Connaître vs Savoir

Both connaître and savoir translate as “to know” in English, but they are used in very different ways. The key difference is what kind of “knowing” you’re talking about.

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1. Connaître vs Savoir – The Big Difference

Verb	Used for	Think of it as
connaître	people, places, things	familiarity
savoir	facts, information, skills	knowledge

If you know, or if you’re familiar with a person, a place, or thing, use connaître.

If you know a fact, some information, or how to do something, use savoir.

2. Connaître – To be familiar with

Use connaître with nouns (never a verb).

People

Je connais Marie.
I know Marie. (I’ve met her.)
Nous connaissons bien ce professeur.
We know this teacher well. (We’ve met him.)

Places

Il connaît Paris.
He knows Paris. (He’s been there.)
Tu connais ce restaurant?
Do you know this restaurant? (Have you been there?)

Things / concepts

Je connais ce livre.
I’m familiar with this book. (I’ve read it.)
Elle connaît la vérité.
She knows the truth. (she’s familiar with it.)

If you can replace “know” with “be familiar with” in English, connaître is usually the right choice.

3. Savoir – To know a fact or information

Use savoir when talking about knowledge, information, or certainty.

Facts

Je sais la réponse.
I know the answer. (I know information.)
Il sait où elle habite.
He knows where she lives. (He knows a fact.)
Nous savons que c’est difficile.
We know that it’s difficult. (We know this information.)

Questions and clauses

Tu sais pourquoi il est en retard?
Do you know why he’s late? (Do you know this information?)
Je ne sais pas si elle viendra.
I don’t know if she’ll come. (I don’t know this information.)

Savoir is very often followed by:

a question word (où, quand, pourquoi, comment…)
que, si, or ce que

4. Savoir + infinitive – Knowing how to do something

This is a big one for English speakers.

Use savoir (not connaître!) when you mean “to know how to” do something.

Je sais conduire.
I know how to drive.
Elle sait nager.
She knows how to swim.
Tu sais faire un gâteau?
Do you know how to make a cake?

5. Common tricky contrasts

Here are some pairs that really show the difference:

Je connais le film. (I’ve seen it / I’m familiar with it.)
Je sais que le film est long. (I know as a fact that the movie is long.)

Je connais Paris.
I’m familiar with Paris (because I’ve been there).
Je sais que Paris est la capitale de la France.
I know that Paris is the capital of France. (information)

Je sais son numéro, mais je ne le connais pas par cœur.
I know his number, but I don’t know it by heart.
Use connaître when you know something by heart, you are completely familiar with it.