I vs Me | Correct Use & Examples

The following two pieces of advice will help you to use me or I correctly in lots of everyday contexts.

  1. If you’re talking about you and someone else, use the word that sounds correct if you take the other person out of the sentence.
Tip
To test if “X and me” or “X and I” is correct, recast the sentence without “and X.”

Test sentence: Max and me went to the store.
Sentence without the “other person”: I went to … [“me” sounds wrong]
Grammatically correct sentence: Max and I went to the store.

Test sentence: He told Max and I to go to the store.
Sentence without the “other person”: He told me to … [“I” sounds wrong]
Grammatically correct sentence: He told Max and me to go to the store.

  1. In everyday spoken English, we normally use me and not I after the verb be.
Me or I after “be” examples
  • Hi Max! It’s me, Paula
  • Hi Max! It’s I, Paula
  • It wasn’t me who finished all the milk!
  • It wasn’t I who finished all the milk!

When to use me or I

Me and I are first-person pronouns. You generally use “I” for the subject of the sentence and “me” for the object of the sentence.

If there are two subjects, it is grammatically correct to use “I.” The name of the “other person” typically goes first.

“I” with two subjects example
Max and I went to see that movie on Friday.

If there are two objects, then “me” is grammatically correct.

“Me” with two objects example
You took Max and me to see that movie.

A good way to check if you need the subject pronoun (“I”) or the object pronoun (“me”) is to remove the name of the “other person” from the sentence and use the pronoun that sounds correct (e.g., “You took me …” sounds correct and “You took I …” doesn’t, so the object pronoun “me” is correct: “You took Max and me to see the movie”).

Note
In everyday English, we often use me when there are two subjects and I when there are two objects. So, you get sentences like this, which are not considered mistakes in informal contexts:

  • Me and Max went to see that movie on Friday. [Me as subject]
  • Max and me went to see that movie on Friday. [Me as subject]
  • You took Max and I to see that movie. [I as object]

Me after be

It is grammatically correct to use I after the verb “be,” but it sounds very formal and old fashioned, so most people say me in everyday English.

I vs Me after “be” (everyday English) examples
  • It was me that you took to that movie.
  • It was I that you took to that movie.
  • It’s definitely me in that photo, not my brother.
  • It’s definitely I in that photo, not my brother.

Me for short answers

Use me and not I to give short answers to “who” questions in everyday English.

The short answers “me too,” “I am too,” and “so am I” are all interchangeable to express agreement.

Me or I for short answers examples
Person A: Who’s coming to the movies?
Person B: Me.

Person A: I’m definitely going to see that movie.
Person B: Me too/I am too/So am I.

As good as me/better than me

In everyday English, we use me not I for comparisons using as and than.

As me/than me (comparisons) examples
But you’re as old as me.

But you’re better than me at organizing things like that.

However, you can also say “I am” in these contexts.

As I am/than I am (comparisons) examples
But you’re as old as I am.

But you’re better than I am at organizing things like that.

Me after prepositions

You use me and not I after prepositions (i.e., where “me” is the object of the preposition).

Me object of preposition examples
Is that for me?

You came with me last time.

Everyone’s going except me.

You and I or you and me

You can always use you and me rather than you and I in informal, everyday English.

However, if you want to be grammatically correct in formal contexts, use I or me depending on what sounds correct when you remove “you and” from the sentence.

Tip
To test if “you and me” or “you and I” is grammatically correct, recast the sentence without “you and.”

Test sentence: You and me went to see that movie together.
Sentence without “you and”: I went to see … [“me” sounds wrong]
Grammatically correct sentence: You and I went to see that film together.

Test sentence: Max saw that movie with you and I.
Sentence without “you and”: Max saw that movie with me. [“I” sounds wrong]
Grammatically correct sentence: Max saw that movie with you and me.

Between you and me or between you and I

It is grammatically correct to say between you and me rather than between you and I because “you and me” is the object of the preposition “between,” and “me” (not “I”) is the object pronoun.

However, between you and I is a phrase that has been used for hundreds of years (including by Shakespeare) and is still part of the language today, so you can think of it as a “fixed phrase” that is OK to use in everyday English.

Between you and me in a sentence examples
This is between you and me; please don’t tell anyone else.

I know there has been some tension between you and me for a while now.

Frequently asked questions about I vs me

Is me a pronoun?

Yes, me is a pronoun. It is the first-person singular object pronoun (e.g., “She gave it to me yesterday,” “Didn’t you see me there?”).

Sometimes it’s difficult to decide if I or me is correct in sentences like, “Joe and me saw you on Main Street yesterday.” “I” is actually the grammatically correct choice here because “Joe” and “I” are both subjects in this sentence (so you need the subject pronoun).

Quillbot’s free Grammar Checker can help you avoid errors with pronouns in your writing.

Is it me or myself?

It’s common to use myself instead of I or me when you’re referring to “another person and you” or “another person or you;” it has an informal, friendly effect.

Me vs myself (informal—two subjects or objects) examples
Joe and I/me/myself would like to come too.

Why don’t you come with Joe and me/myself?

Just ask for Joe or me/myself next time you need any help.

We use the reflexive pronoun myself (rather than me) when the subject and object of the action described by the verb is the same person (e.g., “I hurt myself cleaning the windows yesterday”).

We say by myself not “by me” to mean “on my own/alone” (e.g., “Can you help me? I can’t do it by myself” or “You left me all by myself”).

Use myself (not me) to emphasize that you are doing the action (e.g., “Don’t worry, I’ll call her myself”).

Why not use QuillBot’s free Grammar Checker to help you use “me” and “myself” correctly in your writing?

Is it me and my family or my family and I?

Both me and my family and my family and I can be correct. Use I or me depending on what sounds right when you remove “and my family” from the sentence.

Me and my family or my family and I examples
Example sentence: Me and my family went to the movies.
Sentence without “and my family”: I went to the movies … [“Me” sounds wrong]
Correct sentence: My family and I went to the movies.

Example sentence: She has helped my family and I a lot.
Sentence without “and my family”: She has helped me … [“I” sounds wrong]
Correct sentence: She has helped my family and me a lot. [“My family” usually comes before “me” or “I”]

Have you tried QuillBot’s free Grammar Checker? It can help you with tricky grammar choices, such as when to use “I” or “me.”

Is this article helpful?
Tom Challenger, BA

Tom holds a teaching diploma and is an experienced English language teacher, teacher trainer, and translator. He has taught university courses and worked as a teacher trainer on Cambridge CELTA courses.