Shopping Chinese essential
Chinese Shopping and Payment Phrases
Learn practical Chinese phrases for asking the price, paying by card, asking for a discount, and shopping with confidence.
A shopping question needs a clear object. 这个多少钱 works when both you and the seller know which item this refers to. It becomes less useful if you point at a shelf containing three sizes and then ask about payment before confirming the price. Settle one decision at a time: item, version, quantity, amount, and payment method.
Start with these phrases
This page covers the counter conversation. Use the fitting-room guide for clothing fit, and the mobile-payment guide for who scans whose code. The sample prices below exist to teach number recognition, not to suggest what any item should cost.
What you might hear back
这是一个的价格。
zhè shì yí ge de jià gé.
That is the price for one.
The amount is a unit price. Ask for the total if you are buying several.
这个不能优惠。
zhè ge bù néng yōu huì.
This cannot be discounted.
The seller has declined the discount, not failed to understand which item you mean.
只有这个颜色。
zhǐ yǒu zhè ge yán sè.
It only comes in this color here.
The available choice is limited. Ask about another product if a different color matters.
The item, quantity, and price
- 这个多少钱？
Point at the exact item and version. If buying more than one, ask 一共多少钱 to clarify the total.
- 三十块。
三十 is thirty; 块 is a conversational unit for yuan. A bare number still needs to be tied to one item or the whole purchase.
- 有大一点的吗？
This requests a larger version, not more pieces. Keep the current item in view when asking.
- 可以刷卡吗？
A question about an available method. Confirm the card and arrangement you intend to use.
Choosing a version and settling the amount
Checking the unit price and the total
多少钱 asks how much, but the answer may need a unit. 一个三十 means thirty for one; 一共三十 means thirty altogether. 一共 is especially useful when buying several items. 三十 is thirty, not three. If you are unsure, ask for the number in writing and confirm what the amount covers before paying.
Bigger, more, and another color
大一点 describes size, not quantity. 有大一点的吗 asks for a larger version. 我要两个 requests two items. 有别的颜色吗 asks about another color without changing size. Holding the original item or showing its label helps the seller identify what should remain the same. Hold the original item in view so the seller can bring the same product in another size.
Asking whether a discount is available
可以便宜一点吗 asks whether the price can be a little lower. If the seller says 不能优惠, the request was understood but declined. You can accept the stated price or end the exchange politely. A price label or a fixed-price setting can make a discount question less relevant.
Payment permission is specific to this transaction
可以刷卡吗 asks whether card payment is possible. Show the card you intend to use and ask whether that particular card is accepted. If the seller asks which method you mean, show it or name it. A successful selection of a payment method is also not proof that payment has completed. If the result is unclear, confirm it before trying another method and accidentally paying twice.
Change is different from a price reduction
In a cash transaction, 找您十块 means here is ten yuan in change. The seller is returning the difference after payment. 找 can mean look for in other contexts, but the money and the completed payment give it this meaning here. 还差十块 says ten yuan is still missing; 多给了十块 says ten yuan too much was given. Those statements point in opposite directions. Ask the seller to show the amount if you do not understand. Keeping the price, cash handed over, and change separate is a useful listening task even when you can already recognize all the numbers involved.
Check the selected version before buying
A seller may bring another package or item after a size or color request. Point to the replacement and confirm 价格一样吗, is the price the same? 一样 describes equality; 不一样 warns that something differs. A larger package can change the amount even if it looks like the same product. Also distinguish 我要这个, I want this, from 我看看这个, I would like to look at this. The second lets you inspect an item before deciding. 包装 means packaging, and 一盒 counts a box. 两盒一共多少钱 asks for the total for two boxes. Check that the package size and quantity match the price the seller has quoted.
Conversations
A price is for one item, not both
The customer checks what the number covers before treating it as the total.
zhè liǎng ge yí gòng duō shao qián?
How much are these two altogether?
yí ge sān shí, liǎng ge liù shí.
Thirty each, sixty for two.
míng bai le, wǒ zhǐ yào yí ge.
Understood. I'll take just one.
hǎo de, yí ge sān shí.
Of course, thirty for one.
Checking which colors are in stock
The buyer declines without implying a purchase or repeating a stock request that has already been answered.
tóng yàng dà xiǎo, yǒu lán sè de ma?
Do you have blue in the same size?
méi yǒu, zhǐ yǒu zhè ge yán sè.
No, only this color.
hǎo de, xiè xie, wǒ zài kàn kan.
Okay, thank you. I'll keep looking.
hǎo, nín màn man kàn.
Of course, take your time.
Check what the seller means
Which phrase explicitly asks for the total?
一共多少钱. 一共 means altogether; 一个 introduces the amount for one item.
Does 大一点 ask for an extra item?
No. It asks for a larger version. 两个 is a quantity of two.
A seller says 不能优惠. What should you understand?
The discount request has been declined. Decide whether to buy at the stated price or keep looking.
More shopping and payment language
Questions learners ask
How do I ask how much something costs in Chinese?
Say 这个多少钱？
How do I ask to pay by card?
Say 可以刷卡吗？
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