How to Ask How Are You in Spanish
A wellbeing question changes slightly with formality. Pair ¿Cómo estás? with tú and ¿Cómo está? with usted, then practise hearing the difference in context.
Learning objective
Ask ¿Cómo estás? or ¿Cómo está? with the right level of formality.
¿Cómo estás? means How are you? when speaking informally to one person. Cómo carries a written accent in a direct question, and Spanish places an opening question mark before the sentence. Learn the punctuation with the phrase so your written Spanish shows the question from its first word.
For a respectful or formal singular question, use ¿Cómo está? The missing final s is meaningful: estás belongs with informal tú, while está belongs with usted. You may say ¿Cómo está usted? when you want the respectful subject to be explicit, but the shorter question is often clear from context.
The phrase asks about current wellbeing and can be a genuine question or part of a greeting routine. Tone and relationship affect how much detail is expected. In a quick shop encounter, a short Bien, gracias may be enough; with a friend, the same question may invite a fuller answer.
Similar greetings include ¿Qué tal?, roughly How's it going?, which is common and flexible. Begin with ¿Cómo estás? and ¿Cómo está? because they reinforce the informal and respectful choice clearly. Then listen for other expressions rather than assuming every greeting must match the English formula word for word.
Examples
Hola, ¿cómo estás?
Hello, how are you?
This suits one person you address informally.
Buenos días, ¿cómo está?
Good morning, how are you?
The greeting and question form a respectful opening.
¿Cómo está usted, doctora?
How are you, doctor?
Stating usted makes the respectful choice visible.
¿Qué tal?
How's it going?
This widely used alternative does not show tú or usted.
Common mistake
- Instead of
- Como estas?
- Try
- ¿Cómo estás?
A direct written question needs both question marks, and cómo and estás each carry their written accents here. Informal messages sometimes omit marks, but careful beginner practice should preserve them. Accurate spelling also reminds you where the natural stress falls when you read the phrase aloud.
Practice
Try it yourself
Write one wellbeing question for a friend and one for a customer you address as usted. Add a suitable greeting before each, including all accents and both question marks.