# Press Release Template Builder for Founders (Free) URL: https://pressmonkey.co/tools/press-release-template Type: tool Locale: en Published: 2026-11-09 Updated: 2026-11-10 --- > Pick your announcement type, fill in 11 fields and get a press release in the format journalists expect, with seven checks that catch a weak headline or a missing number. Free, in your browser. *Free tool, 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. ## Press release template builder Pick your announcement type, replace the sample details with yours and the draft updates as you type. Yellow brackets mark what is still missing. *[Interactive widget — see the live page for the full experience]* ## 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. *Anatomy of a release* ## 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 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. 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. 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. 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? Yes. No sign-up, no email gate, no trial. The draft builds in your browser from the fields you fill in, and nothing you type is sent to a server. Copy it into Google Docs and edit from there. ### Where does the structure come from? It follows the layout wire services and newsrooms have used for decades: headline, dateline with city and date, a lead that answers who, what and when, a second paragraph with the proof, one quote, a boilerplate and a media contact. We did not invent a format. A journalist who opens it knows where to look. ### Why a template and not an AI that writes the whole thing? Because the template forces you to supply the three things an AI cannot invent: your number, your quote and your contact. A model can polish the sentences afterwards. If you paste a generic draft into a journalist's inbox, it reads like generic work from a $12K/month agency, and it gets deleted the same way. ### How long should my press release be? Most wire services work with 300 to 500 words, which is roughly one page. The draft you get here is shorter on purpose: it is the skeleton. Add your proof, a second quote if you have a customer who will say something specific, and stop before you hit 500. ### What do the quick checks measure? Seven simple rules: headline at 80 characters or fewer, a present-tense headline verb, a lead of 35 words or fewer, a number near the top, a real quote, a media contact and no placeholders left. They are editing rules of thumb, not a score from a journalist. We do not have reply-rate data on release format yet, so we do not pretend to. ### Should I send the press release by email or through a wire service? For a pre-seed to Series A announcement, send it to 10 to 20 journalists you picked yourself, with a 3-line pitch on top and the release pasted below it, not attached. A wire service buys you distribution, not attention. Use one only if an investor or a legal requirement asks for it. ### What if my news is small? Then the headline needs the one concrete detail that makes it specific: a customer count, a price, a time saved. If you cannot find one, you probably do not have a press release yet. You have a LinkedIn post, and that is fine. ## 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. *Call to action: See how Press Monkey pitches for you* ## FAQ ### Is this press release template really free? Yes. No sign-up, no email gate, no trial. The draft builds in your browser from the fields you fill in, and nothing you type is sent to a server. Copy it into Google Docs and edit from there. ### Where does the structure come from? It follows the layout wire services and newsrooms have used for decades: headline, dateline with city and date, a lead that answers who, what and when, a second paragraph with the proof, one quote, a boilerplate and a media contact. We did not invent a format. A journalist who opens it knows where to look. ### Why a template and not an AI that writes the whole thing? Because the template forces you to supply the three things an AI cannot invent: your number, your quote and your contact. A model can polish the sentences afterwards. If you paste a generic draft into a journalist's inbox, it reads like generic work from a $12K/month agency, and it gets deleted the same way. ### How long should my press release be? Most wire services work with 300 to 500 words, which is roughly one page. The draft you get here is shorter on purpose: it is the skeleton. Add your proof, a second quote if you have a customer who will say something specific, and stop before you hit 500. ### What do the quick checks measure? Seven simple rules: headline at 80 characters or fewer, a present-tense headline verb, a lead of 35 words or fewer, a number near the top, a real quote, a media contact and no placeholders left. They are editing rules of thumb, not a score from a journalist. We do not have reply-rate data on release format yet, so we do not pretend to. ### Should I send the press release by email or through a wire service? For a pre-seed to Series A announcement, send it to 10 to 20 journalists you picked yourself, with a 3-line pitch on top and the release pasted below it, not attached. A wire service buys you distribution, not attention. Use one only if an investor or a legal requirement asks for it. ### What if my news is small? Then the headline needs the one concrete detail that makes it specific: a customer count, a price, a time saved. If you cannot find one, you probably do not have a press release yet. You have a LinkedIn post, and that is fine.