Korean Greetings and Goodbyes
One of the first things people usually do when they see each other is greet one another. That's why learning a variety of different greetings in Korean can be so useful to beginner learners of the language.
By scrolling down this page you will find several ways to say hello and goodbye in Korean, plus other more time-specific phrases like good morning, good evening, and good night. You will also find some Korean greetings for first-time meetings like pleased to meet you (in both formal and informal speech).
Greetings in Korean:
Words in bold added during the last update. You can also view this list of greetings from English to Korean.
Ways to Say Hello in Korean
When you're saying hello (or goodbye) in Korean, don't forget to adjust the speech to match the level of formality.
Annyeong ➔ Hello (informal)
Annyeong haseyo ➔ Hello (formal)
Annyeong hashimnikka ➔ Hello (more formal)
Yeoboseyo ➔ Hello (used when answering the phone)
Joheun achim. ➔ Good morning.
Annyeong. ➔ Good afternoon. / Good evening.
Annyeonghi jumuseyo. ➔ Good night. (formal)
Bangapseumnida. ➔ Nice to meet you.
Mannaseo bangawoyo. ➔ Pleased to meet you. (informal)
Mannaseo bangapseumnida. ➔ Pleased to meet you. (formal)
Ways to Say Goodbye in Korean
While we have several ways to say goodbye in Korean, we also have some ways to say see you tomorrow.
Annyeong ➔ Goodbye (informal)
Jalga ➔ Goodbye (informal)
Jalgayo ➔ Goodbye (slightly more formal)
Annyeonghi gyeseyo ➔ Goodbye (formal, said when you are leaving)
Annyeonghi gyeshibshio ➔ Goodbye (more formal, said when you are leaving)
Annyeonghi gaseyo ➔ Goodbye (formal, said when you are staying)
Annyeonghi gashibshio ➔ Goodbye (more formal, said when you are staying)
Nae-il bwa. ➔ See you tomorrow. (casual)
Nae-il bwayo. ➔ See you tomorrow. (polite)
Nae-il man-nayo. ➔ See you tomorrow.
This list of Korean greetings was last updated on May 2, 2025.
Next Up
Common Korean Words and Phrases: Learn how to say common words and phrases in Korean.
Perhaps you want to learn greetings and goodbyes in these other languages?
Afrikaans, Arabic, Dutch, Filipino, Finnish, French, Gaelic, German, Greek, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Hindi, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Lithuanian, Malay, Mandarin, Maori, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Serbian, Somali, Spanish, Swedish, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
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