The regular future tense (-é, -ás, -á...)

So far, you might have used ir a + infinitive (like voy a viajar) to talk about plans in the near future. When talking about more distant events, predictions, or imaginative scenarios—like exploring the galaxy—Spanish uses the simple future tense.

The new ship will travel to space with modern technology.
La nueva nave viajará al espacio con tecnología moderna.
The astronauts will build a base on another planet.
Los astronautas construirán una base en otro planeta.

Forming the Regular Future Tense

The simple future tense is one of the easiest tenses to conjugate. Instead of dropping the ending of the verb (-ar, -er, or -ir), you simply attach the future endings directly to the entire infinitive.

The best part? The endings are exactly the same for all regular -ar, -er, and -ir verbs!

PronounFuture EndingExample (viajar)
yoviajaré
-ásviajarás
él / ella / ustedviajará
nosotros / nosotras-emosviajaremos
ellos / ellas / ustedes-ánviajarán

Notice that all the endings have an accent mark, except for the nosotros form.

Will you travel in the rocket to visit the new colony?
¿Viajarás en el cohete para visitar la nueva colonia?
The teacher says that we will inhabit the new colony.
El profesor dice que habitaremos la nueva colonia.

When to Use It

This tense translates directly to "will + [verb]" in English. It is mostly used for:

  • Distant predictions: Things you expect to happen eventually.
  • Imaginative scenarios: Like wondering what life on a new colony will be like.
You will need a lot of oxygen to survive in space.
Ustedes necesitarán mucho oxígeno para sobrevivir en el espacio.
Nobody will survive on that dark planet if the oxygen is missing.
Nadie sobrevivirá en aquel planeta oscuro si falta el oxígeno.