Ayudar Conjugation | How to Conjugate Ayudar in Spanish

Ayudar means “to help.” You will learn its regular -AR conjugation across the main systems, its commands and compound forms, and the common ayudar a + infinitive pattern.

Ayudar conjugation at a glance

Ayudar is the approved lesson verb for this page. Its project type is Regular AR. Linguistically, its core verbal endings follow the regular -AR pattern; the notes below explain the usage features that matter for this specific verb.

• ayudar — to help
• Verb type: Regular AR
• Key point: the stem remains stable in the core simple paradigms and the non-finite forms are regular.

Ayudar gerund, past participle, and infinitive

These non-finite forms support the progressive and compound systems. The infinitive names the verb, the gerund is used in progressive constructions, and the past participle combines with haber in compound forms.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	ayudar	to help
Gerund	ayudando	helping
Past participle	ayudado	helped

Ayudar meaning and essential uses

Ayudar means to give assistance or support. It can take a person as its object, and ayudar a + infinitive is a very common pattern for helping someone do something.

• Ayudo a mi vecino. — I help my neighbor.
• Ella me ayuda a estudiar. — She helps me study.

Ayudar conjugation pattern

Ayudar is a regular -AR verb. The stem ayud- remains stable and takes the standard -AR endings. The gerund ayudando and participle ayudado are regular.

No stem change, irregular yo form, irregular preterite stem, irregular future stem, irregular gerund, or irregular participle affects this verb. Written accents follow the standard regular -AR paradigm.

Ayudar indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Ayudar present tense conjugation

This system is the present indicative; its Spanish label is El presente de indicativo. Use the present for current actions, routines, general facts, and contextually near-future events. Form it with the regular -AR present endings attached to the verb stem.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudo	I help
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudas	you help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayuda	he / she helps; you (formal) help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudamos	we help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudáis	you (plural) help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudan	they / you (plural) help

• Ayudo a mi hermana con la tarea. — I help my sister with her homework.

Ayudar preterite conjugation

This system is the preterite; its Spanish label is El pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido. Use the preterite for completed or bounded past events. Form it with the regular -AR preterite endings. The written accents distinguish several key forms.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudé	I helped
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudaste	you helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayudó	he / she / you (formal) helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudamos	we helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudasteis	you (plural) helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudaron	they / you (plural) helped

• Nos ayudaron ayer. — They helped us yesterday.

Ayudar imperfect conjugation

This system is the imperfect; its Spanish label is El pretérito imperfecto. Use the imperfect for habitual, background, descriptive, or ongoing past situations. Form it with the regular -AR imperfect endings built on -aba-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudaba	I used to help
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudabas	you used to help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayudaba	he / she / you (formal) used to help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudábamos	we used to help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudabais	you (plural) used to help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudaban	they / you (plural) used to help

• Mi abuelo siempre ayudaba a sus vecinos. — My grandfather always used to help his neighbors.

Ayudar present progressive

This system is the present progressive; its Spanish label is El presente progresivo. Use the present progressive for an action genuinely in progress around the moment of speaking. This is a verbal periphrasis formed with the present of estar plus the gerund of the target verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	estoy ayudando	I am helping
Tú — you, singular informal	estás ayudando	you are helping
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	está ayudando	he / she is helping; you (formal) are helping
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	estamos ayudando	we are helping
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	estáis ayudando	you (plural) are helping
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	están ayudando	they / you (plural) are helping

• Estoy ayudando a un cliente ahora. — I am helping a customer now.

Ayudar near future conjugation

This system is the near future; its Spanish label is Ir a + infinitive. Use the near future for plans, intentions, or events presented as about to happen. This is a verbal periphrasis formed with the present of ir, a, and the infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	voy a ayudar	I am going to help
Tú — you, singular informal	vas a ayudar	you are going to help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	va a ayudar	he / she is going to help; you (formal) are going to help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	vamos a ayudar	we are going to help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	vais a ayudar	you (plural) are going to help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	van a ayudar	they / you (plural) are going to help

• Vamos a ayudar con la mudanza. — We are going to help with the move.

Ayudar future tense conjugation

This system is the simple future; its Spanish label is El futuro simple. Use the simple future for future events and, in suitable contexts, probability or conjecture. Form it by adding the future endings directly to the complete infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudaré	I will help
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudarás	you will help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayudará	he / she / you (formal) will help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudaremos	we will help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudaréis	you (plural) will help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudarán	they / you (plural) will help

• Te ayudaré mañana. — I will help you tomorrow.

