Cobrar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb cobrar means to charge, to collect, and this page covers it in the present tense — the tense for habits, facts and what is happening now. If you want the whole picture, start with the full cobrar conjugation, which has every tense on one page. Here we go deep on one tense only: the full table, how it is formed, when to use it, how it differs from the closest tense, examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the questions people ask most. One example to start: Yo cobro cien euros por la reparación. — "I charge a hundred euros for the repair."

No pronunciation is given on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for cobrar, so no pronunciation is shown rather than an invented one. All the forms below come from the verified conjugation tables, so you can trust every form you see here.

The cobrar present tense table

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for cobrar. The gerund is cobrando and the past participle is cobrado.

Person Form
yo cobro
tú cobras
él/ella/Ud. cobra
nosotros/as cobramos
vosotros/as cobráis
ellos/ellas/Uds. cobran

The gerund cobrando is used with estar for the progressive (estoy cobrando, I am charging), and the past participle cobrado is used with haber for the perfect tenses (he cobrado, I have charged).

How the present tense of cobrar is formed

Start with the infinitive cobrar. Take off the -ar ending and you are left with the stem cobr-. Then add the present endings for -ar verbs: -o (yo), -as (tú), -a (él/ella/Ud.), -amos (nosotros/as), -áis (vosotros/as) and -an (ellos/ellas/Uds.). That gives you the six forms in the table above, and for most verbs in this group that is the whole story.

cobrar is regular in the present: every form is exactly the stem plus the ending above, with no stem change and no spelling change. If you know the stem and the six endings, you can build the whole tense without memorising anything extra.

Two details are worth fixing early. First, the vosotros form carries a written accent on the ending: cobráis. Second, the present tense in Spanish has no auxiliary verb: cobro on its own means both "I charge" and "I am charging" in English, so you do not need a separate word for the progressive unless you want to stress that something is happening right now.

When to use the present tense of cobrar

Habits and routines

The present is the tense of what you do regularly. Talking about charging for work: a repair, a lesson, a service, and how much.

  • Yo cobro cien euros por la reparación. — "I charge a hundred euros for the repair."
  • Tú cobras por el trabajo a fin de mes. — "you charge for the work at the end of the month."

Facts and general truths

The present also states facts that are true in general, not just today. Talking about getting paid: cobrar el sueldo means to receive your salary.

  • Él cobra veinte euros por la clase. — "he/she charges twenty euros for the lesson."
  • Nosotros cobramos en efectivo. — "we charge in cash."

What is happening now

The present describes what is happening at this moment. Talking about collecting money: cash, a bill, or a debt.

  • Vosotros cobráis por el trabajo. — "you (all) charge for the work."
  • Ellos cobran todos los meses. — "they charge every month."

Plans in the near future

Spanish also uses the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with a time expression. A plan you have already decided on can be stated in the present, and it sounds more certain than the future tense.

  • Él cobra veinte euros por la clase. — "he/she charges twenty euros for the lesson."
  • Nosotros cobramos en efectivo. — "we charge in cash."

Cobrar present vs present progressive

The present tense and the present progressive (estar + gerund) are close neighbours, and learners mix them up. The present describes a habit, a fact or a routine. The progressive describes something in progress right now, at this very moment. Compare the three pairs below: the first sentence in each pair is a habit, the second is happening now.

  • Present (habit): Yo cobro cien euros por la reparación. — "I charge a hundred euros for the repair."

  • Progressive (right now): Yo estoy cobrando cien euros por la reparación. — "I am charging a hundred euros for the repair."

  • Present (habit): Tú cobras por el trabajo a fin de mes. — "you charge for the work at the end of the month."

  • Progressive (right now): Tú estás cobrando por el trabajo a fin de mes. — "you are charging for the work at the end of the month."

  • Present (habit): Él cobra veinte euros por la clase. — "he/she charges twenty euros for the lesson."

  • Progressive (right now): Él está cobrando veinte euros por la clase. — "he/she is charging twenty euros for the lesson."

Use the present when you talk about what you usually do, and the progressive when you want to stress that it is happening as you speak. If you say cobro every day, that is a routine. If you say Estoy cobrando, you are doing it at this moment.

Examples of cobrar in the present

Eight sentences in the present tense, so you can see the forms in real use. Read the Spanish first, guess the meaning, then check the translation.

  1. Cobro cien euros por la reparación. — "I charge a hundred euros for the repair."
  2. Mi hermana cobra el sueldo a fin de mes. — "My sister gets her salary at the end of the month."
  3. Ayer cobré veinte euros por la clase. — "Yesterday I charged twenty euros for the lesson."
  4. De joven, cobraba en efectivo por el trabajo. — "When I was young, I used to get paid in cash for the work."
  5. Mañana cobraré por el trabajo de esta semana. — "Tomorrow I will get paid for this week's work."
  6. Si pudiera, cobraría más por la reparación. — "If I could, I would charge more for the repair."
  7. Él cobra por el trabajo. — "he/she charges for the work."
  8. Nosotros cobramos todos los meses. — "we charge every month."

