French word for how are you

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There are a number of different ways to ask someone “how are you?” in French. This article will give you 15 different ways to ask, ranging from formal to informal and colloquial expressions.

The following four phrases are some of the most commonly taught and used ways to say how are you doing in French.

Comment allez-vous ? (How are you?)

Comment ça va ? (How’s it going?)

A friendly way of asking “how are you?” is to use “comment ça va?” It literally translates as “how it goes?” — meaning “how’s it going?” This expression is mostly used with family and friends, or anyone that you use tu with, but it’s generally a safe bet to use with anyone really.

Ça va ? (How’s it going?)

Vous allez bien ? (Are you well?)

Some other expressions like what are you doing in French include:

Qu’est-ce que tu fais? (What are you up to?/What are you doing?)

Qu’est-ce qui se passe ? (What’s happening?)

While this expression isn’t commonly used, it can be used in informal situations with someone you are close with. It’s used to ask “what’s up?” or “what’s happening?” in specific situations, where you notice that someone appears confused, worried or stressed, or clearly doesn’t feel well.

From these commonly used expressions we move onto the more informal and colloquial expressions used in everyday French.

Quoi de neuf ? (What’s new?)

This expression literally means “What’s new?” or “What’s up?” It’s one of the most commonly used, casual ways to ask how someone is. This is best used with friends or close acquaintances.

Quoi de beau ? (What’s beautiful?)

This may seem like a strange expression, but the French like to use the word beau in a number of situations. This casual expression conveys a positive meaning — you’re essentially asking someone about all the wonderful things happening in their life.

Ça gaze ? (What’s up?)

Ça roule ? (It’s rolling?)

This a colloquial way of asking how someone is. This expression can also be used to ask about how a  specific situation is going. It literally translates to “it’s rolling?”

Ça baigne ? (It bathes?)

This is yet another interesting and informal expression — similar to “ça roule?,” “ça baigne?” translates to “it bathes?”

If you know that someone has been under the weather or has had a problem, you can use the following expressions to ask how they are or how they’re going.

Comment vous sentez-vous ? (How are you feeling?/How do you feel?)

Qu’est-ce qui ne vas pas ? (What’s wrong?)

Qu’est-ce qu’il y a? (What’s wrong?/What’s the matter?)

This common expression can be used both formally or informally in a variety of situations. It’s literal translation is “what is there?”

Ça ne vas pas ? (What’s wrong?)

Here are some FAQs about «How are you» in French

You walk to your friend, ask him “comment allez-vous ?” (how are you) and expect a passionate answer about what’s he’s been up to lately.

Instead, your friend simply answers “good, and you?”.

What did you do wrong?

Not much.

In fact, the only mistake you made was to use the wrong “how are you”.

In French, there are at least 16 ways to say “how are you”. Use the right “how are you” and French people will open up to you and gladly tell you about their day, thoughts and feelings. Use the wrong form and they’ll tell you “bien merci” while you’re left wondering what to say next.

Discover 16 ways to say how are you in French and other useful greetings!

“Comment allez-vous “ is the most common “how are you”. You can safely use it with anyone in any situation.

I say safely, because you won’t offend anyone by using it. However, it’s not the best “how are you” to use in informal situations.

It litterally means “how go you”. In French, we don’t use the verb “to be” in “how are you” and alwayse use “to go” instead.

That’s similar to the way “how is it going” is constructed except that “comment allez-vous” is way more formal.

“Comment vas-tu” is the “informal” version of “comment allez-vous” as indicated by the use of “tu”, the informal French “you”.

However, it also uses the inversion way of asking questions which is considered formal.

The end result is a “how are you” stuck between formal and informal French.

I personally never use it, because I prefer “comment allez-vous” in formal situations and “ça va ?” in informal situations, and feel that “comment vas-tu” doesn’t belong anywhere and ends up being either too informal or too formal.

However, some people like to use it when they write to people they know well, but still want to sound serious. “Comment vas-tu” would fit nicely in a romantic letter for example.

“Comment ça va” literally means “how is it going” or “how it goes”. You will frequently see it misspelled as como se va on the internet but this is incorrect and the only correct spelling is comment ça va.

You can use it with friends, family members and people you know well. Basically, with anyone you’re on a “tu” basis with.

Ça va: The short “how are you”

French people love deleting words and letters when they speak.

You can use ça va ? the same way you’d use “comment ça va ?”.

You just need to know that “ça va” is often considered less serious than “comment ça va” and other French “how are you” starting with “comment”, so people are less likely to give you a deep answer.

