How to say hello in Chinese comes down to a pair of choices in Mandarin: 你好 (nǐ hǎo), which works in almost any situation, and 您好 (nín hǎo), the polite form for older or senior people and formal settings.
Greeting well is an early step in how to learn slang in a new language, because casual forms such as 嗨 only make sense once the standard greetings feel secure.
How Mandarin greetings are built
The standard greeting 你好 is literally “you good”, and LTL Mandarin School describes it as working in almost any situation. Learners usually meet it written three ways at once: Chinese characters, pinyin and an English gloss. Pinyin is the romanised spelling that sits beside the characters to guide pronunciation, which is how Tandem’s greeting guide presents every phrase. The marks above the vowels in pinyin are the tones, and tones are what turn a plain syllable into a recognisable greeting.
Both 你 and 好 are third tone, the low, dipping tone. That creates the one pronunciation rule worth learning on day one, because two third tones in a row do not stay as written. LTL Mandarin School explains the sequence:
- Learn the dictionary form. Both syllables are third tone, written nǐ hǎo.
- Apply the change in natural speech. When two third tones sit side by side, the first changes to a rising second tone.
- Say what you now hear. 你好 comes out as ní hǎo, even though the pinyin on the page still reads nǐ hǎo.
Expect this gap between spelling and speech and do not treat it as a mistake. A learner who says the dipping tone twice will be understood but will sound like a textbook, and listening to a native speaker say 你好 once or twice makes the shift easy to hear.
Pinyin and tone table for the main greetings
The table lists the greetings a beginner needs first, with the tone detail that changes how each is said.
| Greeting | Pinyin | Tone note | Planning use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 你好 | nǐ hǎo | Both syllables are third tone; in natural speech the first rises and it sounds like ní hǎo | The default hello for acquaintances and strangers |
| 您好 | nín hǎo | The acute mark on nín shows a rising tone; hǎo stays third tone | Older, senior or formal contexts |
| 你们好 | nǐmen hǎo | Same as 你好 except the plural 你们 (nǐmen) replaces 你 | Greeting more than a single person |
| 早 | zǎo | Short for 早上好 (zǎo shang hǎo, good morning) | Used instead of 你好 in the morning |
| 你好吗 | nǐ hǎo ma | Neutral, a bit textbook in feel | Asking how someone is, not a replacement for hello |
The forms and tone notes follow LTL Mandarin School and That’s Mandarin.
Nǐ hǎo versus nín hǎo
The difference between nǐ hǎo and nín hǎo is politeness. 你 is the everyday “you”, while 您 is the respectful form, so 您好 keeps the same meaning and adds deference. LTL Mandarin School recommends 您好 for extra politeness with someone older or senior, and Tandem calls it the version most appropriate for formal situations.
Rocket Languages gives a practical test for when to use 您. Choose it when you are addressing someone you are meeting for the first time, someone senior by age or rank, or a respected figure. Two sets of situations follow from that:
- Reach for 您好 with a teacher, an older relative of a friend, a manager or a client you have not met before.
- Stay with 你好 for shop staff, classmates, colleagues of similar standing and people your own age you are meeting casually.
Neither is rude when the other would be better, but the two errors sound different. MosaLingua notes that 你好 is a rather formal greeting, most often used to say hello to someone you have never met. That makes it a safe opener with strangers and a stiff one with friends.
Choosing a greeting by formality
Greetings sit on a ladder from respectful to playful, and the right rung depends on who you are speaking to rather than on where you are.
| Greeting | Formality | Typical speakers and situations | Planning use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 您好 (nín hǎo) | Most formal | Formal situations and people who are older or senior | Use when respect matters more than warmth |
| 你好 (nǐ hǎo) | Neutral to formal | Someone you have never met; felt as awkwardly formal among friends | Use with new contacts, drop it with close friends |
| 嗨 | Very informal | Friends and peers, mostly young urban speakers | Use only where you are already on easy terms |
| 哈罗 (hā luō) | Informal | A loanword from English “hello”, generally used by young urban people | Recognise it; do not rely on it with older speakers |
These ratings draw on Tandem and MosaLingua.
Tandem adds that 嗨 is typically used when speaking to friends or people your own age, and MosaLingua calls it a very informal way to greet someone. Because slang ages quickly and varies by group, the casual end of the ladder rewards listening before copying. Read the situation first, then pick the rung that matches your relationship with the person.
Written form and traditional characters
In mainland China most learners will read simplified characters, and the greetings in this guide are written that way. LTL Mandarin School points out that Taipei and Kaohsiung use traditional characters, so a few greetings look different on signs and in messages there. The spoken forms and pinyin stay the same, which means a learner who knows the sounds can still say hello correctly while reading unfamiliar characters.
Common mistakes and next steps
Most beginner errors come from applying the right word in the wrong setting or skipping the sound changes:
- Dictionary tones in fast speech. Saying nǐ hǎo with two dipping tones sounds stiff; the natural form is ní hǎo.
- Using 你好 as a friendly hello between close friends. It can come across as awkwardly formal, so a friend-level greeting suits them better.
- Using 嗨 or 哈罗 with senior people. Both belong to friends and young urban speakers, so 您好 is the safer choice.
- Treating 你好吗 as a plain hello. It asks how someone is, and it reads as neutral and a little textbook.
Tonal languages are often listed among the demanding ones, and The Hardest Languages To Learn: What Makes Them Tough And How To Conquer Them In 2026 – Slanguagestudio shows where Chinese sits in that wider picture. For a contrast in how another language handles greetings, Say Aloha: How To Greet Someone In Hawaiian — Simple Phrases, Pronunciation & Cultural Tips (2026) – Slanguagestudio covers a very different system.
Frequently asked questions
How do you greet a group in Chinese?
Use 你们好, which differs from 你好 only in using the plural 你们 (nǐmen), or 大家好, which means “hello, everyone” according to That’s Mandarin.
Does 你吃了吗 expect a detailed answer about my meal?
No. LTL Mandarin School describes it as a friendly greeting that shows somebody cares about you, so a brief reply is enough rather than a description of what you ate.
Should I say 你好 or 你好吗 when I first meet someone?
Say 你好. The longer 你好吗 asks how the person is, which makes it a follow-up question after the hello rather than the opening greeting.
