Ser vs Estar -- When To Use Which Verb

Table of Contents

1) Knowing the Spanish verbs for TO BE: SER vs ESTAR

2) The difference between SER and ESTAR

3) SER VS ESTAR: Simple Indicative Verb Tenses Comparative Table

4) How to Use the Verb SER

5) How to Conjugate the Verb SER

6) Practice Conjugating SER

7) How to Use the Verb ESTAR

8) How to Conjugate the Verb ESTAR

9) Practice Conjugating ESTAR

Knowing the Spanish verbs for TO BE: SER vs ESTAR

There are two irregular verbs, Ser and Estar, that mean ‘to be’ in the Spanish language. This is a bit confusing and thus, a tricky part of acquiring this beautiful idiom.

In this article, you will learn to understand the basic rules and memorize the verb conjugation for each tense.

The difference between SER and ESTAR

Verbs are used to describe actions. The ser vs estar debate spins heads because both verbs mean to be. But they’re used in different situations and sound totally different.

The verb Ser could be in most instances related with the verb Existir (to exist); that is, to refer to the existence and characteristics of a thing, person, animal or place.

In contrast, the verb Estar is used to express a certain state of the subject. Estar is to be in a place, situation, condition or state of mind.

SER VS ESTAR: Simple Indicative Verb Tenses Comparative Table

In the table below, you will be able to appreciate how the verbs change according to the pronoun and the tense.

SIMPLE INDICATIVE ‘SER’
PRONOUN	PRESENT	IMPERFECT	PRETERITE	FUTURE	CONDITIONAL
Yo	Soy	Era	Fui	Seré	Sería
Tú	Eres	Eras	Fuiste	Serás	Serías
Usted	Es	Era	Fue	Será	Sería
Él	Es	Era	Fue	Será	Sería
Ella	Es	Era	Fue	Será	Sería
Nosotros	Somos	Éramos	Fuimos	Seremos	Seríamos
Ustedes	Son	Eran	Fueron	Serán	Serían
Vosotros	Sois	Erais	Fuisteis	Seréis	Seríais

SIMPLE INDICATIVE ‘ESTAR’
PRONOUN	PRESENT	IMPERFECT	PRETERITE	FUTURE	CONDITIONAL
Yo	Estoy	Estaba	Estuve	Estaré	Estaría
Tú	Estás	Estabas	Estuviste	Estarás	Estarías
Usted	Está	Estaba	Estuvo	Estará	Estaría
Él	Está	Estaba	Estuvo	Estará	Estaría
Ella	Está	Estaba	Estuvo	Estará	Estaría
Nosotros	Estamos	Estábamos	Estuvimos	Estaremos	Estaríamos
Ustedes	Están	Estaban	Estuvieron	Estarán	Estarían
Vosotros	Estáis	Estabais	Estuvisteis	Estaréis	Estaríais

How to Use the Verb SER

Observe how the verb Ser is used in the following scenarios:

To describe the qualities of the noun such as shape, height, color, etc:
Las flores son rosas. – The flowers are pink.

To recall how something was in the past:
La comida fue terrible. – The food was terrible.

To define ownership, establish relationships, or talk about possessions:
El auto es mío. – The car is mine.
Juan y María son hermanos. – John and Mary are siblings.

To hypothesize about something either in the past or the future:
Habría sido mejor quedarse en casa – It would have been better to stay at home.
Sería mejor si nos quedáramos en casa – It would be better if we stayed at home.

To indicate the time:
Son las cuatro de la tarde. – It is four o’clock.

To explain the purpose:
- Los automóviles son para transportarse. – Cars are (used) for transportation.

To establish a place where something takes place (either in the past, present or future):
- ¿Dónde va a ser la fiesta? – Where will the party be?

To affirm a place of origin, ethnic or nationality:
- Juan es de Barcelona. – John is from Barcelona.
- El vino es francés. – The wine is French.

How to Conjugate the Verb SER

To learn how to conjugate the verb Ser, memorize the following things:

The Spanish pronouns.
The participle Sido.
The gerund Siendo.
The first-person of the simple tenses.
The correspondence to form the perfect tenses.

The following table provides an example with the pronoun Yo (I).

INDICATIVE
SIMPLE INDICATIVE
PRESENT	IMPERFECT	PRETERITE	FUTURE	CONDITIONAL SIMPLE
Soy	Era	Fui	Seré	Sería
PERFECT INDICATIVE
PRESENT PERFECT	PAST PERFECT	PAST ANTERIOR	FUTURE PERFECT	CONDITIONAL PERFECT
He sido	Había sido	Hube sido	Habré sido	Habría sido

SUBJUNCTIVE
SIMPLE SUBJUNCTIVE
PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE	IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE	FUTURE SUBJUNCTIVE
Sea	Fuera/Fuese	Fuere
PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE
PRESENT PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE	PLUPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE	FUTURE PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE
Haya sido	Hubiera sido/Hubiese sido	Hubiere sido

IMPERATIVE
Sé/sed

NONFINITE VERB FORMS
INFINITIVE	PARTICIPLE	GERUNDE
SIMPLE	PERFECT	Sido	SIMPLE	PERFECT
Ser	Haber sido	Siendo	Habiendo siendo

Practice Conjugating SER

How to Use the Verb ESTAR

Observe how the verb Estar is used in the following scenarios:

To describe that you are in the company of a person:
Estoy con mi madre. – I am with my mother.

To ask if someone is alright:
¿Estás bien? – Are you OK?
¿Él está herido? – He’s hurt?

To express that someone is (was or will be) in the process of an act:
Antonio está de viaje. – Anthony is traveling.
Antonio estaba de viaje. – Anthony was traveling.
Antonio estará de viaje. – Anthony will be traveling.

To talk about feelings or someone´s emotional state:
Mi padre estaría feliz de vernos juntos. – My father would be happy to see us together.
Mi esposa había estado enojada conmigo toda la semana. – My wife had been angry with me all week.

To approve or disapprove:
Este trabajo está mal hecho. – This work is badly done.

To emphasize the progressive aspect of an action (always followed by a gerund):
Andrés está durmiendo. – Andrés is sleeping.
Ustedes estaban limpiando. – You were cleaning.
Yo había estado trabajando. – I had been working.

How to Conjugate the Verb ESTAR

To learn how to conjugate the verb Estar, memorize the following things:

The Spanish pronouns.
The participle Estado.
The gerund Estando.
The first-person of the simple tenses.
The correspondence to form the perfect tenses.

The following table provides an example with the pronoun Yo (I).

INDICATIVE
SIMPLE INDICATIVE
PRESENT	IMPERFECT	PRETERITE	FUTURE	CONDITIONAL SIMPLE
Estoy	Estaba	Estuve	Estaré	Estaría
PERFECT INDICATIVE
PRESENT PERFECT	PAST PERFECT	PAST ANTERIOR	FUTURE PERFECT	CONDITIONAL PERFECT
He estado	Había estado	Hube estado	Habré estado	Habría estado

SUBJUNCTIVE
SIMPLE SUBJUNCTIVE
PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE	IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE	FUTURE SUBJUNCTIVE
Esté	Estuviera/Estuviese	Estuviere
PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE
PRESENT PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE	PLUPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE	FUTURE PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE
Haya estado	Hubiera/Hubiese estado	Hubiere estado

IMPERATIVE
Está/Estad

NONFINITE VERB FORMS
INFINITIVE	PARTICIPLE	GERUNDE
SIMPLE	PERFECT	Estado	SIMPLE	PERFECT
Estar	Haber estado	Estando	Habiendo estado

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Ser vs Estar — When To Use Which Verb