In fact, the most common answer to “ça va ?” is…”ça va” (literally: it goes), meaning everything is going well.

“ça va” is similar to the English “how are you” greeting. You use it more to say “hello” than ask a person how she is doing.

You can also start with “ça va” as a greeting and later ask “comment tu vas ?” to indicate that you now expect a more detailed answer. This is common if you meet someone in a public space or in a group and want to wait to be in a more intimate setting to talk.

If you like to be positive, you can also say “ça va bien ?” (is it going well?), but again, don’t expect a deep answer.

Sa va: The French slang “how are you”

“Sa va” is the slang “how are you”. It’s used the same way as “ça va ?” and the only difference is that it’s written wrong since “sa” normally means “her” and has nothing to do with “ça” (even though both are pronounce the same way).

Using it doesn’t make much sense since it’s not even shorter than “ça va”, so I recommend you not to use it at all unless you want to annoy your French teacher. 

It’s important to know it exists though, because lots of young French people use it on Facebook.

The most typical answer is “sa va”.

“Comment vous sentez-vous” literally means “how do you feel?”.

You use it when you know someone was sick or had a problem and want to know if they’re now doing better.

A possible answer would be “ça va mieux” (I’m feeling better) or “pas terrible” (not great).

The concerned “how are you”

You can use  “comment tu te sens”  to ask a friend who was feeling sick or maybe a little depressed if he’s now feeling better.

This is simply the informal version of “comment vous sentez-vous ?”.

Like all other French “how are you” starting with “comment”, it usually requires a deep answer and not a simple “ça va”.

The casual “how are you”

“Quoi de neuf” is the French “what’s up” and literally means “what’s new?”.

You can use it with friends you haven’t talked to in a while or with anyone you’re on a “tu” basis with.

When you ask “quoi de neuf”, expect a detailed answer of what the person has been up to lately.

Quoi de beau: The positive “how are you”

“Quoi de beau” literally means “what’s beautiful?”. It’s a positve and casual way of asking how a person is doing.

Most people will answer by telling you about the nice things happening in their life, but you may also hear “pas grand chose” (not much) if the person feels that there is nothing nice happening in her life.

The relaxed “how are you”

Literally “it’s rolling”,  “ça roule” is a colloquial way to ask if everything is going smoothly.

You can use the French expression “comme sur des roulettes” (literally: like on wheels) as a positive answer.

Hello how are you?

If you want to say “hello how are you?”, you can simply say Bonjour comment allez-vous ?

Do note that asking how are you after hello is way less common in French than in English so won’t hear this often.

What you will hear a lot more is salut ça va (hi how are you.)

French people generally expect an answer when they ask “comment allez-vous ?” or “comment tu vas ?”, but the answer doesn’t have to be long.

In fact, it’s common to simply say “ça va” (it’s going well) whether you actually feel good or not.

Like in English, you usually keep more detailed answers for your friends and people you know well.

Here are a few formal answers:

• Très bien, merci (very good, thank you)
• Je vais bien, merci (I am doing well, thank you)
• ça pourrait aller mieux (it could be going better)
• ça pourrait être pire (it could be worse)
• Je n’ai pas à me plaindre (nothing to complain about)

The last three answers sound formal, but you’re actually unlikely to use them in a formal context, because they sound negative and many people consider that your answer to “how are you” should always be positive in a formal context.

And a few informal answers:

• Ca va (it’s going well)
• Super (great)
• Bof (so so)
• Pas terrible (not great)
• Pas trop mal (not bad)
• Un peu fatigué(e) (a little tired)
• La routine (same as usual)

After answering “how are you”, it’s polite to ask the person how she is doing.

In this case, you can say:

• Et vous ? (formal “and you?”)
• Et toi ? (informal “and you?”)

Over to you

Have you ever asked “how are you?” in France? How did it go? Share your story in the comment section below!

Politeness is an important part of everyday interactions. Understanding the many informal and formal ways of saying ‘how are you’ in French, and what is culturally expected of you will certainly be useful.

This free French lesson – like many on French Today’s blog – features audio recordings. Click on the link next to the headphones to hear the French pronunciation.

When Do We Ask ‘How Are You’ in France?

I’d like to start this free French lesson with a cultural point. I lived in the US for 17 years. Over there, when entering a shop, or even at a cash register, it is not unusual for the attendant to greet their customers with an informal ‘how are you today ?’

This is not at all the case in France. In France, if you asked ‘how are you ?’ to a person you don’t know, they would be extremely surprised.

