I only do cover letters for jobs that I'm desperate for which isn't many. It's really just a piece of paper showing us how desperate we are and overly glazing the company we are applying to. Literally humiliating. The hiring manager will not be reading the whole thing because they're not even reading our resumes anymore now that they let AI do the resume screening which is so bullshit because it's not effective. Qualified applicants can still be overlooked simply because the contents in their resume do not meet the criteria set by the AI for whatever reason.

However, if you think a cover letter will give you a better chance to secure an interview, do it anyway.

My biggest advice for job interviews: ALWAYS ASK QUESTIONS. A job interview is a two way street. You need to REALLY know how much this job will fit you as much as they need to know how fit you are for the job. Questions like benefits & compensation, who you will be working with, what's the routine on a normal day etc. I've interviewed quite a lot of people and most of them didn't ask enough questions. Do ask!