How to ask for the bill in Spanish, and how tipping works in Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina
Asking for the bill is one sentence. Visitors go quiet and start pointing when they have to get it, split it, pay it and leave the right amount. Below is the whole end of the meal, with what changes in Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina.
The sentence
La cuenta, por favor. The bill, please.
Everywhere, always understood. Two useful variants:
| You want to say | Spanish | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Can you bring me the bill? | ¿Me trae la cuenta, por favor? | Everywhere, with usted |
| Same, with tú | ¿Me traes la cuenta? | Spain, to a waiter your age |
| Same, with vos | ¿Me traés la cuenta? | Argentina |
| When you can | …cuando pueda. (usted) / …cuando puedas. (tú, vos) | Adds patience, useful in Argentina |
| We would like to pay | Queremos pagar. | Spain, at the bar |
| Can I pay? | ¿Puedo pagar? / ¿Me cobras? | Spain: cobrar is what the waiter does, so ¿me cobras? means “will you charge me” |
| How much do I owe you? | ¿Cuánto le debo? | Everywhere, polite |
| How much is it? | ¿Cuánto es? | Everywhere, at a counter |
Cobrar is the verb worth knowing. In Spain ¿me cobras? to a barman is the normal way to say you want to pay. It means “will you charge me”, and it is neither rude nor unusual. Mexicans use it too: ¿me cobra, por favor?
The gesture. Catching the waiter’s eye and writing on your palm in the air means “the bill” in every one of these countries. It is not rude. Snapping fingers or calling ¡oye! across the room is.
Who brings it, and when
Expectations differ most here, and a visitor can wait for something that is not coming.
Spain. The bill does not come unasked. Sitting after a meal is expected, sometimes for an hour, and bringing the bill unbidden would be a hint to leave. You ask, or you walk to the bar and pay there. At a bar, you often pay when you go, for everything at once, after telling the barman what you had.
Mexico. The bill comes when you ask, and it usually comes quickly. Some restaurants bring it when they see you finish. A waiter who leaves it on the table without being asked is not pushing you out.
Colombia. Ask for it. The waiter will often ask ¿Le incluyo el servicio? or ¿Incluye la propina?, do I include the service charge. Say sí unless something went wrong; it is the ten percent tip and it is voluntary by law, which is why they ask.
Argentina. Ask for it and expect a wait. Meals are long and unhurried, and the bill is not seen as urgent by anyone but you. Ask once, early, with cuando puedas, and it will arrive.
Splitting the bill
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Separately, please | Por separado, por favor. | Everywhere |
| Each pays their own | Cada uno paga lo suyo. | Spain |
| Together | Todo junto. | |
| Can we split it in two? | ¿Lo podemos dividir en dos? | |
| Half each | A medias. | Spain, Argentina |
| I invite (my treat) | Yo invito. | Everywhere, and it means you pay all of it |
| Let me pay | Déjame pagar. / Déjeme pagar. | tú / usted |
| Next time you pay | La próxima pagas tú. | Spain; pagás vos in Argentina |
Splitting has customs of its own. In Spain, friends often pay a escote, chipping in equally whatever each ate, and separate bills for a table of six are a bother to ask for at a busy place; ask before ordering if you need them. In Mexico, separate bills are common and easy to ask for: ¿nos puede dar cuentas separadas? In Argentina, hacer una vaquita, “make a little cow”, is to pool money for something shared; in Colombia it is hacer una vaca.
Yo invito is a real offer to pay for everything, and in Mexico and Colombia the reply is a short protest and then thanks. In Spain the same phrase is used among friends and it is normal to insist once. Do not offer it unless you mean it.
Paying by card, cash and phone
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Can I pay by card? | ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta? | Everywhere |
| Do you take cards? | ¿Aceptan tarjeta? | Everywhere |
| Cash only | Solo efectivo. | What you will be told |
| In cash | En efectivo. | |
| Do you have change for…? | ¿Tiene cambio de cien? | Change for a hundred |
| Smaller notes | billetes más pequeños (Spain, Colombia) / billetes más chicos (Mexico, Argentina) | |
| The card machine | el datáfono (Spain, Colombia), la terminal (Mexico), el posnet (Argentina) | Posnet is a brand name that became the word |
| It did not go through | No pasó. / Fue rechazada. | |
| Can you try again? | ¿Puede intentar de nuevo? | |
| A receipt | un recibo or un ticket (Spain) | |
| An invoice with tax details | una factura | Mexico: you will be asked ¿requiere factura?, do you need one for tax |
Three country notes.
