Chinese Money, Prices & Payment — 人民币 / 元 块 角 毛 分 / 多少钱 / 付款

Every trip to a shop, restaurant, taxi, or market involves money. The core words are 钱 qián (money), 价格 jiàgé (price), and 人民币 rénmínbì (Renminbi, the Chinese currency, abbreviated RMB or CNY).

In everyday speech you will hear 块 and 毛 far more often than the formal 元 and 角. Learning both systems lets you read a price tag and speak naturally at the same time.

The three formal units are 元 yuán (yuan), 角 jiǎo (jiao), and 分 fēn (fen). One 元 equals ten 角, and one 角 equals ten 分, so 1 元 = 100 分.

In spoken Chinese, 元 becomes 块 kuài and 角 becomes 毛 máo: 一块钱 = 一元, 五毛钱 = 五角. 分 stays the same but is mostly dropped in casual speech.

On price tags and receipts you usually see the formal 元 and 角; in conversation people say 块 and 毛.

Read the number in 块, then add the smaller number in 毛. 五块三 (5.30) means 5 yuan 3 jiao; 三块五 (3.50) means 3 yuan 5 jiao.

Whole amounts just take 块: 二十五块 (25), 一百块 (100). For a precise amount with 分, say 两块五毛五分 (2.55), but in daily speech people stop at 毛 and say 两块五.

The pattern is 数字 + 块 + 数字 + 毛. When the jiao part is a single digit, the 三 in 五块三 already means 三毛, so you do not add 毛 again.

多少钱 duōshao qián is the standard way to ask "how much (money)". Point at something and ask 这个多少钱? (how much is this?) or 一共多少钱? (how much in total?).

For things sold by weight, add the unit: 多少钱一斤? (how much per half-kilo?). For a fixed price you can also ask 多少钱一个? (how much each?).

Common answers: 十块 (10 yuan), 十五块五 (15.50), 二十 (20).

太贵了 tài guì le means "too expensive"; 便宜一点 piányi yìdiǎn means "a bit cheaper". 贵 guì is expensive, 便宜 piányi is cheap.

打折 dǎzhé means "give a discount". The number is counterintuitive: 打八折 means you pay 80% of the price (20% off), and 打五折 means half price. 半价 bànjià also means half price.

优惠 yōuhuì means a special offer or discount. You might hear 有没有优惠? (is there a discount?) or 可以便宜一点吗? (can you make it a bit cheaper?).

现金 xiànjīn is cash; 刷卡 shuākǎ means "swipe a card". 信用卡 xìnyòngkǎ is a credit card and 借记卡 jièjìkǎ is a debit card.

Mobile payment is everywhere in China: 微信支付 Wēixìn zhīfù (WeChat Pay) and 支付宝 Zhīfùbǎo (Alipay). 扫码支付 sǎomǎ zhīfù means "scan to pay", and 手机支付 shǒujī zhīfù means mobile payment.

To ask, say 可以刷卡吗? (can I pay by card?) or 可以微信支付吗? (can I pay with WeChat Pay?). The cashier may ask 现金还是刷卡? (cash or card?).

找钱 zhǎoqián or 找零 zhǎolíng means "give change". The cashier says 找你五块 (here is your 5 yuan change). 零钱 língqián is small change or loose coins.

发票 fāpiào is an official receipt or invoice; 小票 xiǎopiào is a small register receipt. You can ask 有发票吗? (is there an official receipt?).

Do not mix 元 and 块 in the same spoken price: say 五块三 or 五元三角, not 五块三毛五分 in casual speech.

Do not misread 打八折 as "8% off". It means you pay 80%, so it is a 20% discount. 打五折 is half price.

Use 多少钱 for money amounts; 几块 works for a rough small number when you expect a small figure, but 多少钱 is the safest general question.

Keep 毛 for spoken jiao and 角 for written amounts: a price of 5.50 is written 5.50元 or 5元5角 but said 五块五.