Summary
Use this free press release template to turn 11 fields into a complete draft: headline, dateline, lead, quote, boilerplate and media contact. It follows the layout newsrooms expect, and seven built-in checks flag a long headline, a missing number or a leftover placeholder before you send it to a journalist. Runs in your browser, no sign-up.
A press release template that writes the first draft
Fill in 11 fields and get a press release in the format journalists expect: headline, dateline, lead, quote, boilerplate and contact. Seven built-in checks tell you what to fix before you send.
What the builder does with your 11 fields
It builds the headline and the lead
Your news line, written in the past tense, becomes a present-tense headline and a lead that starts with the dateline. The city, date, company and one-line description come first, so a reporter gets the news in a single read.
It fills in the standard layout
Second paragraph for your proof, one quote with the speaker's title, a closing line for your website, a boilerplate and a media contact. Each announcement type changes the closing line and the prompt for the quote.
It checks the draft against 7 rules
Headline length, verb tense, lead length, a number near the top, a quote you wrote, a contact and leftover placeholders. The rules come from common editing practice, so treat them as a checklist, not a verdict.
The first 2 lines decide whether anyone reads line 3
Journalists skim. The headline and the lead have to carry the whole story on their own, because that is often all that gets read. Put the news and the number up there, and push everything else below. If you have 3 hours, spend 2 of them on those two lines.
- Headline: 80 characters or fewer, present tense, one concrete detail
- Lead: city, date, who you are, what happened, in 35 words or fewer
- Second paragraph: the number that proves it, not the adjective
- Quote: one speaker, one opinion, no thank-you list
From template to inbox in 4 steps
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1
Replace every bracket
The yellow placeholders are the parts only you can write. Fill them in with specifics: a customer count, a date, a price. If a sentence could appear in any other company's release, rewrite it.
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2
Cut it to one page
Aim for 300 to 500 words. Remove adjectives first, then any sentence that does not carry a fact. Read the headline out loud. If you run out of breath, shorten it.
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3
Write a 3-line pitch on top
Paste the release below your email, never as an attachment. The pitch is the angle for that specific journalist: why their readers care this week. The release is the reference they can quote from.
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4
Follow up on day 3
One short reply to your own email, with one new fact. Do not send the release a second time. Most founders stop after the first send, and that is the cheapest placement they ever leave on the table.
Common questions
Is this press release template really free?
Where does the structure come from?
Why a template and not an AI that writes the whole thing?
How long should my press release be?
What do the quick checks measure?
Should I send the press release by email or through a wire service?
What if my news is small?
A release is one pitch. Press Monkey sends the other 19.
Press Monkey researches the reporters, writes the pitch in your voice and chases the follow-up, with no agency retainer at $12K/month.