If you have ever pointed at something in a Cairo, Amman or Dubai market rather than asking for it, you already understand the importance of Arabic shopping sentences. Travelers, students, and expats will have to speak Arabic, not just read it on a page, in the first place where they generally have to do so: at the supermarket.
From shopping for spices at a souq, to trying on a jacket at a mall, to picking up groceries, a few helpful phrases in Arabic can make shopping a breeze.
This guide compiles the Arabic shopping phrases that you will encounter in real life, and includes transliteration and English translations alongside each phrase.
Fluent grammar doesn’t get you very far in communicating at the checkout counter. You want a sentence at the right time, and this article will create it for you.
Learn the essential Arabic Shopping phrases for beginners.
It’s helpful to have a limited number of basic sentences in mind before entering any store. Arabic Shopping sentences include common items such as asking for a price, saying what you want and asking about other choices.
| English | Arabic | Transliteration |
| How much is this? | بكم هذا؟ | Bikam hādhā? |
| I want to buy this. | أريد شراء هذا. | Urīdu shirā’a hādhā. |
| Do you have this in another size? | هل لديكم هذا بمقاس آخر؟ | Hal ladaykum hādhā bimiqās ākhar? |
| Do you have this in another color? | هل لديكم هذا بلون آخر؟ | Hal ladaykum hādhā bilawn ākhar? |
| Can you help me? | هل يمكنك مساعدتي؟ | Hal yumkinuka musā’adatī? |
Before learning any Arabic grammar, these five phrases will get you through with most short shopping trips.
Arabic sentences used when going into a shop
First impressions are everything in a store. Before asking for a price, there’s a greeting, a brief introduction or a simple request for assistance.
مرحبًا (Marḥaban) – Hello
Essential, but perhaps not widely used in the West, is the Arabic greeting, “السلام عليكم” (As-salāmu ‘alaykum), meaning “Peace be upon you,” which is common throughout the Arabic-speaking world.
أبحث عن… (Abḥathu ‘an…) – I’m looking for…
أحتاج إلى المساعدة (Aḥtāju ilā musā’ada) – I need your help.
I’m only observing, only watching (أنا فقط أتفرج Anā faqaṭ atafarraj).
These openers can be used in any shop, from the smallest kiosk to the largest department store and the shopkeeper will be much more amenable to assisting you once you get to the real Arabic shopping sentences for products and prices.
Arabic Sentences: Asking for prices
This is the most useful of all the skills you can use in this whole guide, don’t forget to ask about cost. Here are some of the most commonly used Arabic shopping phrases that begin with how much.
بكم هذا؟ (Bikam hādhā?) – How much is this?
كم سعر هذا؟ (Kam si’r hādhā?) – How much does this cost?
كم ثمنه؟ (Kam thamanuh?) – What is its price?
بكم هذا المنتج؟ (Bikam hādha al-muntaj?) – How much is this product?
بكم الكيلو؟ (Bikam al-kīlō?) – How much per kilo?
When ordering more than one product, inquire about the quantity rather than the individual product.
How much is all of this? (بكم كل هذا؟ Bikam kul hādhā?)
هل يمكن الدفع بالدولار (Hal yumkinunī ad-daf’ bid-dūlār)? – Can you pay in dollars?
Questions about currency are no less important than questions about price, particularly when you are traveling between countries using a different money.
Arabic Shopping Sentences for Bargaining and Discounts
Bargaining is a common practice in most traditional souqs, but is not always the norm in malls or stores that have their prices clearly marked. In Arabic, as with all languages and languages skills, knowing when to use a word is just as important as knowing what it is.
هل هناك خصم؟ (Hal hunāka khasm?) – Is there a discount?
هل يمكنك إعطائي سعرًا أفضل؟ (Hal yumkinuka i’ṭā’ī si’ran afḍal?) – Can you give me a better price?
غالي جدًا (Ghālī jiddan) – It’s very expensive.
هل يوجد شيء أرخص؟ (Hal yūjad shay’ arkhaṣ?) – Is there anything cheaper?
هل يمكن تخفيض السعر؟ (Hal yumkin takhfīḍ as-si’r?) – Can the price be lowered?
اتفقنا (Ittafaqnā) – Deal.
When bargaining one should try to use a “polite” smile rather than a firm tone and when these Arabic shopping sentences are used rather than English, a much more friendly response will be given almost always.
Asking About Size and Color Arabic Sentences
When traveling to buy clothes, you’ll find you have to use a few different Arabic shopping sentences as well because people will always ask you about size and color.
