Mexican Spanish phrases for a trip to Mexico City

What are some common Spanish phrases to use in Mexico City?

The most useful Spanish phrases in Mexico City are a greeting (Buenos días), por favor and muchas gracias, ¿Me da…? ("can I have…?"), ¿Cuánto cuesta?, ¿Dónde está el baño?, La cuenta, por favor, ¿Aceptan tarjeta?, Disculpe to get attention, and ¿Mande? for "pardon?". These twelve cover most of a day:

• buenos díasUnit 2

  good morning

  Until about noon; then buenas tardes until dark and buenas noches after. In Mexico you greet the person before asking anything, even in a shop.

• por favorUnit 2

  please

• muchas graciasUnit 2

  thank you very much

• Disculpe.Unit 4

  Excuse me. (polite, to get someone's attention)

• con permisoUnit 2

  excuse me (to get past someone, or before you leave)

  Say it to squeeze past people on a crowded Metro car.

• ¿Me da…?Unit 4

  Can I have…? (literally "Do you give me…?"; polite)

  The everyday way to order or buy: ¿Me da dos tacos, por favor?

• ¿Cuánto cuesta?Unit 3

  How much is it? (one thing)

• ¿Dónde está el baño?Unit 5

  Where's the bathroom?

• ¿Aceptan tarjeta?Unit 4

  Do you take cards?

• La cuenta, por favor.Unit 4

  The check, please.

• ¿Mande?Unit 5

  Sorry? Pardon? (a polite Mexican way to ask someone to repeat)

• Que le vaya bien.Unit 2

  Have a good day. (literally "may it go well for you"; polite)

  What a shopkeeper says as you leave. Answer Igualmente, gracias.

How do you greet people politely in Mexico?

Greet with the time of day and use usted with anyone serving you or older than you: Buenas tardes, ¿cómo está? In Mexico, adults use usted with a stranger at first; if they'd rather use tú, they'll tell you.

• buenas tardesUnit 2

  good afternoon

• buenas nochesUnit 2

  good evening; good night (a hello AND a goodbye)

• ¿Cómo está usted?Unit 2

  How are you? (polite)

• Muy bien, gracias. ¿Y usted?Unit 2

  Very well, thanks. And you? (polite)

• Mucho gusto.Unit 2

  Nice to meet you.

• perdónUnit 2

  sorry; excuse me (after bumping into someone, or to get attention)

• de nadaUnit 2

  you're welcome

• Hablo un poco de español.Unit 2

  I speak a little Spanish.

• Más despacio, por favor.Unit 2

  Slower, please.

• The barista asks how you are

  Coffee shop · Sofia, the barista

  Q¿Cómo está?

  How are you?

  Or they might say:
  ¿Cómo está usted?How are you? (polite) ¿Cómo le va?How's it going?

  You can answer

  AMuy bien, gracias.

  Very well, thanks.

  With service staff, use usted: ¿Y usted? instead of ¿Y tú?. They use usted with you too, as in ¿Cómo está?.

How do you get around Mexico City in Spanish?

Ask ¿Dónde está el metro? to find a station, ¿Qué línea va al Zócalo? for the right line, and ¿Dónde me bajo? for your stop; in a taxi, ¿Me lleva al aeropuerto? and Aquí está bien, gracias to get out. A city bus in Mexico is el camión.

• ¿Dónde está el metro?Unit 5

  Where's the metro (station)?

• ¿Qué línea va al Zócalo?Unit 5

  Which line goes to the Zócalo (the main square)?

• ¿Dónde me bajo?Unit 5

  Where do I get off?

• cambiar de líneaUnit 5

  to change lines

• ¿Me lleva al aeropuerto?Unit 5

  Can you take me to the airport? (polite)

• Aquí está bien, gracias.Unit 5

  Here is fine, thanks.

• ¿Este camión va al centro?Unit 5

  Does this bus go downtown?

• Está a dos cuadras.Unit 5

  It's two blocks away.

• Dé vuelta a la derecha.Unit 5

  Turn right. (polite; the everyday way to say it in Mexico)

• Siga derecho.Unit 5

  Keep going straight. (polite)

• At a Metro station: "Can I help you?"

  Metro station · Rosa, Metro station staff

  Q¿Le ayudo?

  Can I help you?

  Or they might say:
  ¿Le puedo ayudar en algo?Can I help you with anything? (a clerk, polite) ¿Necesita ayuda?Do you need help?

  You can answer

  ASí, por favor. Estoy perdida.

  Yes, please. I'm lost. (A man says perdido.)

  A man says Estoy perdido, a woman Estoy perdida. ¿Me puede ayudar? ("can you help me?") is the polite way to ask a stranger.

• In a taxi: "Which way should I go?"

  Taxi ride · Memo, the taxi driver

  Q¿Por dónde me voy?

  Which way should I go?

  Or they might say:
  ¿Por dónde nos vamos?Which way shall we go? Usted me dice: ¿por dónde me voy?You tell me: which way should I go?

  You can answer

  ASiga derecho, por favor.

  Keep going straight, please.

