How to Say Thank You in Korean (The Way Native Speakers Actually Do It)

You're learning Korean and someone just helped you find the subway station. What do you say?

If you've cracked open a textbook or used a language app, you probably learned 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida). That's great. It works. But here's the thing—saying thank you in Korean isn't like English where "thanks" works everywhere. Use the wrong version with your Korean friends and they'll think you're being weird and distant. Use too casual a version with your boss and... well, you've just made things awkward.

Korean has different ways to say thank you, and picking the right one depends on who you're talking to and how formal the situation is. Mess it up and people will notice. Get it right and you'll sound like a native.

Let's break down what you actually need to know.

The Two Most Common Ways to Say Thank You in Korean

감사합니다 (gamsahamnida) and 고맙습니다 (gomapseumnida)—these are your go-to formal expressions. Both mean "thank you" and you can use them pretty much interchangeably in most situations.

감사합니다 (gamsahamnida) comes from 감사하다 (gamsahada), which combines 감사 (gamsa, meaning "gratitude") with 하다 (hada, "to do"). So literally, you're "doing gratitude." The pronunciation sounds like "gahm-sah-hahm-nee-dah" (some write it as "kam-sa-ham-ni-da"), though native speakers often say it quickly so it sounds more like "gam-sam-ni-da" or even "감삼니다" (gamsamnida).

This is your safest bet. Use it with people who are older, strangers, your boss, teachers—basically anyone you need to show respect to. If you're not sure which way to say thank you in Korean, go with this one. You literally can't go wrong with 감사합니다.

고맙습니다 (gomapseumnida) comes from 고맙다 (gomapda), which means "to be grateful." This one's pure Korean (not borrowed from Chinese like 감사), so some people say it feels slightly warmer. The pronunciation is "go-mahp-seum-ni-da." You'll hear this commonly used phrase in formal situations too, just maybe a hair less formal than 감사합니다.

Both work in restaurants, shops, business meetings, with your landlord, with strangers—anywhere you need to be polite. The difference is subtle enough that most learners shouldn't stress about it. These are the most common ways to express gratitude in Korean culture.

When You Need to Be Extra Formal: 대단히 감사합니다

Sometimes 감사합니다 isn't quite formal enough. If you're giving a presentation, thanking a major client, or addressing someone of very high status, you'd use 대단히 감사합니다 (daedanhi gamsahamnida)—this is one way to say "thank you very much."

대단히 means "greatly" or "very much." This phrase shows serious gratitude. Think business presentations, formal ceremonies, thanking important guests. It's not something you'd use in casual settings.

Real example: If you're a real estate agent and your first client walks into an open house, you might say "와 주셔서 대단히 감사합니다" (wa jusyeoseo daedanhi gamsahamnida)—"Thank you very much for coming."

You won't use this often in daily life. It's almost ceremonial. But it's good to know it exists.

The Polite Middle Ground: 고마워요

고마워요 (gomawoyo) sits between formal and informal. The pronunciation is "go-ma-wo-yo." It's polite, but friendlier than 감사합니다.

This is a common way to say thanks in Korean with coworkers you're friendly with (but not close friends with), service staff, people around your age that you know but aren't super close to. It has that -요 ending which keeps it polite, but it's less formal than the -습니다 forms.

Here's where it gets tricky though—it's too formal for your close friends (they'll wonder why you're being so stiff), but not formal enough for first meetings, someone older than you, or your superiors at work.

Think of it like the language you'd use with a coworker you chat with at lunch but don't hang out with after work.

Casual Ways of Saying Thank You: 고마워

고마워 (gomawo) is the informal "thanks." The pronunciation is "go-ma-wo." This is for close friends, siblings, people younger than you that you're familiar with, or kids. This is the casual way of saying thank you in Korean.

Never—and I mean never—use this with strangers, older people, or in professional settings. Using 반말 (banmal, informal speech) with someone you should be formal with is one of the fastest ways to come across as rude in Korean culture.

