Until next time in French is naturally expressed as À la prochaine! It means “See you next time!” and works when you expect another meeting without naming an exact day. A fuller expression is À la prochaine fois, while À bientôt means “See you soon.” The best choice depends on what you know about the next meeting and how formal the situation is.
Quick answer:
Until next time = À la prochaine! Pronounce it approximately “ah lah proh-shen.” It is a friendly way to end a conversation when you expect to see or hear from someone again.
How Do You Say Until Next Time in French?
À la prochaine! is a useful everyday equivalent of “Until next time!” or “See you next time!” It leaves the timing open. You might say it after a friendly conversation, at the end of a recurring class, or when leaving people you are likely to meet again.
Use: A friendly farewell without a specific date.
The expression looks incomplete if you translate every word literally, because prochaine is an adjective meaning “next.” The idea of the next occasion or meeting is understood. French greetings and farewells often use compact expressions like this, rather than a full sentence matching English word for word.
If you are ending a very formal letter, choose a closing suited to the correspondence rather than automatically using this conversational farewell. À la prochaine is especially useful when the relationship and situation allow a friendly tone.
Different Ways to Say See You Again
1. À la Prochaine — Until Next Time
À la prochaine is short and flexible. It suggests that there will be another occasion, but does not promise that it will be soon or specify a date. The exact English translation may be “Until next time,” “See you next time,” or simply “See you,” depending on the conversation.
You can combine it with a thank-you: Merci et à la prochaine! — “Thanks, and see you next time!” This is useful after a pleasant shared activity. Keep the whole phrase light and natural rather than stressing every individual word.
2. À la Prochaine Fois — Until the Next Time
À la prochaine fois makes the idea of “the next time” explicit. Fois is the noun for an occasion or instance. The shorter À la prochaine is often enough, so you do not need to add fois each time you say goodbye.
Compare this farewell with la prochaine fois inside a sentence: La prochaine fois, je viendrai plus tôt means “Next time, I will come earlier.” Here the phrase introduces when something will happen, rather than functioning as a goodbye.
3. À Bientôt — See You Soon
À bientôt means “See you soon.” It expresses an expectation or wish that you will meet again before too long. It can fit many friendly and polite situations. The word bientôt means “soon” and has a circumflex accent on the o.
If no next meeting has been arranged, À bientôt may still be a warm farewell rather than a precise commitment. However, it emphasizes “soon” more directly than À la prochaine. Choose the meaning that suits the conversation.
4. À Demain — See You Tomorrow
À demain means “See you tomorrow.” Use it when tomorrow is the intended next meeting. If the next meeting is Monday, say À lundi. For another weekday, replace the day name: À vendredi, “See you Friday.”
À tout à l’heure is useful when you expect to see someone again later the same day. These expressions are more specific than “until next time.” They let the listener know when you expect the next contact.
Until Next Time: Quick Comparison
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| French farewell | English meaning | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| À la prochaine ! | Until next time! | A friendly farewell with open timing |
| À la prochaine fois ! | Until the next time! | An explicit version of the same idea |
| À bientôt ! | See you soon! | A warm expectation of another meeting soon |
| À demain ! | See you tomorrow! | The next meeting is tomorrow |
| À lundi ! | See you Monday! | A particular weekday is understood |
| À tout à l’heure ! | See you later! | Another meeting later the same day |
| Au revoir ! | Goodbye! | A broadly useful polite farewell |
| Salut ! | Bye! / Hi! | An informal relationship |
How to Pronounce À la Prochaine
À la prochaine is approximately ah lah proh-shen. The ch in prochaine sounds like English sh, not the ch in “chair.” The French r is made toward the back of the mouth rather than with a strong English-style r.
The end of prochaine has a clear n sound. It is not pronounced like the masculine adjective prochain, whose ending has a nasal vowel. In ordinary speech, the final written e of prochaine is generally not a separate full syllable.
