How to Respond to Happy Birthday

Today is your birthday! It’s great to see your friends care about you, but how do you respond to their wishes accordingly? When meeting someone in person, you can say “Thank you!”. If the congratulatory message is sent via social media or by handwritten letter, the etiquette may be a little different, but it’s also very easy to do.

Table of Contents

On social networks

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Post a thank you message. If you regularly use social networks, you may receive birthday wishes from acquaintances, old friends and even people you can’t remember. Even your friends don’t expect a personal response from you. The most common response is to post a generic thank you message on the wall, and this won’t offend anyone either. ^{[1] X Research Sources} Here are some examples:

Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes! I’m very happy today!
Person. One birthday. Too many good wishes. 🙂
TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY, SO YOU ARE RIGHT TO CAPITAL. Thank you everyone for the well wishes!
Check out the examples in these few articles for more ideas.

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Upload a photo (optional). If you want to thank people more clearly, take a picture of you smiling and wearing a birthday hat next to a cake, or another birthday logo. Post a photo with a thank you note to everyone. This shows that you’ve worked hard to get a special thank you, but it’s still easy to do.

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Respond to warm wishes. If someone posts a long and heartfelt congratulations to you, respond directly to them. You can reply to them with a message at least 3 sentences long. Reply directly in the comments or use a private message. You don’t have to reply with a new post on their wall.

Relatives who are elderly, non-computer savvy, and non-social media users are more likely to expect you to respond to them personally.
You can take this opportunity to re-establish relationships with long-lost friends, even if they only posted a brief message to celebrate your birthday.

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Briefly reply to other posts (optional). As mentioned above, you don’t have to respond to each person individually. However, if you have time, you can “like” each one, or respond to every wish with a short thank you, for example, “Thanks for remembering me!” or “Thank you, I appreciate it!”

Direct reply

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Thank a person directly. When possible, thank a person directly after they have given you a gift or congratulated you enthusiastically. Always be wholehearted, smiling and making eye contact when thanking individuals or groups of friends. Here are some ideas:

Your business card means a lot to me. It makes me feel so much happier.
It’s a great birthday present! You understand me so well.
Check out the examples section in this article for more ideas.

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Send a card or handwritten letter. Relatives or older friends will often love receiving a thank you postcard. Always include a handwritten message. ^{[2] X Research Source} A short thank you note is enough, but you should include a heartfelt message for those who are overly kind and generous.

Check out the examples section if you need more ideas to write about.

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Specific presentation. Make your friends feel special for the good things you have done for your birthday and your life. Mention the special gift or card they gave you. Tell them how you will use the gift, or you will “always love it”.

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Say what your friends want to hear. Don’t criticize a gift your friend gives you, or say something embarrassing, or do anything that upsets them. If you don’t like the gift, find something about it that you like, or thank this friend for taking the time to choose (or make) a meaningful gift.

For example

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Praise. Let the people who congratulate you know that they are amazing and that you appreciate them. You can use specific compliments that are appropriate for your friends, or use the following examples:

Thank you, you are so kind for congratulating me!
Thank you, you are such a wonderful part of my life.
I am so lucky to have a group of friends like you.
Be proud of being my great friends over the years.

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Tell people that their wishes mean a lot. Let your friends know how much you appreciate the positivity they bring. Here are some examples:

Your wishes make me happy all day.
It’s a pleasure to send you my congratulations. You made my birthday so special.

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Post a special content. If you have to post a generic thank you on social media, sometimes you’ll want to make it a little different. Try one of these ideas:

Say something like, ” It’s great to have so many people wishing me happy birthday. Each of you will enjoy 1/207 of the birthday cake.”
Say “thank you” in different languages. Try saying Salamat! , Fope tunk! , or choose your preferred language by searching online.
Link to a movie clip. There are tons of “thank you” videos available online, or you can find a short clip from your favorite movie, band, or favorite animal.

Advice

You can respond to phone messages in the same way that applies to social media. Respond to long and affectionate wishes, and save social media posts for the rest. (A single message can be sent to multiple people, but you should be sure about how much the message will cost your carrier.)

Steps

On social networks

Direct reply

For example

Advice

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