9 Korean Phrases for Splitting the Bill: 더치페이 and N빵

Quick answer: To split the bill in Korean, say 따로 계산해 주세요 — "Please ring us up separately." With friends, 더치페이 ("Dutch pay") is the everyday word: 우리 더치페이할까요? To offer to pay for everyone instead, say 제가 낼게요 ("I'll get it").

Here is the one thing to know before you walk up to a Korean counter: in most Korean restaurants, nobody brings the bill to your table. The slip is already sitting on the table or at the register, and when you're done, someone stands up, walks to the counter near the door, and pays for everyone. That walk is the whole drama. Often two people get up at once, and there's a brief, friendly scuffle over who hands over the card first.

So the language of paying in Korea is really two languages: what you say to the cashier, and what you say to the people you ate with. Here are nine lines that cover both.

1. 계산할게요.

계산할게요. — "I'll pay now." / "Check, please."

This is what you say when you reach the counter, or when you want to flag that you're done. 계산 means "calculation, settling up," and -(으)ㄹ게요 announces what you're about to do. You can also say 계산해 주세요 ("please ring it up"). If you're still seated and the staff haven't noticed you, 저기요, 계산할게요 works fine — but in most places you just get up and go.

2. 따로 계산해 주세요.

따로 계산해 주세요. — "Please ring us up separately."

따로 means "separately," and this is the standard, completely normal thing to say when two or three people each want to pay for their own. The opposite is 같이 계산해 주세요 ("together, please"), said when one person is covering everyone. In a busy place with a long line behind you, staff appreciate hearing which one you want before they start.

3. 제가 낼게요.

제가 낼게요. — "I'll pay."

내다 is the verb for paying a bill, and 제가 ("I" with 가, marking who, out of everyone, is doing it) is the point of the sentence. This is the polite, adult version — fine with coworkers, a senior, a friend's parent. If the other person insists, the standard counter-move is 아니에요, 제가 낼게요 ("No, no — I've got it").

4. 오늘은 제가 살게요.

오늘은 제가 살게요. — "It's on me today."

사다 means "buy," and unlike 내다 (paying a bill), it's the verb you use for treating someone to food or coffee. 오늘은 ("today, at least") makes it warmer and softer — it hints that the balance will even out later. This is the line for a friend's birthday, a thank-you, or the person who's been getting treated a lot lately.

5. 제가 쏠게요.

제가 쏠게요. — "My treat!"

쏘다 literally means "to shoot," and in casual speech it means to treat people — a bit playful, a bit generous-feeling, like "drinks on me." Use it with friends or close colleagues your age, not with your boss or someone's grandmother. In 반말 among friends it becomes 오늘은 내가 쏠게.

6. 우리 더치페이할까요?

우리 더치페이할까요? — "Shall we split it?"

더치페이 is Konglish from "Dutch pay," and it's the normal word — Koreans say it without a second thought. Among friends it's 더치페이하자. It's most common between people of the same age, classmates, or on a first date where neither side wants to assume. Suggesting it to someone clearly older than you can feel a little blunt, so let them offer first.

7. 우리 N빵 하자.

우리 N빵 하자. — "Let's split it evenly."

N빵 (also written 엔빵) means dividing the total by the number of people, N ways. It's casual 반말 slang — university friends, close coworkers after hours — and it specifically means equal shares, even if your friend ate more. Say it to people you'd use 반말 with. The polite version is simply 1/n로 나눠서 내요 or 더치페이해요.

8. 카드 되나요?

카드 되나요? — "Do you take card?"

Short, polite, used everywhere. 되다 here means "works / is possible." Card is accepted almost everywhere in Korea, including tiny shops. If you do pay in cash, the cashier will usually ask 현금영수증 필요하세요? ("Do you need a cash receipt?") — a tax receipt tied to a Korean phone number; if you don't have one, just say 아니요, 괜찮아요. Cafés run on the same script — if you want the full counter exchange, see what they ask you when you order at a Korean café.

9. 잘 먹었습니다. 다음엔 제가 살게요.

잘 먹었습니다. 다음엔 제가 살게요. — "Thank you for the meal. Next time it's on me."

When someone else pays, this is the complete, correct response — and the second half matters as much as the first. Korean treating isn't charity; it's a turn-taking system. Saying 다음엔 제가 살게요 signals that you understood the rhythm and you'll take your turn. If the meal was a round of 삼겹살 and everyone's heading out for coffee, the natural move is 2차는 제가 살게요 ("I'll get round two").

Who pays, really

A few patterns that will save you from guessing:

The age thing is real but not absolute, and it is loosening fast — plenty of Koreans in their twenties split everything with an app, even with a 선배. The safe strategy as a visitor: reach for your wallet, offer once sincerely with 제가 낼게요, accept gracefully if they refuse, then say 다음엔 제가 살게요 — and actually do it next time.

At a 회식, don't reach at all; the bill is handled above your pay grade. (If you're planning to slip out before the second round, these phrases for leaving a work dinner early are the ones you want.) And before the bill ever arrives, the pouring and the eating have their own rules — Korean table manners and pouring drinks covers that half of the meal.

FAQ

How do you say "let's split the bill" in Korean?

To a cashier, say 따로 계산해 주세요 — "please ring us up separately." To your friends, say 더치페이하자 or, more casually, N빵 하자. In polite 해요체 with people you don't know well, 우리 더치페이할까요? is the softest way to suggest it.

What does 더치페이 mean in Korean?

더치페이 comes from the English "Dutch pay" and means splitting the cost of a meal or outing. It's a fully normal everyday word in Korean, not slang, and it works as a verb: 더치페이해요, 더치페이했어요. It usually implies each person pays their own share or the total is divided evenly.

Is it rude to split the bill in Korea?

Between people of similar age, no — it's completely ordinary. It can feel slightly awkward if someone much older has already decided to treat you, because paying for a younger person is a small act of care, not a transaction. Let them pay, thank them with 잘 먹었습니다, and say 다음엔 제가 살게요.

Practice

1. You and a friend each want to pay for your own meal. What do you tell the cashier?
2. It's your friend's birthday and you want to treat her. Say it in polite 해요체.
3. Ask whether the shop takes card.
4. Your 선배 just paid for dinner. Say thank you for the meal and that you'll get it next time.
5. Four close friends, one bill, split four ways. Say it in 반말.