Costar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of costar — "to cost" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for costar with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. 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. To see it in a real sentence: El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros".
Present tense conjugation table: costar
Every person of costar in the present tense. The gerund is costando and the past participle is costado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cuesto |
| tú | cuestas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cuesta |
| nosotros/as | costamos |
| vosotros/as | costáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cuestan |
How the present of costar is formed
The present of costar is built from the stem cost- plus the present endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | cuesto |
| tú | -as | cuestas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | cuesta |
| nosotros/as | -amos | costamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | costáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | cuestan |
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. costar agrees with the thing, not with the buyer: el libro cuesta diez euros, las entradas cuestan quince euros.
The gerund of costar is costando and the past participle is costado. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of costar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and costar appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
Habits and routines
The present describes things that happen regularly, as a habit or routine.
"Cada día, el libro cuesta diez euros" — "Every day, the book costs ten euros"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"El curso de español cuesta ciento veinte euros" — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros" — "Right now, the museum tickets cost fifteen euros"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, el billete de tren cuesta veinte euros" — "Tomorrow, the train ticket costs twenty euros"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"La cena en ese restaurante cuesta treinta euros" — "Dinner at that restaurant costs thirty euros"
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: {'pre_es': 'Cada día, ', 'pre_en': 'Every day, '}el libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}el libro costó diez euros — "The book cost ten euros"
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add "used to" in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: {}el curso de español cuesta ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}el curso de español costaba ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course used to cost a hundred and twenty euros"
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros — "The museum tickets cost fifteen euros"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}las entradas al museo costarán quince euros — "The museum tickets will cost fifteen euros"
Examples: costar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show costar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros"
- El curso de español cuesta ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
- Las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros — "The museum tickets cost fifteen euros"
- El billete de tren cuesta veinte euros — "The train ticket costs twenty euros"
- La cena en ese restaurante cuesta treinta euros — "Dinner at that restaurant costs thirty euros"
- El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros"
- El curso de español cuesta ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros"
Common mistakes with costar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with costar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo costo el libro.
✓ Correct: Yo cuesto el libro.
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.
✗ *Tú cuesta el curso de español.
✓ Correct: Tú cuestas el curso de español.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes cuestas, él takes cuesta.
✗ *Cada día, las entradas al museo costaron quince euros
✓ Correct: Cada día, las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *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.
Quiz: costar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of costar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of costar for tú? A. cuestas B. cuesto C. cuesta D. costamos
Complete the sentence: El libro ______ diez euros — "The book costs ten euros" (present) A. cuestan B. costó C. costaron D. cuesta
Complete the sentence: El curso de español ______ ciento veinte euros — "The Spanish course costs a hundred and twenty euros" (present) A. costó B. costaron C. cuesta D. cuestan
Which is the correct present form of costar for nosotros? A. cuestas B. cuesta C. cuestan D. costamos
Which sentence uses costar correctly in the present? A. Las entradas al museo costarán quince euros B. Las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros C. Las entradas al museo cuesta quince euros. D. Las entradas al museo costaban quince euros
Complete the sentence: El billete de tren ______ veinte euros — "The train ticket costs twenty euros" (present) A. costó B. costaron C. cuesta D. cuestan
Complete the sentence: La cena en ese restaurante ______ treinta euros — "Dinner at that restaurant costs thirty euros" (present) A. cuestan B. costó C. costaron D. cuesta
What is the gerund of costar? A. cuesto B. costé C. costando D. costado
Answer key
- cuestas — The tú form in the present is cuestas.
- cuesta — The present form is cuesta.
- cuesta — The present form is cuesta.
- costamos — The nosotros form in the present is costamos.
- Las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros — Las entradas al museo cuestan quince euros is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- cuesta — The present form is cuesta.
- cuesta — The present form is cuesta.
- costando — The gerund is costando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle costado.
Frequently asked questions
Is costar regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: 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. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of costar?
The gerund is costando and the past participle is costado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I cost" in the present tense?
Say cuesto. For example: El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of costar?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: El libro cuesta diez euros — "The book costs ten euros". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, el libro costó diez euros — "Yesterday, the book cost ten euros". Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once.
Related links
- Full conjugation of costar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- costar examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.