{"id":138227,"date":"2023-09-02T18:09:03","date_gmt":"2023-09-02T22:09:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/how-are-you-in-spanish\/"},"modified":"2025-02-25T22:22:18","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T03:22:18","slug":"how-are-you-in-spanish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/spanish\/how-are-you-in-spanish\/","title":{"rendered":"Key Ways to Say “How Are You?” in Spanish"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Hey, what’s up?”<\/p>\n

“How’s it going?”<\/p>\n

“How have you been?”<\/p>\n

In our everyday encounters with other people, we use these phrases over and over. But let’s have a look at eight other formal and informal ways to say “How are you?” in Spanish that are a little more exciting.<\/p>\n

I’ll even provide some appropriate responses.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Basic Greeting: \u00bfC\u00f3mo Est\u00e1s?<\/em><\/h2>\n

\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
\u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1s? <\/a>\n <\/em><\/td>Informal<\/td>Singular<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1 (usted)? <\/a>\n <\/em><\/td>Formal<\/td>Singular<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1n (ustedes)? <\/a>\n <\/em><\/td>Informal \/ formal
\n(Latin America)
\nFormal
\n(Spain)<\/td>		Plural<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1is (vosotros)? <\/a>\n <\/em><\/td>Infomal
\n(Spain)<\/td>		Plural<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let’s have a look at each one of these in more detail.<\/p>\n

In Spanish, the way you conjugate a verb changes depending on how many people you’re addressing, and on whether you’re in a formal or informal situation. In this case, the important verb is\u00a0estar<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(to be).<\/p>\n

So, depending on who you’re speaking to, you may have to slightly adjust your conjugation. For each of the examples below, I’ll provide the appropriate pronoun<\/a>. When speaking, t\u00fa<\/em> is not usually used in these phrases, but for the others, the pronouns are optional when in parentheses.<\/p>\n

The most basic greeting that you would use to speak to one person in an informal setting<\/a>\u2014someone you would refer to as\u00a0t\u00fa\u2014 <\/em>is:<\/p>\n

Singular, infomal:<\/strong> \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1s?\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The pronoun\u00a0usted\u00a0<\/em>refers to a singular “you” in a formal situation. Use this second greeting when talking to a stranger, someone much older than you or someone in a position of superiority:<\/p>\n

Singular, formal: \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1 (usted)?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For example, you might use \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1? <\/em>when greeting your friend\u2019s grandfather, your boss, your professor, the queen of Spain and so on. Visit this post to learn more about when to use t\u00fa<\/em>\u00a0vs.\u00a0usted<\/em><\/a>, including example sentences and tips.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ustedes <\/em>refers to a plural “you.” Across Latin America, ustedes <\/em>can be used in formal or informal situations. In Spain, it’s used exclusively in formal situations (like usted).\u00a0<\/em>Use these when greeting two or more people at the same time:<\/p>\n

Plural, formal \/ informal: \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1n (ustedes)? <\/em>(Latin America)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Plural, formal: \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1n (ustedes)? <\/em>(Spain)<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you happen to be speaking Spanish in Spain, use vosotros<\/em><\/a> when talking to a group of people in an informal situation, such as when you’re speaking to a group of friends. Notice the -\u00e1is<\/em> ending in the conjugation this time:<\/p>\n

Plural, informal: \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1is (vosotros)? <\/em>(Spain)<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are many ways to respond to the greeting “How are you?”<\/p>\n

In Spanish, a safe response is:<\/p>\n

Bien, gracias. \u00bfY t\u00fa? \u2014 <\/em>Fine, thanks. And you?<\/p>\n

Bien.<\/em> \u2014 Good.<\/p>\n

Bastante bien.<\/em> \u2014 Pretty good.<\/p>\n

Muy bien.<\/em> \u2014 Very good.<\/p>\n

This is a polite and simple way to keep the conversation going.<\/p>\n

Of course, if you’re in a formal situation or talking to more than one person, you’ll want to substitute t\u00fa <\/em>for usted, ustedes <\/em>or vosotros <\/em>where appropriate.<\/p>\n

If you’re unclear on verb conjugation, check out this basic guide<\/a> to conjugating the Spanish present tense.<\/p>\n

8 Different Ways to Say “How Are You?” in Spanish<\/h2>\n

Before we get into the different variations, here’s a quick lesson on basic greetings from our YouTube channel<\/a>:<\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

For each of the greetings below, I’ll let you know how to politely respond. You can, of course, also respond to any of these greetings by letting your conversation partner know how you’re actually doing.<\/p>\n

But when you’re talking with strangers or acquaintances, it’s good to know how to give a noncommittal response like “It’s all good” or “Oh, nothing much.”<\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo andas? <\/em>\u2014 How’s it going?<\/h3>\n

The verb andar <\/em>means “to walk” or “to go,” so this greeting is similar to the English “How’s it going?” It’s slightly more casual and slangy than the basic \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1s? <\/em><\/p>\n

Andar <\/em>is a regular -ar verb<\/a>, so its other conjugations are:<\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo anda (usted)?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo andan (ustedes)?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo and\u00e1is (vosotros)?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

You can respond to this in the same way you would respond to \u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1s?<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00bfQu\u00e9 me cuentas? <\/em>\u2014 What’s going on?<\/h3>\n

This greeting is quite slangy. It literally translates to “What do you tell me?” Think of it as a Spanish equivalent to the English “What’s going on?”<\/p>\n

