How Are You? (¿Cómo estás?)
Ask and answer how someone is feeling. ¿Cómo estás?, bien, mal, más o menos, ¿y tú?
A lesson of Spanish A1 — Beginner, in Greetings & Introductions, about 10 minutes.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to ask how someone is doing in Spanish and respond with a range of authentic answers.
Asking How Someone Is
¿Cómo estás? — How are you? (informal — tú) ¿Cómo está usted? — How are you? (formal — usted) ¿Qué tal? — How's it going? / What's up? (very casual) ¿Cómo te va? — How are things going? (informal)
Responding: The Full Range
| Spanish | English | Register |
|---|---|---|
| Muy bien | Very well | Any |
| Bien | Good / Fine | Any |
| Bastante bien | Pretty well | Any |
| Más o menos | So-so / More or less | Any |
| Regular | Not great / OK | Any |
| Mal | Bad | Any |
| Muy mal | Very bad | Any |
| Fatal | Terrible | Informal |
| Estupendo/a | Wonderful | Enthusiastic |
| De maravilla | Marvelous | Enthusiastic |
The Natural Bounce: ¿Y tú?
After answering, almost always add ¿Y tú? (informal) or ¿Y usted? (formal):
— ¿Cómo estás? — Bien, gracias. ¿Y tú? — Muy bien, gracias.
This two-word phrase shows you're engaged in the conversation. It's one of the most socially important phrases to master.
Pronunciation
- ¿Cómo estás? — KOH-moh es-TAHS
- The accent on estás shows stress on the last syllable, which also distinguishes it from estas (these)
- ¿Qué tal? — keh tahl
- Más o menos — mahs oh MEH-nos
Full Exchange Examples
Formal meeting: