French Greetings: Hello, Goodbye & Politeness

If you learn only one set of words before your trip to France, make it French greetings. They're the doorway to every other conversation — and in France, that's not just a figure of speech. A warm bonjour at the right moment can turn a frosty exchange into a friendly one, while skipping it can quietly mark you as rude without you ever realising why.

This beginner's guide walks you through how to say hello and goodbye, how to be polite, and how to read whether a situation calls for formal or casual language. Every phrase comes with a phonetic hint and a real example, so you can start using them out loud today.

The one rule that changes everything: always say bonjour first

Here's the cultural key that most guidebooks bury: in France, you greet before you do anything else. Walk into a bakery, a pharmacy, or a small shop and your first word should be Bonjour — before you ask a question, before you point at a pastry, before anything. Locals experience the greeting as basic respect, and forgetting it is the single most common way tourists come across as impolite.

So the golden rule is simple: lead with a greeting, every time. Do that and you're already ahead of most visitors.

How to say hello in French

Bonjour is your everyday workhorse, but a few alternatives let you match the time of day and the mood. This is where good French greetings start.

Cultural tip: Bonjour covers "good morning," "good afternoon," and "good day" — French has no separate word for each. Switch to bonsoir in the evening. And be careful with allô: it exists purely to answer the telephone, so using it to greet someone in person will sound very odd.

Example: Bonjour, madame ! (Hello, ma'am!) as you enter a shop, or Salut, ça fait longtemps ! (Hi, long time no see!) to a friend.

Asking "how are you?"

A greeting often flows straight into a quick check-in. Keep the register consistent — formal question with strangers, casual with friends.

Cultural tip: Ça va ? is beautifully flexible — it's both the question and the answer. Someone asks Ça va ? and you can simply reply Ça va ! Returning the question with Et vous ? (formal) or Et toi ? (informal) keeps the conversation warm and two-way.

How to say goodbye in French

Leaving politely matters just as much as arriving. Au revoir is your safe, all-purpose farewell — literally "until we see each other again."

Cultural tip: Don't confuse bonne soirée with bonne nuit. Bonne soirée wishes someone a nice evening as you part; bonne nuit is strictly "sleep well" and is only said when one of you is actually going to bed. A cheerful Merci, bonne journée ! as you leave a shop is the perfect polished exit.

The polite words that open doors

Politeness in French is not optional garnish — it's built into everyday speech. These small words do enormous work.

Example in action: Un café, s'il vous plaît. — Voilà. — Merci beaucoup ! — Je vous en prie. ("A coffee, please." "Here you go." "Thank you very much!" "You're welcome.") That tiny exchange, delivered politely, is the sound of a traveller who fits right in. For a deeper look at these expressions, the Lawless French greetings reference is a reliable, free place to double-check usage.

Formal or informal? Reading the room

French politeness lives in the choice between tu (informal "you") and vous (formal or plural "you"). Use vous with strangers, shopkeepers, older people, and anyone in a professional setting; use tu with friends, family, children, and peers your own age. When you're unsure, choose vous — it's never rude to be a little formal, and people will happily invite you to switch to tu.

Greetings themselves also come with body language. A handshake suits formal or first-time meetings, while friends often exchange la bise — a light kiss on each cheek. The number of kisses varies by region, as this overview of French cheek-kissing customs explains, so the safest move is to follow the other person's lead.

Once you've greeted someone, the natural next step is telling them who you are. If you'd like the full script for that, our guide on how to introduce yourself in French picks up exactly where this lesson leaves off.

Put it all together: a two-minute shop visit

Here's how these French greetings string together in a real, everyday scene — walking into a boulangerie:

Vous : Bonjour, madame ! (Hello, ma'am!) La boulangère : Bonjour ! Vous désirez ? (Hello! What would you like?) Vous : Une baguette, s'il vous plaît. (A baguette, please.) La boulangère : Voilà. Et avec ça ? (Here you are. Anything else?) Vous : C'est tout, merci beaucoup. (That's all, thank you very much.) La boulangère : Merci, bonne journée ! (Thank you, have a good day!) Vous : Au revoir ! (Goodbye!)

Notice the shape: greet, request politely, thank, and part with a friendly farewell. That rhythm works in almost any shop, café, or office in France.

This is exactly what you'll practice out loud in Lesson A1-2: Saying Hello, Goodbye & Being Polite inside Simply French, where you hear each greeting at natural native speed, repeat it in short speaking drills, and get instant AI pronunciation scoring so your bonjour and au revoir sound convincing from day one.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most common French greeting?

Bonjour is by far the most common French greeting. It works morning through late afternoon, in formal and informal settings, and with anyone from a close friend to a stranger. If you remember only one word, make it bonjour — and say it the moment you enter any shop or office.

When do I use "bonjour" vs "bonsoir"?

Use bonjour during the day and switch to bonsoir in the evening, roughly from 6 p.m. onward. Both are polite and can be used with anyone. There's no separate word for "good morning" versus "good afternoon" — bonjour covers both.

What's the difference between "salut" and "bonjour"?

Salut is casual and reserved for friends, family, and peers; it can mean both "hi" and "bye." Bonjour is neutral-to-formal and appropriate in every situation. Use bonjour with shopkeepers, colleagues, and strangers, and save salut for people you know well.

How do you politely say goodbye in French?

The safest polite goodbye is au revoir ("goodbye"), often paired with a well-wish like bonne journée ("have a good day") or bonne soirée ("have a good evening"). For example: Au revoir, bonne journée ! covers you in any shop or formal setting.

Is it rude not to say "bonjour" in France?

Yes — mild but real. In France, greeting someone before you speak to them is considered basic courtesy, especially when entering a shop or approaching a stranger for help. Leading with bonjour signals respect and almost always earns you a warmer response.

How do you say "please" and "thank you" in French?

Say s'il vous plaît for "please" in formal situations (or s'il te plaît with friends) and merci — or merci beaucoup for "thank you very much." The standard reply to merci is de rien ("you're welcome"), or the more formal je vous en prie.

Related lessons

Keep building your speaking foundation with these Simply French guides:

• How to introduce yourself in French — the natural next step after greetings: your name, where you're from, and "nice to meet you."

More connected lessons — including counting from 1 to 100 and ordering food at a café — will be linked here as the library grows.

Start speaking today

Greetings are muscle memory, and muscle memory comes from saying the words out loud. If you're ready to hear these French greetings at native speed and drill them with instant pronunciation feedback, try Simply French free for a week. Start your free 7-day trial and make bonjour your new reflex — à bientôt !