For fois, the letters oi make a sound close to wah, and the final s is normally silent when the word is said on its own in this expression. Practice the short farewell first, then add fois if you want the fuller version.
Understanding La Prochaine
Prochain has masculine and feminine forms: prochain and prochaine. In the farewell, use la prochaine, not le prochain. The understood idea is a feminine occasion such as fois or rencontre.
Do not change the expression according to the gender of the person you are addressing. You say À la prochaine to a man, a woman, or a group. The adjective relates to the next occasion, rather than describing the listener.
The accent in À matters in writing. À is a preposition, while unaccented a is a form of avoir, “to have.” At the beginning of a sentence, keep the accent even when using a capital letter.
Choosing the Right Goodbye
Start with how much you know about the next meeting. If the timing is open, À la prochaine is a friendly choice. If you expect tomorrow, À demain is clearer. If you simply want a broadly useful polite goodbye, Au revoir works without naming a next occasion. For the related distinction between a daytime greeting and a parting wish, compare Bonjour and Bon après-midi.
- After a recurring class: Merci, à la prochaine! — Thanks, see you next time!
- Before a planned meeting tomorrow: À demain! — See you tomorrow!
- When leaving a friend: Salut, à bientôt! — Bye, see you soon!
- When returning later that day: À tout à l’heure! — See you later!
- At the end of a polite everyday interaction: Au revoir! — Goodbye!
The words do not need to carry every detail of the relationship by themselves. Tone, setting, and the conversation before the farewell all matter. If you have just arranged a precise date, referring to that date is often the clearest ending.
In a recurring video or lesson, À la prochaine can also address an audience. It suggests that the speaker and audience will meet again in the next installment. This use does not require each person to have a personal appointment with the speaker.
Example Sentences
These examples show the farewell alone and in a longer closing. Notice that the phrase stays the same regardless of whom the speaker addresses.
Use: Votre keeps the thank-you polite. The final farewell gives the closing a friendly tone.
Use: A natural friendly ending after a shared activity or conversation.
Use: When the next meeting is specified, à demain gives more precise information than à la prochaine.
Common Mistakes
Do not translate “until” mechanically as jusqu’à when you want this everyday farewell. Jusqu’à la prochaine fois can occur in a fuller sentence about a period lasting until the next occasion, but À la prochaine is the useful compact goodbye to learn.
Do not switch to le prochain because the listener is male. Keep the feminine form in this expression. Also distinguish la prochaine fois, “next time,” inside a sentence from the farewell beginning with À. Finally, use a time-specific expression only when its timing fits the situation.
Frequently Asked Questions About Until Next Time in French
Tap a question below to see the answer.
How do you say until next time in French?
A natural everyday expression is À la prochaine! It means “Until next time!” or “See you next time!” and leaves the timing open.
Can I say À la prochaine fois?
Yes. It makes “the next time” explicit. The shorter À la prochaine is often enough as a conversational farewell.
Is À la prochaine different from À bientôt?
Yes. À bientôt emphasizes seeing someone soon. À la prochaine points to the next occasion without specifying how soon it will be.
Does prochaine change when speaking to a man?
No. Keep la prochaine. It refers to the next occasion or meeting, rather than describing the person you are addressing.
How do I say see you tomorrow?
Say À demain! If you name another day, use that weekday, such as À lundi!, “See you Monday!”
Can I use jusqu’à la prochaine fois as a goodbye?
For the ordinary compact farewell, learn À la prochaine! A phrase beginning with jusqu’à can express a period lasting until the next occasion in a fuller sentence, which is a different structure.
Summary
Until next time in French is naturally À la prochaine! Use it as a friendly farewell when another meeting is expected but its exact timing is not the main point. The feminine form stays the same regardless of the listener.
Choose À bientôt for “See you soon,” À demain for “See you tomorrow,” or Au revoir for a broadly useful goodbye. Matching the farewell to the next occasion makes the ending clear and natural.
