Best Goodbye Quotes to Say Farewell with Meaning

Ever struggled to find the right words when it’s time to say goodbye?

Goodbyes are rarely easy, whether you're parting ways with a friend, colleague, or someone you love. The emotions can be overwhelming. The silence between words can feel heavier than the words themselves. That’s why so many people turn to quotes for comfort, closure, or the right thing to write or say.

You’re not alone in wanting to make your farewell meaningful. But knowing what to say in a goodbye moment isn’t always simple. That’s where the right quote makes all the difference.

How Goodbye Quotes Help You Express What Matters

Quotes capture what you’re feeling when you can’t say it yourself.

They’re short, powerful, and help you express emotions with clarity. A good quote makes your message memorable. It offers comfort, connection, and a sense of understanding for both you and the person you're parting from.

Without these words, you might bottle up what you really want to say. Or worse, say nothing at all. That can leave a goodbye feeling unfinished or empty.

Using goodbye quotes helps you:

Say what you mean without overthinking it
Add depth and emotion to farewell cards, speeches, or messages
Leave someone with words they’ll remember

If you don’t use meaningful language, you risk missing the chance to connect in a moment that matters truly.

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Goodbye Quotes for Friends, Family, and Loved Ones

“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” – A.A. Milne
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss
“Goodbye may seem forever. Farewell is like the end, but in my heart is the memory and there you will always be.” – Walt Disney
“Saying goodbye doesn’t mean anything. It’s the time we spent together that matters.” – Trey Parker
“You have been my friend. That in itself is a tremendous thing.” – E.B. White
“We only part to meet again.” – John Gay
“The story of life is quicker than the blink of an eye. The story of love is hello and goodbye… until we meet again.” – Jimi Hendrix
“Every parting is a form of death, as every reunion is a type of heaven.” – Tryon Edwards
“There are no goodbyes for us. Wherever you are, you will always be in my heart.” – Mahatma Gandhi
“No distance of place or lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each other’s worth.” – Robert Southey
“Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” – Thomas Haynes Bayly
“A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends.” – Richard Bach
“Though miles may lie between us, we are never far apart, for friendship doesn’t count the miles, it’s measured by the heart.” – Unknown
“Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Others stay a while, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same.” – Flavia Weedn
“Goodbyes are not forever, are not the end; it simply means I’ll miss you until we meet again.” – Unknown
“Only in the agony of parting do we look into the depths of love.” – George Eliot
“Why does it take a minute to say hello and forever to say goodbye?” – Unknown
“The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again.” – Charles Dickens
“The reason it hurts so much to separate is because our souls are connected.” – Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook
“If you’re brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.” – Paulo Coelho

Inspirational Goodbye Quotes to Bring Closure

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” – Seneca
“Goodbyes are not the end. They simply mean I’ll miss you until we meet again.” – Author Unknown
“What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” – T.S. Eliot
“Goodbye is the hardest thing to say to someone who means the world to you, especially when goodbye isn’t what you want.” – Unknown
“Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul, there is no such thing as separation.” – Rumi
“We started here together and now we’re leaving the same way. The funny thing is you never appreciate what you had yesterday until it’s gone today.” – Unknown
“It’s time to say goodbye, but I think goodbyes are sad and I’d much rather say hello. Hello to a new adventure.” – Ernie Harwell
“Goodbyes make you think. They make you realize what you’ve had, what you’ve lost, and what you’ve taken for granted.” – Ritu Ghatourey
“You can only lose what you cling to.” – Buddha
“Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.” – Garrison Keillor
“You get a strange feeling when you’re about to leave a place. Like you’ll not only miss the people, but you’ll miss the person you are now at this time and place, because you’ll never be this way again.” – Azar Nafisi
“One today is worth two tomorrows.” – Benjamin Franklin
“If you're brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.” – Paulo Coelho
“Goodbye always makes my throat hurt.” – Charlie Brown (Charles M. Schulz)
“How lucky I am to have known someone who was so hard to say goodbye to.” – Anonymous
“I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott
“The beautiful journey of today can only begin when we learn to let go of yesterday.” – Steve Maraboli
“Don’t count the days, make the days count.” – Muhammad Ali
“There’s a time for departure even when there’s no certain place to go.” – Tennessee Williams
“Man’s feelings are always purest and most glowing in the hour of meeting and of farewell.” – Jean Paul Richter