Ayudar conditional conjugation

This system is the conditional; its Spanish label is El condicional simple. Use the conditional for hypothetical results, polite softening, and other context-dependent possibilities. Form it by adding the conditional endings directly to the complete infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudaría	I would help
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudarías	you would help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayudaría	he / she / you (formal) would help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudaríamos	we would help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudaríais	you (plural) would help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudarían	they / you (plural) would help

• Ayudaría si pudiera. — I would help if I could.

Ayudar present perfect conjugation

This system is the present perfect; its Spanish label is El pretérito perfecto compuesto. Use the present perfect for a past event connected to the present. Its frequency and distribution vary across Spanish-speaking regions. Form it with the present of haber plus the invariant past participle.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	he ayudado	I have helped
Tú — you, singular informal	has ayudado	you have helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ha ayudado	he / she has helped; you (formal) have helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hemos ayudado	we have helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habéis ayudado	you (plural) have helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	han ayudado	they / you (plural) have helped

• He ayudado mucho esta semana. — I have helped a lot this week.

Ayudar past perfect conjugation

This system is the past perfect / pluperfect; its Spanish label is El pretérito pluscuamperfecto. Use the past perfect for an event completed before another past reference point. Form it with the imperfect of haber plus the invariant past participle.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	había ayudado	I had helped
Tú — you, singular informal	habías ayudado	you had helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	había ayudado	he / she / you (formal) had helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habíamos ayudado	we had helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habíais ayudado	you (plural) had helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habían ayudado	they / you (plural) had helped

• Ya habían ayudado antes de nuestra llegada. — They had already helped before our arrival.

Ayudar future perfect conjugation

This system is the future perfect; its Spanish label is El futuro compuesto / antefuturo. Use the future perfect for an event expected to be completed before a later future point, and sometimes for conjecture about a completed event. Form it with the future of haber plus the invariant past participle.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habré ayudado	I will have helped
Tú — you, singular informal	habrás ayudado	you will have helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habrá ayudado	he / she / you (formal) will have helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habremos ayudado	we will have helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habréis ayudado	you (plural) will have helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrán ayudado	they / you (plural) will have helped

• Para el viernes, habremos ayudado a todos los participantes. — By Friday, we will have helped all the participants.

Ayudar conditional perfect conjugation

This system is the conditional perfect; its Spanish label is El condicional compuesto / antepospretérito. Use the conditional perfect for a hypothetical past result or an unrealized past possibility. Form it with the conditional of haber plus the invariant past participle.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habría ayudado	I would have helped
Tú — you, singular informal	habrías ayudado	you would have helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habría ayudado	he / she / you (formal) would have helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habríamos ayudado	we would have helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habríais ayudado	you (plural) would have helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrían ayudado	they / you (plural) would have helped

• Habría ayudado con más tiempo. — I would have helped with more time.

Ayudar subjunctive conjugations

Ayudar present subjunctive conjugation

This system is the present subjunctive; its Spanish label is El presente de subjuntivo. Use the present subjunctive in subordinate environments involving wishes, influence, emotion, doubt, evaluation, necessity, possibility, or non-specific reference. For a regular -AR verb, use the stem plus the present-subjunctive endings in -e.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayude	that I help
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudes	that you help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayude	that he / she / you (formal) help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudemos	that we help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudéis	that you (plural) help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayuden	that they / you (plural) help

• Necesito que me ayudes. — I need you to help me.

Ayudar imperfect subjunctive conjugation

This system is the imperfect subjunctive; its Spanish label is El imperfecto de subjuntivo. Use the imperfect subjunctive in past or hypothetical subordinate contexts that require the subjunctive. The main learner table uses the regular -ra series. The accepted -se series follows the same person pattern and is not mechanically interchangeable in every construction. For example, ayudase — that I helped is an accepted -se alternative to the main -ra series.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudara	that I helped
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudaras	that you helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayudara	that he / she / you (formal) helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudáramos	that we helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudarais	that you (plural) helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudaran	that they / you (plural) helped

• Querían que ayudáramos en el proyecto. — They wanted us to help with the project.

Ayudar future subjunctive conjugation

This system is the future subjunctive; its Spanish label is El futuro de subjuntivo. Rare in modern everyday Spanish. It survives mainly in formal, legal, proverbial, literary, and historical contexts. For a regular -AR verb, the future subjunctive uses the historical -re series built from the preterite stem pattern.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	ayudare	if / when I help
Tú — you, singular informal	ayudares	if / when you help
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ayudare	if / when he / she / you (formal) help
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	ayudáremos	if / when we help
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudareis	if / when you (plural) help
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	ayudaren	if / when they / you (plural) help

• Quien ayudare al solicitante deberá identificarse. — Whoever assists the applicant shall identify themselves.

