SpeakMetry
    Start free
    B2 · Upper-intermediateVerb tensesIELTS Band 7 to 8

    Future perfect and future continuous

    The future continuous (will be + -ing) describes an action in progress at a future moment: 'At nine, I'll be driving.' The future perfect (will have + past participle) describes an action completed before a future point: 'By nine, I'll have arrived.' Both pair with markers like 'by', 'by the time' and 'this time tomorrow'.

    Practise

    The rule

    How to form the future perfect and future continuous

    • Future continuous

      subjectwill beverb-ing

      This time tomorrow, I will be sitting on a train to Ankara.

    • Future continuous, negative

      subjectwill not (won't) beverb-ing

      I won't be using the car on Saturday, so take it.

    • Future perfect

      subjectwill havepast participle

      By 2030, the city will have opened forty new metro stations.

    • Future perfect, question

      Willsubjecthavepast participle?

      Will you have finished the draft by Friday?

    • Future perfect continuous

      subjectwill have beenverb-ing

      By June, she will have been teaching for twenty years.

    Inside a sentence

    This time tomorrow,future momentIsubjectwill bewill besittingverb-ingon a train to Ankara.

    Future continuous: in progress at a future moment

    By 2030,by + timethe citysubjectwill havewill haveopenedpast participleforty new metro stations.

    Future perfect: finished before a future deadline
    • subject
    • helping verb
    • main verb
    • time word

    Signal words

    • by
    • by the time
    • by then
    • by 2035
    • this time tomorrow
    • this time next week
    • at ten o'clock tonight

    How to use future perfect and future continuous

    When do you use the future continuous?

    Use will be + -ing for an action that will be in progress at a specific future moment, the future equivalent of the past continuous. It answers the question 'what will be happening at that time?'.

    English also uses it for polite enquiries about plans and for events expected in the normal course of things. Asking what someone will be doing sounds softer than asking what they will do, because it enquires about the expected flow of events rather than pressing for a decision.

    In progress at a future momentAt ten o'clock tonight, I'll be revising for my listening test.revising in progress from in the future to in the future. 10 pm, once, in the future.
    • At ten o'clock tonight, I'll be revising for my listening test.in progress at a future moment
    • Will you be using the projector this afternoon, or can I borrow it?polite question about plans
    • Don't call at noon. We'll be having lunch with the new interns.

    When do you use the future perfect?

    Use will have + past participle for an action that will be complete before a future point. The action itself may happen at any time between now and then, what matters is that it will be finished by the deadline.

    'By' is the tense's signature preposition: by Friday, by 2035, by the time you arrive. In IELTS it shines in predictions with dates and in describing milestones.

    Complete before a future pointBy the end of this year, I will have saved enough for the flight to Toronto.saved enough, once, in the future. An action, once, in the future. The period: by the end of this year.
    • By the end of this year, I will have saved enough for the flight to Toronto.complete before a deadline
    • The decorators will have left by the time you get home.
    • Scientists will have mapped the entire seabed by 2040, according to the project's timeline.

    What about the future perfect continuous?

    Will have been + -ing measures duration up to a future point: how long something will have lasted by then. It is rare in conversation but valuable when you want to stress an unbroken stretch of time.

    Because the form is long, use it sparingly: one accurate example impresses; three in a row sound mechanical.

    Duration up to a future pointBy December, they will have been living in Manchester for a decade.living in Manchester in progress from in the past to in the future. December, once, in the future. The period: for a decade.
    • By December, they will have been living in Manchester for a decade.duration measured at a future point
    • When the rescue team lands, the sailors will have been drifting for two days.

    Why is there no 'will' after 'by the time' or 'when'?

    Time clauses beginning with when, before, after, until, as soon as and by the time take a present tense, even though they refer to the future. The 'will' belongs only in the main clause.

    This trap catches even strong learners, because many languages allow a future form in both halves. Train the pattern: by the time + present simple, … will have + participle.

    • By the time you wake up, I'll have landed in Doha.present simple in the time clause
    • By the time you will wake up, I'll have landed in Doha.no 'will' after 'by the time'
    • As soon as the results come out, we'll be celebrating.

    Future continuous or future perfect?

    Both tenses look forward from now, but they photograph the future moment differently. The future continuous freezes an action mid-flow at that moment; the future perfect looks back from that moment at what is already done.