هل لديكم مقاس أكبر؟ (Hal ladaykum miqās akbar?) – Do you have a larger size?
هل لديكم مقاس أصغر؟ (Hal ladaykum miqās aṣghar?) – Do you have a smaller size?
هل لديكم لون آخر؟ (Hal ladaykum lawn ākhar?) – Do you have another color?
هل يناسبني هذا المقاس؟ (Hal yunāsibunī hādha al-miqās?) – Does this size fit me?
These questions can be short, easy to remember and can be used on shirts, shoes and virtually any clothing.
Sentences in Arabic for Clothing
In addition to size and color, clothing stores will have some additional specific needs, especially when it comes to putting clothes on or off.
هل يمكنني تجربة هذا؟ (Hal yumkinunī tajribat hādhā?) – Can I try this on?
أين غرفة تغيير الملابس؟ (Ayna ghurfat taghyīr al-malābis?) – Where is the fitting room?
أريد هذا باللون الأسود. (Urīdu hādhā bil-lawn al-aswad.) – I want this in black.
هل لديكم هذا التصميم؟ (Hal ladaykum hādha at-taṣmīm?) – Do you have this design?
After you’ve experienced it and been able to describe the color that you’re looking for, you can make most clothing transactions without having to have someone else interpret for you.
Explain how to use Arabic to identify products at a store.
Some sentences in Arabic are used to ask about price, while others are used to inquire about location, and these are the ones used in larger stores and supermarkets.
أين يمكنني العثور على…؟ (Ayna yumkinunī al-‘uthūr ‘alā…?) – Where can I find…?
هل لديكم…؟ (Hal ladaykum…?) – Do you have…?
أبحث عن… (Abḥathu ‘an…) – I’m looking for…
أين قسم…؟ (Ayna qism…?) – Where is the … section?
You can drop almost any product name into these templates, which makes them some of the most flexible Arabic shopping sentences in this entire guide.
Arabic Sentences for Paying and Checking Out
Once you have chosen what to buy, the final step is paying, and this stage has its own vocabulary that is worth learning ahead of time.
أين صندوق الدفع؟ (Ayna ṣundūq ad-daf’?) – Where is the checkout?
هل يمكنني الدفع بالبطاقة؟ (Hal yumkinunī ad-daf’ bil-biṭāqa?) – Can I pay by card?
هل تقبلون بطاقات الائتمان؟ (Hal taqbalūn biṭāqāt al-i’timān?) – Do you accept credit cards?
أريد الدفع نقدًا. (Urīdu ad-daf’ naqdan.) – I want to pay in cash.
أريد الفاتورة من فضلك. (Urīdu al-fātūra min faḍlik.) – I would like the receipt, please.
Payment phrases come up in nearly every shopping trip, which is why they belong near the top of any list of practical Arabic shopping sentences.
Arabic Sentences for Buying Something
Sometimes the interaction ends with a purchase, and sometimes it ends with a polite decline. Both outcomes need the right words.
أريد شراء هذا. (Urīdu shirā’a hādhā.) – I want to buy this.
سأشتري هذا. (Sa-ashtarī hādhā.) – I will buy this.
سأخذه. (Sa-ākhudhuh.) – I’ll take it.
لا أريده. (Lā urīduh.) – I don’t want it.
أحتاج إلى بعض الوقت للتفكير. (Aḥtāju ilā ba’ḍ al-waqt lit-tafkīr.) – I need some time to think.
Learning how to decline politely matters just as much as learning how to buy, especially in markets where sellers expect some back and forth before a decision is made.
Arabic Shopping Vocabulary You Should Know
A short vocabulary list supports every sentence in this guide. These are the building blocks behind most Arabic shopping sentences you will hear or use.
| Arabic | English |
| متجر | Store |
| سوق | Market |
| سعر | Price |
| خصم | Discount |
| مقاس | Size |
| لون | Color |
| فاتورة | Receipt / Bill |
| بطاقة | Card |
| نقود | Cash / Money |
| صندوق الدفع | Checkout |
| بائع | Seller |
| زبون | Customer |
These words will be easier to follow when shopping in Arabic with the help of signs and receipts.
Arabic Shopping Sentences by Situation.
Variations in the context require some variations in the wording. The same shopping intentions will vary based on location.
In a clothing shop: be concerned about size, color and the fitting room.
In grocery stores: Pay attention to the amount, weight, and cost per unit.
In a souq or traditional market: Bargaining words and courteous greetings are more significant.
At a shopping mall: there are typically set prices and payment and product questions are most important.
When you need to purchase a gift, you can express your ideas with phrases such as “I want this in black” or “do you have this design.
