How to Say Thank You in Korean

Thank you is the first phrase most people want in a new language, and in Korean it is also the first place the language quietly asks you a question you were not expecting: who exactly are you talking to? Korean does not have one thank you with optional politeness. It has a small family of them, and picking the wrong member is not a grammar error, it is a social one. The good news is that the whole system fits on one page.

The four you actually need

Korean	Romanization	Level	Use it with
감사합니다	gamsahamnida	Formal polite	Strangers, staff, elders, work. The default.
고맙습니다	gomapseumnida	Formal polite	Same as above, slightly warmer in feel.
고마워요	gomawoyo	Polite casual	People you know, roughly your age.
고마워	gomawo	Casual	Close friends, younger people, siblings.

If you learn only one, learn 감사합니다. Being too polite in Korean is almost never a problem. Being too casual with someone older or senior is one of the few genuine social mistakes a foreign learner can make, and it registers instantly.

감사합니다 against 고맙습니다

These two cause a lot of unnecessary anxiety. Both are formal polite. Both are correct. The difference is where the words came from.

감사 is a Sino Korean noun, so 감사합니다 is literally "I do gratitude." It dominates announcements, business, signage and writing. 고맙다 is a native Korean verb, and many speakers describe 고맙습니다 as feeling a shade warmer and more personal. In practice you can use either with a stranger and nobody will pause. If you want a rule of thumb: 감사합니다 when the setting is official, 고맙습니다 when the moment is human.

Is it kamsahamnida or gamsahamnida?

Same word, two transcription conventions. Revised Romanization, the official system, writes the initial ㄱ as g, giving gamsahamnida. Older systems and a lot of travel guides write it as k, because at the start of a word that sound lands somewhere between an English g and k to an untrained ear. Neither spelling changes the Korean, and this is a good early reminder that romanization is a crutch you want to put down quickly.

Two more you will hear

Korean	Romanization	When
감사드립니다	gamsadeurimnida	Very formal. Speeches, business email, customer service. It uses the humble verb 드리다, which lowers you rather than raising them.
정말 감사합니다	jeongmal gamsahamnida	Thank you very much. Swap 정말 for 너무 or 진짜 for a more spoken, more emphatic feel.

You may also meet 감사해요. It exists, it is grammatical, and it is much less used than the forms above, so it is worth recognising rather than adopting.

How to reply when someone thanks you

Textbooks teach 천만에요 as "you are welcome," and it is one of the clearest cases of a phrase surviving in books long after it left ordinary speech. Say it and you will be understood, and you will also sound like you learned Korean in 1985. Here is what people actually say.

Korean	Romanization	Feel
아니에요	anieyo	The everyday default. Literally "it is not", meaning it was nothing.
별말씀을요	byeolmalsseumeullyo	Formal and modest. Good with someone senior. Roughly "please, do not mention it."
뭘요	mwollyo	Light and casual. "It was nothing."
네	ne	Just yes, with a nod. Extremely common and perfectly acceptable in passing.

The thank yous that are not "thank you"

This is where Korean stops mapping onto English, and where learners who only know 감사합니다 start sounding slightly off. Several very common expressions of gratitude use completely different words, because Korean marks the situation rather than the emotion.

수고하셨습니다 at the end of shared work

Roughly "you have worked hard." You say it when a shift ends, a project ships, a class finishes, a delivery arrives. It is warm, it is constant in Korean workplaces, and it is not really thanks so much as acknowledgement.

One caution. Said upward to someone clearly senior, it can read as though you are evaluating their effort, which is not your place in the Korean social frame. With a boss or an elder, 감사합니다 is always safe, and 고생 많으셨습니다 is the softer alternative many people prefer.

잘 먹겠습니다 and 잘 먹었습니다 at a meal

Before eating, 잘 먹겠습니다 (I will eat well). After eating, 잘 먹었습니다 (I ate well). These are said to whoever cooked or, more importantly, whoever is paying. Skipping them when someone has treated you is noticeable in a way that skipping "thanks for dinner" in English is not.

덕분에 for crediting someone

덕분에 means "thanks to you," in the sense of because of your help. 덕분에 잘 됐어요 means it went well thanks to you. It is a genuinely useful phrase because it hands credit to the other person, which is the move Korean conversation tends to reward.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say thank you in Korean?

감사합니다 is the default and works with almost anyone. Use 고마워요 with peers you know and 고마워 with close friends or people younger than you.

What is the difference between 감사합니다 and 고맙습니다?

Both are formal polite and interchangeable in most situations. 감사합니다 is Sino Korean and dominates official settings. 고맙습니다 is native Korean and feels a little warmer.

Is it kamsahamnida or gamsahamnida?

Two romanizations of the same word. Revised Romanization gives gamsahamnida. Older systems give kamsahamnida. The Korean, 감사합니다, does not change.

How do you reply to thank you?

아니에요 in everyday situations, 별말씀을요 with someone senior, 뭘요 casually. 천만에요 is textbook and sounds dated.

What does 수고하셨습니다 mean?

Roughly "you have worked hard," said at the end of shared work. Use it with colleagues and juniors. With someone clearly senior, prefer 감사합니다 or 고생 많으셨습니다.

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