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How to say “What’s the weather like?” in Spanish

Weather in Spanish mostly runs on <b>hacer</b>, which surprises English speakers.

Quick answer

¿Qué tiempo hace?

the everyday version

¿Cómo está el clima?

the alternative — see below for when

Which one to use

¿Qué tiempo hace? is the standard question in Spain. Answers use hace plus a noun: hace frío, hace calor, hace sol.

Two things break that pattern: rain and snow use their own verbs, llueve and nieva, and cloud cover uses está nublado. In Latin America ¿cómo está el clima? is the more usual phrasing.

All the versions

¿Qué tiempo hace?What’s the weather like? — typical in Spain.
¿Cómo está el clima?What’s the weather like? — typical in Latin America.
Hace frío. / Hace calor.It’s cold. / It’s hot.
Está nublado.It’s cloudy.
Está lloviendo.It’s raining.

Where you are matters

In Spain <b>el tiempo</b> means the weather and <b>el clima</b> the long-term climate; in much of Latin America <b>el clima</b> is used for both.

Check yourself

Which sentence says “It’s cold”?

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