French word for see you later

The French use several expressions to say «see you soon» or «see you later.» As you learn French greetings, you may have learned «à bientôt» and it’s the standard. But there are many more ways to express this phrase, covering the subtleties of meaning between expressions and important cultural differences.

«À bientôt,» with its silent final «t,» is the generic way to say «see you soon.» It expresses your desire to see the other person soon, but without giving a precise time frame. It is laced with an implicit sense of wishful thinking: I hope to see you again soon.

See You Later in French: À Plus Tard

«À plus tard» is only used when you are going to see the other person again later the same day. So, «à plus tard«, as opposed to «à bientôt» is a specified time frame. You are not giving a precise time, but it is understood that you will likely see the person later that same day. 

See Ya: À Plus

The informal way to say «à plus tard» is «à plus» or «A+» when texting or emailing. Note the pronunciation difference between these two expressions: in «à plus tard» the «s» of the word plus is silent, but in the other expression, the «s» is strongly pronounced in «à plus.» This is one of many examples of irregular rules in French. Just like with «see ya» in English, «à plus» is quite informal and can be used more casually, whether you are seeing the person later the same day or don’t have a timeframe in mind, just like with «à bientôt.» It’s used frequently with younger speakers. 

À La Prochaine: ‘Till Next Time

Another casual way to say «see you soon» in French is «à la prochaine.» It stands for «à la prochaine fois» which literally means «until next time.» Here again, the time frame is not specifically stated.

À Tout de Suite, À Tout à l’Heure, À Tout: See You Later 

The construction of these phrases doesn’t translate literally into sensical phrases in English but are frequently used colloquialisms in French. 

• À Tout de suite means «see you right away, very soon»
• À Tout à l’Heure or à plus tard means «see you later today»
• À Tout is the colloquial form of the phrase but still refers to seeing the person later the same day. The final «t» of tout is pronounced here «toot .»

À + Specific Time: See You Then

In French, if you place an à in front of an expression of time, it means «see you… then.»

• À demain means «see you tomorrow»
• À mardi means «see you on Tuesday»
• À dans une semaine means «see you in a week»

Cultural Remarks

The way the French set up informal appointments is very different than what most people do in the U.S. In the states, making plans with friends usually seems very casual with no obligation attached. For example, if friends were to say «let’s get together this weekend, I’ll call you later this week,» many times it won’t happen. 

In France, if someone tells you they would like to get together later that week, you can expect a call and it’s likely the person will have put aside some time for you during the weekend. Culturally, it’s much more expected to receive follow-through on the casual plan making. Of course, this is a general observation and is not true for everybody.

Finally, note that «un rendez-vous» is both a personal and a work appointment. It’s not necessarily a date, as some people mistakenly believe.