The future tense in Spanish is full of plans, goals, and possibilities. To express each one, you’ll use a specific tense in Spanish. For expected outcomes, the futuro simple (known as “el futuro” – the future tense), or the futuro próximo (known as ir + a + infinitive, or the near future tense) are excellent options, while other common phrases trigger the presente de subjuntivo (present subjunctive) to add a shade of uncertainty to the future event.
You can put future events in order using the futuro compuesto (future perfect) and even use the presente de indicativo (present tense indicative) to express near future realities. Learn how and when to form each future tense in Spanish and communicate confidently.
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What tenses can I use to express the future tense in Spanish?
Each of these Spanish verb tenses can be used to express a future action. Each has its own set of rules and conjugations, but it’s also important to know when to use each one.
| Spanish Tense | Use | Example |
| el futuro simple (simple future) | what will happen | trabajaré (I will work) |
| el futuro próximo ir + a + infinitive (near future) | what is going to happen | voy a trabajar (I’m going to work) |
| el futuro compuesto (future perfect) | what will have happened | habré trabajado (I will have worked) |
| el presente de subjuntivo (present subjunctive) | uncertain or possible futures that may happen | cuando trabaje (when I work) |
| el presente de indicativo (present tense) | express confidence in near future events | trabajo mañana (I work tomorrow) |
El futuro simple de indicativo (the simple future)
Use the simple future tense to talk about things that will happen. There’s a fair amount of certainty from the speaker’s perspective that the action will occur, although there isn’t necessarily an expected timeframe. It could happen in the next five minutes, or five decades from now, but the speaker is saying that it will happen.
There’s an easy conjugation for future tense in Spanish. Form the simple future tense in Spanish for all -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs the same way. Regular verbs use the entire infinitive as the stem, and apply the future tense Spanish endings.
- hablar (to speak) becomes hablaré (I will speak)
- comer (to eat) becomes comeré (I will eat)
- vivir (to live) becomes viviré (I will live)
Regular future tense verb endings
| Spanish Subject Pronoun | Future Ending |
| yo I | -é |
| tú you (informal) | -ás |
| él/ella he/she usted you (formal) | -á |
| nosotros we | -emos |
| vosotros you all (informal, Spain) | -éis |
| ellos/ellas they ustedes you all | -án |
There are, of course, some irregular verbs in the future tense in Spanish. Some verbs have irregular stems in the simple future tense. Some of the most common verbs you’ll encounter are in this chart. These stems are the same in the Spanish conditional tense, so you’ll get double for your efforts in learning them.
- hacer (to do/to make) becomes haré (I will do/I will make)
- poder (to be able to) becomes podré (I will be able to)
| Spanish Infinitive | English Meaning | Future Stem |
| decir | to say | dir- |
| hacer | to do/to make | har- |
| poder | to be able | podr- |
| poner | to put | pondr- |
| querer | to want | querr- |
| saber | to know (facts/information) | sabr- |
| salir | to go out | saldr- |
| tener | to have | tendr- |
| venir | to come | vendr- |
Use the simple future indicative to tell what will happen
Use el futuro tense in Spanish when the speaker’s attitude is one of belief, not doubt. This makes it a perfect tense for your agendas, future plans, and setting helpful goals for yourself, any time of year.
- ¿Cuándo regresarás? = When will you return?
- Regresaré a las 8 de la noche. = I will return at 8pm.
- Regresaremos en una semana. = We will return in one week.
- Hola. Hoy seré su guía de turismo. = Hello. Today I will be your tour guide.
- En esta visita guiada hablaremos de la historia de España. = In this tour we will talk about the history of Spain.
- Ellos se casarán pronto. = They will get married soon.
Even if the event is unrealistic, the speaker’s attitude toward it expresses a future they consider possible.
- Algún día caminará en la luna. = One day, he will walk on the moon.
You can use the simple future tense for expected consequences and known effects.
- Soy alérgico a los mariscos. Si los como, tendré náuseas. = I’m allergic to shellfish. If I eat them, I will have nausea.
- Si ganamos este partido, jugaremos en el campeonato. = If we win this game, we will play in the championship.
- Sólo tengo euros. En Japón, los tendré que cambiar por yenes. = I only have euros. In Japan, I will have to exchange them for yen.
Key tips about the simple future
- All -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs share the same endings.
- Some verbs have irregular stems. Knowing these is helpful because you can combine these stems with the imperfect tense endings for -ER/-IR verbs to form the conditional tense.
- To make it negative, put no in front of the verb.
- There are no helping verbs like “are you” or “will you” in questions. Simply form the future tense and phrase it as a question.
- For future events the speaker is more doubtful or uncertain about, use the present subjunctive.
El futuro próximo (the near future tense)
The structure ir + a + infinitive is a perfect formula to talk about what is going to happen. It’s more or less interchangeable with the simple future tense in casual conversation about planned future actions, but this structure is very common when an action is going to happen in the very near future.