Your friend buys you a coffee? 고마워. Your younger sibling helps you with something? 고마워. Anyone else? Nope.

Korean age hierarchy is real. Even if someone's just a year or two older than you, they might expect formal speech until you get close. When in doubt, stay formal until they tell you to drop it.

Different Ways to Say "Thank You Very Much"

Want to emphasize your gratitude? Add 정말 (jeongmal), which means "really" or "truly." This is one of the different ways of saying thank you with more sincerity.

This works at any formality level. It's a simple way to show you genuinely appreciate something without getting overly complicated.

You can also use 너무 (neomu) which means "very" or "so much":

These expressions of gratitude work across different contexts and help you sound more natural when you learn how to say thank you in Korean.

Special Situations: Different Ways to Say Thanks in Korean for Meals

Korean has specific ways to express gratitude around meals. Before eating, you say 잘 먹겠습니다 (jal meokgetseumnida)—literally "I will eat well," but it functions as "thank you for this food."

After finishing, you say 잘 먹었습니다 (jal meogeotseumnida)—"I ate well" or "thank you for the meal."

These aren't optional in Korean culture. If someone cooks for you or takes you out to eat, use these. It shows you appreciate the food and the gesture. This is how Koreans express gratitude at mealtimes.

How to Respond: Ways of Saying "You're Welcome"

Here's where Korean gets interesting. There's no direct equivalent to "you're welcome" that native speakers actually use commonly.

The most common response when someone thanks you? 아니에요 (anieyo). The pronunciation is "ah-nee-eh-yo." Literally, it means "no." But the functional meaning is more like "it's nothing" or "don't mention it." You're essentially downplaying what you did—showing humility.

Say it warmly though. Don't just snap "아니에요" like you're rejecting them. Stretch it out a bit: "ah-nee-eh-yo." Make it sound friendly. This is the most common way to say "you're welcome" among native speakers.

You can also use 괜찮아요 (gwaenchanayo), which means "it's okay" or "it's alright." Often people combine them: 아니에요, 괜찮아요 (anieyo, gwaenchanayo)—"No, it's okay."

For informal settings with friends, use 아니야 (aniya) or 괜찮아 (gwaenchana). These are casual ways to respond to thanks.

You might see 천만에요 (cheonmaneyo) in textbooks as "you're welcome," but almost no one actually says this in real conversation. It sounds overly formal and kind of unnatural. Stick with 아니에요 if you want to sound like a native.

The reason there's no direct "you're welcome" goes back to Korean culture. Humility is valued. When someone thanks you, you deflect rather than accept. You don't want to make a big deal out of helping—that's the cultural logic behind it.

The Bowing Thing (Yes, It's Part of Saying Thanks)

You can't learn how to say thank you in Korean without understanding bowing. It's not optional—it's part of the expression used to express respect and gratitude.

Different situations call for different bows:

Light nod (15 degrees) - Daily situations, casual thanks in Korean, stores, restaurants. You're just acknowledging the person quickly.

Standard bow (30 degrees) - More formal situations, showing respect to someone older or in a higher position. When you say 감사합니다 in a business meeting, this is your bow.

Deep bow (45 degrees) - Serious gratitude or apologies, very formal situations. You'd use this with 대단히 감사합니다 or when expressing profound thanks.

The deeper the bow, the more respect or sincerity you're showing. Don't overdo it with friends (a head nod is fine), but also don't skip it entirely in formal settings. Bend from your waist, not your neck. Keep your back straight.

For example, when someone hands you their business card while saying thank you, you receive it with both hands and give a slight bow (around 15-30 degrees depending on their status). When you thank a waiter, a light nod works. When you thank your boss for giving you time off, you'd bow at about 30 degrees.

The Real Challenge: Korean Formality and Politeness

Okay, here's what makes Korean tricky compared to other languages. It's not just about memorizing phrases—it's about understanding a whole system of honorifics and formality.