Common mistakes with cobrar in the present

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why it is wrong.

1. Yo cobra cien euros.

Wrong: Yo cobra cien euros.

Right: Yo cobro cien euros.

The yo form ends in -o: cobro. Cobra is the él/ella form.

2. Yo pago el sueldo a fin de mes.

Wrong: Yo pago el sueldo a fin de mes.

Right: Yo cobro el sueldo a fin de mes.

Cobrar means to receive or collect money, not to pay it. If you receive your salary, you cobras; the company paga. Pagar is to pay; cobrar is the opposite side of the same transaction.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

Wrong: Ayer yo cobro cien euros por la reparación.

Right: Ayer yo cobré cien euros por la reparación.

Ayer (yesterday) signals a finished action, so it needs the preterite: cobré. The present cobro describes what you do now or usually, not what you did yesterday.

4. Forgetting the accent on the vosotros form

Wrong: Vosotros cobrais cien euros por la reparación.

Right: Vosotros cobráis cien euros por la reparación.

The vosotros ending carries a written accent: cobráis. Without it, the spelling is wrong, even though the pronunciation is close.

Quiz: test yourself on cobrar in the present

Choose the right form for each sentence. The answers are at the end of this section, with an explanation for every question.

  1. Yo ___ cien euros por la reparación
    • a) cobro
    • b) cobras
    • c) cobra
    • d) cobramos
  2. Tú ___ por el trabajo a fin de mes
    • a) cobro
    • b) cobra
    • c) cobramos
    • d) cobras
  3. Él ___ veinte euros por la clase
    • a) cobras
    • b) cobramos
    • c) cobra
    • d) cobro
  4. Nosotros ___ en efectivo
    • a) cobra
    • b) cobramos
    • c) cobro
    • d) cobras
  5. Vosotros ___ por el trabajo
    • a) cobráis
    • b) cobro
    • c) cobras
    • d) cobra
  6. Ellos ___ todos los meses
    • a) cobro
    • b) cobras
    • c) cobra
    • d) cobran
  7. Yo ___ cien euros por la reparación
    • a) cobra
    • b) cobramos
    • c) cobro
    • d) cobras
  8. Tú ___ por el trabajo a fin de mes
    • a) cobramos
    • b) cobras
    • c) cobro
    • d) cobra

Answers

  1. a) cobro — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  2. d) cobras — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.
  3. c) cobra — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form, because the subject is él/ella/Ud..
  4. b) cobramos — The sentence needs the nosotros/as form, because the subject is nosotros/as.
  5. a) cobráis — The sentence needs the vosotros/as form, because the subject is vosotros/as.
  6. d) cobran — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form, because the subject is ellos/ellas/Uds..
  7. c) cobro — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  8. b) cobras — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.

Frequently asked questions about cobrar in the present

Does cobrar mean to charge or to get paid?

Both, and they are two sides of the same idea. Cobrar is receiving money: a worker cobra el sueldo (gets paid) and a shop cobra cien euros (charges a hundred euros). The subject tells you which.

Is cobrar regular?

Yes, cobrar is a regular -ar verb: cobro, cobras, cobra, cobramos, cobráis, cobran.

Is cobrar regular in the present?

Yes. cobrar is regular in the present: the six forms are the stem cobr- plus the regular endings, with no stem change. The only thing to watch is the written accent on the stressed endings, for example cobro.

What are the gerund and the past participle of cobrar?

The gerund is cobrando, used with estar for the progressive (estoy cobrando), and the past participle is cobrado, used with haber for the perfect tenses (he cobrado).

How to remember cobrar

Four small habits will fix cobrar in your memory. First, say the present tense out loud, in order, three times: cobro, cobras, cobra, cobramos, cobráis, cobran. Saying the forms is far more effective than reading them silently, because you hear the endings and the stem at the same time. Second, write three sentences about your own life: one about today with the present (cobro), one about yesterday with the preterite (cobré), and one about tomorrow with the future (cobraré). Personal sentences stick because they are about you, not about a textbook. Third, remember the difference from pagar: Cobrar is receiving money; pagar is paying it. El cliente paga cien euros y el mecánico cobra cien euros — the same money, seen from two sides. Finally, learn the two key forms by heart: the gerund cobrando and the past participle cobrado. With those two and the present tense, you can already build the progressive (estoy cobrando) and the present perfect (he cobrado), which covers most everyday conversation.

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