We typically only ask ‘how are you ?’ to people we are acquainted with. Not to shopkeeper, not to people you just cross path with, even if you see them often.

Now let’s see the different ways of asking ‘how are you’ in French.

5 Classical Ways To Ask ‘How Are You’ in French

Comment allez-vous ?

“Comment Allez-vous” is a very common way to ask ‘how are you’ in French. It’s also what you are likely to have learned in school.
It uses the vous form, so could be used with a person you are being formal with, or a group of people. Watch out for the strong liaison between the final “t” of “comment” and the “a” of “allez”.

Comment vas-tu ?

Asking “Comment vas-tu ?” is also very common in France nowadays.
It uses the same question form as “comment allez-vous”, called inversion in French, but using “tu” instead of “vous”.
The language register is still quite formal, even though you are using “tu”.

Comment ça-va ?

“Comment ça-va ?” is in the same line, using inversion.
This is a more general way of saying ‘how are you’ in French. More like ‘how are things’ rather than ‘how are you’.

Ça va ?

“Ça va ?” is the short form of “comment ça-va”. The “comment” is implied.
“Ça va ?” is convenient because it can be used as a question and as an answer: you just change the tone for the answer: “Ça va ?”.
The language register is casual. I’d say the English equivalent would be “you’re OK?”.
Note: we use “Ça va ?” also when we suspect someone can be physically or emotionally distressed. So, to check on someone.

What does “sa va” mean in French?

Used in texting to avoid the typing the inconvenient ‘ç’, “sa va” is making an appearance in the French language world. It may be OK if you’re texting or a French teen… Otherwise, I strongly suggest you stay away from it. In my humble opinion, it’s still better to type “ca va” than “sa va”…

This info may be useful to you.

How to type a “c with cedilla” ç?

1. on windows, type ‘ then c.
2. Windows: UK Extended, click AltGr and c at the same time.
3. Apple: hold option key and c
4. Iphone: press and hold the letter c.

Care to add more? Leave me a comment and I’ll add it to the article.

11 Ways of Asking ‘How Is X Doing’ In French

If you didn’t want to ask specifically ‘how are YOU’ but rather ‘how is she’, ‘how are they’ etc… you’d have to be careful to use the verb “aller” in French.

Watch Out! Use Aller, Not Être With These ‘How Are You’ in French.

With the expressions above, we don’t use the verb to be in French. We use to go: “aller”.

So whether you’re asking ‘how are you’ or ‘how are they’, you’re going to be using one conjugation of aller. In the present indicative: je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont. And apply the rules of inversion.

1. Comment vas-tu ?
   How are you? – “tu” form.
2. Comment va-t-il ?
   How is he?
3. Comment va-t-elle ?
   How is she?
4. Comment va-t-on ?
   How is one/people – not very used at all.
5. Comment allons-nous ?
   How are we – quite unlikely to ask this question
6. Comment allez-vous ?
   How are you? – “vous” form.
7. Comment vont-ils ?
   How are they?
8. Comment vont-elles ?
   How are they? (feminine)
9. Comment vont vos parents ?
   How are your parents ?

How To Say ‘How Are Things ?’ in French

This may come as a surprise to some students of French, but you can also use these constructions to ask ‘how are things’ in French… So you could ask about impersonal things like work, or a part of your body that was hurting…

1. Comment va votre travail ?
   How is you work going?
2. Ton épaule, ça va (mieux) ?
   How is your shoulder? Is you shoulder better?
3. Ça va la santé ?
   How is your health?

And then of course, we have expressions which may not use “aller”.

4 Slang Expressions To Say ‘How Are You’ in French

There are many expressions to ask ‘how are you’ in French. You need to understand them, but I’d be careful about using them… Expressions are more or less trendy.

My Dad may ask “ça gaze ?” and you may hear it in a movie from the seventies… It’s only used today in a sort of tongue in cheek way.

Pretty much all these expressions belong to the casual slang register and mean ‘are things OK?’. They can be used as a a question and an answer.

1. Ça gaze ?
2. Ça roule (ma poule) ?
   How are things rolling my chick… yep 🐓🐓🐓
3. Ça baigne ? 🛀
4. Ça boume ? 🧨

Often instead of using “ça”, we’d use “tout” : “tout roule”, “tout baigne”… ?

Alors si tout roule, on continue…
So if it’s all dandy, let’s carry on…

11 Ways of Casually Asking ‘How Are You Doing?’ in French

It’s very common nowadays to ask ‘how are you doing’ using… well, an answer really… Sort of asking ‘you’re OK?’ instead of ‘are you OK?’. But in French, we take it to the next step…

If you’ve studied how to ask questions in French, you know it’s very common in modern spoken French to just end a statement with a question tone, hence transforming this statement as a question. Well, we do that a lot in the context of asking ‘how are you?’ in French.

