German - Making Plans

Lesson 128 of 158

Young friends arranging a coffee meet-up in German, practicing making plans and times.

Goal: Invite, check times, and confirm plans casually (Level A2)

Free German lessons with guided practice, audio, and speaking support.

Ready to make plans with friends in German? This short lesson gives you the common phrases you need to invite, suggest alternatives, and lock in a meeting. Have fun—think of it as polite scheduling with a little German flair.

Level A2: In this lesson you'll practice practical phrases for making plans: asking if someone is free, suggesting activities, checking times and places, offering alternatives, and confirming plans. These casual phrases are CEFR-aligned and perfect for arranging meetups with friends.

After this lesson you'll be able to:

  • Ask and answer whether someone is available (Hast du ___ Zeit?).
  • Suggest activities and places (Wie wäre es mit ___? / Willst du ___?).
  • Check times, offer alternatives, and confirm plans (Welche Uhrzeit passt dir? / Dann halten wir ___ fest.).
  • Use casual, friendly German suitable for A2 conversations.
Two people checking their schedules and suggesting meeting places in German — A2 planning phrases.

Ready? Let's go!

When you tap play on phrases, we track your progress through this lesson.

1. Reading + Listening Practice

Hear core phrases, repeat aloud.

Hast du ___ Zeit?

Are you free ___?

Meaning: Are you free ___?

When to use: Use with a time phrase, e.g. morgen, am Samstag, um fünf.

Tip: Learners sometimes forget to add a time phrase in the blank or use a place instead of a time.

Hast du morgen Zeit?
Are you free tomorrow?
Hast du am Samstag Zeit?
Are you free on Saturday?

Willst du ___?

Do you want to ___?

Meaning: Do you want to ___?

When to use: Use with an infinitive verb phrase, e.g. ins Kino gehen, zusammen lernen.

Willst du ins Kino gehen?
Do you want to go to the cinema?
Willst du zusammen lernen?
Do you want to study together?

Wie wäre es mit ___?

How about ___?

Meaning: How about ___?

When to use: “Mit” takes dative: mit einem Kaffee, mit dem Park. Also common with bare nouns like Kino.

Tip: Remember to use mit + dative (einem/dem), or use a bare noun like 'Kino' when natural.

Wie wäre es mit einem Kaffee?
How about a coffee?
Wie wäre es mit dem Park?
How about the park?

Treffen wir uns ___.

Let's meet at ___.

Meaning: Let’s meet at ___.

When to use: Include the needed time/place phrase in the placeholder, e.g. um drei, am Bahnhof, vor dem Kino.

Treffen wir uns um drei.
Let's meet at three o'clock.
Treffen wir uns am Bahnhof.
Let's meet at the train station.

Welche Uhrzeit passt dir?

What time works for you?

Meaning: What time works for you?

When to use: Informal “dir”; formal version: Welche Uhrzeit passt Ihnen?

Welche Uhrzeit passt dir am besten?
What time suits you best?
Welche Uhrzeit passt dir morgen?
What time works for you tomorrow?

Bei mir geht ___.

I can do ___.

Meaning: I can do ___.

When to use: Natural for availability with times or dates, e.g. Montag, um vier, nächste Woche.

Tip: Don’t confuse this with 'Mir geht's ...' (how you feel). 'Bei mir geht ...' talks about availability.

Bei mir geht am Samstag.
Saturday works for me.
Bei mir geht um vier.
Four o'clock works for me.

Ich kann leider nicht.

I can't make it.

Meaning: I can’t make it.

When to use: Simple and natural for declining because you are not available.

Ich kann leider nicht, ich arbeite.
I can't make it, I'm working.
Ich kann leider nicht, ich habe einen Termin.
I can't make it, I have an appointment.

Geht stattdessen ___?

Can we do ___ instead?

Meaning: Can we do ___ instead?

When to use: Good for suggesting another time, place, or simple plan option, e.g. Freitag, um sechs, ein Kaffee.

Geht stattdessen Freitag?
Can we do Friday instead?
Geht stattdessen ein Kaffee?
Can we do a coffee instead?

