How To Say How Are You in German (Wie Geht Es Ihnen?)

My first week in Germany, I felt very proud of my brand-new phrase:
Wie geht’s? /ˈviː ɡeːts/ – “How are you?”

I used it on everyone. The cashier. The bus driver. A very confused old lady walking her dog.
One morning I greeted a university secretary with a big smile:

« Hi, wie geht’s? »
She blinked, straightened her glasses, and answered:
« Für Sie: Wie geht es Ihnen? /ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs ˈiːnən/ »

“For you: it’s Wie geht es Ihnen?”
Formal. Polite. I had just “du-ed” the wrong person.

Let’s spare you the same awkward yak experience and learn not only How are you? in German, but also when to say Wie geht es Ihnen?, Wie geht’s dir?, Alles gut?, and how to answer without freezing.

Quick Primer: The Two Big Versions

The two essential ways to say How are you? in German are:

• Wie geht es Ihnen? /ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs ˈiːnən/ – How are you? (formal)
  
• Wie geht es dir? /ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs diːɐ̯/ – How are you? (informal)
  

Plus the super-common short form:

• Wie geht’s? /ˈviː ɡeːts/ – How are you? / How’s it going?
  

The magic word is Ihnen /ˈiːnən/ vs dir /diːɐ̯/.
That’s the “you” changing from formal to informal.

Now let’s unpack when to use which, and what to say when someone actually answers honestly.

Formal: Wie Geht Es Ihnen?

Use Wie geht es Ihnen? /ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs ˈiːnən/ with:

• older people you don’t know well
  
• teachers, professors (unless they explicitly say “du”)
  
• doctors, officials, bank employees
  
• interviewers, clients, customers
  
• generally, anyone in a clearly formal context
  

You can also use a slightly shorter version:

• Wie geht’s Ihnen? /ˈviː ɡeːts ˈiːnən/ – How are you? (still formal)
  

Useful formal phrases:

A respectful upgrade at the doctor, for example.

Informal: Wie Geht Es Dir?

Use Wie geht es dir? /ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs diːɐ̯/ with:

• friends
  
• classmates
  
• colleagues your age (if your company is informal)
  
• kids and teenagers
  
• family members
  
• anyone who has said “We can use du now”
  

Most of the time, you’ll actually hear the shorter form:

• Wie geht’s dir? /ˈviː ɡeːts diːɐ̯/ – How are you (to a friend)?
  

Informal versions:

If you’re not sure whether to use Ihnen or dir, default to Ihnen. It’s safer to be too polite than accidentally too familiar.

Other Common Ways To Ask How Someone Is

German has several “How are you?”-style phrases that show up all the time in real life.

Alles gut? – Everything Good?

Alles gut? /ˈaləs ɡuːt/

Very common, especially among younger speakers.
It literally means “Everything good?”

You can answer with:

• Ja, alles gut. /jaː ˈaləs ɡuːt/ – Yeah, all good.
  

Wie läuft’s? – How’s it going?

Wie läuft’s? /ˈviː lɔʏ̯fts/

More like “How’s it going?” than “How are you emotionally?”

Often used for work, projects, or life in general.

Na, wie geht’s? – So, How’s It Going?

Add Na /naː/ to give it that classic German “sooo…” vibe.

• Na, wie geht’s? /naː ˈviː ɡeːts/ – So, how’s it going?
  

This feels friendly and relaxed, very common among colleagues and friends.

How To Answer: I’m Fine, Great, Tired, or Meh

The good news: you don’t need a long speech. Many Germans keep it short.

Positive Answers

Mir geht es gut /miːɐ̯ ɡeːt ɛs ɡuːt/ literally means “It goes well for me,” but it’s just “I’m fine.”

Neutral / “Meh” Answers

Es geht /ɛs ɡeːt/ is a very typical “I’m okay, not amazing, not terrible.”

Negative Answers

If you answer negatively, people might actually follow up and ask why. Germans are often more literal here than English speakers.

Returning The Question

Just like “And you?” in English, you can bounce the question back.

A classic exchange:

Gut, danke. Und dir?
Good, thanks. And you?

Cultural Notes: Do Germans Mean It?

In English, “How are you?” is often just a greeting. The answer “Fine, thanks” is almost automatic.

In German:

• Wie geht’s? can be small talk or a real question.
  
• Alles gut? often feels casual and light.
  
• If people ask in a more serious tone, they probably do want a real answer.
  

Typical patterns:

• At the bakery: you might just say Guten Morgen, not Wie geht’s?
  
• Meeting a friend: Na, wie geht’s? is a natural start.
  
• In emails, especially slightly formal ones, you might see:
  Ich hoffe, es geht Ihnen gut. /ɪç ˈhɔfə ɛs ɡeːt ˈiːnən ɡuːt/ – “I hope you are well.”
  