Here are a few common examples – they don’t translate exactly as ‘how are you’ but convey the same feeling, and may be used instead of ‘how are you’ in France.

1. Ça va bien ?
   Things are OK?
2. Tu vas bien ?
   You’re doing OK?
3. Tout se passe bien (avec ton boulot) ?
   Everything good (with work)?
4. Qu’est-ce qui se passe dans ta vie ?
   What’s going on in your life ?
5. Raconte-moi un peu ce qui se passe pour toi…
   Tell me a bit what’s up with you

If you wanted to check on somebody’s health or state of mind, you could ask:

1. Ça va ?
   You’re doing OK?
2. Ça ne va pas ?
   Is something wrong?
3. Qu’est-ce qu’il-y-a ?
   What’s going on?
4. Qu’est-ce qui se passe ?
   What’s going on?
5. Qu’est-ce qui ne va pas ?
   What’s wrong?
6. Comment vous sentez-vous ?
   How are you (feeling) – used if someone is sick, or recovering…

More about being sick in France.

Now let’s see a neat expression to ask “what’s up” in French.

How to Say ‘What’s Up?’ in French?

To ask ‘what’s up?’ in French we say “Quoi de neuf”. Make sure you play the audio recording to listen to the glided pronunciation. This is obviously informal, and we use it a lot nowadays.

Now let’s see how to reply to ‘how are you’ in French

Answering ‘How Are You’ in French

There are so many ways to answer ‘how are you in French’ – formal and informal answers, but also a few cultural differences.

I’ll just make a list of common examples.

The most important tip I’d like to share with you: don’t be passive!! Return the question!

Someone asking ‘how are you’ expects a ‘how are you’ back!!

Can you imagine a situation when you ask someone ‘how are you?’ and s/he answers ‘great!’ and doesn’t ask you how you are?
How rude!!

Unfortunately, students of French are so accustomed to being ‘fed’ all the questions that they don’t usually ask questions themselves… And their fear of speaking French may be be seen as being rude.

So, when asking ‘how are you?’ in France, start with a quick round of informal “ça va?”… Just to make sure everybody is OK.

Then, engage the conversation more specifically – ask how something specific is doing: “et ta fille, ça va mieux ?” (Is your daughter doing better?). You may at this point be interested in my article on French conversation starters.

So let’s see some common formal and informal way of answering ‘how are you?’ in French.

13 Ways to answer ‘how are you’ in French

1. Je vais bien. Et vous ?
   I’m fine, and you? (using “vous” and a rather formal construction.)
2. Ça va, et toi ?
   I’m fine and you? (using “tu”. Informal.)
3. Et toi ?
   And you? (Typical way to send back the question, using “tu”)?
4. Et vous ?
   And you? (Typical way to send back the question, using “vous”)?
5. Bien, merci. Et toi, ça va le travail ?
   OK, thanks. What about you? How’s work?
6. Ça va pas mal, et toi ?
   Things are OK. And you? (using “tu”)
7. Je ne peux pas me plaindre…
   I can’t complain…
8. Ça pourrait être pire…
   It could be worse…

Then you may want to hint in your answer that you’d like to share more… That you have something on your mind… Whether it’s negative or positive, these answer would prompt your interlocutor to ask for more .

1. Ça va comme-ci, comme-ça…
   I’m doing so so, I’m struggling a bit…
2. Chez nous, c’est pas le top en ce moment.
   For us, things are not great right now. (informal)
3. Je ne vais vraiment pas bien.
   I’m really not good.
4. J’ai la pêche !
   I feel great – more ways to say I feel great in French.
5. Super !
   Great!

If someone says that to you, you’re suppose to ask for more. You need to go beyond ‘how are you’.

Beyond ‘how are you?’

To ask someone to explain why they are doing poorly or great, we have one very useful expression.

Qu’est-ce qui se passe ?
What’s going on?

Make sure you play the audio since that expression is pretty glided in modern spoken French.

The best way to learn all these nuances and expressions is to learn them within the context of a realistic story.

If you enjoy learning French language and culture in context, check out French Today’s downloadable French audiobooks: French Today’s bilingual novels are recorded at different speeds and enunciation, and focus on today’s modern glided French pronunciation.

What about you? “Comment ça va aujourd’hui ?”
Leave me an answer in French in the comment section below!

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