-요 and 습니다 are both polite sentence endings, but they are used for different situations.
-요 is used for friendly/informal situations. Koreans use -요 for normal/daily conversations, you can use this to anyone who are older than you or you want to express respect.
On the other hand, 습니다 is used more for formal situations like work meetings, conferences, writing, army base, and TV news etc.
| Basic form | Friendly/informal | Formal |
| Noun이다 | 이에요/예요 | 입니다 |
| Verb/adjective다 | 아요/어요/해요 | 습니다/ㅂ니다 |
For example,
| Friendly/informal | Formal |
| 저는 이미나예요. | 저는 이미나입니다. |
| 진주는 제 친구예요. | 진주는 제 친구입니다. |
| 이건 가방이에요. | 이것은 가방입니다. |
| 이 학교는 좋아요. | 이 학교는 좋습니다. |
| 컴퓨터가 있어요. | 컴퓨터가 있습니다. |
| 피자가 맛있어요. | 피자가 맛있습니다. |
If you want to learn more about 이에요, please click here.
If you want to learn more about 아요/어요/해요, please click here.
If you want to learn more about 습니다/ㅂ니다, please click here.
If you want to learn more about the honorific speech, please click here.
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