Grammar explanation from : http://www.drlemon.com/Grammar/servsestar.

html
yo soy
t eres
l ella usted es
nosotros somos
vosotros sois
ellos ellas ustedes son

SER

Ser refers to things that are an integral part of you, of your

identity.

yo estoy
t ests
l ella usted est
nosotros estamos
vosotros estis
ellos ellas ustedes estn

ESTAR

The dierence is that Estar is used to indicate a "state" of being:

For example:

For example:

Ser (Identity)

Personality and character

l es aburrido.
(He is boring -a boring person)
Nationality
Soy nerviosa.
Physical characteristics
(I
am a nervous, high-strung person)
Race
Ella es bonita.
Gender
(She is pretty -a pretty girl.)
Origin
Identication (name and title)
Profession
We also use Ser for
Events (these "occur" or "take place")
Time (hour, date, day, year etc.)

Examples: Notice that I can end each of the English sentences with "Person". This is because Ser functions
like an "=", an equal sign, meaning that what is to the left inherently equals what is to the right.
Soy simptica. I am a nice person.
Soy norteamericana. I am North American (person).
Soy alta y rubia. I am tall and blonde (person).
Soy sueca-espaola. I am Swedish-Spanish (person).
Soy mujer. I am a woman/female (person).
Soy de California. I am from California. (I, the person)
Soy profe Lemon. I'm profe Lemon. (I, the person)
Soy instructora. I'm an instructor. (type of person)
Examples with Time:
La clase de espaol es a las diez y media de la maana. Spanish class is at
10:30 am.
El concierto de Man es el viernes. The Man concert is on Friday.
Es la una y media de la tarde. It's one o'clock in the afternoon.

Estar (Condition)
location of things or people
(but not events!)
Yo estoy aburrida. (I am [feel] bored.)
emotions
Estoy nerviosa. (I am/feel nervous)
(moods & feelings)
Est bonita. (She looks pretty. )
mental conditions
("I'm confused")
physical condition or appearance
("I'm tired" or "You look nice today!")
motion
(the Present Progressive:
"I am in the current state of drinking coee and typing.")
Newark est en California. Newark is in California. Location
Estoy en la clase de matemticas. I'm in math class. Location
Estoy enojada. I am angry. Emotional State
Estoy contenta. I am (feel) happy. Emotional State
Estoy cansada. I am (feel) tired. Physical State
Estamos bien. We are (feel) ne. Physical State
Mara est bonita. Mara looks pretty. Physical State
Estoy escribiendo. I am (in the middle of ) writing. State of Motion

Notice when indicating physical location, Estar uses the physical locator preposition "en." En means
"in", "on" and "at" in English when referring to where things "are physically" (but Estar cannot be
used when saying where events "take place" or "occur" as they have no physical form. See Ser for
events and other time-related uses.)
Students often ask me why Estar is used when saying someone is dead: "Mi perro Fido est muerto."
This is because it is a physical state of being: Just like being sick or well, tired or energized, your
body can be dead or alive.

You may have heard that Ser is used for things which are permanent and Estar is used for things which are temporary. This is an over-simplication and not a good way to think of these verbs because you will
end up with a lot of exceptions and confusion. Try to forget you ever heard that.
It is better to remember the above designations of Ser pertaining to Identity (with all of its elements) and that Estar pertains to States of Being: Condition, Location, and Motion (the Present Progressive.)