Future Tenses in English: Will, Going To, and Four More Ways
Every future form places the event at the same point in time. What separates them is why you believe it will happen: a decision made as you speak takes will, an intention formed earlier takes be going to, a fixed arrangement takes the present continuous, and a published schedule takes the present simple. Choose by evidence, not by date.
The quick answer
English gives you several ways to describe the same future moment, and the grammar does not choose between them — your reason for saying it does. Ask what is behind the statement: a decision you are making right now, a plan you already had, an arrangement in a diary, a timetable someone published, or evidence sitting in front of you.
- I'll send it this afternoon. — decided as I speak.
- I'm going to send it this afternoon. — I had already decided.
- I'm sending it at four. — arranged, probably with someone else.
- The report goes out at four. — that is the published schedule.
All four sentences point at the same afternoon. None of them is more future than the others, which is why trying to rank them by time never works.
The six forms at a glance
| Form | Use it when | Example |
|---|---|---|
| will + base verb | deciding as you speak, predicting from opinion, promising, offering | I will call the supplier. |
| be going to + base verb | the intention existed before you spoke, or evidence is visible now | We are going to open a second branch. |
| present continuous | a fixed arrangement, usually involving other people | I am meeting the auditors on Thursday. |
| present simple | a timetable or published schedule | The flight leaves at 7:15. |
| future continuous (will be + -ing) | an action already in progress at a future moment | At ten tomorrow I will be presenting. |
| future perfect (will have + past participle) | finished before a future point, usually marked by by | By March we will have completed the audit. |
Two more are worth knowing because they appear in business writing: be about to for something on the point of happening, and be due to for something scheduled or expected. For how these sit inside the wider system, see the 12 English tenses with a chart and formulas.
Will or be going to: the one that actually causes errors
Both can predict, and that overlap is why learners treat them as interchangeable. They are not. The difference is where the prediction comes from.
- Evidence you can point at now takes be going to: “Look at these figures — we are going to miss the target.”
- Opinion or belief with no visible evidence takes will: “I think we will miss the target.”
- A decision formed before this conversation takes be going to: “We are going to hire two more analysts.”
- A decision formed during this conversation takes will: “Fine, I will hire two more analysts.”
A quick test for the second pair: if the sentence could sensibly start with “I've thought about it and…”, be going to fits. If it could start with “All right, then…”, will fits.
Arrangements and timetables
The present continuous and the present simple both describe the future, and the split between them is reliable. The present continuous is for arrangements a person made; the present simple is for schedules an organisation published.
- I am seeing the client on Monday. — in my calendar, agreed with the client.
- The training starts on Monday. — on the company's schedule, not mine.
- We are launching in April. — the team arranged it.
- The conference opens in April. — the organisers set the date.
If a timetable, departure board, agenda or programme could be shown as proof, the present simple is right. If the proof would be a diary entry or an email thread, use the present continuous.
Future continuous and future perfect
These two answer different questions about a future moment. The future continuous says the action will already be running; the future perfect says it will already be over.
- At nine tomorrow I will be reviewing the contract. — in the middle of it at nine.
- By nine tomorrow I will have reviewed the contract. — finished before nine.
- By June the system will have been running for two years. — the future perfect continuous, measuring duration up to a future point.
The word by is the strongest signal in this group. By a future point almost always calls for the future perfect, in the same way that since calls for the present perfect — a pattern covered in present perfect vs past simple.
Why “when I will arrive” is wrong
After when, as soon as, until, before, after, once and by the time, English uses a present form for future meaning. The main clause keeps will; the time clause does not.
- I will call you when I arrive. — not when I will arrive.
- We will ship it as soon as the payment clears. — not will clear.
- Wait here until the technician finishes. — not will finish.
- By the time the audit starts, we will have filed everything. — present in the time clause, future perfect in the main clause.
The rule is mechanical and therefore easy to test, which is exactly why sentence-completion items like it. Reference: British Council on talking about the future.
This applies only when the clause is about time. When introduces a question in “I don't know when he will arrive”, and there will stays, because that clause reports a question rather than setting a time.
Six sentences to work through
- The flight ___ (leave) at 7:15 tomorrow. → **leaves**. A timetable takes the present simple.
- I'm sure the client ___ (like) the new design. → **will like**. Opinion, no visible evidence.
- Look at these figures — we ___ (miss) the target. → **are going to miss**. Evidence in front of you.
- I ___ (meet) the auditors at ten on Thursday; it is in my calendar. → **am meeting**. A fixed arrangement.
- By the end of March the team ___ (complete) all three audits. → **will have completed**. By plus a future point.
- Please call me as soon as the shipment ___ (arrive). → **arrives**. A time clause takes no will.
If you missed item 6, that one rule is worth more marks than the rest of this page combined, because it is the only item here that a native speaker's instinct also gets wrong when writing quickly.
Where this shows up on the TOEIC
Sentence-completion items hide the deciding word somewhere other than the blank: a by, an as soon as, a this afternoon, or a sentence that mentions a schedule. Find that word first, then read the options.
The same scan handles neighbouring question types. See verb forms and the words that decide them and the full routine in TOEIC Part 5 tips.
Frequently asked questions
Is “will” wrong for talking about plans?
- It is not wrong, but it usually sounds like the decision is being made as you speak. For a plan you already had, be going to or the present continuous fits better. “I will book the room” offers to do it now; “I am booking the room” says it is already arranged.
Why is “when I will arrive” wrong?
- Because a time clause introduced by when, as soon as, until, before or after takes a present form even though it refers to the future. The future meaning is carried by the main clause: “I will call you when I arrive.”
Can the present simple talk about the future?
- Yes, for timetables and published schedules: “The flight leaves at 7:15”, “The course starts in May.” It is the organisation's schedule rather than the speaker's plan, which is what separates it from the present continuous.
What is the difference between “be going to” and “be about to”?
- Be about to means the event is on the point of happening, within seconds or minutes, and does not take a time expression: “The meeting is about to start.” Be going to covers any future distance and happily takes one: “We are going to review it next quarter.”
Is “shall” still used for the future?
- Rarely as a plain future in modern business English, where will has taken over. It survives in offers and suggestions with I and we — “Shall I send the draft?” — and in legal or contractual writing, where shall expresses an obligation rather than a prediction.
What does “I will be working” add that “I will work” does not?
- It says the action will already be in progress at that moment rather than starting then. “At ten I will be working on the budget” places you mid-task at ten; “At ten I will work on the budget” sounds like ten is when you begin.