How to ask how much something costs in Italian
Quanto costa?
“How much is it?”
When: Pointing at a single item with no price on it
The moment
You are at a market stall in Campo de' Fiori in Rome, fruit and snacks piled high and not a price tag in sight. You want to find out what two of them cost before you hand over any money.
A1 · Unit 1 · First words
The lines
Asking what it costs
Point at the thing and ask "Quanto costa?" It works for one item anywhere: a market stall, a newsstand, a shop shelf.
Quanto costa?
“How much is it?”
When to use it: Pointing at a single item with no price on it
What you’ll hear back: Due euro e cinquanta. (Two euros fifty.)
Catching the price
Prices come out euros first, cents after, joined by "e": "Sono tre euro e cinquanta." Say the number back as a question if you are not sure you caught it.
Tre euro e cinquanta?
“Three euros fifty?”
When to use it: Repeating a price back to check you heard it
What you’ll hear back: Sì, esatto. (Yes, exactly.)
Words for this scene
| Italian | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| Quant'è in tutto? | kwahn-TEH een TOOT-toh | How much is it altogether? |
Basta così, quant'è in tutto? That's everything, how much is it altogether? Tip: Ask it once you have stopped choosing, to get the total. | ||
| È troppo caro | eh TROP-poh KAH-roh | It's too expensive |
No, grazie, è troppo caro per me. No thanks, that's too expensive for me. Tip: Fine at a market stall; in Italian shops prices are fixed. | ||
| Che affare! | keh af-FAH-reh | What a bargain! |
Che affare! Ne prendo due. What a bargain! I'll take two. Tip: Said cheerfully, it lands as a compliment to the seller. | ||
Your objective
Ask what two different things cost, then say which one you’ll take and how many.
- the price of two things
- which one you want
- how many
Lines that get it done
- Quanto costa?
- Che affare! Ne prendo due. · What a bargain! I'll take two.
- No, grazie, è troppo caro per me. · No thanks, that's too expensive for me.
In the live scene the objective stays on screen, and the Replay afterwards says whether you got it done.
Check yourself
1. You point at a peach with no price tag on it. What do you ask?
- Quanto costa?
- Quanto tempo?
- Quanti anni?
- Come va?
Show the answer
Quanto costa?
"Quanto costa?" asks the price of the one thing you are pointing at.
2. Which of these means three euros fifty?
- Tre euro e cinquanta
- Tredici euro
- Tre euro e quindici
- Cinque euro e trenta
Show the answer
Tre euro e cinquanta
"Tre" is 3 and "cinquanta" is 50, so it is €3.50; "tredici" would be 13.
3. The seller names a price far above what you wanted to pay. What do you say?
- È troppo caro.
- Che affare!
- Sì, esatto.
- Quant'è in tutto?
Show the answer
È troppo caro.
"È troppo caro" tells the seller the price is too high for you.