- Yo voy a ordenar la sala de estar. = I’m going to organize the living room.
- Vamos a visitar a nuestros amigos el mes que viene. = We are going to visit our friends next month.
- ¿Cuándo vamos a almorzar? = When are we going to have lunch?
- Ellos van a jugar al fútbol. = They are going to play soccer.
- ¿Qué vas a llevar a la fiesta? = What are you going to bring to the party?
- Voy a llevar un postre a la fiesta. = I’m going to bring a dessert to the party.
- ¿Vas a leer este libro? = Are yougoing to read this book?
- Sí. Voy a leerlo. = Yes. I’m going to read it.
You can also use both a conjugated form of ir and the infinitive to say “going to go.”
- Voy a ir a la tienda. = I’m going to go to the store.
- ¿Van a ir a la fiesta de los Pirelli esta noche? = Are you going to go to the Pirelli’s party tonight?
- Sí, vamos a ir a la fiesta de los Pirelli esta noche. = Yes, we are going to go to the Pirelli’s party tonight.
| Spanish Subject Pronoun | Present Tense Form of Ir |
| yo I | voy |
| tú you (informal) | vas |
| él/ella he/she usted you (formal) | va |
| nosotros we | vamos |
| vosotros you all (informal, Spain) | vais |
| ellos/ellas they ustedes you all | van |
El presente de subjuntivo (the present subjunctive) for uncertain futures
The Spanish subjunctive mood can express a future idea that the speaker considers less certain. Various structures and phrases trigger the subjunctive mood including recommendations, wishes, doubts, and the word ¡ojalá! (hopefully/God willing).
- Esa es una buena idea. ¡Quizás lo haga! = That’s a good idea. Maybe I will do it!
- Espero que me hagan muchas preguntas. = I hope that you ask me many questions.
- No puedes mirar televisión, a menos que comas tus verduras. = You can’t watch tv unless you eat your vegetables.
- La reunión es en cinco minutos. Dudo que pueda llegar a horario. = The appointment is in 5 minutes. I doubt I can make it on time.
- No creo que llueva hoy. = I don’t believe it will rain today.
- Ojalá que sea el número correcto. = Hopefully it’s the right number.
In these cases, there is an independent, or main clause that triggers the subjunctive in the secondary clause. Some examples are espero que (I hope that) and a menos que (unless), after which the sentence must continue or it wouldn’t sound complete.
Though in most cases it’s not translated any differently than the simple future in English, the mood, or attitude toward the action is one that is less certain. When to use indicative vs. subjunctive is a key component of Spanish grammar.
Forming the present subjunctive
Use the present tense yo form. Remove the “o” ending and add the present subjunctive endings. In regular verbs some of these endings appear swapped from what you know from the present tense indicative.
Regular Present Subjunctive Endings
| Spanish Subject Pronoun | -AR Verb Endings | -ER and -IR Verb Endings |
| yo I | -e | -a |
| tú you (informal) | -es | -as |
| él/ella he/she usted you (formal) | -e | -a |
| nosotros we | -emos | -amos |
| vosotros you all (informal, Spain) | -éis | -áis |
| ellos/ellas they ustedes you all | -en | -an |
There are also irregular verbs in the present tense subjunctive, which will follow their own patterns, including common verbs like ser (to be), estar (to be), and ir (to go).
Key tips about the present subjunctive
- It’s important to learn the phrases and structures that will trigger the subjunctive mood in Spanish.
- The present subjunctive forms the basis for some commands in the imperative mood as well.
- The subjunctive is sometimes used to express judgement about the Spanish present tense as well, so it depends how it’s being used.
El futuro compuesto (the future perfect)
The perfect tenses are compound tenses that use haber as an auxiliary verb. The future perfect tense in Spanish indicates that an action will have happened in relation to another.
- Cuando llegue, habré terminado mi trabajo. = When you arrive, I will have finished my work.
- Para el fin de semana, habremos empezado un nuevo capítulo. = By the weekend, we will have started a new chapter.
- Llámame mañana. Habré hablado con mi jefe para entonces. = Call me tomorrow. I will have spoken to my boss by then.
Forming the future perfect
Form this Spanish future tense in the indicative mood by using the verb haber as an auxiliary verb in the simple future tense. Add the past participle of the main verb.
| Spanish Subject Pronoun | Haber Future Tense |
| yo I | habré |
| tú you (informal) | habrás |
| él/ella he/she usted you (formal) | habrá |
| nosotros we | habremos |
| vosotros you all (informal, Spain) | habréis |
| ellos/ellas they ustedes you all | habrán |
Most past participles are formed by replacing
- -AR with “-ado”
- -ER/-IR with “-ido”
There are also irregular past participles for common Spanish verbs that you’ll use in everyday conversations. Past participles apply to all subjects. You only need to change the auxiliary verb haber to match the subject.
| Spanish Infinitive | English Meaning | Past Participle |
| abrir | to open | abierto |
| decir | to say | dicho |
| hacer | to do/to make | hecho |
| escribir | to write | escrito |
| morir | to die | muerto |
| poner | to put | puesto |
| ver | to see | visto |
| volver | to return | vuelto |
If the first part of your sentence triggers the subjunctive mood, form the future perfect subjunctive with haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayais, hayan instead.
