Nós vs. a gente
In Portuguese, both nós and a gente translate to we. However, they are not interchangeable. The main differences lie in their level of formality and the grammatical rules they follow, particularly concerning verb conjugation.
Nós
A1Nós is the traditional and more formal personal pronoun for we. When using nós, the verb must be conjugated in the first-person plural form.
Nós vamos ao supermercado mais tarde.
(We are going to the supermarket later.)
Nós gostaríamos de agradecer a sua presença.
(We would like to thank you for your presence.)
Nós somos responsáveis por este projeto.
(We are responsible for this project.)
Antigamente, nós escrevíamos cartas uns para os outros.
(In the past, we used to write letters to each other.)
Nós achamos que a decisão foi correta.
(We think the decision was correct.)
A gente
A2A gente is an informal and extremely common expression for we, especially in spoken Brazilian Portuguese. Grammatically, it is treated as a third-person singular phrase, so the verb is always conjugated in the third-person singular, just as it would be for ele (he) or ela (she).
A gente vai ao supermercado mais tarde.
(We are going to the supermarket later.)
A gente gostaria de agradecer a sua presença.
(We would like to thank you for your presence.)
A gente é responsável por este projeto.
(We are responsible for this project.)
Antigamente, a gente escrevia cartas um para o outro.
(In the past, we used to write letters to each other.)
A gente achou que a decisão foi correta.
(We think the decision was correct.)
Summary
The key difference is both grammatical and stylistic. Nós is more formal and takes a plural verb (e.g., nós fazemos - we do). A gente is informal, very common in daily conversation (especially in Brazil), and always takes a singular verb (e.g., a gente faz - we do). While nós is appropriate for formal writing and speech, a gente is the preferred choice for most casual, everyday interactions.