Difference Between Wie and Als

In German,  wie  means as.   The word  als  also means as. Its no wonder that people learning German get confused between the two. Luckily, if you can memorize two simple rules then you can master the difference and continue on your way toward German fluency.   The Mistake Wie (adverb/conjunction) is often used instead of als (only a conjunction) and vice versa. For example, incorrect use might read: Er ist grÃ" §ÃŽ ²er wie sein Vater. (Intended to say: He is taller than his father.)Dieses Auto ist teurer wie mein letztes.  (Intended to say: This car is more expensive than my last one.) The correct way to phrase these sentences would be: Er ist grÃ" §ÃŽ ²er als sein Vater.Dieses Auto ist teurer als mein letztes. Whats the Difference? Though both wie and als  are used when comparing two items or people, remember that: Wie is used solely when both things compared are equalAls is used only when the items compared are unequal. Can You Say Als Wie? There is also the tendency, even among Germans, to use both als wie together in a phrase when comparing two items. For example, one popular slogan for the clothing store KiK states Besser als wie ​man denkt. (Better than you think.)Grammatically correct, this should read: Besser als man denkt. The  wie is unnecessary and incorrect.   Try This Memorization Trick So how can you remember what  wie and als stand for when comparing two things? Try this memorization trick: anders als:  different than If you remember als with the other A-word and that it means different, then you know you cannot insert als for wie, which is used when comparing two equal (not different) things.