Ayudar present perfect subjunctive conjugation

This system is the present perfect subjunctive; its Spanish label is El pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo. Use the present perfect subjunctive for a completed action viewed through a present subjunctive environment. Form it with the present subjunctive of haber plus the invariant past participle.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	haya ayudado	that I have helped
Tú — you, singular informal	hayas ayudado	that you have helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	haya ayudado	that he / she has helped; that you (formal) have helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hayamos ayudado	that we have helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hayáis ayudado	that you (plural) have helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hayan ayudado	that they / you (plural) have helped

• Agradezco que hayas ayudado al equipo. — I appreciate that you have helped the team.

Ayudar past perfect subjunctive conjugation

This system is the past perfect subjunctive; its Spanish label is El pretérito pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo. Use the past perfect subjunctive for a completed action prior to a past or counterfactual reference point. The main table uses hubiera plus the past participle. Hubiese plus the participle is an accepted alternative whose distribution must be interpreted in context. For example, hubiese ayudado — that I had helped is an accepted alternative form.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiera ayudado	that I had helped
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieras ayudado	that you had helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiera ayudado	that he / she / you (formal) had helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéramos ayudado	that we had helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubierais ayudado	that you (plural) had helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieran ayudado	that they / you (plural) had helped

• Ojalá me hubieras ayudado antes. — I wish you had helped me earlier.

Ayudar future perfect subjunctive conjugation

This system is the future perfect subjunctive; its Spanish label is El futuro perfecto de subjuntivo. Rare in modern everyday Spanish. It is primarily a reference form for restricted formal, legal, literary, and historical contexts. Form it with the future subjunctive of haber plus the invariant past participle.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiere ayudado	if / when I have helped
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieres ayudado	if / when you have helped
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiere ayudado	if / when he / she / you (formal) have helped
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéremos ayudado	if / when we have helped
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubiereis ayudado	if / when you (plural) have helped
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieren ayudado	if / when they / you (plural) have helped

• Quien hubiere ayudado en el procedimiento deberá constar en el registro. — Whoever has assisted in the procedure shall appear in the record.

Ayudar imperative and commands

Spanish commands use different morphological sources according to person and polarity. There is no ordinary yo command row. The nosotros / nosotras row is an exhortative use meaning “let's…”.

Ayudar affirmative commands

Use these forms to give a positive instruction or invitation. The tú form matches the regular affirmative -AR command pattern, while the usted, nosotros, and ustedes forms are subjunctive-based; vosotros uses the regular -ad ending.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	ayuda	help!
Usted — you, singular formal	ayude	help!
Nosotros / Nosotras — we, exhortative “let's…”	ayudemos	let's help!
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	ayudad	help!
Ustedes — you, plural	ayuden	help!

• Ayúdame con esta caja. — Help me with this box.

Ayudar negative commands

Negative commands use subjunctive-based forms. Place no before the verb to make the command negative.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no ayudes	do not help!
Usted — you, singular formal	no ayude	do not help!
Nosotros / Nosotras — we, exhortative “let's…”	no ayudemos	let's not help!
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no ayudéis	do not help!
Ustedes — you, plural	no ayuden	do not help!

• No ayudes sin preguntar primero. — Do not help without asking first.

Common constructions with Ayudar

These patterns are common enough to affect how the conjugated verb is used in complete sentences.

ayudar a alguien — to help someone. A person receiving help is commonly introduced with personal a when required by Spanish object rules.

• Ayudo a Marta. — I help Marta.

ayudar a + infinitive — to help to do something. Use a + infinitive to name the action that the help supports.

• Esto ayuda a entender la regla. — This helps explain the rule.

Example sentences with Ayudar

These examples reinforce the verb across several useful forms and contexts without replacing the system-specific examples above.

• Ella ayuda a sus padres los fines de semana. — She helps her parents on weekends.
• ¿Puedes ayudarme a abrir la puerta? — Can you help me open the door?
• Ayudamos a organizar el evento. — We help organize the event.
• Me ayudaste mucho ayer. — You helped me a lot yesterday.
• Espero que nos ayuden pronto. — I hope they help us soon.
• Habría ayudado, pero no recibí el mensaje. — I would have helped, but I did not receive the message.

With ayudar, keep the regular verb endings predictable and focus your attention on the sentence pattern: who gives the help, who receives it, and whether an infinitive follows with a.