Costar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

costar means "to cost" in English, and this page shows you how it actually sounds in everyday Spanish — not just the conjugation table, but the verb in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make with it. Costar describes a price, and the price is the subject of the English sentence but not of the Spanish one: el libro cuesta diez euros. The verb agrees with the thing, not with the buyer — el libro cuesta, las entradas cuestan. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by use, two short dialogues, the most common mistakes with corrections, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. If you want the full tables first, start with the full conjugation of costar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the costar present tense page.

costar in everyday use: examples with translations

Everyday present uses

How the verb sounds in the present, the future and in hypotheticals — the forms you will use most often.

  1. El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros"
  2. El curso de español cuesta ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
  3. Mañana, las entradas al museo costarán quince euros — "Tomorrow, the museum tickets will cost fifteen euros"
  4. El billete de tren costaría veinte euros si pudiera — "The train ticket would cost twenty euros if I could"

Talking about the past

The same verb in the past: one finished action, a habit, something that has just happened, and something that had already happened.

  1. Ayer, el libro costó diez euros — "Yesterday, the book cost ten euros"
  2. Antes, el curso de español costaba ciento veinte euros — "Before, the Spanish course used to cost a hundred and twenty euros"
  3. Las entradas al museo han costado quince euros — "The museum tickets have cost fifteen euros"
  4. El billete de tren ya había costado veinte euros antes de salir — "The train ticket had already cost twenty euros before leaving"

Wishes, conditions and commands

The verb after espero que, in si clauses, as a command — and in the conditional perfect, for what would have happened.

  1. Espero que el libro cueste diez euros — "I hope the book costs ten euros"
  2. Si el curso de español costara ciento veinte euros, todo cambiaría — "If the Spanish course cost a hundred and twenty euros, everything would change"
  3. ¡Que cueste quince euros! — "I hope it cost fifteen euros!"
  4. El billete de tren habría costado veinte euros con más tiempo — "The train ticket would have cost twenty euros with more time"

costar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use costar the way people really speak it. Notice how the verb changes with the person, and how the same verb fits different situations.

Two friends talk about it.

  • Lucía: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Lucía: El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros"
  • Marcos: El curso de español cuesta ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
  • Lucía: Ayer, las entradas al museo costaron quince euros — "Yesterday, the museum tickets cost fifteen euros"
  • Marcos: Mañana, el billete de tren costará veinte euros — "Tomorrow, the train ticket will cost twenty euros"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: ¡Que cueste treinta euros! — "I hope it costs thirty euros!"
  • Lucía: El libro ha costado diez euros — "The book has cost ten euros"
  • Marcos: Espero que el curso de español cueste ciento veinte euros — "I hope the Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
  • Lucía: Antes, las entradas al museo costaban quince euros — "Before, the museum tickets used to cost fifteen euros"

Common mistakes with costar

The errors learners actually make with costar, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.

✗ *Yo cuesto diez euros.

✓ Correct: El libro cuesta diez euros.

Costar agrees with the thing, not with the buyer: el libro cuesta diez euros, las entradas cuestan quince euros.

✗ *Las entradas al museo cuesta quince euros.

✓ Correct: Las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros.

Costar agrees with the thing: las entradas is plural, so it is cuestan, not cuesta.

✗ *Yo costo el billete de tren.

✓ Correct: Yo cuesto el billete de tren.

costar is a stem-changing verb (o → ue): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is cuesto, not costo.

✗ *Espero que el billete de tren cuesta veinte euros

✓ Correct: Espero que el billete de tren cueste veinte euros

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que el billete de tren cueste veinte euros — not the indicative Espero que el billete de tren cuesta veinte euros.

✗ *Ayer, la cena en ese restaurante cuesta treinta euros

✓ Correct: Ayer, la cena en ese restaurante costó treinta euros

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, la cena en ese restaurante costó treinta euros.

Quiz: costar in use

Ten questions on costar — its forms, its tenses and its everyday use. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below, where every answer is explained.

  1. Complete the sentence: El libro ______ diez euros — "The book costs ten euros" (present) A. cuestan B. costó C. costaron D. cuesta

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, el curso de español ______ ciento veinte euros — "Yesterday, the Spanish course cost a hundred and twenty euros" (preterite) A. costaron B. costaba C. costaban D. costó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, las entradas al museo ______ quince euros — "Before, the museum tickets used to cost fifteen euros" (imperfect) A. costaban B. costaba C. costaron D. costó

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, el billete de tren ______ veinte euros — "Tomorrow, the train ticket will cost twenty euros" (future) A. costarán B. costó C. costaron D. costará

  5. Complete the sentence: La cena en ese restaurante ______ treinta euros — "Dinner at that restaurant would cost thirty euros" (conditional) A. costaría B. costarían C. costó D. costaron

  6. Complete the sentence: El libro ______ diez euros — "The book has cost ten euros" (present perfect) A. costaron B. ha costado C. han costado D. costó

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que el curso de español ______ ciento veinte euros — "I hope the Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros" (present subjunctive) A. costó B. costaron C. cueste D. cuesten

  8. Complete the sentence: Si las entradas al museo ______ quince euros, todo cambiaría — "If the museum tickets cost fifteen euros, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. costaran B. costara C. costaron D. costó

  9. Which is the gerund of costar, used with estar for the progressive? A. cuesto B. costé C. costando D. costado

  10. What does costar mean in English? A. to cost B. to be worth C. to enjoy D. to cross

Answer key

  1. cuesta — The present form is cuesta.
  2. costó — The preterite form is costó.
  3. costaban — The imperfect form is costaban.
  4. costará — The future form is costará.
  5. costaría — The conditional form is costaría.
  6. ha costado — The present perfect form is ha costado.
  7. cueste — The present subjunctive form is cueste.
  8. costaran — The imperfect subjunctive form is costaran.
  9. costando — The gerund of costar is costando: estoy costando. The participle costado is used with haber instead.
  10. to cost — costar means to cost.

Frequently asked questions

What does costar mean in English?

costar means to cost. For example: El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with costar?

Costar takes no preposition: the thing and its price, as in el libro cuesta diez euros. The verb agrees with the thing, not with the buyer.

Is costar regular?

No. costar is a stem-changing -ar verb (o → ue). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: cuesto, cuestas, cuesta and cuestan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: costamos, costáis.

How do I practise costar?

Start with the present tense table on the full conjugation page, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure, and come back to the sentences above until you can say them without looking.

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