Is there a simple future subjunctive tense?
The futuro simple de subjuntivo (simple future subjunctive) does exist but is now largely obsolete. While you may rarely encounter these verbs in legal documents or fixed expressions from older Spanish, it isn’t necessary for most learners to know how to form them.
You’ll recognize the main verb form if needed. Instead, when your sentence triggers the subjunctive mood about a future action, use the present of the subjunctive.
Choose between el futuro indicative and el presente subjunctive
Though the present, near future, and simple future might all be interchangeable when discussing a future idea, there are more specific rules about choosing between indicative and subjunctive.
- ¿Cuándo terminarán de construirla? = When will they finish building it? (indicative)
- Tomaré una foto cuando terminen de construirla. = I will take a photo when they finish building it. (subjunctive)
When asking ¿cuándo? (when) in the first example, the speaker is looking for a declaration of factual information, leading to the indicative mood. In the second example, the speaker is referring to an uncertain moment in time in the future. The word cuando often triggers the subjunctive for future realities.
Other phrases trigger a potential future action in the subjunctive mood.
| Spanish Phrase | English Meaning | Example |
| a condición de que | provided that | a condición de que pagues (provided that you pay) |
| a menos que | unless | a menos que vayas unless you go |
| antes de que | before | antes de que sea de noche before it gets dark |
| en cuanto | as soon as | en cuanto termines (as soon as you finish) |
| hasta que | until | hasta que tengas éxito (until you are successful) |
| tan pronto como | as soon as | tan pronto como pueda (as soon as I can) |
Other ways to express the future tense in Spanish
In Spanish there are many times you will use two verbs together to form your thoughts. These verbs together can express a future idea, like a want, wish, plan, or obligation that hasn’t occurred yet. If you’re not changing subjects, this follows the structure:
- first verb conjugated + second verb infinitive
Take a look at these examples. They are all in the indicative mood in Spanish.
- Quiero viajar este verano. = I want to travel this summer.
- Me gustaría ordenar papas fritas. = I would like to order french fries/chips.*
- Tengo que limpiar la casa. = I have to clean the house.
- Debo lavar los platos. = I must wash the dishes.
- Debería estudiar más. = I should study more.
- Puedo cambiar las sábanas. = I can change the sheets.
- Podría ayudarte. = I could help you.
If you change subjects after a verb like querer, it triggers the present subjunctive in the same way that recomiendo que or insisto que would. Think of it this way: if you’re trying to impose your will, request, or recommendation on someone else, it’s still up to them if they choose to act the way you want them to. Since that future action is uncertain, it falls in the subjunctive mood.
- Quiero hacer la cama. = I want to make the bed. (the subject is “I” for both verbs)
- Quiero que hagas la cama. = I want you to make the bed. (the subject changes from “I” to “you.”)
Of course another way to get someone to do something is to use the Spanish imperative mood, or command form.
- ¡Haz la cama! = Make the bed!
Presente con valor de futuro or presente de futuro (using the present tense to express the future)
It’s also quite common in casual Spanish to use the present tense to express actions that haven’t happened yet, but are expected to happen. Sometimes called el presente prospectivo, it’s the present tense used in such a way that it’s like a commitment that the action will happen in the future.
Use the present tense indicative here as a way to express certainty of the near future action.
- Mañana nos vemos. = We’ll see each other tomorrow.
- Si necesitas algo, me avisas. = If you need something, let me know.
- Te veo el sábado y te compro un helado. = I’ll see you Saturday and I’ll buy you an ice cream.
- En cinco minutos vuelvo. = I’ll be back in 5 minutes.
Key takeaways about the Spanish future tense
The future timeframe can be expressed in several different ways. A lot of it comes down to the amount of certainty the speaker wishes to express.
- The present tense is common in greetings and social graces, like nos vemos mañana (see you tomorrow), and in the first verb of two, like puedo intentar mañana (I can try tomorrow).
- The near future tense indicates what is going to happen, using the present tense of ir + a + infinitive, like vamos a cenar (we are going to eat dinner).
- The simple future indicative says what will happen, like iré a Grecia (I will go to Greece).
- The present subjunctive is used for uncertain future actions, triggered by expressions like quiero que + a change of subject, or cuando (when) + an action in the future.
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