How To Ask ‘How Are You?’ in Italian: 26 Informal and Formal Options

When you’re just starting to speak Italian, one of the first moments of doubt usually comes right after a greeting. You say “Good morning” in Italian, and then what? Having a few simple ways to ask “How are you?” is essential for a confident and smooth-flowing conversation.

You can use several different expressions to ask “How are you?” in Italian and reply to this question, whether you genuinely want to know how your friend is feeling or you want to be polite with someone you’re meeting for the first time.

How to say ‘How are you?’ in Italian: the 3 main options

The most common way to ask “How are you?” in Italian is Come stai?

The expression follows a fixed structure: question word come (how) + the verb stare (to stay), which also means “to be” when talking about temporary conditions. Since there are three different ways to say “you” in Italian, you should adapt the verb depending on who you’re talking to.

Come stai? = How are you?
- Works in informal settings, like talking with a friend, partner, or family member.
Come sta? = How are you?
- It’s the formal sentence to use with strangers, older people, public figures, or in professional settings.
Come state? = How are you?
- Uses the plural “you,” which is the correct form when speaking to two or more people. In some southern Italian regions, the plural “you” is also used as a respectful singular form. However, its geographic distribution in modern Italian is limited.

If you’re not familiar with Italian verbs yet, this may feel a bit confusing because the subject pronoun “you” doesn’t appear in the sentences. That’s actually very common in Italian: Verbs change their endings (and sometimes even the root) based on the subject, so the verb itself already tells you who you’re talking to.

Ciao, Sara. (Tu) come stai? = Hello, Sarah. How are you?
Buon giorno, signora Valle. (Lei) come sta? = Hello, Mrs. Valle (Jones). How are you?
Buon pomeriggio, (voi) come state? = Good afternoon, how are you?

Asking ‘How are you?’ in informal settings

Once you’ve mastered how to pronounce Come stai? and Come state? (How are you?), the best way to give your everyday conversations a solid, friendly start is to pair these questions with Italian greetings. This instantly creates ready-to-use sentences like Ciao, come stai?, which means “Hello, how are you?” in Italian.

As soon as you spend some time around native speakers, you’ll start hearing many more Italian phrases that also mean “How are you?” in Italian. These variations are essential to learn because they’re not completely interchangeable: Each one fits a specific situation and often calls for a different type of reply.

Italian Phrase	English Translation	Use
Come andiamo?	How are we doing?	Similar to Come stai?/Come va? but more conversational. It literally means “How are we going?”
Come ti senti?	How do you feel?	More personal, it shows interest in someone’s physical or emotional well-being.
Come va?	How’s it going?	The most common, informal alternative to Come stai?
Come va la vita?	How’s life?	A very friendly way to ask how things are going in general.
Come vanno le cose?	How are things?	Suitable for casual, not-too-intimate conversations.
Cosa mi racconti di bello?/Che mi racconti?	What have you been up to?/What’s good?	Invites the other person to share updates or news about their life.
Novità?/Ci sono novità?	Any news?/Anything new?	Asks if anything new has happened (generally or referring to a specific situation).
Ti stai divertendo?	Are you having fun?	Used when someone is at a party or activity to ask if they’re enjoying it.
Tutto bene?/Tutto okay?	All good?	A friendly, quick greeting or informal check-in.
Va/Stai meglio?	Feeling better?	Used when someone was not feeling well before.

Formal ways to ask ‘How are you?’

When asking “How are you?” in Italian in formal environments, besides Come sta?, you can adapt many informal phrases by changing the verb to match the pronoun lei (she/formal you). To sound instantly more respectful, you can also choose less direct expressions that allow the other person to give you a conventional reply that doesn’t feel too intimate.

Italian Phrase	English Translation	Use
Come procede?	How is it going?/How’s it going along?	Formal version of Come va? suitable for professional settings.
Come si sente?	How do you feel?	Formal version of Come ti senti? (Formality is expressed with the verb conjugations and the pronoun si).
Come sta passando la giornata?	How is your day going?	Formal but friendly, perfect for polite small talk.
Come vanno le cose?	How are things going?	Since the question is not really deep, it can be formal or informal, depending on the conversation’s tone.
È di suo gradimento?	Is that to your liking?	An extremely polite way to ask if someone is enjoying a situation or something you have provided.
Si sta divertendo?	Are you enjoying yourself?	A polite way to ask if someone is having a good time at a formal event or activity.
Tutto bene a casa/in famiglia?	Is everything good at home/with your family?	Quite personal, as it shows interest in family or home life; use it for polite conversation with someone you already know.
Va tutto bene?	All good?	Works both formally and informally; in polite contexts, it sounds mildly formal.

When to use a formal tone in Italian

In Italian, a formal register is expected when speaking to someone for the first time, to older people, to professionals like doctors or the police, or in professional and academic settings. The distinction between formal and informal Italian mainly depends on pronouns and verb endings.

