How to Ask What Day Is It Today in French

Quel jour sommes-nous ? is the classic French way to ask, “What day is it today?” It sounds a little more formal than the kind of thing you would ask half-asleep while staring at your calendar, but it is absolutely correct, common, and useful.

The good news: asking for the day in French is not complicated. The slightly annoying news: French has a few different ways to ask the same thing, and they do not all sound equally natural in every situation. Because of course it does.

By the end of this guide, you’ll know how to ask what day it is, how to answer correctly, when to use on est instead of nous sommes, and how to avoid a couple of very common beginner mistakes. If you want more everyday question patterns after this, this guide to basic questions in French is a smart next stop.

Table of Contents

The Main Way To Ask: Quel Jour Sommes-Nous ?

Quel jour sommes-nous ? means What day is it? or more naturally, What day is it today?

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
Quel jour sommes-nous ?	kel zhoor som-noo	What day is it?	Quel jour sommes-nous ? J’ai oublié.	What day is it? I forgot.	Standard and correct; a bit formal in tone.

Let’s break it down:

quel = what / which
jour = day
sommes-nous = are we

Literally, it is something like Which day are we? That is the structure French uses here. English does not, because English likes to be different just to keep language learners humble.

In pronunciation, notice that quel and jour flow together naturally. Also, in sommes-nous, the final s of sommes links into nous. That smooth connection is called liaison, but you do not need to memorize the fancy term right now. Just remember it sounds connected, not chopped into robot pieces.

The Most Natural Everyday Question: On Est Quel Jour ?

In everyday spoken French, many people say On est quel jour ? This is often more natural in casual conversation than Quel jour sommes-nous ?

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
On est quel jour ?	on eh kel zhoor	What day is it?	On est quel jour ? Mardi ou mercredi ?	What day is it? Tuesday or Wednesday?	Very common in spoken French; casual and natural.
Nous sommes quel jour ?	noo som kel zhoor	What day is it?	Nous sommes quel jour aujourd’hui ?	What day is it today?	Less common than the other two, but understandable.

Why on est? In modern spoken French, on very often replaces nous. It literally means “one,” but in real life it often means “we.” You will hear this everywhere.

If you want to sound natural in conversation, On est quel jour ? is a great choice.

If you want something a bit more textbook and polished, use Quel jour sommes-nous ? Both are correct. One just sounds more like real life in many situations.

How To Answer The Question

When someone asks what day it is, the answer usually follows a simple pattern:

Nous sommes lundi. = It’s Monday.
On est mardi. = It’s Tuesday.
Aujourd’hui, c’est mercredi. = Today, it’s Wednesday.

All three patterns are useful. Here are the most practical versions.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
Nous sommes lundi.	noo som lun-dee	It’s Monday.	Nous sommes lundi, donc j’ai cours de français.	It’s Monday, so I have French class.	Standard answer; a bit more formal.
On est mardi.	on eh mar-dee	It’s Tuesday.	On est mardi, non ?	It’s Tuesday, right?	Very natural in speech.
Aujourd’hui, c’est mercredi.	oh-zhoor-dwee say mer-kruh-dee	Today is Wednesday.	Aujourd’hui, c’est mercredi, et demain c’est jeudi.	Today is Wednesday, and tomorrow is Thursday.	Easy beginner-friendly pattern.

For beginners, Aujourd’hui, c’est… is especially handy because it is simple and flexible.

The Days Of The Week In French

To answer the question properly, you need the weekday words. French days of the week are not capitalized unless they start a sentence. That trips up a lot of English speakers.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
lundi	lun-dee	Monday	Je travaille le lundi.	I work on Mondays.	No capital letter in normal French.
mardi	mar-dee	Tuesday	On part mardi matin.	We’re leaving Tuesday morning.	Easy to pronounce for English speakers.
mercredi	mer-kruh-dee	Wednesday	Le cours est le mercredi.	The class is on Wednesday.	The middle sound is not “mare.”
jeudi	zhuh-dee	Thursday	J’ai un rendez-vous jeudi.	I have an appointment on Thursday.	The j sounds like the s in “measure.”
vendredi	von-druh-dee	Friday	Vendredi, on va au restaurant.	On Friday, we’re going to the restaurant.	The first syllable is nasal.
samedi	sam-dee	Saturday	Je dors tard le samedi.	I sleep late on Saturdays.	Usually pronounced smoothly, not syllable by syllable.
dimanche	dee-monsh	Sunday	Le magasin est fermé le dimanche.	The store is closed on Sunday.	The ending sounds like “sh,” not “ch.”

