20 Of The Best Ways To Respond To The "What's Good" Question

If you’re introverted or just a little socially awkward, you might not know how to respond to certain things, especially slang like “what’s good”.

We’ll get you in the loop and share with you how to respond to “what’s good?” without making a complete fool of yourself.

“What’s good” is something people say a lot, whether they notice it or not. Responding to it is pretty simple, once you know what it means, and once you’ve considered the situation you’re in.

We will look at 20 different ways of how to respond to “what’s good?”, but first we will explain what it means.

Does “What’s good?” mean the same thing as “What’s up”?

Yes, “what’s good?” means the same thing as “what’s up?”. It can be used to find out how someone is doing, or as an alternative to “hi” or “hello”. So, if you know how to respond to “what’s up?”, you have an idea of how to respond to “what’s good?”.

10 ways to respond to “what’s good?” when a friend or family member says it

When a friend or family member says, “what’s good?”, you should pay attention to their actions while it is being said. If someone says, “what’s good?” while still walking, then that means that they are using it as a greeting and not a conversation starter. However, if they say, “what’s good?”, and stop, or send it over text, there is a good chance they wish to engage in a conversation. If you don’t pay attention to these things, you can seem rude and dismissive, or make things awkward by trying to engage in an unwanted conversation. Here’s how to respond to “what’s good?” in 10 different ways when a friend or family member says it, along with their meanings:

01“Nothing much, how about you?” You can use this when you don’t have a lot going on that day, but you want to find out what is happening with the friend or relative who asked the question. It is good to use this when the person obviously wants to have a conversation with you. Asking “how about you?” means you are interested in talking to them. 02“Oh, nothing special! The usual!” This is another good one to use when you don’t have anything going on that is out of the ordinary. Note the difference in this one versus number one where the question is returned. Use this when “in passing”, or in other words when the interaction is supposed to be brief. 03“Just counting the hours til the weekend!” It is good to use this with a friend, especially a work friend, or someone who has a similarly busy schedule. It is a way to say you’re tired and that you’re looking forward to some much needed rest. 04“Why? What did you hear?” This response is meant to be humorous, and you’ll have to say it using a suspicious sounding tone for the other person to understand the joke. It’s sort of like you’re a celebrity and the friend is tuning into the gossip or latest news. 05“Living the dream!” It is good to use this one when you are having a great week, or something good happened to you that day. It is just another way to say that you are in high spirits. 06“Not me, it’s been a tough week.” When a friend or family member asks what’s good, and you say, “not me”, clearly that means you are not good. Adding that it’s been a tough week prompts them to ask what’s wrong or offer words of encouragement.

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07“What’s happening?” Although you were probably told as a kid to not answer a question with a question, people do it quite often. It is good to use this as a response in passing since it functions as a greeting as well. 08“I’m hanging in there.” It is good to use this response when your day is not going so well but you want to express that you are not letting it get the better of you. 09“Heck, I’ve been better.” It is also good to use this when your day isn’t going so well, and you wish to share what’s making it “not good”. Chances are, your friend or relative will offer words of support in return. 10“You look amazing today!” This is good to use when you want to compliment a friend or family member. You can even use it to flirt with a crush to make him/her feel special.

5 ways to respond to “what’s good?” when a stranger says it

When a stranger asks, “what’s good?”, the way you respond is all about your goal. Do you want to continue the conversation, or do you want the person to go away? Once you establish that, then you will know exactly how to respond to “what’s good?” when a stranger says it. Here are 5 different ways:

11“That’s for me to know and you to find out.” This is a good response to use with a stranger you find cute or interesting. It makes you seem mysterious and will compel the stranger to try to find out more about you.

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12“What’s it to you?” Use this response if you want the stranger to go away or stop talking to you. Hey, it might seem a little mean but it’s one way to get those creeps away from you. 13“The wings, you should try them.” If you aren’t trying to be mean, but you don’t want to talk to a flirty stranger, you can use this to divert their attention. Of course, the suggestion won’t always be wings and will depend on your location. For example, if you are in a coffee shop, you could suggest some muffins and walk off. You can even say “the silence” if the stranger is getting a little too comfortable talking to you. 14“Definitely not this weather.” It is good to use this when you are in the same space as a stranger but don’t mind the small talk. The weather is something simple to talk about that isn’t too heavy. This response will only work if the weather is disagreeable, for instance, if it is a very hot day, or if it is pouring with rain. 15“I’m good. Thanks for asking.” This is a polite response to use with a stranger. Notice that you didn’t ask the question back, which means you aren’t interested in talking. Hopefully, the stranger can take a hint and move along. If you don’t mind them though, you could always add “What’s good with you?” at the end.

5 ways of how to respond to “what’s good?” when you’re not good but don’t wish to talk about your problems

Many times, people will ask us what’s good, and even though we aren’t good, we would much rather be left alone. It doesn’t mean that you don’t appreciate the person asking, it simply means you are not in the mood to talk, and that’s completely okay. If this is the case, take a look at these 5 ways of how to respond to “what’s good?” when you don’t wish to talk about your problems:

16“Nothing, chilling.” This response might seem cold, but it will get the job done. Notice that the question is not returned, which will let the person know that you do not wish to converse. 17“How have you been?” If you are not up for discussing your state of being but don’t mind listening to others, you can use this response. It’s also a good way to get the attention off of yourself, especially when you are approached by a group of people. 18“Same old, same old.” Use this response when you want to say everything is fine and nothing is out of the ordinary. Sure, it’s a lie, so you’ll have to be pretty convincing, otherwise the person will end up seeing right through you. 19“Oh, can’t complain.” It is good to use this when you do not wish to talk about your problems, and instead, you wish to handle them privately. In other words, you’re not going to whine about it to someone who probably can’t fix things anyway. 20“I’m busy with [insert], let’s talk later.” Use this when you want to get away from the conversation entirely if the person seems to want to engage in a conversation. Just be careful to not to be too dismissive or else the person’s feelings might get hurt.

Conclusion

Now that you have so many ways of how to respond to “what’s good?”, you can use them in any scenario to convey exactly how you feel, avoid a conversation, or get one started with someone you find interesting!