Qué Tal vs Cómo Estás: Learn the Difference

Qué tal vs cómo estás is one of the first debates new Spanish learners engage in. That’s because these two everyday Spanish phrases are so common. But, what’s the difference between qué tal and cómo estás? Are they the same? Or do they only exist to torment new learners of the language like yourself? 

The United States is the second-largest Spanish-speaking country in the world, with over 45 million people speaking Spanish at home. Spanish is the most common non-English language in the country, representing about 14% to 18% of the total population when including bilingual and second-language speakers.

Learning these subtle differences can help you communicate better with your neighbors and Friends, and even help you travel the world or study abroad!

Today, I’m explaining the subtle differences between these two greeting questions and how native speakers use and answer them. 

Qué Tal vs Cómo Estás

If you’ve been learning Spanish for at least a little bit, you surely have seen these two questions being used on a daily basis. ¿Qué tal? and ¿Cómo estás? are both common Spanish greetings and conversation starters. 

So, what exactly do they mean, and what are the differences between them?

Think about greeting questions in English, such as “What’s up?”, “How are you doing?”, or simply “How are you?” This way, you’ll get an idea not only of the meaning of these Spanish phrases but also about the difficulty in differentiating one from another. 

Qué tal

First of all, what does qué tal mean? 

This question in Spanish specifically asks about “How are you?”, “How’s it going?” or “How are things?” 

It can be understood as a short version of a longer question, such as “¿qué tal estás?”

Think about a situation where you may have greeted your friend like this: “What’s up! How are you?”, and you’ll understand how you can do the same in Spanish with qué tal and cómo estás. 

Is ‘Qué tal’ Formal or Informal?

If we were to create a spectrum of formality and informality in Spanish greetings, qué tal would be slightly formal, without getting anywhere near the extreme of formality. 

You could say that qué tal is a bit more formal than cómo estás, and if you add the usted at the end of the phrase, then that formality grows considerably. 

“¿Qué tal está usted?”

Are you talking to your thesis advisor? I would certainly address them this way.

You also have to consider which part of the Spanish-speaking world you’re using this greeting in. Although it’s not rare to hear it in Latin America, it’s definitely more common to hear qué tal in Spain, where it’s the most common way of addressing someone, without any hint of formality at all. 

While hundreds of thousands of distinct regional idioms exist across the Spanish-speaking world, the core Spanish spoken in Spain and Latin America is 85% to 90% identical.

How to Respond to ¿Qué tal?

When someone asks you ¿qué tal? in Spanish, you can respond like you normally would to “What’s up?” or “How are you?” questions in English: 

• good – bien
• bad – mal 
• more or less – más o menos

Let’s see some more common answers to the greeting question of ¿qué tal?:

Muy bien, gracias. 
Very good, thank you. 

Más o menos, estoy un poco triste.
More or less, I’m a bit sad.

Grammar Specifics of Qué Tal

Let’s now explore the specific grammar rules surrounding the Spanish greeting question, ¿qué tal? 

Take a look at the following formulas to use with qué tal:

Qué tal + Noun

To make your greeting more specific, ask about the other person’s day, work, or family after the phrase qué tal. 

¿Qué tal tu día? 
How’s your day?

¿Qué tal tu trabajo?
How’s your job?

¿Qué tal tu fin de semana?
How was your weekend? 

Qué tal + Verb

You can also use qué tal before a verb to ask about how something is going or how it went. 

¿Qué tal estás?
How are you?

¿Qué tal suena?
How does it sound?

¿Qué tal se ve?
How does it look?

Cómo estás

¿Cómo estás? is perhaps the most common greeting question in Spanish and, after hola (hello), the most commonly used Spanish greeting. It literally translates as “how are you?”, but it implies many other things. 

Sometimes it isn’t even used as a proper question, but just as another way to say hi.

Formal or Informal?

In our imaginary spectrum of greeting formality, cómo estás is definitely more informal than qué tal. That’s because the conjugation of the verb estar (to be) is in the second-person singular in its informal form: tú. 

However, if you compare cómo estás vs cómo está, then you have a different situation. 

Because cómo está actually conjugates the verb estar in the second-person singular but in its formal form: usted. 

In the case of cómo está, I’d have to say that it’s among the most formal greetings in Spanish. Again, you’d use this with your thesis advisor.

In conclusion, cómo estás is fairly informal; while cómo está is one of the most formal greetings possible.

How to Respond to Cómo Estás

The most common cómo estás response is usually “Bien, gracias” or “Fine, thank you,” as (both in English and Spanish) most people aren’t actually interested in your real situation.

It’s simply a common courtesy used to greet the other person. 

The most common answers to the cómo estás question are the same as those for qué tal. Bien, mal, and más o menos, with all the different variants that those situations allow.

Muy bien gracias, ¿y tú?
Fine, thank you, and you?

Todo bien, gracias. 
All good, thank you.

No muy bien que digamos. 
Not too good to be honest.

Learn How to Use Greeting Questions Today

Greetings such as qué tal vs. cómo estás are staples of everyday Spanish conversations. Mastering them is a sure sign that your Spanish is progressing in the right direction. 

Sign up for a free trial class at Homeschool Spanish Academy with one of our certified, native-speaking teachers from Guatemala. They offer flexible scheduling and tailored Spanish programs and will help you to master greeting questions such as qué tal and cómo estás and sound like a native Spanish speaker. 

Join one of the 40,000 classes that we teach each month and you can experience results like these

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