Useful Phrases You’ll Actually Hear

Here are common day-related phrases built around this question. These are the kinds of things people really say when checking schedules, making plans, or realizing they have completely lost track of time.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
Quel jour sommes-nous aujourd’hui ?	kel zhoor som-noo oh-zhoor-dwee	What day is it today?	Quel jour sommes-nous aujourd’hui ? J’ai perdu le fil.	What day is it today? I’ve lost track.	More explicit than the shorter form.
On est quel jour aujourd’hui ?	on eh kel zhoor oh-zhoor-dwee	What day is it today?	On est quel jour aujourd’hui ? J’ai un examen cette semaine.	What day is it today? I have an exam this week.	Very common in spoken French.
Aujourd’hui, on est jeudi.	oh-zhoor-dwee on eh zhuh-dee	Today is Thursday.	Aujourd’hui, on est jeudi, donc la réunion est demain.	Today is Thursday, so the meeting is tomorrow.	Natural casual answer.
Demain, c’est vendredi.	duh-man say von-druh-dee	Tomorrow is Friday.	Demain, c’est vendredi, enfin.	Tomorrow is Friday, finally.	Useful when talking about upcoming plans.
Hier, c’était lundi.	ee-air say-tay lun-dee	Yesterday was Monday.	Hier, c’était lundi, pas mardi.	Yesterday was Monday, not Tuesday.	C’était is the past form here.
Après-demain, on est samedi.	ah-pre duh-man on eh sam-dee	The day after tomorrow is Saturday.	Après-demain, on est samedi, donc je suis libre.	The day after tomorrow is Saturday, so I’m free.	Very useful and very French.
Nous sommes le 12 juin.	noo som luh dooz zhwan	It’s June 12th.	Nous sommes le 12 juin aujourd’hui.	It’s June 12th today.	Used for the full date, not just the weekday.
On est le combien ?	on eh luh kom-byen	What’s today’s date?	On est le combien ? J’ai oublié la date.	What’s today’s date? I forgot the date.	This asks for the number date, not the weekday.
C’est quel jour, demain ?	say kel zhoor duh-man	What day is tomorrow?	C’est quel jour, demain ? J’ai mon train.	What day is tomorrow? I have my train.	Very conversational.
C’est lundi prochain.	say lun-dee pro-shan	It’s next Monday.	La réunion, c’est lundi prochain.	The meeting is next Monday.	Useful for scheduling.

What’s The Difference Between The Day And The Date?

This is one of the easiest places to get mixed up.

Quel jour sommes-nous ? = What day is it? → Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday…
On est le combien ? = What’s the date? → the 4th, the 12th, the 28th…

So if you ask Quel jour sommes-nous ?, the answer should be a weekday:

Nous sommes mardi.

If you ask On est le combien ?, the answer should be a date:

On est le 15.
Nous sommes le 15 avril.

Mixing those up will not cause a catastrophe, but it will sound off.

Rule To Remember: Use Être For The Day

French commonly uses forms of être to talk about the day or date in this pattern:

nous sommes
on est
c’est

That gives you structures like:

Nous sommes jeudi.
On est mardi.
Aujourd’hui, c’est dimanche.

The verb sommes is the nous form of être. The verb est is the il/elle/on form. If that sounds a bit grammar-heavy, just think of them as set patterns. You do not need to wrestle the whole verb table to the floor right now.

Common Mistakes And How To Fix Them

Mistake	Correct French	Why	Example
Quel jour est-il ?	Quel jour sommes-nous ? / On est quel jour ?	French normally uses sommes-nous or on est here.	On est quel jour ? Pas Quel jour est-il ?
Quel jour est aujourd’hui ?	Quel jour sommes-nous aujourd’hui ?	The original version is not natural French.	Quel jour sommes-nous aujourd’hui ?
Capitalizing weekdays all the time	lundi, mardi, jeudi	French weekdays are normally lowercase.	Nous sommes lundi.
Answering with a date instead of a day	Nous sommes mercredi.	The question asks for the weekday.	Q: Quel jour sommes-nous ? A: Mercredi.
Nous sommes le lundi for “It’s Monday”	Nous sommes lundi.	Le lundi usually means “on Mondays” or “Mondays in general.”	Nous sommes lundi = It’s Monday; Le lundi, je travaille = On Mondays, I work.

Quick Nuance: Lundi Vs Le Lundi

This little difference matters:

Nous sommes lundi. = It’s Monday.
Le lundi, je travaille à la maison. = On Mondays, I work from home.

So when answering What day is it?, you usually want the weekday without le.

lundi = Monday today. le lundi = Mondays in general.

Mini Practice

Try these quickly before peeking at the answers.

Translate Into French

What day is it today?
It’s Friday.
What day is tomorrow?
Today is Sunday.
What’s today’s date?

Answers

Quel jour sommes-nous aujourd’hui ? or On est quel jour aujourd’hui ?
On est vendredi. or Nous sommes vendredi.
C’est quel jour, demain ?
Aujourd’hui, c’est dimanche.
On est le combien ?

Quick Reference Summary

Quel jour sommes-nous ? = standard, correct, slightly formal
On est quel jour ? = casual, natural, very common
Nous sommes lundi. = It’s Monday.
On est mardi. = It’s Tuesday.
Aujourd’hui, c’est mercredi. = Today is Wednesday.
On est le combien ? = What’s today’s date?
Use lowercase for weekdays: lundi, mardi, mercredi
Use lundi for today’s day, but le lundi for Mondays in general

Keep Practicing The Basics

If you want to build confidence with practical French, explore more lessons on the Learn French page. You can also check your level with the French placement test or see how many everyday words you already know with the French vocabulary test.

And yes, if you ever forget how to ask this, you can always come back to this lesson on what day it is in French. Very on-brand, honestly.

Yak Takeaway

If you want the safest textbook answer, use Quel jour sommes-nous ? If you want to sound more like normal spoken French, use On est quel jour ? And when you answer, keep it simple: On est lundi. Clean, useful, no drama. Exactly how weekdays should be.