Greetings and goodbyes in Spanish: hello, how are you, tú or usted, in four countries
You can say hola in every Spanish-speaking country, and adiós too. Between those two words you have to get the rest right, or a first exchange sounds stiff: which “you” to use, how to answer “how are you”, whether to kiss or shake hands, and the goodbyes that are not adiós at all. This page has all of it, with the version for Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina wherever the words differ.
Hello
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hello | Hola | Everywhere, any time, any person |
| Good morning | Buenos días / Buen día (Argentina) | Until lunch, which is later than you think in Spain (two o’clock) and Argentina. Argentina says the singular buen día; buenos días sounds formal there |
| Good afternoon | Buenas tardes | From lunch until dark |
| Good evening, good night | Buenas noches | After dark, and also when leaving to go to bed |
| Hi (short) | Buenas | Spain, Argentina, Colombia; the relaxed form at any hour. Rarer in Mexico |
| Hey | Ey / Qué tal | Spain |
| What’s up | ¿Qué onda? | Mexico, informal |
| What’s up | ¿Qué más? | Colombia; the standard casual greeting; nobody answers it with news |
| What’s up | ¿Qué hacés? or ¿Cómo andás? | Argentina, with vos |
| Hi (Argentina, to a friend) | Che, ¿qué hacés? |
Buenos días is the safe greeting to anyone, in a shop, on a bus, to a neighbour. In Spain, walking into a small shop without saying it is noticed. In Mexico, buenos días to strangers in a lift or a waiting room is normal, and answering it is expected.
You can say buenas on its own in the morning, afternoon and evening, and it is what most people in Spain and Argentina actually say. Mexicans prefer the full forms.
How are you
Four ways, then the answers.
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neutral | ¿Cómo está? (usted) / ¿Cómo estás? (tú) | ¿Qué tal? / ¿Cómo estás? | ¿Cómo está? / ¿Cómo estás? | ¿Cómo estás? / ¿Cómo andás? (vos) |
| Casual | ¿Qué onda? / ¿Cómo te va? | ¿Qué tal? / ¿Cómo va? | ¿Qué más? / ¿Cómo vas? / ¿Bien o qué? | ¿Qué hacés? / ¿Todo bien? |
| To a group | ¿Cómo están? | ¿Qué tal? / ¿Cómo estáis? | ¿Cómo están? | ¿Cómo andan? |
¿Qué tal? is the everyday Spanish greeting in Spain and is heard elsewhere; it means “how is it going” and you answer it with no more than bien. ¿Qué más? in Colombia sounds like “what else?” and means “what’s up”. ¿Bien o qué?, “good or what?”, is a Colombian favourite and is friendly, not aggressive.
The answers:
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fine, thanks, and you? | Bien, gracias, ¿y tú? / ¿y usted? / ¿y vos? | Match the “you” they used |
| Very well | Muy bien. | |
| All good | Todo bien. | Everywhere; Argentina says it constantly |
| So-so | Más o menos. / Ahí vamos. | Ahí vamos, “there we go”, is the honest answer in Mexico and Colombia |
| Getting by | Tirando. | Spain, literally “pulling along” |
| Not bad | No me quejo. | Cannot complain |
| Tired | Cansado / cansada. | Ending matches the speaker |
| Fine (short) | Bien. | |
| Great | Genial. (Spain) / Chido. (Mexico) / Bacano. (Colombia) / Bárbaro. (Argentina) |
The exchange in every country is fast, and people expect bien. Answering ¿cómo estás? with a real account of your day is a friend’s privilege; with a shopkeeper it is a surprise.
Tú, usted, vos, vosotros
The single most searched question about Spanish greetings, and the answer is different in each country.
