How to Say ‘By’ in Spanish: Por, Para, En or Junto a?

Hola! I’m Mónica, a Spanish teacher from Madrid. “By” is a tiny English word with lots of jobs, and in Spanish each job has its own word. Learn the table and you’ll never get stuck on it again.

Every way to say “by” in Spanish

Meaning of “by”	Spanish	Example
Who did it (passive)	por	Written by Cervantes → Escrito por Cervantes
How (by phone, by email)	por	I’ll tell you by email → Te lo digo por email
Transport	en	By train / by car → En tren / en coche
On foot	a pie	I go on foot → Voy a pie (or: voy andando)
Deadline	para / antes de	By Friday → Para el viernes
Next to	junto a / al lado de	By the window → Junto a la ventana
Passing by / through	por	I’ll come by your house → Paso por tu casa
Measurements, multiplying	por	3 by 4 metres → 3 por 4 metros
Per unit (by the hour)	por	Paid by the hour → Pagado por horas
One after another	a / por	One by one → Uno a uno / uno por uno

The 3 “by” mistakes English speakers make

1. “By Friday” is not “por el viernes”

Por el viernes sounds like “around Friday”. For a deadline, say para el viernes or antes del viernes: Necesito el informe para el viernes (I need the report by Friday).

2. “By car” is not “por coche”

With transport we use en: en coche, en tren, en avión, en metro, en bici. The exception: a pie (on foot) and a caballo (on horseback).

3. “By myself” is not “por mí mismo” (most of the time)

If it means “alone”, say solo / sola: Vivo solo (I live by myself). If it means “without help”, say yo solo or por mi cuenta: Lo hice yo sola (I did it by myself).

Expressions with “by” (and how we say them in Spain)

English	Spanish
By the way	Por cierto
By chance	Por casualidad
By heart	De memoria
By far	Con diferencia
Little by little	Poco a poco
Day by day	Día a día
By mistake	Por error / sin querer
By now	Ya (Ya debe de estar en casa → He must be home by now)
Bye-bye!	¡Adiós! / ¡Hasta luego! (in Spain we say hasta luego even if we’ll never see you again)

FAQ

Is “by” por or para?

Mostly por. Para only when “by” means a deadline (by tomorrow → para mañana).

How do you say “made by” in Spanish?

Hecho por (made by a person) or fabricado por (manufactured by a company). “Made in Spain” is hecho en España.

How do you say “a book by” an author?

We use de: un libro de Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Por appears with the verb: escrito por.

How do you say “Spanish” in Spanish, by the way?

Español, or castellano. Here’s the difference.

Knowing the rule isn’t the same as saying it

You can memorise this table in ten minutes. Choosing por, para or en in the middle of a real conversation is a different skill, and that’s the one we train in my classes. If you want to find out what’s really stopping you from speaking, book your Spanish Speaking Roadmap call below.

— Monica Bernabe Perez

Live in Australia? Practise real Spanish with me, a native teacher from Madrid and DELE examiner: Spanish classes in Sydney, Spanish lessons in Adelaide or Spanish classes in Perth.