You’ll avoid sounding out of place by using the appropriate Arabic shopping sentences in the proper context, e.g., bargaining in a fixed-price mall.
Arabic Shopping Dialogue for Beginners
It is easier to remember phrases used together in a real exchange than a list of phrases.
Dialogue 1: Buying Clothes
Customer: مرحبًا، هل لديكم هذا القميص بمقاس أكبر؟ (Hello, do you have this shirt in a larger size?) Shopkeeper: نعم، تفضل. (Yes, here you go.) Customer: بكم هذا؟ (How much is this?)
Dialogue 2: Bargaining at a Souq
Customer: كم سعر هذا؟ (How much does this cost?) Seller: مئة درهم. (One hundred dirhams.) Customer: هل يمكن تخفيض السعر؟ غالي جدًا. (Can the price be lowered? It’s very expensive.)
Dialogue 3: Paying at the Checkout
Customer: أين صندوق الدفع؟ (Where is the checkout?) Cashier: هناك، من فضلك. (Over there, please.) Customer: هل يمكنني الدفع بالبطاقة؟ (Can I pay by card?)
One of the quickest methods to make a list of Arabic shopping phrases into phrases you can really say without thinking twice is to practice them out loud.
Modern Standard Arabic and Spoken Arabic for Shopping.
Most of the phrases above are in Modern Standard Arabic which is almost universally understood in the Arab world. However, the spoken dialects tend to use shorter form or other phrases in everyday shopping.
In casual speech, Egyptian Arabic tends to abbreviate how much to be more like bikam.
Different terms are used for money and price in Gulf and Saudi Arabic.
Levantine Arabic is also subject to its own local variations, especially rapid or conversational speech.
It’s best for beginners to begin with Modern Standard Arabic shopping sentences, which will be understood by many sellers in various regions, although they may speak a local dialect in their daily conversations.
When shopping, here’s how you can use Arabic?
These phrases can come in very handy in actual situations, if a few habits are followed.
Get to know the Arabic numbers at an early age because prices don’t make sense without these numbers.
Start with a greeting before you go right to the subject line price.
Pay attention to the words the seller enunciates: Different areas have different accents.
Avoid haggling with stores with fixed prices; use haggling in souq/market.
Use complete sentences, not individual words, as sentences have more meaning in context.
When travelling, study some of the local dialects along with MSA.
So, tiny little things make the difference between a person who has memorized a phrase list and a person who can hold a brief conversation about shopping in Arabic.
If having a phrase list such as this is already helpful, structured lessons can go much further, particularly when there’s someone to help you correct your pronunciation and guide you through conversations in a step-by-step fashion.
Learn Arabic with a structured course at Miftah Alhuda that will help you develop your speaking confidence, starting from isolated phrases up to full conversations.
Need some help getting started? Make a FREE trial appointment and receive individual feedback on your pronunciation and progress from the first day.
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FAQs
How do you say “How much is this?” in Arabic?
You ask, “how much is this?” (Bikam hādhā?). One of the most frequently used Arabic shopping phrases and can be used in nearly any shop.
What is the Arabic for “I want to buy this”?
The term “أريد شراء هذا” (Urīdu shirā’a hādhā) means “I want to buy this” and it is an honest and courteous way to affirm a purchase.
What is the Arabic word for “on sale”?
Question “هل هناك خصم؟” (Hal hunāka khasm?); “Is there a discount? This is very useful in markets, and in certain retail stores.
How do you say “Do you have another size?
” in Arabic? Say “هل لديكم هذا بمقاس آخر؟” (Hal ladaykum hādhā bimiqās ākhar?). It is one of the most frequently used Arabic shopping sentences for clothing.
What words are relevant in Arabic language when shopping?
In addition to the words for cash, card and receipt and greetings, the words you will use when shopping generally cover all bases.
How do you bargain in Arabic?
Start politely with “هل يمكن تخفيض السعر؟” (Can the price be lowered?) and use “غالي جدًا” (It’s very expensive) if needed, but only in souqs or markets where bargaining is expected.
Where a Few Good Sentences Take You Next
Just a quick set of Arabic shopping phrases can help you get through a market, mall or corner shop without pointing and guessing. It will not help you when a salesperson responds quickly in a dialect and asks you a question you didn’t anticipate.
It’s in that middle ground, between memorized phrases and actual conversation, that structured practice really starts to help. When shopping is not overwhelming anymore, the same method is effective with short Arabic sentences that are situationally appropriate as well as for greetings, introductions, and everyday conversation.