つもり vs 予定
JLPT N4 vocabulary · what is the difference?
つもり is an intention someone is holding in their head; 予定 is an arrangement that already exists in the world — a booking, a timetable, a fixed schedule. If you have merely decided to do something, say つもりです; if it is on the calendar, say 予定です.
When to use each
つもり
つもり
Use つもり for what you, or another person, have decided to do. It always belongs to somebody's mind, so objects and timetables cannot have a つもり. Nothing needs to be booked yet.
明日は早く起きるつもりです。
あしたははやくおきるつもりです。
I intend to get up early tomorrow.
今年はたばこをやめるつもりです。
ことしはたばこをやめるつもりです。
I intend to quit smoking this year.
予定
よてい
Use 予定 for something already arranged: a time fixed, a ticket bought, a meeting on the calendar. It is a noun, so it can belong to a person, an event or even a train, and it states another person's plan neutrally.
明日は朝から出かける予定です。
あしたはあさからでかけるよていです。
I am scheduled to go out from the morning tomorrow.
会議は三時に始まる予定です。
かいぎはさんじにはじまるよていです。
The meeting is scheduled to start at three.
Sentences where only one works
電車は十時に着く予定です。
でんしゃはじゅうじにつくよていです。
The train is scheduled to arrive at ten.
A train has a timetable but no mind, so 予定 only. 着くつもりです would give the train an intention.
いつか日本に住むつもりです。
いつかにほんにすむつもりです。
I intend to live in Japan some day.
Nothing is arranged — no date, no visa. That is an intention, so つもり.
来週、社長がアメリカへ行く予定です。
らいしゅう、しゃちょうがアメリカへいくよていです。
The president is scheduled to go to America next week.
You are reporting someone else's fixed schedule. 行くつもりです would claim to know what is in his head, which sounds presumptuous.
行くつもりでしたが、行けませんでした。
いくつもりでしたが、いけませんでした。
I had intended to go, but I could not.
つもりだった is the natural way to say that a plan you held did not happen.
Common mistakes
バスは五時に出るつもりです。
バスは五時に出る予定です。
つもり requires a person with an intention. A bus, a train or a meeting takes 予定.
田中さんは来月結婚するつもりです。
田中さんは来月結婚する予定です。
Stating a third person's intention with つもり sounds like you are reading their mind. For someone else's arranged plan, 予定 is the safe form.
私はつもりです。
私は行くつもりです。
つもり needs a plain-form verb in front of it. It cannot stand alone as a noun the way 予定 can in 予定があります.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use either one for my own weekend plan?
Often yes. If you have simply decided to go hiking, 行くつもりです; if you have booked the bus, 行く予定です. Both are natural, and the difference is how settled it is.
How do I say "I have plans on Saturday" when turning down an invitation?
土曜日は予定があります. 予定 is a noun you can own, so it works as a polite reason. つもりがあります is not used this way.
What does つもりだった mean?
It marks an intention that did not come true: 早く寝るつもりだった, "I had meant to go to bed early" — implying you did not.