While modern Italian is more relaxed, it’s still polite to use formal language with strangers your own age until they suggest dare del tu (literally, “switching to the informal you”), which is considered respectful and well-mannered.

Colloquial and slang Italian expressions for ‘How are you?’

In spoken language, due to the influence of Italian dialects, standard informal phrases often mix with colloquial expressions and regional variations so widely used that they have become part of Italian slang. Here are some common phrases you might hear from native speakers in some regions of Italy when asking “How are you?”

Italian Phrase	English Translation	Use
Che si dice?	What’s up?	Literally “What can you tell me?”; casual way to ask for news.
Com’è?	How are things?	Casual check-in used in Northern Italy (likely from Cum al’è? in Piemonte dialect).
Come butta?	How’s it going?	Popular among young people (originally from Rome’s dialect Como te butta?).
Come te la passi?	How’s life treating you?	Informal and friendly expression used among peers to ask how life is going.
Tutto a posto?	Everything okay?	Very common in Central-Southern Italy; often pronounced as one word: tutt’appos.

How to respond to ‘How are you?’ in Italian

Most of the time, Italians ask “How are you?” more as a polite formula to break the ice than a real invitation to share personal details, but they always wait for your answer. And while conversations can get personal quickly in Italy, it’s common to keep your first reply short. A simple bene (good/fine) followed by the same question in return is usually the most natural choice.

Ciao! Benvenuta a casa! Come stai? = Hi! Welcome home! How are you?
- Io sto bene. = I am fine.
- E tu come stai? = And, how are you?

From here, you move through different “levels” of answers, starting from a molto bene, which means “very good” in Italian, or a less positive, but still relatively shallow answer, like tiriamo avanti (getting by), to something more detailed.

These are some of the most common ways to respond to “How are you?” in Italian, depending on how close you are with the person you’re talking to—from conventional answers to honest replies.

Italian Reply	English Translation	Use
Alla grande!	Fantastic!	Informal and upbeat.
Benissimo, grazie!	Very well, thanks!	Strongly positive yet still neutral enough for most situations.
Da Dio!	Amazing!	Enthusiastic slang used mainly by young people. (literally “Like God!”)
Il solito tran tran.	Same old routine.	Colloquial but acceptable in semi-formal situations. The onomatopoeia tran tran resembles the repetitive noise of a machine.
Insomma…/Così così…	Not great, not terrible…/So-so…	The Italian adverb insomma and the expression così così are used to give a judgment that is neither positive nor negative.
Io sono malato.	I am sick.	Often replaced with Non sto tanto bene (I’m not feeling very well.)
Io sono stanca.	I am tired.	Everyday reply, common among close acquaintances. Often expressed with superlatives: stanchissimo/stanchissima (m/f)
Mah, sì…	Uhm… yeah, I guess…	Neutral-to-negative; implies things are okay but not great.
Mai stato/a meglio!	Never been better!	Expresses a genuinely great moment, but it can also be sarcastic, depending on the tone.
Molto bene. E tu?	Very well. And you?	Positive without sharing details; suitable for most informal contexts.
Niente di nuovo.	Nothing new.	Suitable for replying to Come va? and any question asking for news or updates.
Niente di speciale.	Nothing special.	Neutral; used when things are average or uneventful.
Non c’è male./Niente male.	Not bad.	Direct translation of the English expression, suitable for formal and informal settings.
Non mi lamento./Non mi posso lamentare.	Can’t complain.	Mildly positive; good for casual conversation.
Potrebbe andare meglio.	It could be better.	Mildly negative, but very common in Italian culture.
Sempre la solita solfa.	Same old story.	Similarly to tran tran, solfa is the combination of the notes sol (G) and fa (F), meaning the repetitive tempo/rhythm within a melody.
Sempre le stesse cose.	Same old things.	An informal way to express routine or boredom.
Si tira avanti./Tiriamo avanti.	We keep going./Getting by.	Common among adults; implies coping with life’s ups and downs.
Sto bene, grazie.	I’m fine, thanks.	The most common reply to Come stai?
Stressato/a come sempre.	Stressed as always.	Very common in modern Italian, it’s a way to give a superficial reply but create a connection.
Tutto a posto./Tutto bene.	Everything’s fine.	Super common informal check-in reply.
Tutto okay.	All good.	Used primarily by younger speakers.
Tutto uguale.	Everything’s the same.	Neutral; nothing new or noteworthy.
Va bene. Grazie!	It’s going well, thanks!	Used as a reply to Come va? rather than Come stai?
(Va/sto) da cani/da schifo.	(It’s going/I feel) awful/terrible.	Strongly negative; invites the other person to ask what’s happened.

As you can see, Italian is a very creative language, with plenty of ways to ask and answer even a simple question. But don’t get overwhelmed! By learning just Come stai? and Come va?, along with a few basic replies, you can start chatting with locals right away. At the same time, it’s helpful to get familiar with other ways to ask “How are you?” so you can understand Italians in different situations. Have fun practicing these and more phrases while you learn Italian, and see how quickly you will start speaking like a native!

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