English has more than one way to talk about the future, and the choice between will and going to is the first one learners meet. The good news is that the choice follows two clear ideas, not a long list of exceptions.
Use will when you decide at the moment of speaking, or when you simply predict, promise, offer or refuse. Use going to when the plan already exists in your head, or when you can see the evidence now.
The two forms also share jobs, so some sentences accept both. This page separates the clear cases from the shared ones, shows the mistakes that come from translating your first language, and ends with a 20-question drill.
The rule
Will: decisions made now
- Form: will plus the base verb. I will call you. She will not wait. Will they come?
- Use will for a decision made at the moment of speaking: "The phone is ringing. I will get it."
- Use it for offers and promises: "I will help you", "I promise I will write."
- Use it for refusals: "The car will not start."
- The short form is usually written and spoken: I'll, you'll, she'll, we'll, they'll, won't.
Going to: plans and intentions
- Form: am, is or are plus going to plus the base verb. I am going to travel. They are not going to sell. Are you going to come?
- Use going to when the plan or intention already exists before you speak: "We are going to visit my parents on Sunday."
- The plan does not need to be fixed or booked. An intention counts: "I am going to learn Japanese."
- In speech, "going to" often becomes "gonna", but write the full form in essays and exams.
Predictions: opinion vs evidence
- Use will for a prediction based on opinion, knowledge or belief: "I think it will be a good film."
- Use going to for a prediction based on what you can see or hear now: "Look at those clouds. It is going to rain."
- Words like probably, maybe and I think go naturally with will: "It will probably be busy."
- Evidence words like look, smell, listen and watch out point to going to: "You are going to drop that glass."
Where both forms work
- For a general future fact, both forms are often fine: "The meeting will start at nine" and "The meeting is going to start at nine".
- Will is the safer choice for timetables and announcements: "The train will arrive at 8:15."
- Going to sounds more personal because it suggests a plan or a cause: "The train is going to be late — there is a signal problem."
- The real difference is not time. Both are future. The difference is why you say it.
Negative forms and questions
- Will negative: will not or won't plus the base verb. "She won't come."
- Going to negative: am, is or are plus not plus going to plus the base verb. "We are not going to wait."
- Will question: Will plus subject plus base verb. "Will you help me?"
- Going to question: am, is or are plus subject plus going to plus base verb. "Are you going to study tonight?"
Examples
- The doorbell is ringing. I will answer it.A decision made at the moment of speaking.
- We are going to move to a bigger flat next spring.The plan already exists. The decision was made before this conversation.
- I will always remember this trip.A promise or a strong personal statement about the future.
- Look at the sky! It is going to storm.The dark sky is the evidence, so going to fits.
- I think she will pass the exam.A prediction based on opinion, not on something visible.
- They are going to paint the kitchen this weekend.A plan or intention that came before the sentence.
- I will carry that bag for you.An offer made in the moment.
- She is not going to accept the job. She told me yesterday.The decision already exists, so the negative uses going to.
- Will you close the window, please?A polite request with will.
- It is going to be a long day. The list of meetings is huge.The prediction follows from evidence you can see.
Common mistakes
- Wrong: I will go to the dentist tomorrow because I booked it last week. Right: I am going to the dentist tomorrow because I booked it last week.
- A plan that already exists takes going to (or the present continuous). Will would suggest you are deciding now.
- Wrong: Look at those clouds! It will rain. Right: Look at those clouds! It is going to rain.
- The prediction comes from evidence you can see, and that is the job of going to.
- Wrong: I am going to help you — wait, no, I will change my mind. Right: I will help you.
- An offer made at the moment of speaking takes will. Going to suggests the plan existed earlier.
- Wrong: She will to call you later. Right: She will call you later.
- Will is a modal verb. It is followed by the base verb without to.
- Wrong: I am going to can swim next year. Right: I am going to learn to swim next year.
- Going to combines with an action verb, not with another modal. Use a main verb such as learn.
Practice drill
Answer all 20 questions. Each answer is marked at once, and the rule is explained under the question.
The phone is ringing. I ___ get it.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. will This is a decision made at the moment of speaking, so will is correct.
Look at those clouds! It ___ rain.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. is going to The prediction comes from evidence you can see now, and evidence points to going to.
We have the tickets. We ___ see a show on Friday.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. are going to The plan already exists because the tickets are bought, so going to fits.
I think our team ___ win the match.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. will I think introduces a prediction based on opinion, and opinion predictions take will.
She has made her decision. She ___ study medicine.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. is going to The decision already exists before she speaks about it, so going to is right.
Wait, I ___ help you with those bags.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. will An offer made in the moment of speaking takes will.
Watch out! You ___ drop that glass.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. are going to The prediction is based on what you can see right now, so use going to.
I promise I ___ call you every day.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. will A promise is made at the moment of speaking, and promises take will.
They ___ buy a house next year; they have started saving.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. are going to Saving money shows the plan already exists, so going to is the natural choice.
In 2050, cars ___ probably drive themselves.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. will This is a prediction about the distant future based on opinion, so will fits. Probably also goes naturally with will.
He ___ arrive late; he just texted that he is stuck in traffic.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. is going to The evidence is already in hand: the text message. Evidence-based predictions take going to.
I forgot my wallet. — Do not worry, I ___ pay.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. will The offer is decided at the moment of speaking, so will is correct.
What ___ do after university?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. are you going to The question asks about an existing plan or intention, so going to fits: are you going to.
The sky is very dark. It ___ snow tonight.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. is going to The dark sky is visible evidence, and evidence-based predictions take going to.
She ___ come to the party. She is working that evening.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. is not going to Her work schedule is a fact that makes the plan clear, so the negative uses going to.
We ___ get married in June. We booked the venue last month.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. are going to The arrangement and the booking show a plan that already exists, so going to is correct.
When I grow up, I ___ be an astronaut!
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. am going to This is a long-standing intention or plan, so going to is the natural choice.
Do not worry about dinner. I ___ cook tonight.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. will The offer is made at the moment of speaking, so will is correct.
I think the planet ___ get hotter in the next fifty years.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. will I think signals a prediction based on opinion, and opinion predictions take will.
___ you going to apply for the job?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. Are The going to question needs are before you: Are you going to apply?
Drill complete
You answered every question.
Next topic: Present continuous for the futureTake the level test
Questions learners ask
Is there a real difference between will and going to?
For many future sentences they overlap, and native speakers switch between them. The reliable difference is the source of the statement. Will comes from the moment of speaking: a decision now, an offer, a promise, a belief. Going to comes from before the moment of speaking: a plan, or evidence you can already see. Choose by asking "where does this idea come from?".
Can I use the present continuous for the future too?
Yes. The present continuous describes fixed arrangements, especially social ones: "I am meeting Anna at six." It is more fixed than going to. A plan is "I am going to meet Anna soon"; an arrangement with a time and place is "I am meeting Anna at six tomorrow." The topic has its own page on this site.
What about "shall" and "be about to"?
Shall is mostly old-fashioned in modern English, but it still works in offers and suggestions: "Shall I open the window?" Be about to means the action happens in the next few moments: "The film is about to start." Neither form changes the will and going to rules on this page.
More grammar topics
Present continuous for the future
Fixed plans with a time and a place: why "I am meeting Anna at six" sounds more certain than "I will meet Anna".
Future time clauses: when, before, after, until
When, before, after, as soon as and until take the present, even when the meaning is future.
Future continuous
Will be plus -ing: the action in progress at a future moment, and the polite way to ask about plans.
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