Region Notes: Germany, Austria, Switzerland

The core phrases stay the same in all German-speaking regions.

Across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland:

• Wie geht es Ihnen? – universal formal
  
• Wie geht’s dir? – universal informal
  
• Wie geht’s? – used everywhere
  

You might hear regional flavor like:

• Wia geht’s? in dialect (Bavaria or Austria)
  
• Swiss German versions in casual speech (e.g. Wie gaht’s? in Swiss German)
  

But if you stick with standard Wie geht es Ihnen? and Wie geht’s dir?, you’ll be understood and sound perfectly fine wherever you go.

Mini Dialogues

Dialogue 1 – Formal at the Doctor

Guten Tag, Frau Schneider. Wie geht es Ihnen heute?
/ˈɡuːtən taːk fʁaʊ̯ ˈʃnaɪ̯dɐ ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs ˈiːnən ˈhɔʏ̯tə/
Good day, Ms Schneider. How are you today?

Es geht, danke. Ich habe noch ein bisschen Schmerzen.
/ɛs ɡeːt ˈdaŋkə ɪç ˈhaːbə nɔx aɪ̯n ˈbɪsçən ˈʃmɛʁtsən/
I’m okay, thanks. I still have a bit of pain.

Gut, dann schauen wir uns das einmal an.
/ɡuːt dan ˈʃaʊ̯ən viːɐ̯ ʊns das ˈaɪ̯nmal an/
Good, then let’s take a look at that.

Dialogue 2 – Meeting a Friend

Hey, wie geht’s dir?
/heː ˈviː ɡeːts diːɐ̯/
Hey, how are you?

Ganz gut, danke. Und dir?
/ɡants ɡuːt ˈdaŋkə ʊnt diːɐ̯/
Pretty good, thanks. And you?

Mir geht’s auch gut, nur ein bisschen müde.
/miːɐ̯ ɡeːts aʊ̯x ɡuːt nuːɐ̯ aɪ̯n ˈbɪsçən ˈmyːdə/
I’m also good, just a bit tired.

Ja, same here.
/jaː seːm hiːɐ̯/
Yeah, same here.

Dialogue 3 – At Work With Mixed Formality

Guten Morgen, Herr Becker. Wie geht es Ihnen?
/ˈɡuːtən ˈmɔʁɡn̩ hɛʁ ˈbɛkɐ ˈviː ɡeːt ɛs ˈiːnən/
Good morning, Mr Becker. How are you?

Gut, danke. Und bei Ihnen?
/ɡuːt ˈdaŋkə ʊnt baɪ̯ ˈiːnən/
Good, thank you. And you?

Auch gut, danke. Die Woche ist nur ziemlich stressig.
/aʊ̯x ɡuːt ˈdaŋkə diː ˈvɔxə ɪst nuːɐ̯ ˈtsiːmlɪç ˈʃtʁɛsɪç/
Also good, thanks. The week is just pretty stressful.

Das kann ich mir vorstellen.
/das kan ɪç miːɐ̯ ˈfoːɐ̯ʃtɛlən/
I can imagine that.

Quick Reference

Five-Minute Practice Plan

1. Switch Drill: Formal vs Informal
   Say each pair out loud three times:
   
   • Wie geht es Ihnen? / Wie geht es dir?
     
   • Wie geht’s Ihnen? / Wie geht’s dir?
     
2. Answer Patterns
   Practice answering three ways:
   
   • Positive: Mir geht es gut.
     
   • Neutral: Es geht.
     
   • Negative: Mir geht es nicht so gut.
     Say each with different intonation: cheerful, tired, annoyed.
     
3. Return The Question
   Combine an answer with a return question:
   
   • Gut, danke. Und Ihnen?
     
   • Ganz gut, danke. Und dir?
     Repeat until it feels automatic.
     
4. Real-Life Mini Scenes
   Imagine three situations:
   
   • meeting a professor
     
   • meeting a close friend
     
   • meeting a new colleague your age
     For each, decide: Ihnen or dir? Then say a full exchange aloud.
     
5. Shadow a Dialogue
   Pick one of the mini dialogues and repeat it line by line, copying the rhythm and flow. Then say it again without looking if you can.
   

Checking In Like A Confident German-Speaking Yak

Now you can do more than just mumble a shy Wie geht’s? and hope for the best. You know when to say Wie geht es Ihnen?, when to relax into Wie geht’s dir?, how to survive the follow-up answers, and how to bounce the question back like a native.

Next time you step into a German conversation, you won’t just be the yak silently nodding in the background—you’ll be the one starting things off with a smooth, well-placed Na, wie geht’s? and actually understanding what comes next.