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friends, family, your age | tú | tú | usted in Bogotá and much of the interior; tú on the coast; vos in Medellín and Cali | vos |
| Strangers, shops, waiters | usted | tú (most of the time) | usted | vos to anyone your age; usted to the old |
| Older people, bosses, officials | usted | usted | usted | usted |
| A group of friends | ustedes | vosotros | ustedes | ustedes |
| A group, formal | ustedes | ustedes | ustedes | ustedes |
What that means in practice:
In Spain people use tú with almost everyone. Waiters, shop staff, colleagues, strangers your age. Usted is for the elderly, for officials and for moments when you want distance. A visitor who says usted to a barman in Madrid sounds formal to the point of odd.
Mexicans keep usted for strangers and elders. Shop staff, waiters, taxi drivers, anyone older. Friends and people your age get tú quickly. Children are taught to say usted to their grandparents and sometimes to their parents.
Colombians say usted to everyone, including friends. In Bogotá, couples say usted to each other, and tú between men can sound affected. On the coast (Cartagena, Barranquilla) people use tú. In Medellín and Cali they use vos. If in doubt anywhere in Colombia, usted is never wrong.
Argentines say vos. Tú is understood but nobody says it. Vos has its own verb forms: vos tenés, vos querés, vos sos, vos podés. In the imperative the final vowel change goes, and the stress falls at the end: vení, mirá, decime, escuchame. To a stranger your age vos is normal. Usted is for the clearly older and for formal settings.
Vosotros is Spain only. Everywhere in Latin America a group is ustedes, even a group of children. Learning vosotros forms is useful if you are going to Spain and harmless if not; you will be understood without them.
Introducing yourself
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| My name is | Me llamo Ana. / Soy Ana. | Soy is more casual |
| What’s your name? | ¿Cómo te llamas? (tú) / ¿Cómo se llama? (usted) / ¿Cómo te llamás? (vos) | |
| Nice to meet you | Mucho gusto. | Everywhere; the standard |
| Nice to meet you | Encantado / encantada. | Spain mostly; ending matches the speaker |
| Same here | Igualmente. / El gusto es mío. | |
| This is my friend | Te presento a mi amigo Juan. / Le presento a… (usted) | |
| Where are you from? | ¿De dónde eres? / ¿De dónde es? / ¿De dónde sos? | tú / usted / vos |
| I am from | Soy de Suecia. |
You can say mucho gusto everywhere, and it is the answer to itself. In Spain people say encantado more, and mucho gusto in Spain can sound a little Latin American, which is fine.
Kiss, handshake or nothing
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Two women meeting | One kiss on the cheek | Two kisses; you move to your own left first, so right cheeks touch | One kiss | One kiss |
| A woman and a man | One kiss, once introduced | Two kisses | One kiss, once introduced | One kiss |
| Two men | Handshake; a hug and back pat among friends | Handshake or a hug; kisses between men are uncommon outside father and son | Handshake | One kiss between friends, normal |
| Business | Handshake | Handshake, sometimes two kisses | Handshake | Handshake, then a kiss once you know each other |
Visitors are surprised by two things. In Spain it is two kisses, and starting on the wrong side leads to the collision every visitor has once. In Argentina men kiss men on the cheek as a greeting between friends, and a handshake from a friend can feel cold there.
The kiss is a touch of cheeks with a kissing sound, not a kiss on the skin, everywhere.
Goodbye
Adiós is correct and it is the one people use least. It is a little final; in Mexico and Colombia it is also what you say to a stranger you pass in the street and will not see again.