    Compare a single deadline: 'At 8 p.m. we'll be boarding' (in progress at eight) versus 'By 9 p.m. we'll have boarded' (complete before nine). Choosing the right viewpoint (not just the right form) is what earns the range credit.

    • In July, she'll be doing an internship in São Paulo.mid-flow view
    • By August, she'll have completed the internship.looking back from a future point

    Common mistakes with future perfect and future continuous

    Find what is wrong in each one, then open it to check.

    • 1By the time you will get home, dinner will be ready.What's wrong? Show the fix

      By the time you get home, dinner will be ready.

      Future time clauses with 'by the time', 'when' and 'as soon as' take the present simple; 'will' stays in the main clause only.

    • 2This time tomorrow, I will drive to the airport.What's wrong? Show the fix

      This time tomorrow, I will be driving to the airport.

      'This time tomorrow' pinpoints a moment when the action is in progress, which requires the future continuous.

    • 3She will have finish the online course by May.What's wrong? Show the fix

      She will have finished the online course by May.

      The future perfect needs the past participle after 'will have': finished, not finish.

    • 4By next year, I will work at this school for ten years.What's wrong? Show the fix

      By next year, I will have worked at this school for ten years.

      Duration measured up to a future point needs the future perfect (or future perfect continuous), not the plain future.

    • 5Don't ring at nine. We will been watching the final.What's wrong? Show the fix

      Don't ring at nine. We will be watching the final.

      The future continuous is will be + -ing; 'been' belongs only to the perfect forms (will have been watching).

    • 6I will be finish the report by Thursday.What's wrong? Show the fix

      I will have finished the report by Thursday.

      Completion before a deadline needs will have + participle; 'will be' introduces the continuous and cannot take a bare verb.

    Practise

    1 / 5

    This time next month, Beatriz ___ on a beach in Brazil.

    Write your own

    Write a sentence of your own with future perfect and future continuous, about you, your studies or your town.

    Free, nothing is stored
    All 12 exercisesChoices, gaps, errors to find, sentences to build

    Future perfect and future continuous in IELTS

    Speaking

    • Part 3 prediction questions ('How will education change?') are the perfect stage for the future perfect: “By 2040, most universities will have moved their lectures online.” Examiners flag that as exactly the range Band 7 demands.
    • In Part 1, answer questions about plans with the future continuous to sound natural: “This weekend I'll be visiting my cousins in Chattogram.” It suggests a settled arrangement rather than a spur-of-the-moment decision.

    Writing

    • In Task 1 charts with projected data, alternate 'is expected to reach' with the future perfect: “By 2035, renewable sources will have overtaken gas in the energy mix.” Precision with 'by + date' shows control of complex structures.
    • In Task 2 conclusions about long-term consequences, one future perfect sentence adds weight: “Unless planning laws change, developers will have consumed most urban green space within a generation.”

    Questions

    What is the difference between the future perfect and the future continuous?
    The future continuous (will be doing) describes an action in progress at a future moment: 'At six, I'll be cooking.' The future perfect (will have done) describes an action already complete by that moment: 'By six, I'll have cooked.' One watches the action mid-flow; the other looks back at a finished result.
    What is the future perfect continuous tense?
    It is will have been + -ing, and it measures how long an activity will have been in progress by a future point: 'By Friday, I will have been revising for two solid weeks.' Use it when duration is the message; otherwise the plain future perfect is usually enough.
    Can I use 'will' after 'by the time' or 'when'?
    No. Future time clauses with when, until, before, after, as soon as and by the time take a present tense: 'By the time she arrives, the workshop will have ended.' The 'will' appears only in the main clause, never inside the time clause itself.
    Which time expressions signal the future perfect?
    'By' plus a deadline is the classic marker: by Monday, by 2050, by the time we retire. Others include 'before' plus a future event and 'in + period's time': 'In two years' time, the bridge will have opened.' If you see 'this time tomorrow', expect the future continuous instead.
    Is the future continuous more polite than 'will'?
    Often, yes. 'Will you be attending the briefing?' simply asks about someone's expected plans, while 'Will you attend?' can sound like a demand or an instruction. The continuous creates distance and neutrality, which is why airline and hotel staff use it constantly.

    Next step

    See your grammar marked in a real test

    See the Writing tests