French Greetings — with native audio

Updated December 28, 2025 — By French teacher David Issokson • Native Audio by Marie Assel Cambier

This list covers 30+ French greetings — including ways to say hello, goodbye, and ask how someone is doing in everyday situations.

Common French Greetings

🌞 Hello / How are you?

Bonjour — Hello, good morning! [bon-joor]
Salut — Hi/bye [sah-loo]
Ça va? — How’s it going? [sah-vah]
Comment ça va ? — How’s it going? [como-sah-vah]
Comment vas-tu ? — How are you? (informal) [como-vah-tu]
Comment allez-vous ? — How are you? (formal, plural) [como-allay-voo]
Bon après-midi — Good afternoon! [boh-apray-mee-dee]
Bonsoir — Good evening. [boh-swahr]

David’s Tip: Salut is slang for hi/bye and not a replacement for bonjour (hello, good morning). Saying “salut” to the wrong person could cause mistrust and embarassment. Get its usage right!
👉 See also: Salut — meaning, pronunciation, examples »

👋 Goodbye

Au revoir — Goodbye [ohv-voir]
Salut ! — Bye! (informal) [sah-loo]
Bonne nuit — Good night [bun-nwee]
Bonne journée — Have a nice day [bun-joor-nay]
Bon soir — Hello/have a nice evening [bun-swahr-ay]
Bonne soirée — Have a nice evening [bun-swahr-ay]
À bientôt ! — See you soon! [ah-bi-ehn-toh]

David’s Tip: Both bonjour and bonsoir mean “hello” but subtle difference between the two lies in at what time of the day the French starting using bonsoir.
👉 See also: Bonsoir — meaning, pronunciation, examples »

😊 How to Say How You’re Doing

Ça va — I’m okay. [sah-vah]
Ça va bien, merci. — I’m well, thanks. [sah-vah-bi-ehn, mersee]
Ça va mal — I’m not doing well. [sah-vah-mahl]
Ça va comme ci comme ça — I’m so-so. [com-see-com-sah]
Je vais bien. — I’m fine. [zhuh vay byehn]
Je vais mal. — I’m not doing well / I’m doing poorly. [zhuh vay mahl]
Je vais comme ci, comme ça. — I’m so-so. [zhuh vay som-see-com-sah]
Tout va bien. — Everything is going fine. [too vah byehn]

David’s Insight: “Ça va” is a complete conversation in itself. It’s both the question and the answer.
👉 See: Ça va — meaning, pronunciation, examples »

🤝 Nice to meet you!

Enchanté(e) ! — Nice to meet you! [uhn-shan-tay]
Bienvenue ! — Welcome! [biehn-vuh-noo]
Ravi de faire votre connaissance ! — Nice to meet you! (formal) [ravee-duh-fair-vo-truh-co-nay-sanse]

💬 Slang greetings

Quoi de neuf ? — What’s new? [kwah-duh-nuf]
Tu es en forme ? — Are you feeling well? (informal) [too-ay-ehn-form]
Coucou ! — Hey there! (very informal) [coo-coo]
Ça baigne ? — How’s it going? [sah-bayn]
Ça bouge ? — How’s it going? [sah-boozh]

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David Issokson Founder & French Teacher at FrenchLearner.com

David Issokson is the founder of FrenchLearner.com, where he’s been helping students master French through vocabulary, grammar, and cultural lessons since 2012.

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