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How should you start a letter when addressing an entire family?

Dear The Jones Family,

or

Dear Jones Family,

I was discussing this with my wife and I preferred the former while my wife prefers the latter. The second one sounds wrong to me but I'm not sure if it is only because I'm not used to it.

Is this just up to preference or is there any particular rules regarding inclusion of "the"?

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    I'd switch the Dear and go with To the Jones Family. How can Dear The be smooth?
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Apr 3, 2022 at 23:44
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    The rule is: Don't argue with your wife!
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Apr 4, 2022 at 0:31
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    I would agree with your wife. If the family is not too big you could list them as in Dear Peter, Ann and Frederick
    – Peter
    Commented Apr 4, 2022 at 0:40
  • Dear Mr and Mrs Jones and family
    – davidlol
    Commented Apr 4, 2022 at 7:48
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    @Mari-LouA Good point, but then also you would need to know that they all accepted they were the "Jones" family, rather than a family some of whom were called Jones. I suppose it depends more on who they are to the writer: "Dear all at number 15" would sometimes do.
    – davidlol
    Commented Apr 4, 2022 at 9:54

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There is a case to be made for parallelism. We use Dear Mr Jones, Dear Mrs Jones, Dear Messrs Green, Dear Dr Tyler, putting the honorific or title before the surname.

Using the same construction, I have seen, and occasionally use, the parallel usage Dear Family Smith.

It is particularly useful when the list of names is long or the exact limits of the family being addressed are not clear (as when writing in sympathy to an extended family group on a death).

As an aside I agree with your wife in her dislike of your own suggestion. To use the definite article “the” in “The Jones Family” implies that there is one and only one family of Jones. This is clearly not true.

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  • To use "Dear Family Smith" or "Dear Smith Family" at all seems a little impersonal. But I agree the definite article is never used. ("Dear The Mr Smith"? No.)
    – Andrew Leach ♦
    Commented Apr 4, 2022 at 7:38
  • Another option is “Dear members of the Jones family”, if the group is large and includes cousins and the like.
    – Xanne
    Commented Apr 4, 2022 at 8:11

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