  To a driver, use the polite commands: Siga derecho (keep going straight), Dé vuelta a la derecha (turn right). Careful: derecho is straight ahead, derecha is right.

• Getting out: "Is here OK?"

  Taxi ride · Memo, the taxi driver

  Q¿Aquí está bien?

  Is here OK?

  Or they might say:
  ¿Aquí le parece bien?Is here all right with you? ¿Aquí se baja?Are you getting out here?

  You can answer

  ASí, aquí está bien, gracias.

  Yes, here is fine, thanks.

  Aquí está bien ("here is fine") is how you stop a taxi where you want. Aquí me bajo ("I'll get out here") works too.

What do you say at a market in Mexico?

At a market stall, ask ¿Cuánto cuesta?, order by weight with Un kilo de…, por favor, and expect the vendor to call out ¡Pásele! ("come on in!") and ask whether you have change, ¿Tiene cambio?

• ¡Pásele!Unit 6

  Come on in! (a vendor's or host's welcome)

• ¿Cuánto cuestan?Unit 3

  How much are they? (more than one)

• Es muy caro.Unit 3

  It's very expensive.

• Está hecho a mano.Unit 6

  It's handmade.

• el tianguisUnit 6

  a street market that sets up on certain days

• Doña Lupe: "What can we get you?"

  Market stall · Doña Lupe, the market vendor

  Q¿Qué le damos?

  What can we get you?

  Or they might say:
  ¡Pásele, pásele! ¿Qué va a llevar?Come on in, come on in! What will you have? Buenas, ¿qué le damos hoy?Hello, what can we get you today?

  You can answer

  AUn kilo de manzanas, por favor.

  A kilo of apples, please.

  Deme… is a polite "Give me…", and Me da… works too. Half a kilo is medio kilo, with no un. In Mexico City a tomato is un jitomate.

• "Do you have change?"

  Market stall · Doña Lupe, the market vendor

  Q¿Tiene cambio?

  Do you have change?

  Or they might say:
  Son cuarenta pesos. ¿Tiene cambio?That's forty pesos. Do you have change? ¿Trae cambio? Es que no tengo.Do you have change on you? It's just that I don't.

  You can answer

  ASí, aquí tiene.

  Yes, here you go.

  Market vendors often ask for small money. Sí, aquí tiene ("here you go") hands it over; No, solo tengo un billete de quinientos says you only have a 500 bill.

Ordering food is its own page: how to order food in Spanish at a taco stand, a café and a restaurant.

What do you say when you don't understand?

Say No entiendo ("I don't understand") or ¿Puede repetir, por favor?, ask for Más despacio, por favor, and if you're lost, Estoy perdido (a woman says perdida) and ¿Me puede ayudar? People are patient with someone trying.

• No entiendo.Unit 5

  I don't understand.

• ¿Puede repetir, por favor?Unit 5

  Can you repeat that, please? (polite)

• ¿Me puede ayudar?Unit 5

  Can you help me? (polite)

• Estoy perdido.Unit 5

  I'm lost. (a woman says perdida)

• ¿Cómo se dice…?Unit 6

  How do you say…?

What is the proper term for Mexican Spanish?

In Spanish it's español mexicano or español de México, and in Mexico people simply call their language español. It's Spanish, not a separate language: a Mexican and a Spaniard understand each other the way an American and a Brit do, with a different accent and some different words (Mexico's camión, popote and ¡Qué padre!). "Latin American Spanish" is the wider term for the Spanish of the Americas, which uses ustedes for every plural "you".

For the differences from Spain's Spanish, see which Spanish CiaoSpeak teaches; for the casual side, Mexican slang.

How can you practice these phrases before your trip?

Say them out loud to someone who answers. CiaoSpeak's Spanish course teaches these phrases in its first six units (greetings, numbers and prices, eating out, getting around, and Mexico City itself), and then the Speak tab puts you in the scenes: Rosa at a Metro station, Memo in his taxi, Doña Lupe at her fruit stall in Coyoacán, Sofía at a café in Colonia Roma. Each asks you one question; you answer by voice or by typing, and the app tells you if a person would understand you. Lessons are free; in the Speak tab, today's questions (up to five a day) are free too, and CiaoSpeak+ adds practice in any scene whenever you like.

Frequently asked questions

Should I use tú or usted in Mexico?

Use usted with anyone serving you, older people and adult strangers, and tú with friends, people your age and anyone who uses tú with you first. Mexicans usually start with usted and will tell you if they'd rather use tú.

How do you say excuse me in Mexico?

Say Disculpe to get someone's attention, con permiso to get past people or before you leave, and perdón after you bump into someone. English uses "excuse me" for all three.

What does mande mean in Mexico?

¿Mande? is a polite Mexican "Sorry?" or "Pardon?": what people say when they didn't catch what you said. It isn't rude or old-fashioned, and you can use it too.

Do you need Spanish in Mexico City?

You can get by with English in many hotels and tourist areas, but many taxi drivers, market vendors and staff at small local restaurants speak little or no English. A few polite phrases, like buenos días, ¿Me da…? and la cuenta, por favor, make every exchange easier.