It would be a little awkward to use this greeting in the usted <\/em>form since it’s so informal\u2014but here are all of the conjugations just in case. Note here that contar <\/em>is a stem-changing verb<\/a>!<\/p>\n

For\u00a0usted<\/em>: \u00bfQu\u00e9 me cuenta?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For ustedes<\/em>: \u00bfQu\u00e9 me cuentan?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For vosotros<\/em>: \u00bfQu\u00e9 me cont\u00e1is?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

If someone asked you “What\u2019s going on?” in English, you might respond with “Oh, not much.” It’s similar in Spanish. If someone asks you \u00bfQu\u00e9 me cuentas?<\/em> you might respond with something like:<\/p>\n

Nada. \u2014 <\/em>Nothing.<\/p>\n

Nada en especial. \u2014 <\/em>Nothing special.<\/p>\n

Lo normal. \u2014 <\/em>The usual.<\/p>\n

No mucho. \u2014 <\/em>Not much.<\/p>\n

It would sound a little strange to respond with something like Bien, gracias. <\/em>This might be tricky to keep track of, but if you practice enough, you’ll unconsciously start to realize what response sounds right and what sounds awkward.<\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo te va? <\/em>\u2014 How’s it going?<\/h3>\n

This greeting translates to something like “How’s it going?” It can be used in formal or informal situations. In this case, to change the greeting you’ll have to change the indirect object pronoun<\/a> from te <\/em>to le, les <\/em>or os<\/em>:<\/p>\n

For usted: \u00bfC\u00f3mo le va?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

For ustedes: \u00bfC\u00f3mo les va?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

For vosotros: \u00bfC\u00f3mo os va?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

When responding to this, you can re-use the verb va <\/em>(it goes), from the infinitive\u00a0ir\u00a0<\/em>(to go):<\/p>\n

Me va bien. \u2014 <\/em>It’s going well.<\/p>\n

Me va mal. \u2014 <\/em>It’s going badly.<\/p>\n

You can replace bien<\/em> or mal<\/em> with any other appropriate adjective you can think of. Some examples are:<\/p>\n

Espectacular. \u2014 <\/em>Spectacular.<\/p>\n

Genial. <\/em>\u2014 Great.<\/p>\n

Normal.<\/em> \u2014 Normal.<\/p>\n

Regular.<\/em> \u2014 Just okay.<\/p>\n

Terrible.<\/em> \u2014 Terrible.<\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo va todo?<\/em> \u2014 How’s everything going?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Very similar to the last one, this phrase\u00a0<\/em>translates to “How’s everything going?”<\/p>\n

Luckily, in this case there are no verbs to conjugate and no indirect objects to change around\u2014you can use this same greeting regardless of what situation you’re in.<\/p>\n

To respond, you can say the following, filling in whatever adjective suits your mood (see above for examples):<\/p>\n

Va todo ___. \u2014 Everything is ___ .<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00bfC\u00f3mo van las cosas? <\/em>\u2014 How are things going?<\/h3>\n

This greeting means “How are things going?” Like the previous case, there is no need for conjugation here, since the verb van <\/em>(they go) refers to the noun las cosas <\/em>(the things).<\/p>\n

If somebody asks you this, you can respond with a simple bien <\/em>(good) or mal <\/em>(bad), <\/em>or you can make a full sentence such as:<\/p>\n

Las cosas van bien. \u2014 <\/em>Things are going well.<\/p>\n

\u00bfQu\u00e9 tal?<\/em> \u2014 What’s up?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This\u00a0<\/em>is an informal greeting to be used among friends in a casual setting. It is similar to the English “What’s up?”<\/p>\n

However, unlike the English “What\u2019s up?” you should not respond to \u00bfQu\u00e9 tal?<\/em>\u00a0with “Nothing much” or any variant thereof.<\/p>\n

Instead, respond with an adjective\u2014bien, mal, regular, genial, terrible,\u00a0<\/em>etc.\u2014like you would respond to\u00a0\u00bfC\u00f3mo est\u00e1s?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00bfQu\u00e9 hay? <\/em>\u2014 What’s new?<\/h3>\n

This super informal greeting literally translates to “What is there?” and should only be used in very casual, friendly situations. Again, no conjugations to worry about here. You can think of it as a shortening of this:<\/p>\n

\u00bfQu\u00e9 hay de nuevo? \u2014 <\/em>What’s new?<\/p>\n

A good, appropriately casual response to this greeting would be something like:<\/p>\n

Todo bien.<\/em> \u2014 All good.<\/p>\n

No me quejo.<\/em> \u2014 Can’t complain.<\/p>\n

\u00bfQu\u00e9 pasa?<\/em> \u2014 What’s up?<\/h3>\n

This Spanish greeting has crossed over into English-language slang, so you may already be familiar with it! It’s another super colloquial way to ask “What’s up?” or “What’s going on?”<\/p>\n

A normal response would be some variant of nada<\/em> (nothing) or lo normal <\/em>(the usual).\u00a0 See the section on\u00a0\u00bfQu\u00e9 me cuentas?\u00a0<\/em>for some examples of good responses.<\/p>\n

Why You Should Go Beyond the Basics with “How Are You?”<\/h2>\n

Sure, the regular phrases will get you through basic Spanish conversations. But why stop there? There are tons of ways to greet and be greeted in Spanish\u2014it’s a good idea to know more than one.<\/p>\n