Asking "How Are You?" in French

How do you say "How are you?" in French – Easy! It's Comment ça va ? This free French audio lesson shows you how to pronounce this phrase and other useful French words and phrases for asking how someone is when you meet them.

You’ll also learn the formal and informal French for asking people how they are – important stuff if you want to make the right first impression. And just in case you need to apologize… you’ll learn how to say sorry in French as well!

After you greet someone, you’ll want to ask how they are or how’s it going. Here are some common questions that follow a greeting.

How to say "How are you?" in French

For friends or family:

Important! Our Voice Recognition Tool, Rocket Record

Our voice recognition tool, Rocket Record, is used extensively throughout Rocket French to get you speaking the right way. Listen to the tutor audio then record yourself saying the phrase. Use a headset mic in a quiet environment for best results. Problems? Click here!

Comment ça va ?

How are you?

Ça va ?

How are you?

Important! Remember What You Learn

You'll put a lot of time into learning French, so we make sure you can remember it all by including fun and engaging activities at the bottom of every lesson.

For strangers or more senior people:

Comment allez-vous ?

How are you?

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What do you say if someone asks you "How are you?" in French?

Bien, Merci.

Well, thanks.

Très bien.

Very well.

Comme toujours.

As always.

Un peu fatigué.

A little tired.

Je suis malade.

I'm sick.

Comme-ci comme-ca.

So-so.

Pas trop mal.

Not bad.

Mal.

Bad.

Tout va bien.

All good.

Assez bien.

Quite good.

A common follow-up question is, Et toi? "And you?" or more formally et vous?

Et vous ?

And you? (formal)

Et toi ?

And you?

If someone tells you that he or she is not feeling well you could say the following…

Je suis désolée.

I'm sorry.

If someone is feeling great you might want to say the following…

Je suis contente d'entendre que tout va bien.

I am happy to hear that all is well.

The above words are extremely important. From experience, I know that the most important phrase in any language is how to say you’re sorry! Others disagree. They say that there are THREE important phrases that you absolutely must know in any language. They are: