“Please advise” is grammatically valid: “advise” is the verb meaning to give guidance or information. In email, however, the phrase can be vague because it may not specify whether you need a decision, recommendation, clarification, approval, or status update.
ReviewedEvidence2 sourcesSectionWriting & Style
Quick answer
You can use “please advise,” but a more specific request is often clearer: ask for feedback, a decision, confirmation, guidance, or the next step you actually need.
Key details
Core Issuegrammatically correct but often underspecified
Phrase Rolerequest for guidance or information
Registerformal/professional
Important caveats
Tone Boundary
The phrase is not automatically rude. Tone depends on context, relationship, and the surrounding wording.
Further guidance
Clarity
When possible, replace the generic request with the exact response needed, such as “Could you confirm the next step?” or “I’d appreciate your feedback on option A.”
Grammar
Use “advise,” the verb, after “please.” “Advice” is a noun, so “please advice” is not the standard construction.
Practical Application
Use “please advise” only when the requested guidance is obvious from context. When it could mean several things, replace it with the actual action you need: a decision, recommendation, approval, clarification, status, or next step.
Reader Check
Could the recipient answer “advise about what?” If yes, turn the request into a specific question or action.
Worked Example
Vague: “Please advise.” Specific: “Please confirm whether we should publish the revised version today or hold it for Monday.”
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
In business writing, “going forward” commonly means “in the future” or “from now on.” It is understandable, but plain-language guidance often prefers a more specific alternative. “Going forward” is not inherently incorrect, and it also has literal movement uses; the concern in professional prose is often precision and unnecessary jargon.
Government of Canada writing guidance lists “I am pleased to inform you that …” as a concise opening for routine business letters and contrasts it with more bureaucratic wording. Cambridge supports the meanings of pleased and inform. The phrase is useful when a positive formal notification is intended; it is not a mandatory template for all good-news emails.
“I am writing to …” introduces the reason for a professional email. It remains acceptable in formal contexts, while many messages can be clearer and shorter when the writer moves directly to the request, update, application, or other purpose.
Cambridge marks regret + to-infinitive as formal in announcements of unwelcome information, and British Council business-English material uses “We regret to inform you” for an unsuccessful job decision. The phrase is therefore established rather than incorrect, but it should frame—not obscure—the bad news. A useful alternative preserves clarity while adjusting formality and emotional distance.
“Noted with thanks” is a brief workplace acknowledgment that combines receipt or understanding with appreciation. It can work well for routine updates, but when the sender expects action, the clearest reply adds what you will do next rather than stopping at acknowledgment.
“Please be aware” asks the reader to know or take account of a fact. It is grammatically standard, but its tone depends on context; professional alternatives should be chosen by function—such as stating the fact directly, using “please note,” or explaining the consequence—rather than claiming one phrase is universally more polite.
