How to Say Split the Bill in Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Thai

You’re having dinner with friends abroad, the bill arrives, and you’re not sure how to suggest splitting it. Or a server asks whether you’re paying together or separately, and you freeze. It’s a phrase you’d use every week at home, yet it rarely comes to mind in another language.

Knowing the words isn’t quite enough, either. In English, split the bill usually means equal shares, but in several languages, the everyday word doesn’t tell you whether you’re dividing evenly or paying for your own. Translate one-to-one and the amount you hand over may not be what your friends expected.

🇯🇵 Japanese: warikan

The Japanese word is 割り勘 (warikan). “Warikan ni shiyō” means “let’s split it.” In everyday use, it almost always means dividing the total evenly. The word is a shortened form of warimae-kanjō, roughly “share-based reckoning.”

To pay for your own, say “betsubetsu de” (separately). Be aware that many Japanese restaurants expect one payment per table, especially busy izakayas, so a group often has one person pay and collect from the others afterward.

When someone treats you, say “gochisōsama deshita” (thank you for the meal) as you leave. It’s the standard way to acknowledge being treated, and it’s appreciated.

🇰🇷 Korean: deochi-pei and N-ppang

The most common Korean word is 더치페이 (deochi-pei), from “Dutch pay.” English speakers don’t actually say Dutch pay, so it’s a Korean coinage. According to Korean newspaper reports, the National Institute of Korean Language recommends 각자내기 (gakja-naegi, “each paying”) as a native alternative.

A more casual word is N빵 (en-ppang), meaning dividing the total by N people. Deochi-pei can mean either paying your own or splitting evenly; N-ppang only ever means equal shares.

To ask for separate payment at the counter: “Gyesan ttaro hae juseyo.” To treat someone: “Naega ssolge” (it’s on me).

🇨🇳 Chinese: AA zhi and ge fu ge de

In mainland China, the standard term is AA制 (AA zhì). “Wǒmen AA ba” means “let’s split it.” Nobody agrees on what AA stands for; a common account says the term spread from Hong Kong.

To make clear that each person pays for their own, say 各付各的 (gè fù gè de). To stress equal shares, 平摊 (píngtān). In Taiwan, AA is understood, but 各付各的 and 平分 (píngfēn) are also common.

To treat someone: 我请客 (wǒ qǐngkè), written 我請客 in the traditional characters used in Taiwan.

🇹🇭 Thai: haan thao and American share

In Thai, equal shares is หารเท่า (haan thao), “divide equally.” It maps directly onto split the bill.

You’ll also hear อเมริกันแชร์ (American share). It isn’t an English expression; it’s a Thai coinage, and its meaning varies from person to person. Some people use it for paying your own, others for equal shares. If you want to be clear you’re paying only for what you ordered, ต่างคนต่างจ่าย (taang khon taang jaai, “each pays their own”) leaves no room for doubt.

To treat someone, use เลี้ยง (liang), as in “Mue ni rao liang eng” (this meal’s on me).

📋 Quick reference

In Thai, the polite ending ค่ะ (kha) is used by female speakers and ครับ (khrap) by male speakers.

💬 Check the meaning before you check the phrase

As you can see, the everyday words for splitting the bill drift between “equal shares” and “pay your own.” So at the table, confirming an amount beats memorizing a phrase. Asking “how much each?” tells you on the spot which kind of split everyone has in mind.

The other common mix-up is currency. If you pay in the local currency on a trip and settle up in your own currency at home, the exchange rate you choose changes the amounts. That’s covered in How to Split Bills Abroad When Currencies Don’t Match and Which Exchange Rate Should You Use to Split Travel Expenses?

Evere lets you record each expense in the currency you actually paid in, and converts it at the rate when you recorded it so the settlement comes out in one currency. Whatever language you share, you end up looking at the same numbers.