Dann halten wir ___ fest.

Let's plan for ___.

Meaning: Let’s plan for ___.

When to use: Common for confirming a decided time, date, or plan. “Festhalten” is separable.

Dann halten wir Freitag um sechs fest.
Then let's plan for Friday at six.
Dann halten wir den Treffpunkt vor dem Kino fest.
Then we'll confirm the meeting spot in front of the cinema.

Was wollen wir machen?

What should we do?

Meaning: What should we do?

When to use: Natural for making plans with friends or acquaintances.

Was wollen wir machen am Samstag?
What should we do on Saturday?
Was wollen wir machen heute Abend?
What shall we do tonight?

Wo wollen wir uns treffen?

Where should we meet?

Meaning: Where should we meet?

When to use: Natural informal phrasing for planning a meetup.

Wo wollen wir uns treffen, am Bahnhof?
Where should we meet, at the station?
Wo wollen wir uns treffen, im Café?
Where should we meet, in the café?

Welcher Tag passt dir am besten?

What day is best for you?

Meaning: What day is best for you?

When to use: Informal mit „dir“. Für formell: „Welcher Tag passt Ihnen am besten?“

Welcher Tag passt dir am besten, Dienstag oder Donnerstag?
Which day suits you best, Tuesday or Thursday?
Welcher Tag passt dir am besten nächste Woche?
Which day is best for you next week?

Wer kommt noch?

Who else is coming?

Meaning: Who else is coming?

When to use: Natürlich und kurz für private Pläne.

Wer kommt noch zur Party?
Who else is coming to the party?
Wer kommt noch ins Kino?
Who else is coming to the cinema?

2. Conversational Listening Practice

Hear phrases in a real mini-conversation.

Anna and David decide on a time and place for coffee.

Anna and David discussing where and when to meet using common German planning phrases.

What do Anna and David decide to do?

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Was wollen wir machen?

What should we do?

Portrait of David in a German lesson dialogue

David

Wie wäre es mit einem Kaffee?

How about a coffee?

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Hast du morgen Zeit?

Are you free tomorrow?

Portrait of David in a German lesson dialogue

David

Bei mir geht um drei.

Three o'clock works for me.

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Welche Uhrzeit passt dir?

What time works for you?

Portrait of David in a German lesson dialogue

David

Treffen wir uns um drei vor dem Café?

Shall we meet at three in front of the café?

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Dann halten wir drei Uhr fest. Wer kommt noch?

Then let's plan for three. Who else is coming?

3. Guided Practice

Quizzes and matching to lock in meaning.

Which German phrase means 'What time works for you?'

How do you say 'Can we do Friday instead?' in German (casual)?

Which phrase asks 'Who else is coming?'

Which phrase is used to confirm a decided time or plan?

Anna: Are you free at three? David: I can only do the afternoon.

Anna: Hast du ___ Zeit? David: Ich kann nur am Nachmittag.

I can't make it. Can we do Friday instead?

Ich kann leider nicht. ___?

We are five people. Who else is coming?

Wir sind fünf Personen. ___?

Match the core phrases

Match the extra phrases

4. Speaking Practice

Say phrases yourself (mic/recording).

Recording stays on your device only. Check speech uses your browser's speech tools when available.

Say this phrase out loud:

Hast du ___ Zeit?

Are you free ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

Willst du ___?

Do you want to ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wie wäre es mit ___?

How about ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

Treffen wir uns ___.

Let's meet at ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

Welche Uhrzeit passt dir?

What time works for you?

Say this phrase out loud:

Bei mir geht ___.

I can do ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

Ich kann leider nicht.

I can't make it.

Say this phrase out loud:

Geht stattdessen ___?

Can we do ___ instead?

Say this phrase out loud:

Dann halten wir ___ fest.

Let's plan for ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

Was wollen wir machen?

What should we do?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wo wollen wir uns treffen?

Where should we meet?

Say this phrase out loud:

Welcher Tag passt dir am besten?

What day is best for you?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wer kommt noch?

Who else is coming?