Using Estar to Express Location

Think of estar as a bridge. On one side, you have a person or an object. On the other side, you have a location. The verb estar connects them. In English, we just say "is" or "are." In Spanish, we have two verbs for "to be." But for location, estar is almost always the winner. You do not need to worry about if the location is permanent. Even if a building has been there for a thousand years, you still use estar. It is all about physical presence. You are here. The coffee is there. The bathroom is around the corner.

1. 1Using estar is like building with blocks. You just need to pick the right form for the person you are talking about. Here is how you do it:
2. 2Start with the person (the subject).
3. 3Choose the correct form of estar.
4. 4Add a preposition like en (in/at/on).
5. 5Finish with the location.
6. 6Here are the forms you need to memorize:
7. 7Yo estoy (I am)
8. 8Tú estás (You are - informal)
9. 9Él / Ella / Usted está (He / She / You are - formal)
10. 10Nosotros estamos (We are)
11. 11Vosotros estáis (You all are - Spain)
12. 12Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes están (They / You all are)
13. 13Notice those little slanted lines over the 'a' and 'i'? Those are accents. They are not just for decoration. They change the sound and the meaning. Yes, even native speakers forget them sometimes. But you should try to keep them. They make you look like a pro.

Use estar whenever you are talking about where something is located. This applies to people, animals, and objects.

• Finding people: ¿Dónde estás? (Where are you?). This is the most common text message in Spain.
• Finding things: Mis llaves están en la mesa (My keys are on the table).
• Asking for directions: El museo está cerca (The museum is nearby).
• Ordering food: ¿Dónde está mi pizza? (Where is my pizza?). We have all been there.
• Job interviews: La oficina está en el centro (The office is downtown).

It does not matter if the thing can move or not. If you can point to it on a map, use estar.

There is one big trap. One mistake that everyone makes once. Do not use estar for the location of events. If you are talking about a party, a concert, or a wedding, you must use ser.

• Wrong: La fiesta está en mi casa.
• Right: La fiesta es en mi casa.

Think of it like this: If it has a physical body, use estar. If it is a scheduled happening, use ser. It is like a grammar traffic light. Green means go for estar with objects. Red means stop for events.

The biggest mistake is the accent mark. If you write esta without an accent, you are saying "this." If you write está, you are saying "is." That one little line changes everything. It is the difference between "This house" and "Is house."

Another mistake is using soy (from ser) for location. You might want to say Soy en Madrid. It sounds okay in your head. But to a Spaniard, it sounds like you are saying you are the city itself. Unless you are a sentient pile of bricks and history, stick with estoy.

Finally, watch your prepositions. We use en for almost everything. In English, we choose between "in," "at," and "on." Spanish is lazier. En covers all of them. Use it proudly.

How do you choose between estar and hay? Use hay when you are saying "there is" or "there are" for the first time. Use estar when you are talking about a specific thing we already know about.

• Hay un gato en la calle (There is a cat in the street).
• El gato está en la calle (The cat is in the street).

It is the difference between "a cat" and "the cat." If you use the word "the" (el/la), you probably need estar.