How To Say Hello In Spanish - Rosetta Stone Blog

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Whether you’re greeting an acquaintance, a cashier, or an old friend, you’ll want to know how to say “hi” in Spanish appropriately to set the right tone for any conversation. Your greeting needs to match the formality of the interaction taking place. “What’s up?” is well-suited for a friendly encounter, but not as fitting at the start of a client meeting.

In Spanish, you can keep it formal with hola, un placer (it’s a pleasure to meet you) or keep things casual with ¿qué onda? (what’s up?). Of course, there are dozens of ways to customize your greetings. Learn how to say “hello” in Spanish for every occasion.

Rosetta Stone Spanish can help you master greetings for every occasion, without the memorization. But if you’re eager to preview the many ways there are to say “hello” in Spanish, this comprehensive guide was built for you!

Table of Contents

• How to pronounce hola
• Common ways to say ‘hello’ in Spanish 
• How to say a casual ‘hi’ in Spanish
• Formal ways to say ‘hello’ in Spanish
• Regional greetings in Spanish
• Cultural tips on saying ‘hello’ in Spanish 
• Master the entire conversation in Spanish

How to pronounce hola

Hola is the most common way to say “hello” in Spanish. It’s pretty easy to remember, too, since the Spanish and English greetings look so similar!

Beginner speakers often pronounce the word with a hard “h” sound, as in “hula” or “herald.” In Spanish, however, the “h” is almost always silent, unless it’s preceded by a “c.”

In the video, hear how hola is pronounced by a native Spanish speaker. Plus, pick up a quintessential Nicaraguan greeting!

Common ways to say ‘hello’ in Spanish

If you remember nothing else from this list, commit the phrases below to memory. Consider it your go-to list for striking up a conversation with anyone. Each greeting is relatively neutral, so you won’t need to worry about sounding too buttoned up or too laidback.

Spanish	English
hola	hello
¿Cómo está?	How are you?
mucho gusto	it’s nice to meet you
saludos	greetings
buenos días	good morning
buenas tardes	good afternoon
buenas noches	good evening

How to say a casual ‘hi’ in Spanish

When you’re around people you’re familiar with, you can use the following informal phrases. They’ll not only help you sound more like a native speaker, but they’re also fun to say.

Remember that in casual settings, you’ll use the subject pronoun tú (second person, singular) when conjugating verbs and addressing others.

Spanish	English
oye	hey
¿Qué pasa?	What’s up?
¿Qué fue?	What’s up?
¿Qué onda?	What’s up?
¿Qué hay de nuevo?	What’s new?
¿Qué más?	What’s new?
¿Qué pasa?	What’s going on?
¿Cómo va todo?	How’s everything going?
¿En qué andas?	What are you up to?
¿Cómo van las cosas?	What’s shaking?

Formal ways to say ‘hello’ in Spanish

When showing respect or addressing someone you aren’t familiar with, you’ll use the pronoun usted (third person, singular) or ustedes (third person, plural) and conjugate all verbs to match the third person.

It’s important to know the difference between using usted vs. tú in your conversations. Remember you need to use usted/ustedes in formal situations.

The pronoun vosotros (second person, plural) is also used, though it’s exclusively used in Spain. Usted and ustedes are the formal pronouns of choice in every other Spanish-speaking country.

Spanish	English
Hola, ¿cómo está? (formal, singular)	Hello, how are you?
Hola, ¿cómo están? (formal, plural)	Hello, how are you?
Gusto en verlo. (formal, singular)	It’s nice to see you.
Gusto en verlos. (formal, plural)	It’s nice to see you.
Hola, un placer.	Hello, it’s a pleasure to meet you.
Encantado/a	Delighted to meet you!

Regional greetings in Spanish

Every Spanish-speaking region has several unique ways of saying “hello.” Take the example from the video above. In Venezuela, it’s common for friends to greet each other with both épale (hello) and háblame (talk to me). Use these phrases while traveling or to better connect with new friends in your community!

Spanish	English	Region
Wena	Good day	Chile
Bien, ¿o qué?	Good, or what?	Colombia
¿Qué hubo?	What’s up?	Mexico
¿Qué onda, güey?	What’s up, dude?	Mexico
¿Qué tranza?	What’s going on?	Mexico
¿Cómo vamos?	How’s it going?	Nicaragua
¿Hola causa?	What’s up?	Peru
¿Cómo andas?	How’s it going?	Spain
épale	hello	Venezuela
háblame	talk to me	Venezuela

Cultural tips on saying ‘hello’ in Spanish

Similar to etiquette rules for French speakers, respecting correct pronoun usage is the most important thing you can do to ensure your greeting is well received. When speaking with someone you’ve only just met, you’ll want to use usted or ustedes (or vosotros if you’re in Spain).

If they’re fine with using tú instead, they’ll let you know. It’s always better to be overly formal at the onset of a conversation rather than deal with the awkwardness of overstepping boundaries.

The preference for handshakes or besitos (air kisses) upon greeting is highly regional. For this, allow the person you’re meeting to initiate the gesture first. The more real-life conversations you have, the more quickly you’ll learn!

Master the entire conversation in Spanish

Who knew there were so many ways to say “hello” in Spanish? Commit a couple to memory, and practice incorporating new ones into each conversation. You’ll be surprised at how impressed native speakers will be when you break out a regional phrase like épale! Next, you’ll need to know how to say “goodbye” in Spanish.

Go beyond “hello” with Rosetta Stone Spanish. It can help you learn faster and more effectively than if you try tackling Spanish on your own. With Dynamic Immersion, you’ll learn language naturally by pairing text and audio from native speakers with images. Plus, TruAccent gives you instant feedback on how you sound—so you can perfect your pronunciation from your very first lesson!

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