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Short and Meaningful Quotes to Say Farewell

“Farewell! God knows when we shall meet again.” – William Shakespeare
“The two hardest things to say in life are hello for the first time and goodbye for the last.” – Moira Rogers
“Parting is such sweet sorrow.” – William Shakespeare
“Every parting gives a foretaste of death.” – Arthur Schopenhauer
“Goodbye is the hardest thing to say to someone who means the world to you.” – Unknown
“It’s not the goodbye that hurts, but the flashbacks that follow.” – Author Unknown
“The reason it hurts so much to separate is because our souls are connected.” – Nicholas Sparks
“A man never knows how to say goodbye; a woman never knows when to say it.” – Helen Rowland
“Goodbye always leaves a void.” – Unknown
“So long, and thanks for all the fish.” – Douglas Adams
“We started with a simple hello, but ended with a complicated goodbye.” – Unknown
“Moving on is a simple thing, what it leaves behind is hard.” – Dave Mustaine
“The pain of parting is short.” – Jean de La Fontaine
“I’ll see you in another life, when we are both cats.” – Tom (Vanilla Sky)
“True goodbyes are the ones never said.” – Unknown
“Sometimes goodbye is a second chance.” – Shinedown (Lyrics)
“We’ll meet again. Don’t know where, don’t know when.” – Vera Lynn
“Goodbye isn’t painful, unless you’re never going to say hello again.” – Unknown
“Adieu! I have too grieved a heart to take a tedious leave.” – William Shakespeare
“Goodbye. It’s only for now.” – Stephen Schwartz

Goodbye Quotes for Colleagues and the Workplace

“Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.” – Aristotle
“Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.” – Voltaire
“It is so hard to leave—until you leave. And then it is the easiest thing in the world.” – John Green
“Every exit is an entry somewhere else.” – Tom Stoppard
“Work friendships are built on coffee, shared deadlines, and mutual survival. You’ll be missed.” – Unknown
“May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be always at your back.” – Irish Blessing
“As long as we remember a person, they’re not really gone. Their thoughts, their feelings, their memories—they become a part of us.” – Justin Cronin
“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” – Henry David Thoreau
“Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius and power and magic in it.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work.” – Steve Jobs
“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.” – Vincent Van Gogh
“Life is about change. Sometimes it’s painful. Sometimes it’s beautiful. But most of the time, it’s both.” – Lana Lang (from Smallville)
“Your absence has gone through me like thread through a needle. Everything I do is stitched with its color.” – W.S. Merwin
“Chase your passion, not your pension.” – Denis Waitley
“A strong team can take any crazy vision and turn it into reality.” – John Carmack
“The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be the beginning.” – Ivy Baker Priest
“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” – Maya Angelou
“What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.” – Pericles
“When someone leaves, it’s because someone else is about to arrive.” – Paulo Coelho
“We laughed until we had to cry. We loved right down to our last goodbye.” – Michael W. Smith

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Questions to Ask Yourself About Parting and Closure

Which goodbye has stayed with you the most?

Think about a time you parted ways with someone—what words did you use? Did they say what you really felt? Or did you leave wishing you’d said more?

Goodbye quotes can give voice to what you’re carrying inside. They offer clarity when your own words fall short. Reading them might even bring up emotions you didn’t expect, but that’s the point. It’s not just about finding the right thing to say; it’s about understanding what the goodbye means to you.

Take a moment to reflect:

Who are you saying goodbye to or preparing to?
What message do you want to leave them with?
How would it feel to know you expressed it well?

Using quotes as part of this process helps you move through change with intention instead of regret. It turns a hard moment into one that feels a little more whole.

What to Remember About Goodbye and Moving Forward

Saying goodbye doesn’t have to be awkward or empty.

The right words can bring comfort, create connection, and mark the moment with meaning. Whether it’s to a friend, family member, coworker, or partner, quotes can help you say what needs to be said.

Use them: