Spanish comparison is almost entirely regular: más + adjective + que does the job for the overwhelming majority of adjectives. But four high-frequency adjectives — bueno, malo, grande, pequeño — have irregular comparative forms that bypass más entirely. Saying más bueno que tú sounds wrong to a Spanish ear in most contexts; the natural sentence is mejor que tú. These irregulars are leftovers from Latin (just like English better and worse are leftovers from Old English), and they cannot be predicted from the regular pattern — you simply have to know them.
This page covers what each irregular form means, when it replaces the regular form, and the genuinely interesting cases where Spanish gives you a choice between the irregular comparative and the regular más + adjective — because that choice usually carries a meaning difference.
The four irregular pairs
| Base adjective | Comparative | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| bueno (good) | mejor | better |
| malo (bad) | peor | worse |
| grande (big/great) | mayor | bigger/greater; older |
| pequeño (small) | menor | smaller/lesser; younger |
All four are two-form adjectives: one form for both masculine and feminine, with a plural in -es. Un mejor amigo, una mejor amiga, mis mejores amigos, mis mejores amigas. There is no mejora or mayora — gender is invisible on these forms.
Mi mejor amiga vive ahora en Bilbao.
My best friend lives in Bilbao now. — Mejor is the same for masculine and feminine.
Estos son los peores resultados del trimestre.
These are the worst results of the term. — Peores: plural of peor.
Mi hermana mayor estudia Derecho.
My older sister studies Law. — Mayor: same form regardless of gender.
Mejor and peor: when "más bueno" and "más malo" are wrong
For bueno and malo, the irregular comparative is almost always obligatory in everyday speech. Mejor and peor replace the would-be regular más bueno and más malo whenever you are comparing quality.
Este vino es mejor que el que probamos ayer.
This wine is better than the one we tried yesterday.
La segunda película de la saga es peor que la primera, en mi opinión.
The second film in the series is worse than the first, in my opinion.
Mi conexión a internet es mejor en casa que en la oficina.
My internet connection is better at home than in the office.
Saying más bueno que el otro vino sounds odd in this kind of context — like saying more good in English instead of better. Spanish ears reject it for the same reason.
The exception: moral or character goodness
There is one regular environment for más bueno / más malo: when you are talking about somebody's moral character or kindness, especially in informal speech. The set phrase más bueno que el pan ("kinder than bread itself") is the classic example.
Mi abuelo era más bueno que el pan, no le hacía daño a nadie.
My grandfather was kinder than anyone — he didn't hurt a fly. (literally 'kinder than bread')
Es un chaval más bueno que el pan, pero un poco ingenuo.
He's the sweetest kid, but a bit naive. — Más bueno is acceptable here because it's about kindness, not quality.
No te fíes de él; es más malo que la peste.
Don't trust him; he's a thoroughly nasty piece of work. (literally 'worse than the plague')
In neutral contexts about character, mejor persona and peor persona still work fine and are slightly more formal — es mejor persona que tú piensas (he's a better person than you think). The más bueno / más malo forms are colloquial and evaluative; mejor / peor are universal.
Mayor and menor: size vs age, the real split
This is where Spanish gets genuinely interesting. Mayor and menor exist alongside the regular más grande and más pequeño, and the choice between them carries a meaning difference that English does not encode.
Age: mayor / menor are the only option
When comparing age — older / younger — Spanish always uses mayor and menor, never más viejo or más joven-as-comparative.
Soy tres años mayor que mi hermana.
I'm three years older than my sister. — Age comparison: mayor is the natural form.
Mi primo menor empieza el colegio en septiembre.
My younger cousin starts school in September.
¿Quién es mayor, tu padre o tu tío?
Who's older, your father or your uncle?
You can hear más viejo in conversation, but it carries a connotation of physical agedness or deterioration that mayor does not. Mi padre es más viejo que el tuyo sounds blunt and slightly impolite, like you are emphasising that he is aged. Mi padre es mayor que el tuyo is the neutral, polite phrasing. For people, default to mayor and menor for age.
There is an idiomatic point worth flagging: "older sibling" and "younger sibling" are hermano mayor / hermano menor, not hermano más grande / hermano más pequeño. The second pair would mean "physically larger brother" and "physically smaller brother," which is a different sentence.
Mi hermano mayor vive en Valencia y el menor sigue en casa con mis padres.
My older brother lives in Valencia and the younger one still lives at home with my parents.
Size: más grande vs mayor — figurative vs physical
This is the real subtlety. Both más grande and mayor exist for size, and they are not perfectly interchangeable.
- Más grande — physical size. Taller, wider, larger in actual measurable dimensions. Mi piso es más grande que el tuyo.
- Mayor — figurative size: greater, more significant, more important. Often used with abstract nouns. Una mayor responsabilidad, un mayor riesgo, el mayor problema.
| Context | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Physical/concrete size | más grande | El nuevo edificio es más grande que la catedral. |
| Abstract / figurative greatness | mayor | El cambio climático es el mayor desafío del siglo. |
| Age | mayor | Mi hermana es mayor que yo. |
Este coche es más grande que el mío — apenas cabe en el garaje.
This car is bigger than mine — it barely fits in the garage. — Physical size: más grande.
La inflación es un problema mayor de lo que el gobierno reconoce.
Inflation is a bigger problem than the government acknowledges. — Figurative: mayor.
Tengo una mayor confianza en él que en el resto del equipo.
I have greater trust in him than in the rest of the team. — Abstract noun: mayor.
There is genuine overlap. Una mayor casa sounds odd, but un mayor problema sounds completely natural. In doubt with a physical object, choose más grande; with an abstract noun or a question of importance, choose mayor.
Pequeño: más pequeño vs menor
The same split applies to pequeño:
- Más pequeño — physical size. Mi piso es más pequeño que el tuyo.
- Menor — figurative, abstract, or about age. El menor de los problemas, el hijo menor, una menor importancia.
Esta talla es más pequeña que la otra, ¿tenéis algo intermedio?
This size is smaller than the other; do you have something in between? — Physical: más pequeña.
Es un detalle menor, no merece la pena discutirlo.
It's a minor detail, not worth arguing about. — Figurative: menor.
Mi hija menor cumple seis años mañana.
My youngest daughter turns six tomorrow. — Age: menor.
Superior and inferior: the formal pair
For elevated register, Spanish also uses superior (higher, superior) and inferior (lower, inferior) as comparatives of alto and bajo in figurative senses. These belong to writing and formal speech.
El nuevo modelo ofrece un rendimiento superior al anterior. (formal)
The new model offers superior performance compared to the previous one.
La calidad de este producto es inferior a la del competidor. (formal)
The quality of this product is inferior to the competitor's.
Note that superior and inferior take a (not que) when followed by the comparison target: superior a, inferior a. This is unlike mayor and menor, which take que in everyday speech but also accept a in formal contexts.
Una mayoría superior al cincuenta por ciento votó a favor. (formal)
A majority of more than fifty per cent voted in favour. — superior + a.
In ordinary speech, más alto and más bajo cover most of what superior and inferior do, except in formal product descriptions, official reports, and academic writing. You will read these words constantly; you will rarely speak them at a friend's house.
What is NOT regularly irregular
A common over-correction is to assume that all qualitative adjectives have hidden irregular comparatives. They do not. Bonito, feo, alto, bajo, joven, viejo, fácil, difícil, caro, barato — all regular: más bonito, más feo, más alto, más bajo, más joven, más viejo, más fácil, más difícil, más caro, más barato. There is no irregular form lurking behind them.
Even viejo, despite the existence of mayor, is regular when you are not comparing age. Este libro es más viejo que aquel — "this book is older than that one" — is correct; este libro es mayor que aquel would sound strange because books do not have age in the same way people do.
Este edificio es más antiguo que el ayuntamiento.
This building is older than the city hall. — Buildings: más antiguo or más viejo, not *mayor.
Mi abuela es mayor que mi abuelo.
My grandmother is older than my grandfather. — People: mayor.
A note on the comparative-plus-mismo
In comparison clauses, Spanish often uses del que / de la que / de los que / de las que / de lo que instead of que when the second half of the comparison contains a verb. This is a separate topic (see comparative clauses), but it interacts with the irregular comparatives:
Trabaja menos de lo que dice.
He works less than he says he does.
El examen fue peor de lo que esperaba.
The exam was worse than I expected.
For now, just notice that de lo que appears with these comparatives when there is a verbal clause on the other side. Plain que works for nouns and pronouns; de lo que shows up when there is a hidden verb.
Common Mistakes
❌ Este vino es más bueno que el otro.
In a quality context, *más bueno* sounds wrong; use the irregular form.
✅ Este vino es mejor que el otro.
This wine is better than the other one.
❌ Mi hermana es más joven que yo.
Not strictly wrong, but for age you almost always say menor in Peninsular Spanish.
✅ Mi hermana es menor que yo.
My sister is younger than me.
❌ Mi padre es más viejo que el tuyo.
Sounds blunt and impolite; viejo for people emphasises agedness.
✅ Mi padre es mayor que el tuyo.
My father is older than yours. — Neutral, polite phrasing for age.
❌ Esta caja es mayor que aquella.
For physical size of an object, mayor is awkward; use más grande.
✅ Esta caja es más grande que aquella.
This box is bigger than that one.
❌ El cambio climático es un más grande problema.
For abstract importance, prefer mayor, and adjective position is off.
✅ El cambio climático es un mayor problema cada año.
Climate change is a bigger problem every year.
❌ Mi amiga mayora me llamó ayer.
*Mayora doesn't exist — mejor, peor, mayor, menor are two-form adjectives.
✅ Mi amiga mayor me llamó ayer.
My older friend called me yesterday. — Mayor is the same for masc. and fem.
Key Takeaways
- Four irregular comparatives to memorise: bueno → mejor, malo → peor, grande → mayor, pequeño → menor.
- All four are two-form (one form for both genders, plural in -es): mejor / mejores.
- Más bueno and más malo are wrong in quality contexts — use mejor and peor. Reserved colloquial uses for kindness exist (más bueno que el pan).
- Mayor vs más grande: mayor for age and abstract greatness; más grande for physical size. The same split applies to menor vs más pequeño.
- For age, mayor and menor are the default and the polite choice; más viejo sounds blunt.
- Formal register: superior and inferior (taking a, not que) for elevated comparison.
- Other qualitative adjectives (bonito, feo, alto, bajo, viejo, joven, caro, barato) are regular — no hidden irregular form to look for.
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