Sofia · Learn Spanish Learn Spanish — Guides & Tips Spanish Future Tense: Conjugation Rules, Charts & Examples
The Spanish future tense is built by adding one fixed set of endings — -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án — directly to the full infinitive of the verb, no matter whether it ends in -ar, -er, or -ir. So hablar (to speak) becomes hablaré (I will speak), comer (to eat) becomes comeré (I will eat), and vivir (to live) becomes viviré (I will live) — the endings never change, only the stem does.
That single rule covers almost every regular verb in the language, which makes the future one of the friendliest tenses to learn. Below you’ll get the full endings, a shortcut Mexicans use constantly in daily speech, the handful of irregular stems worth memorizing, and plenty of examples.
The One Set of Endings You Need
Most Spanish tenses drop the infinitive ending before conjugating. The simple future does not. You keep the whole infinitive and glue the endings onto the end. That’s why it feels so predictable.
| Subject | Ending | hablar | comer | vivir |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | -é | hablaré | comeré | viviré |
| tú | -ás | hablarás | comerás | vivirás |
| él / ella / usted | -á | hablará | comerá | vivirá |
| nosotros | -emos | hablaremos | comeremos | viviremos |
| vosotros | -éis | hablaréis | comeréis | viviréis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | -án | hablarán | comerán | vivirán |
Notice the accent marks. Every form except nosotros carries a written accent, and forgetting it is one of the most common beginner slips. Hablara (without an accent) means something completely different — it’s a subjunctive form — so that little tilde on hablará genuinely matters.
A few examples in the wild:
- Mañana estudiaré para el examen. (Tomorrow I’ll study for the exam.)
- ¿A qué hora llegarás? (What time will you arrive?)
- Ellos venderán la casa el año que viene. (They’ll sell the house next year.)
The “ir a + infinitive” Shortcut (What People Actually Say)
Here’s a secret every teacher in Mexico will tell you: in everyday conversation, native speakers reach for the ir a + infinitive construction far more often than the formal future. It’s the exact equivalent of English “going to.”
You conjugate ir (to go) in the present, add a, then the infinitive:
| Subject | ir (present) | Example |
|---|---|---|
| yo | voy | Voy a comer. (I’m going to eat.) |
| tú | vas | Vas a estudiar. (You’re going to study.) |
| él / ella | va | Va a llover. (It’s going to rain.) |
| nosotros | vamos | Vamos a viajar. (We’re going to travel.) |
| ellos / ustedes | van | Van a llegar tarde. (They’re going to arrive late.) |
In Mexico you’ll constantly hear things like “Ahorita voy a comer” (I’m going to eat in a bit) — where ahorita is that wonderfully flexible Mexican word that can mean anything from “right now” to “eventually.” If you’re speaking casually with friends, this shortcut will make you sound natural immediately.
When to use which? Both are correct. As a rough guide:
- Use ir a + infinitive for near-future plans and casual speech.
- Use the simple future (-é, -ás…) for more distant events, predictions, or a slightly more formal or written tone.
Irregular Future Stems
The good news about future irregulars: the endings stay identical. Only the stem changes, and there are just twelve common verbs to know. They fall into three tidy groups.
Group 1 — Drop the vowel of the infinitive ending:
| Infinitive | Stem | Example (yo) |
|---|---|---|
| haber | habr- | habré |
| poder | podr- | podré |
| querer | querr- | querré |
| saber | sabr- | sabré |
Group 2 — Replace the vowel with a -d-:
| Infinitive | Stem | Example (yo) |
|---|---|---|
| poner | pondr- | pondré |
| salir | saldr- | saldré |
| tener | tendr- | tendré |
| valer | valdr- | valdré |
| venir | vendr- | vendré |
Group 3 — Truly shortened (just memorize these two):
| Infinitive | Stem | Example (yo) |
|---|---|---|
| decir | dir- | diré |
| hacer | har- | haré |
So tener gives you tendré (I will have), hacer gives you haré (I will do/make), and decir gives you diré (I will say). Some examples:
- Tendré que trabajar el sábado. (I’ll have to work on Saturday.)
- ¿Qué harás este fin de semana? (What will you do this weekend?)
- No sabremos el resultado hasta el lunes. (We won’t know the result until Monday.)
The Future of Probability (A Bonus Use)
Spanish has one lovely trick English lacks: the future tense can express present probability or a guess. When you see the future used with something happening right now, it often means “probably” or “I wonder.”
- ¿Qué hora será? (I wonder what time it is / What time could it be?)
- Estará en el trabajo. (He’s probably at work.)
- Tendrá unos treinta años. (She’s probably around thirty.)
You don’t need to master this on day one, but recognizing it will save you confusion when a native speaker uses the future to talk about now.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Dropping the accent. As noted, every form but nosotros needs a written accent. Comeré, not comere.
Conjugating the stem of the infinitive. The future is unusual — you do not remove -ar/-er/-ir. Keep the whole infinitive: it’s hablaré, never hablé (which is actually past tense).
Forgetting irregular stems in longer forms. All persons use the irregular stem, not just yo. It’s tendré, tendrás, tendrá, tendremos, tendréis, tendrán — every single one.
Overusing the simple future in casual chat. Grammatically fine, but you’ll sound like a textbook. Mix in ir a + infinitive to sound like a real person.
FAQ
What are the endings for the Spanish future tense?
The endings are -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án, and they’re the same for -ar, -er, and -ir verbs. You attach them to the complete infinitive, so viajar becomes viajaré, viajarás, viajará, viajaremos, viajaréis, viajarán.
What’s the difference between “hablaré” and “voy a hablar”?
Both mean roughly “I will speak” or “I’m going to speak” and are usually interchangeable. Voy a hablar (ir a + infinitive) is more common in everyday spoken Spanish and points to near-future plans, while hablaré (simple future) feels slightly more formal and suits predictions or more distant events.
Do I really need the accent marks in the future tense?
Yes. The accents aren’t decoration — they change meaning. Hablará (he/she will speak) versus hablara (a past subjunctive form) are different tenses. Every future form except nosotros carries an accent on the final syllable.
How many irregular verbs are there in the future tense?
Only about twelve common ones, and they share their irregular stems across every person. They also reuse the exact same endings as regular verbs, so once you memorize the stems (tendr-, pondr-, dir-, har-, and so on), you already know how to conjugate them fully.
Can the future tense really mean “probably”?
Yes — Spanish uses the future to express probability or wondering about the present. Estará durmiendo can mean “he’s probably sleeping,” and ¿Dónde estará? means “I wonder where he/she is.” It’s a natural, everyday use you’ll hear constantly.
Want to actually speak the future tense instead of just reading charts? Practicing out loud is where it sticks. Sofia, an AI Spanish teacher, lets you hold real Mexican-Spanish conversations and corrects your conjugations gently as you go, so hablaré and voy a hablar start coming out automatically.