If you’re looking for that perfect way to wish someone congratulations in French, look no further! Congratulations hold a special place at every gathering, whether it be for a major milestone like a graduation or wedding, celebrating the everyday successes of our loved ones, or simply expressing encouragement during challenging times.

To make sure that you have the right words up your sleeve for any occasion, read on to discover nine expressions to say congratulations in French!

Félicitations

Let’s start with the most common word for congratulations in French: félicitations. This one can be used on any kind of casual or formal occasion, in speech and in writing, from congratulations on achieving an educational milestone or getting a job promotion, to congratulations for an event like a wedding or a newborn baby. In fact, we use félicitations similarly to how English speakers use congratulations.

Although they sound a bit more formal, there are some more-elaborate expressions based around the word félicitations, such as Toutes mes félicitations, or Mes sincères félicitations. The possessive adjective preceding the word félicitations will be mes for my congratulations or nos for our congratulations.

• I heard you got promoted. Congratulations! – J’ai entendu dire que tu as eu une promotion. Félicitations!

• We just had a baby. / Really? Our sincere congratulations! – Nous venons juste d’avoir un enfant. / Vraiment? Nos sincères félicitations!

• I turned 20 today. / Is that so? Congratulations! – J’ai 20 ans aujourd’hui. / Ah bon? Toutes mes félicitations!

Félicitations pour…, Félicitations à…

To express the reason why you are congratulating someone, you add the preposition pour right after félicitations, followed by the special occasion in question such as a marriage, a new job, or a diploma, for example.

To say congratulations to, you can add the preposition à, au, or aux, according to the gender and number of whoever is being congratulated.

• Congratulations on your wedding! – Félicitations pour ton mariage!

• Congratulations on your new car. It is stunning – Félicitations pour ta nouvelle voiture. Elle est superbe.

• Congratulations to the parents on their little girl! – Félicitations aux parents pour leur petite fille!

The verb “féliciter”

Another way to say congratulations in French is by using the verb féliciter, meaning to congratulate in English. The verb féliciter is conjugated according to the regular -er verb pattern.

An indirect object pronoun is needed when using this verb to congratulate someone directly. We usually use vous in formal situations or if we are congratulating more than one person, and te in casual situations.

• I congratulate you on winning the match. Your last goal was impressive! – Je te félicite pour avoir gagné le match. Ton dernier but était impressionnant!

• I congratulate you on receiving your bachelor’s degree. – Je vous félicite pour l’obtention de votre licence.

• We congratulate you both on buying your first house. – Nous vous félicitons tous les deux pour l’achat de votre première maison.

Bravo

Bravo can be used in formal and informal situations, such as when someone has achieved something impressive, and you want to show you admire him or her. It is pretty similar to kudos in English.

Just like félicitations, you can use bravo alone, or with the preposition pour to add the detail on why you are congratulating the person.

• Congratulations! Your piano recital was just amazing. – Bravo! Ton récital de piano était juste fantastique.

• Kudos for the dinner. It was delicious. – Bravo pour le dîner. C’était délicieux.

Note that bravo can also be used in a sarcastic way to gently make fun of someone who made a mistake.

• You put salt in the cake instead of sugar?! Well done! – Tu as mis du sel dans le gâteau à la place du sucre?! Ah bah bravo!

Bien joué

Bien joué is most common in informal settings. Its literal translation in English is well-played, but it can also be translated to well done or good job. In other words, telling someone bien joué is a great way to express appreciation, pride, and congratulations to someone in informal situations. It is often used when a kind of competition is involved, like sports games.

• You came first in the race. Well done! – Tu es arrivé premier dans la course. Bien joué!

Similar to bravo, bien joué can also be used sarcastically to mean the exact opposite of congratulations.

• You lost your keys again?! Good job! – Tu as encore perdu tes clés?! Bien joué!

Chapeau, Chapeau bas

If a French speaker tells you Chapeau!, you might be confused as to what he or she means, because the literal translation of chapeau is simply hat. Likewise, the literal translation of chapeau bas is hat lowered, which is essentially the same as the expression hats off in English. This expression is a relic of the time when taking off one’s hat was an act signifying respect.

Although a bit old-fashioned, it’s still a good way to congratulate someone in any situation. Chapeau bas, or simply chapeau, can be used on its own or followed by a preposition such as à, au, aux, or pour as we’ve seen earlier.

• Hats off to you Mister Dupuis. Your speech moved the entire audience. – Chapeau bas à vous Monsieur Dupuis. Votre speech a ému toute la salle.

• Congratulations on winning the prize. You really deserve it. – Chapeau pour avoir remporté le prix. Tu le mérites vraiment.

• This painting is very realistic. Well done! – Cette peinture est très réaliste. Chapeau!

Bon travail

Meaning literally good work in English, bon travail is used to express congratulations for someone’s hard work. For example, a boss recognizing an employee for a job well done, or a parent praising her child for having done something good, could say bon travail.

• Thanks to you, the company is thriving. Good job! – Grâce à toi, l’entreprise est florissante. Bon travail!

• I see you cleaned your room. Good job, my son! – Je vois que tu as fait le ménage dans ta chambre. Bon travail, mon fils!

Très bien, C’est très bien

Similar to bon travail, très bien or c’est très bien can be used to congratulate someone for an achievement or a job well done. It is especially present within the school system and is also used as a way to rate pupils. These translate literally as very good and it’s very good.

• You got 17/20 on your last math test. Very good. – Tu as eu 17/20 à ton dernier contrôle de maths. Très bien.

• The teacher told me you were a hard-working student. It’s very good. – Le professeur m’a dit que tu étais un élève studieux. C’est très bien.

Tous mes compliments, Tous nos compliments

Tous mes compliments, translating literally to all my compliments, or tous nos compliments for all our compliments, is a type of elevated congratulations typically used in a formal context. It can be followed by various prepositions (pour, à, au, aux) just like félicitations, bravo and chapeau.

• My sincere congratulations on the birth of your son. – Tous mes compliments pour la naissance de votre fils.

• This meal was perfect. Our compliments to the chef. – Ce repas était parfait. Tous nos compliments au chef.

Conclusion

Congratulations on making it to the end of this post! We hope it helped you learn how to say congratulations in French in all kinds of situations. And as you have seen, there are plenty of ways to do so.

Just to recap, the expression you use for French congratulations depends on your audience, and if you’re in a formal or informal context.

While félicitations, the verb féliciter, bravo, and chapeau can be used in any situation, while longer expressions like tous mes compliments and mes sincères félicitations are more polite and formal. Bien joué is a casual expression often used when someone won a kind of competition. Finally, bon travail and très bien are words usually offered by a person of authority to congratulate someone for their good work.

The only thing left for you to do now is to try them out! And finally, if you are the one receiving congratulations and you’re not sure how to respond, we invite you to read our other post on how to say thank you in French.