How to offer help in Spanish
If you are going to be working in the service, retail, or hospitality industries in any Spanish-speaking country (or really any place where there are Spanish speakers) it is a good idea to have an understanding of how to politely greet a new customer. You can’t go wrong with “how may I help you?” It demonstrates that you are polite, attentive, and available to offer your assistance.
There are several ways that you could say “how can I help you” or a comparable phrase in Spanish. Here are some of our favorites. If you’re a beginner, you don’t necessarily have to master them all, just pick a few favorites and practice them until you have them down.
“How may I help you?” in Spanish
| Spanish | Formality | Plurality | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| ¿Te ayudo? | Formal | Singular | Can I help? |
| ¿En qué te puedo ayudar? | Informal | Singular | How may I help you? |
| ¿En qué le puedo ayudar? | Formal | Singular | How may I help you? |
| ¿En qué puedo ayudarle? | Formal | Singular | How may I help you? |
| ¿En qué les puedo ayudar? | Formal | Plural | How may I help you? |
| ¿En qué puedo ayudarles? | Formal | Plural | How may I help you? |
| ¿Cómo puedo ayudarte? | Informal | Singular | How can I help you? |
| ¿Cómo te puedo ayudar? | Informal | Singular | How can I help you? |
| ¿Cómo le puedo ayudar? | Formal | Singular | How can I help you? |
| ¿Cómo puedo ayudarle? | Formal | Singular | How can I help you? |
| ¿Cómo puedo ayudarles? | Formal | Plural | How can I help you? |
| ¿Cómo les puedo ayudar? | Formal | Plural | How can I help you? |
| ¿Como le puedo servir? | Formal | Singular | How can I serve you? |
| ¿Como les spuedo servir? | Formal | Plural | How can I serve you? |
| A la orden | Colloquial | Singular or plural | At your service |
| ¿Qué puedo hacer por usted? | Formal | Singular | What can I do for you? |
| ¿Qué puedo hacer para servirle? | Formal | Singular | What can I do to serve you? |
| ¿Qué puedo hacer para servirles? | Formal | Plural | What can I do to serve you? |
| ¿Puedo colaborarle en algo? | Formal | Singular | Can I help you with something? |
| ¿Puedo colaborarles en algo? | Formal | Plural | Can I help you with something? |
More ways to offer your assistance in Spanish
You may also sometimes hear people say “A la orden”, which literally means “at your disposal”, “at your service”, or “at your command”, but colloquially means “how may I help” or “It is my pleasure to help”. It is most often used jokingly with a friend or family member rather than with coworkers or a boss.
Note that “how may I help you?” is not really that common a method of answering the phone, as it is in English. In Spanish, it is more common to just say “mande”, or any of these ways to answer the phone in Spanish.
“¿Qué necesitaba?” very literally translates to “what do you need?”. This might be said by a shopkeeper or a clerk asking you what you are looking for in the store, but is not common in most other circumstances. You may also hear a terse “¿Qué quiere?” (what do you want?) or a slightly more friendly “¿Qué quería?” (what would you like?” in these instances.
If you want to say “how may I help you today?”, it’s just as easy as adding the word “hoy” to the end, as in: “¿Cómo puedo servirle (hoy)?” or “¿Cómo puedo ayudarle (hoy)?”
Mastering this Spanish vocabulary will set you apart as a helpful person. It could just garner you your next promotion! But at the very least, you will establish rapport with those around you, make deeper connections, and be looked upon more favorably by your boss, coworkers, and clientele (and you may just earn a fat tip in the process!)
Now that you know how to ask “how may I help you?” in Spanish, here are some other articles that you may enjoy:
I’m sorry in Spanish
Lazy in spanish
Do you speak English? in Spanish
How to say Grace in Spanish
