Used to vs Would: How to Talk About Past Habits in English

If you’ve ever paused mid-sentence wondering whether to say “I used to live in Madrid” or “I would live in Madrid,” you’re not alone. These two forms both talk about the past, and both get used for habits — but they are not interchangeable, and native speakers notice instantly when one is used wrong.

The good news: the rule that separates them is short, and once it clicks, it stays clicked. Let’s get it sorted.

The one-line rule

“Used to” can describe both past habits and past states. “Would” can only describe past habits — never states.

A “state” is a situation with no action in it: liking something, owning something, living somewhere, being a certain age. A “habit” is something you actually did, repeatedly.

Compare these:

• ✅ “I used to have a dog.” (state — correct)
• ❌ “I would have a dog.” (sounds strange — “have” here is a state, not a repeated action)
• ✅ “I used to walk the dog every morning.” (habit — correct)
• ✅ “I would walk the dog every morning.” (habit — also correct)

So the quick test is: can you picture the thing happening again and again, as an event? If yes, both forms work. If it’s just a fact about how things were, only “used to” works.

Where they overlap

For repeated actions, “used to” and “would” are genuinely interchangeable, and native speakers often mix both in the same story for variety:

“When I was a kid, we used to spend every August at my grandparents’ village. My grandfather would wake up at six and go fishing, and my grandmother would have breakfast ready by the time he got back.”

Notice the pattern: the first sentence sets the scene with “used to,” and then “would” takes over for the specific repeated actions inside that scene. This is extremely common in storytelling, and it’s a good habit to copy.

Don’t confuse habits with single events

This is the mistake that trips up even strong learners: using “used to” or “would” for something that only happened once.

• ❌ “I used to go to Lisbon last summer.”
• ✅ “I went to Lisbon last summer.”

If it happened on one specific occasion, you need the simple past (went, saw, ate), not “used to” or “would.” Both of those forms exist specifically to signal repetition or an extended state — never a one-off.

A quick note on word order and negatives

Two small details that native speakers do automatically, which are worth knowing:

• Frequency adverbs go before “used to”: “I always used to forget his birthday” sounds far more natural than “I used to always forget his birthday.”
• “Would” rarely appears in the negative for this meaning. You can say “I didn’t use to like coffee,” but “I wouldn’t drink coffee” sounds like a decision or refusal, not a past habit. For negatives, reach for “didn’t use to” instead.

Try it yourself

Before you move on, test the rule on these three sentences. Which form (or forms) fit?

1. As a child, I ___ be terrified of thunderstorms. (state)
2. Every Sunday, my dad ___ take us to the market. (habit)
3. Last Sunday, my dad ___ take us to the market. (one event)

If you answered: 1) “used to,” 2) “used to” or “would,” 3) “took” — you’ve got it.

Why this is worth getting right

This isn’t just a grammar-book distinction. Talking about your past — your childhood, your old job, how things used to be where you grew up — comes up constantly in real conversation, from small talk with a new colleague to the kind of story you’d tell on a first date. Getting “used to” and “would” right makes those stories sound natural instead of translated word-for-word from your own language.

If you want to actually use this in a real conversation rather than just recognise it in a worksheet, that’s exactly the kind of thing a 1-on-1 lesson is good for — telling a few true stories about your past out loud, with a native teacher gently correcting you in the moment. You can try a free level test on Parlazo to see where your English stands, or book a lesson and bring your own “when I was a kid…” stories to practise on.