Argentina has two prices for many things: efectivo and tarjeta, and cash is often cheaper by ten percent or more. If a menu shows one price, ask ¿hay descuento en efectivo? Payment apps such as Mercado Pago are everywhere; ¿aceptan Mercado Pago? is a normal question. Posnet is the card machine, from an old brand.
Mexico. ¿Requiere factura? at the till is about tax invoices for businesses, not the bill. Say no, gracias. The card machine is brought to the table and the tip can be added on it: the waiter will ask ¿con propina? or show a screen with percentages.
Spain. You can pay by card almost everywhere, including small bars, and tapping a phone is normal. Bizum is the phone-to-phone payment between friends: te hago un bizum means I will send you the money.
Colombia. Datáfono for the machine. Nequi and Daviplata are the phone wallets; small places often accept them and not cards. ¿Recibe Nequi?
Tipping, country by country
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurants | 10 to 15 percent, expected | Round up or leave a few coins; 5 percent is generous | 10 percent, usually on the bill as propina voluntaria | 10 percent in cash, expected |
| Cafés and bars | 10 percent at a table; coins at a counter | Nothing or coins | Round up | 10 percent at a table |
| Taxis | Round up | Round up | Nothing | Round up |
| On the card machine | Yes, asked at the terminal | Rarely possible | Included on the bill | Rarely; leave cash |
| The word | la propina | la propina | la propina or el servicio | la propina |
What to say:
| You want to say | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Keep the change | Quédese con el cambio. (usted) / Quédate con el cambio. (tú) |
| Is service included? | ¿Está incluido el servicio? |
| This is for you | Esto es para usted. |
| Add ten percent, please | Agregue el diez por ciento, por favor. (Mexico) |
| Without service, please | Sin servicio, por favor. (Colombia, if something went wrong) |
In Spain, waiters are salaried and tipping is small and optional. If you leave twenty percent, people know you are a tourist, and nobody but you is confused. In Mexico, ten percent is the floor at any place with table service, and waiters depend on it. In Argentina, cash is the safe way to tip when you pay by card, and a tip by transfer or Mercado Pago to the waiter is now normal too.
Something is wrong with the bill
| You want to say | Spanish |
|---|---|
| I think there is a mistake | Creo que hay un error. |
| We did not have this | Esto no lo pedimos. |
| We only had two, not three | Solo fueron dos, no tres. |
| Can you check it? | ¿Lo puede revisar? |
| It was very good | Estaba muy rico. / Estaba buenísimo. |
| Thank you, goodbye | Gracias, hasta luego. |
People everywhere like to hear estaba muy rico when you pay. Argentines say estaba riquísimo; Spaniards also say estaba de muerte, deadly good, among friends.
Ten sentences for the end of the meal
- La cuenta, por favor. The bill, please.
- ¿Me cobras? Will you charge me? (Spain, at the bar)
- ¿Nos puede dar cuentas separadas? Can you give us separate bills? (Mexico)
- Todo junto, y con tarjeta. All together, by card.
- ¿Le incluyo el servicio? Sí, claro. Do I include service? Yes, of course. (Colombia)
- ¿Hay descuento en efectivo? Is there a cash discount? (Argentina)
- Quédese con el cambio. Keep the change.
- Creo que hay un error, esto no lo pedimos. I think there is a mistake, we did not order this.
- Yo invito. No, déjame a mí. My treat. No, let me.
- Estaba muy rico, gracias. It was very good, thank you.
Questions people ask
Is it la cuenta or la factura? La cuenta is the bill at a restaurant everywhere. La factura is a tax invoice, and in Argentina it is also a pastry. Ask for la cuenta.
Is “cuenta” or “ticket” the receipt? The receipt is el recibo, or el ticket in Spain and Argentina. La cuenta is what you owe.
Do I tip when I pay at the bar in Spain? No. Leaving small coins on the counter is fine and nobody expects it.
Is it rude to ask for the bill in Argentina? No, and you must, or it will not come. Asking with cuando puedas is the local way.
What is “propina voluntaria” on a Colombian bill? The ten percent service charge. It is voluntary by law, and the waiter asks whether to include it. Most people say yes.
Can I say “la nota”? In Mexico la nota is a receipt or a bill from a shop. La cuenta is what you ask for at a restaurant, everywhere.
Practise these words
cuenta, pagar, tarjeta, efectivo, cambio, propina, cobrar, invitar, separado. 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.