at the end of the day — summarising / ultimately
expressionC1IELTS 7+neutralcommon
Used to introduce your final or most important point after considering everything else; signals what really matters in the end.
Say it like a native
Textbook When all relevant factors are taken into consideration, what truly matters is family.
Native At the end of the day, family's what matters.
'At the end of the day' is the natural spoken summariser; the formal version is heavy.
Pattern: at the end of the day, [clause]
In use
- At the end of the day, what matters most is that everyone is happy.daily life
- At the end of the day, I believe that family support is the key factor in a child’s success, even though schools and friends also play important roles.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ In the end of the day, it's your choice.
✓ At the end of the day, it's your choice.
The idiom is 'AT the end of the day', not 'in'.
Common collocations
at the end of the day,— it's, what matters, you have to, family
Don't confuse it
Similar to 'ultimately' or 'when all is said and done', but more informal and common in speech. 'In conclusion' is more formal and used in writing.