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Goodbye | Adiós. | Correct everywhere; a bit final |
| See you later | Hasta luego. | The everyday goodbye in Spain and Mexico |
| See you later (soon) | Nos vemos. | Everywhere; the most common informal one |
| See you tomorrow | Hasta mañana. | |
| See you soon | Hasta pronto. | |
| See you, then | Chao. / Chau. | Chao throughout Colombia; chau in Argentina, the standard goodbye there |
| Bye (Spain) | Venga, hasta luego. / Venga, adiós. | Venga is the Spanish send-off word |
| Bye (Mexico) | Bye. / Ahí nos vemos. / Cuídate. | English bye is common in Mexico |
| Take care | Cuídate. (tú) / Cuídese. (usted) / Cuidate. (vos) | |
| Have a good day | Que tengas un buen día. / Que le vaya bien. | Que le vaya bien is the Mexican and Colombian shop goodbye |
| Good night (leaving) | Buenas noches. | Both hello and goodbye after dark |
| It was nice to see you | Me dio gusto verte. | Mexico |
| Say hi to your family | Saludos a la familia. / Saludos a tu mamá. | Mexico, Colombia |
Que le vaya bien, may it go well for you, is what a shopkeeper in Mexico or Colombia says as you leave, and you can say it back. In Spain people end a conversation with venga, on the phone or at the door: venga, hasta luego. Chau in Argentina is the goodbye, not slang, used with everyone.
On the phone
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Answering | ¿Bueno? | ¿Sí? / ¿Diga? / ¿Dígame? | ¿Aló? | ¿Hola? |
| Who is calling? | ¿Quién habla? / ¿De parte de quién? | ¿De parte de quién? | ¿Con quién hablo? | ¿Quién habla? |
| It’s Ana | Habla Ana. / Soy Ana. | Soy Ana. | Habla Ana. | Soy Ana. |
| Hanging up | Bueno, nos vemos. | Venga, hasta luego. | Bueno, chao. | Dale, chau. |
¿Bueno? is how Mexicans answer the phone, and only the phone. ¿Diga? in Spain sounds brusque to a learner and is not.
Ten exchanges you can have tomorrow
- Buenos días. ¿Cómo está? Bien, gracias, ¿y usted? Good morning. How are you? Fine, thanks, and you? (Mexico, Colombia, to a stranger)
- Hola, ¿qué tal? Bien, tirando. Hi, how is it going? Fine, getting by. (Spain)
- ¿Qué más? Todo bien, ¿y usted? What’s up? All good, and you? (Colombia)
- Che, ¿qué hacés? Todo bien, ¿vos? Hey, what’s up? All good, you? (Argentina)
- Mucho gusto, soy Ana. Igualmente. Nice to meet you, I’m Ana. Same here.
- ¿De dónde sos? De Suecia. Where are you from? From Sweden. (Argentina)
- Te presento a mi amiga Sara. Encantado. This is my friend Sara. Nice to meet you. (Spain)
- Bueno, nos vemos. Que le vaya bien. Well, see you. Take care. (Mexico)
- Venga, hasta luego. Right, see you later. (Spain)
- Dale, chau, cuidate. Ok, bye, take care. (Argentina)
Questions people ask
Is “hola” too informal for a shop? No. Hola, buenos días together is the most common opening everywhere.
Can I say “buenas noches” when I arrive? Yes. It is the greeting after dark and the goodbye at bedtime.
Is “adiós” rude? No, but it is final. Hasta luego or nos vemos is what people say when they expect to see you again, which is most of the time.
What does “¿cómo amaneciste?” mean? “How did you wake up?”, a morning greeting in Mexico and Colombia, asked to someone you saw the night before. Answer bien, gracias.
Should I use usted with a waiter? Mexico and Colombia: yes. Spain: no, tú. Argentina: vos, unless the waiter is clearly older.
What is the difference between “buenas tardes” and “buenas noches”? Daylight. Afternoon runs until it is dark, then it is noches. In Spain the afternoon starts at two, after lunch, and nine in the evening is still tarde in summer.
How do I say “hi everyone”? Hola a todos. In Spain people add ¿qué tal?; in Mexico, ¿cómo están?
Practise these words
hola, buenos, días, tardes, noches, gusto, luego, nos vemos, cuidarse, presentar, llamarse. Vozelu is a free website for practising Spanish, and it has each of these. You see a sentence with one word missing, you type the word, and a native voice reads the sentence back. Practise the words on this page. You practise usted forms practised as their own drills.