Phone calls are often harder than face-to-face conversation: there are no gestures, the audio can be poor, and people tend to speak quickly. A small set of phrases helps a lot. This guide covers how to answer, ask for someone, fix communication problems and hang up politely, with notes on how the phrases change by country.
How to answer the phone in Spanish
There is no single universal way. Common options:
| Where | Typical answer | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Mexico | ¿Bueno? | Literally “good?”; the usual way to pick up |
| Spain | ¿Diga? / ¿Dígame? | “Tell me” |
| Spain and elsewhere | ¿Sí? | “Yes?” |
| Argentina and many other countries | ¿Hola? | “Hello?” |
| Colombia, Chile, Peru and some other countries | ¿Aló? | “Hello?” |
What do Mexicans say when picking up the phone? ¿Bueno? is the traditional answer, though younger speakers also use ¿Hola? or ¿Sí?, especially when they see who is calling. Business lines usually answer with a greeting such as Buenos días, habla (name).
As a caller, Hola or Buenos días followed by your request is understood everywhere. For more greetings, see our guide to Spanish greetings and goodbyes.
Saying who you are and who you want
- Hola, soy Ana. – Hi, it’s Ana.
- Habla Ana. – Ana speaking.
- Buenos días, quisiera hablar con el señor López. – Good morning, I would like to speak with Mr. López.
- ¿Está María? – Is María there? (informal)
- ¿Puedo hablar con Pedro? – Can I speak to Pedro?
- Llamo por… – I’m calling about…
- Le llamo de parte de… – I’m calling on behalf of… (formal)
Asking who is calling
- ¿Quién habla? – Who is speaking?
- ¿De parte de quién? – Who shall I say is calling?
- ¿Con quién hablo? – Who am I speaking with?
Holding, transferring and taking messages
- Un momento, por favor. – One moment, please.
- No cuelgue, por favor. – Please hold the line. (formal)
- Ahora se pone. / Ahora le paso. – I’ll put him/her on now. / I’ll transfer you.
- Le paso con el departamento de ventas. – I’ll put you through to sales.
- No está en este momento. – He/She isn’t here right now.
- Está ocupado / ocupada. – He/She is busy.
- ¿Quiere dejar un mensaje? – Would you like to leave a message?
- ¿Puede decirle que me llame? – Can you tell him/her to call me?
- Le devuelvo la llamada más tarde. – I’ll call you back later.
- el buzón de voz – voicemail
When you can’t hear or understand
These are the phrases worth memorizing first.
- ¿Puede repetir, por favor? – Can you repeat that, please?
- ¿Puede hablar más despacio, por favor? – Can you speak more slowly, please?
- No le escucho bien. / No te escucho bien. – I can’t hear you well. (formal / informal)
- La línea está mala. – The line is bad.
- Se cortó la llamada. – The call got cut off.
- ¿Cómo se escribe? – How do you spell that?
- ¿Puede deletrearlo? – Can you spell it out?
- Entonces, ¿quedamos el martes a las tres? – So, we’re meeting Tuesday at three? (confirming what you understood)
Repeating numbers, dates and names back to the speaker is a good habit, since those details are easy to mishear.
Ending the call
- Gracias por llamar. – Thanks for calling.
- Gracias por su ayuda. – Thank you for your help.
- Hablamos pronto. – We’ll talk soon.
- Hasta luego. / Adiós. – Goodbye.
- Cuídate. – Take care. (informal)
Phone vocabulary
- llamar (por teléfono) – to call
- contestar / responder – to answer
- colgar – to hang up
- marcar un número – to dial a number
- el número equivocado – wrong number
- Me equivoqué de número. – I dialed the wrong number.
- el móvil (Spain) / el celular (Latin America) – mobile phone
- el mensaje de texto – text message
- la videollamada – video call
- la llamada perdida – missed call
- la cobertura / la señal – coverage / signal
Sample dialogue: informal call
- Laura: ¿Hola?
- Carlos: Hola, Laura, soy Carlos. ¿Qué tal?
- Laura: Bien, ¿y tú?
- Carlos: Muy bien. Te llamo para quedar mañana. ¿Estás libre?
- Laura: Sí, después de las cinco.
- Carlos: Perfecto. Nos vemos mañana.
- Laura: Vale, hasta mañana.
(Vale is common in Spain; in many Latin American countries you will hear bueno, dale, listo or está bien instead.)
Sample dialogue: formal call
- Recepción: Buenos días, Hotel Sol, ¿dígame?
- Cliente: Buenos días. Quisiera reservar una habitación para el viernes.
- Recepción: Por supuesto. ¿A nombre de quién?
- Cliente: A nombre de Smith. S-M-I-T-H.
- Recepción: Perfecto. Un momento, por favor.
Frequently asked questions
Can I say “estoy bien”? Yes. Estoy bien means “I’m fine” or “I’m well,” and it is a normal answer to ¿Cómo estás? on the phone or in person. If you want to describe feelings in more detail, see our list of Spanish vocabulary for emotions and feelings.
How do Mexicans say “let’s go”? The standard phrases are vamos and vámonos. Informal expressions such as órale or ándale also appear in Mexican speech, with meanings that depend on tone and context.
What is the 80/20 rule for Spanish? This usually refers to the Pareto principle: a relatively small share of words and phrases covers a large share of everyday conversation. It is a rule of thumb rather than an exact figure, but it is the reason phone-call basics like those above are worth learning first.
Tips for phone calls
- Write down the phrases you expect to use before calling.
- Ask for slower speech early, rather than guessing.
- Confirm details by repeating them.
- For important calls, ask whether you can follow up by email or text.
- Practice with a friend or tutor by phone, since audio-only listening is its own skill. For more speaking practice ideas, see how to improve your Spanish speaking.