[Photo/VCG]

"bù kè qì (不客气)" and "bù yòng xiè (不用谢)" may already be ingrained in most people's vocabulary, but have you ever encountered a response that was completely different?

One of the standard Chinese replies to thank you "xiè xiè (谢谢)" is "bù kè qì (不客气)", which literally translates to "don't be so formal/polite". In traditional Chinese culture, gratitude between familiar family members or friends is typically implied in actions, such as exchanging gifts, sharing a meal, and paying for something, rather than exchanging words.

To help you prepare for various types of responses, here are different ways to say both "thank you" and "you're welcome" in Chinese. Please notice that in some cases you'd say "nin hao" to someone older than yourself to show respect.

Ways to say "thank you"

Thank you!

谢谢（你/您）！

xiè xiè (nǐ/nín)!

Thank you very much!

非常感谢（你/您）！

fēi cháng gǎn xiè (nǐ/nín)!

太感谢（你/您）了/太谢谢（你/您）了！

tài gǎn xiè (nǐ/nín) le！/ tài xiè xiè (nǐ/nín) le！

很感谢（你/您）/感激（你/您）

hěn gǎn xiè (nǐ/nín) / gǎn jī (nǐ/nín)

You've worked hard！

辛苦（你/您）了！

xīn kǔ (nǐ/nín) le!

Thanks for your help!

多亏（你/您）了！

duō kuī (nǐ/nín) le!

Many thanks! / Thanks a lot!

多谢

duō xiè

So nice of you!

你太好啦！

nǐ tài hǎo la

Ways to say "you're welcome"

No need to thank me

不用谢

bù yòng xiè

No problem

没关系

méi guān xi

Don't be so formal

不客气

bù kè qi

Don't be formal with me

别和我见外

bié hé wǒ jiàn wài

Don't be so formal/polite!

干嘛这么客气！

gàn má zhè me kè qi！

It's not important/never mind

不要紧

bù yào jǐn

Oh, it's nothing! (Literally means "where where")

哪里哪里

nǎ lǐ nǎ lǐ

It’s nothing/No need to thank me

小意思

xiǎo yì si

No no, don't thank me

不不/没有没有，别谢我

bù bù / méi yǒu méi yǒu，bié xiè wǒ