onsite interview at [Company]: what to know
Hi [Candidate name],
Looking forward to seeing you on [Date]. A few details for the day:
Address: [full address]
Parking: [instructions]
Check-in: ask for [name/team] at reception; please bring photo ID
Dress: [our office is casual — feel free to dress comfortably / business
casual is typical]
If anything comes up morning-of — traffic, trouble finding parking, the
building — call [phone] and we'll sort it out.
See you soon,
[Recruiter name]
[Company]Internal: notifying reception or building security
Subject: Visitor expected [Date]: [Candidate name] for [Role] interview
Hi [Reception/Security],
[Candidate name] is coming in on [Date] at [Time] for an interview with
[Hiring manager/team]. Please add them to the visitor list and direct
them to [location/floor] on arrival — [interviewer/coordinator name]
will come meet them, or they can be sent up directly.
Let me know if you need anything else in advance.
[Recruiter/coordinator name]A filled example
Subject: Getting to your interview at Colton Manufacturing on Tuesday
Hi Renee,
Here is what you need for Tuesday's onsite interview at Colton Manufacturing.
Address: 4400 Rivergate Parkway, Suite 200. Parking: the visitor lot on the east side of the building, no validation needed. Entrance: the main lobby doors facing the parking lot, not the loading dock entrance around back. Check-in: ask for Dana at the front desk and bring a photo ID, Colton requires visitors to sign in. Dress: business casual is typical here, no suit required.
If you are running late or cannot find the entrance, call or text me at [phone].
See you Tuesday, Jordan
Dress code: say something, even if it's "wear what you'd wear to work"
Silence on dress code doesn't read as neutral to a candidate — it reads as one more thing to guess at the moment they're already anxious about a dozen other things. A single honest sentence resolves it: name the office's actual norm, not an idealized version of it, and add a concrete detail if it helps, such as noting that most of the team wears jeans day to day. A candidate who shows up in a suit to a casual office isn't penalized for it, but they spend part of the interview distracted by feeling overdressed, which is an unnecessary cost you can remove for the price of one sentence.
Accommodations, arranged before the day rather than discovered on it
Building accessibility — accessible parking, step-free entry, elevator access — should be offered in the logistics email itself, not left for the candidate to request only if the building happens to lack something they need. A line as simple as offering to arrange accessible parking or entry on request, followed by actually confirming it's set up before the candidate arrives, prevents the worse outcome: a candidate discovering an accessibility gap in person, with no time left to fix it. For the fuller policy on accommodations through the interview process, see ADA accommodations in interviews.
When the office has a security desk or a visitor badge system
Buildings with a formal security desk add a step candidates rarely anticipate: a government ID check, a photo taken for a temporary badge, or a signature on a visitor agreement before they are allowed past the lobby. Mention this specifically rather than folding it into a generic check-in line, and tell the candidate how long it typically adds, so they know to arrive a few minutes earlier than the interview time itself rather than exactly on time. A candidate who budgeted zero minutes for security and hits an unexpected badge process starts the interview five minutes late and flustered, through no fault of their own.
What changes for a full day versus a single interview
A single onsite interview needs the basics above and little else. A full-day loop needs more: whether lunch is provided or the candidate should eat beforehand, where they'll wait between sessions if there are gaps, and whether there's a quiet space available if they need a break. None of this needs to be elaborate — a few extra lines answering "what happens between interviews" prevents a candidate from standing awkwardly in a hallway wondering if they're supposed to find their own way to the next room.
A note for candidates traveling from out of town
If a candidate is flying or driving a long distance for the interview, add a short section covering nearby hotel options if you have any to recommend, whether the company reimburses travel costs and how to submit them, and a same-day contact distinct from the general logistics line in case a flight delay threatens the interview time itself. None of this needs a formal travel policy attached, just enough information that a candidate coordinating their own trip is not left guessing at costs they might not get reimbursed for.
The common mistake
The most common mistake is sending an address and nothing else, on the assumption that a candidate can figure out the rest once they arrive. Parking, entrances and check-in procedures vary enough between buildings that "figure it out on arrival" reliably costs candidates five to ten minutes of stress right before they need to be at their most composed. A short, complete logistics email is one of the cheapest things a hiring process can do to make a good candidate perform like one.
The related version of this mistake is sending accurate logistics too late to be useful — the night before an early morning interview, for a candidate who needed to arrange a commute or check a parking situation days in advance. Send onsite logistics as soon as the time is confirmed, not as an afterthought squeezed in right before the interview date. A candidate coming from out of town in particular may need the address and parking details well ahead of the day to plan travel around them, and a late-arriving logistics email can mean the difference between a relaxed arrival and a rushed one.
Questions people ask
Do I need to mention dress code if the office is casual?
Yes, saying it plainly helps more than staying quiet. "Our office is casual, jeans are fine" removes a real source of anxiety for a candidate who might otherwise overdress or underdress and spend the interview self-conscious about it either way.
Should the logistics email mention security or ID requirements?
Always, if the building has them. A candidate turned away at a front desk for not knowing they needed photo ID, or not being on a visitor list, starts the interview flustered and late through no fault of their own.
How do I handle logistics for a candidate who needs an accommodation, like accessible parking or an elevator?
Ask directly, ahead of time, rather than waiting for the candidate to raise it on the day: "let me know if you need accessible parking or entry and I'll make sure it's arranged." Confirm it's actually set up before the candidate arrives, not just noted.
Should I send onsite logistics separately from the interview schedule?
Yes, generally. The schedule covers who they're meeting and when; the logistics email covers how to physically get there and in. Combining both into one long email makes the details a candidate needs at 8am on the interview day harder to find quickly.