Korean has seven speech levels, though only four are commonly used today:

The first two are called 존댓말 (jondaenmal) - polite speech. The last two fall under more casual speech, with 해체 being 반말.

What confuses learners is that formality and politeness are actually separate dimensions in Korean. You can be formal but not polite (like in news writing), or informal and polite (like 고마워요 with coworkers).

The main determining factors:

When you're learning Korean, start formal with everyone and only drop to casual speech when someone explicitly tells you to or when you've become close friends. It's easier to relax formality later than to recover from being too casual too soon.

This is the Korean language in action—different ways to say the same thing depending on your relationship with the person.

Slang and Modern Ways of Saying Thanks in Korean

Among younger Koreans, you'll see abbreviated versions in texts:

ㄱㅅ - Just the consonants from 감사 (gamsa). Like how English speakers type "ty" for "thank you." This is Korean slang used in casual texting.

땡큐 (ttaengkyu) - Phonetic spelling of English "thank you" in Hangeul. This is Konglish (Korean + English). Very casual, only use it with people your age or younger in informal options like texting.

These are textspeak only. Don't try saying ㄱㅅ out loud—it doesn't work that way. But knowing this slang helps you understand how younger Koreans communicate online.

What You Actually Need to Learn: The Essential Korean Words for Thank You

Look, Korean has a lot of nuance around saying thank you. But if you're just starting to learn Korean, here's your survival kit:

Learn these first:

The golden rule: When in doubt, use 감사합니다. It works everywhere. You might sound a bit formal with your friends, but you won't offend anyone. Using 고마워 with your boss? That's a problem.

The bowing rule: Always accompany your Korean word for thank you with at least a slight nod. It's part of the expression, not optional.

The age rule: Pay attention to who's older. Korean culture takes age seriously. If someone's older, stay formal until they tell you otherwise. This affects the way you say thank you in every situation.

Pronunciation tip: The romanization helps (gamsahamnida, gomawoyo, etc.), but listening to native speakers is essential to get the sounds right. Korean pronunciation has subtle differences that English speakers often miss.

The real challenge with learning the Korean language isn't memorizing phrases—it's learning to read situations and relationships. You need to constantly assess: How old is this person compared to me? What's my relationship with them? How formal is this context? What's the polite way to say this?

This is exactly why learning Korean from textbooks or apps alone falls short. They'll teach you 감사합니다, sure. But they can't teach you the feel for when to use 고마워 versus 고마워요, or how to combine the right phrase with the right bow in a business meeting versus a casual hangout. You need to see how native speakers actually express gratitude in different contexts.

You learn that stuff by seeing it used in real contexts. Watch Korean dramas and you'll notice characters switching between speech levels depending on who they're talking to. A character might use 존댓말 with their boss, then immediately switch to 반말 when talking to their younger sibling. Or you'll see someone use overly formal speech with a friend as a joke—something you'd never understand without context.

That's where Migaku comes in. Instead of drilling isolated phrases, you learn from actual Korean content—shows, movies, YouTube videos, whatever you're interested in. The browser extension lets you look up words instantly while you're watching, and it automatically adds them to your spaced repetition deck with the actual scene as context.

So when you hear someone in a K-drama say 고마워요 to a coworker, you're not just learning the phrase—you're learning when and how it's used to express gratitude. You see the relationship, the situation, the tone. You learn the different ways of saying thank you by seeing them in action. That's how you actually internalize this stuff and start sounding like a native.

The mobile app keeps everything synced, so you can review on the subway or wherever. And because you're learning from content you actually enjoy, you'll stick with it. Trying to memorize textbook dialogues about buying stamps at the post office? That gets old fast. Learning from a show you're already hooked on? That's sustainable.

Give Migaku a shot—there's a 10-day free trial. It won't magically teach you Korean overnight, but it'll get you learning from real Korean instead of textbook Korean. And when it comes to stuff like knowing when to say 감사합니다 versus 고마워, that real-world context makes all the difference. You'll learn how to say thank you in Korean the way native speakers actually do it—not just the textbook version.