What’s the difference between ‘por’ and ‘para’ in Spanish?

Por and para are two words that have confused many students of Spanish for years. Both words look similar, they are used in a lot of different contexts, and there is not a clear English translation for each word. They can mean “for,” but they can also mean, among other words, “by,” “through,” or “to.” Stick around because in this post we’ll break down por and para for you.

First, we’ll take a look at some contexts in which both por and para can be used to mean different things.

When you want to express the reason or the cause of something, you want to use por. It translates to “because of.”

For instance, consider the sentence: Está en el hospital por un problema menor. (meaning She’s in the hospital because of a minor health problem.) The reason or the cause for why she's in the hospital is introduced by por.

On the other hand, when you want to express purpose, para is the word you want to use. It translates to "to" or "in order to."

One example could be: Vino a este país para trabajar. (meaning He came to this country to/in order to work.) The purpose of his coming to this country is highlighted in blue, and it’s introduced by para.

As a general rule, you want to use por when referring to time. For instance:

• Duration

  To express how long you do/did/will do something, you can use por.
  

  Trabajó por ocho horas. (meaning She worked for eight hours.)

• Approximate time

  For instance:
  

  Vendrá a casa por esas fechas. (meaning He’ll come back home around that date.)

• Specific part of the day

  With words expressing parts of the day, like mañana (meaning morning), tarde (meaning afternoon, evening), and noche (meaning night), you use por and the definite article la (meaning the):
  

  Trabajo por la mañana/por la tarde/por la noche.

  Translation: I work in the morning/afternoon/evening/at night.

• Frequency and speed

  To express frequency, use por:

  Nado dos veces por semana.

  Translation: I swim twice a week.

  In expressions about speed, use por:

  El límite en este estado es 65 millas por hora.

  Translation: The speed limit in this state is 65 miles per hour.

• Estar + por + infinitive (to be about to)

  The use of por following a form of estar (meaning to be) is equivalent to the English “to be about to”:
  

  Luis está por cumplir veinte años. (meaning Luis is about to turn twenty.)Estoy por salir. (meaning I’m about to leave.)

There’s another use of estar + por to mean “to be in favor of,” keep reading! Click the link for more on Spanish prepositions of time.

As a general rule, por is used to express movement in space and it’s equivalent to the English “by,” “along,” “through,” and “around.” For instance:

• Paseamos por la playa.

  Translation: We took a walk along the beach.
• Estoy mirando por la ventana.

  Translation: I’m looking through the window.
• Vivo por la autopista.

  Translation: I live by the highway.
• El restaurante está por aquí.

  Translation: The restaurant is around here.

Click the link to learn more about Spanish prepositions of place and movement.

Next, we’ll review other contexts in which only por or para can be used:

• Tasks to complete

  Use por followed by an infinitive to mean "(yet) to be done."

  • Me quedan tres episodios por mirar.

    Translation: I have three episodes to watch.
  • Tengo un reporte por terminar.

    Translation: I have a paper to finish.

• Transportation and communication

  Equivalent to the English “by means of,” “by,” “via,” and “through.”

  • Viaja por tren hasta Miami.

    Translation: She travels by train to Miami.
  • Nos comunicamos por FaceTime.

    Translation: We communicate via FaceTime.

• Substitution

  For instance:

  • Trabajo por ti mañana.

    Translation: I’ll take your shift tomorrow.
  • Lo hice por ti.

    Translation: I did it on your behalf.

• Equivalent to “for the sake of” and “out of”

  For instance:

  • Corre por correr.

    Translation: She runs for the sake of running.
  • Lo hice por placer.

    Translation: I did it for (out of) pleasure.

• Agent in passive sentences

  Equivalent to the English “by.” Learn more about Spanish passive sentences in this post. For instance:

  El gol fue marcado por Ronaldo.

  Translation: The goal was scored by Ronaldo.

• Rates, multiplication, and exchanges

  Equivalent to the English “for” and “by.”

  • El interés es del 6 por ciento.

    Translation: The interest rate is 6 percent.
  • –¿Cuánto es dos por dos?
    – Cuatro. (meaning – What’s two times two?
    – Four.)
  • Lo compró por 10 dólares.

    Translation: She bought it for ten dollars.

• To go get something

  Por is used with verbs of movement (Ir (meaning to go), venir (meaning to come), correr (meaning to run)...) to indicate fetching or searching for something.
  

  Voy (a) por el pan. (meaning I’ll go get some bread.)

• Estar + por + nouns (to be in favor of)

  Por is used with estar followed by a noun to mean "to be in favor of."

  Estoy por los derechos de los animales. (meaning I’m in favor of animal rights.)

• Recipients

  We use para to indicate the intended recipient of something.
  

  Este regalo es para ti. (meaning This present is for you.)

• Opinions

  Other than using creo que... or pienso que… (meaning I believe/think that...), you can introduce your opinions using para.
  

  Para mí, la solución está clara. (meaning According to me/To me, the solution is clear.)

• Contrast

  We can use para to introduce something that contradicts the norm.
  

  Hace frío para ser agosto. (meaning It’s cold for August.)

• Equivalent to “as” and “with the status of”

  For instance: La eligieron para gobernadora. (meaning She was elected (as) governor.)

• Estar + para+ infinitive

  We can use estar with para followed by an infinitive to indicate that someone or something is ready for the action of the verb. For instance:

  Este mango está perfecto; está para comérselo.

  Translation: This mango is perfect; it’s ready to be eaten.
  Este librero está para tirarse.

  Translation: This bookshelf is ready to be thrown out.

• No estar para + nouns (lack of inclination to accept something)

  You can use no estar + para to say that you’re not in the mood for something someone has inopportunely suggested or has improperly done. For instance:
  

  Deja de molestar, no estoy para tonterías.

  Translation: Stop being annoying, I’m not in the mood for your nonsense.
• (Para) con

  Para can optionally be used with con (meaning with) to indicate “to/towards.”
  

  Es muy amable (para) con todos. (meaning She’s nice to everyone.)

• Employer

  To indicate the institution or person someone works for.

  Trabaja para la universidad. (meaning He works for the university.)

Wow! That was a lengthy lesson on Spanish "por" and "para." Take some time to let it all sink in. To make it a little easier, here’s a downloadable and printable summary of all the uses of por and para with examples.

If you want to keep reading about Spanish prepositions, don’t miss out our post on the most common Spanish prepositions!

Ready to practice? Check out these activities (it includes an answer key)!