How do you say "Can you make it cheaper?" in Chinese?

"Can you make it cheaper?" in Chinese is 可以便宜一点吗？ — written in pinyin as Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma?. It is a shopping phrase you would use in China.

What does 可以便宜一点吗？ mean in Chinese?

可以便宜一点吗？ (Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma?) means "Can you make it cheaper?". Broken down word by word: 可以 (kěyǐ) means "can / may"; 便宜 (piányi) means "cheap"; 一点 (yìdiǎn) means "a little"; 吗 (ma) means "question particle".

When would you use "Can you make it cheaper?" in Chinese?

Say it in markets, night stalls and tourist streets, and say it with a smile — in those places the first price is an opening, so asking for less is expected rather than rude. Expect to settle somewhere in the middle, and expect the answer to be a number rather than a word: the seller usually replies with a price, not with a yes.

How to say “Can you make it cheaper?” in Chinese

“Can you make it cheaper?” in Chinese is 可以便宜一点吗？, written in pinyin as Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma?.

可以便宜一点吗？

Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma?

Can you make it cheaper?

Word by word

What each part of 可以便宜一点吗？ actually means.

可以kěyǐcan / may
便宜piányicheap
一点yìdiǎna little
吗maquestion particle

When you use it

Say it in markets, night stalls and tourist streets, and say it with a smile — in those places the first price is an opening, so asking for less is expected rather than rude.
Expect to settle somewhere in the middle, and expect the answer to be a number rather than a word: the seller usually replies with a price, not with a yes.

Use 可以便宜一点吗？ in shopping situations. Prices, sizes, bargaining and paying.

Other ways people say it

The same idea, said differently. Roughly in the order you'll hear them.

能不能再少一点？
Néng bù néng zài shǎo yìdiǎn?
Could you go a little lower?
少 (less) is the word that fits price talk — 少一点 is "a bit less". The 能不能 frame asks permission, which softens it further.
两个一起多少钱？
Liǎng ge yìqǐ duōshao qián?
How much for two together?
The move that works when a flat discount does not: buy more, pay less each. It also shifts the subject from your budget to the seller's volume.
再便宜一点就买。
Zài piányi yìdiǎn jiù mǎi
Come down a bit more and I'll take it.
Names the trade instead of repeating the ask. 就 here means "then" — a lower price produces a purchase, and that is the sentence a seller listens for.

What usually trips people up

便宜一点 is not the same as 打折: 打折 asks about a promotion the seller already has, 便宜一点 asks the seller to move the price for you.
一点 is doing real work — the request is deliberately small. 可以便宜吗 with no 一点 sounds like a challenge to the prices themselves, and it tends to be met with a flat no.
The first answer is very often 不行 or 不能便宜. That is a position rather than a refusal, and saying the same words again more loudly does not move it — changing the offer does.

What you might hear back

最多便宜五块。Zuì duō piányi wǔ kuàiFive yuan off, at most.
这个价已经很便宜了。Zhège jià yǐjīng hěn piányi leThis price is already low.
你要几个？Nǐ yào jǐ ge?How many do you want?

Common questions

How do you say "Can you make it cheaper?" in Chinese?: "Can you make it cheaper?" in Chinese is 可以便宜一点吗？ — written in pinyin as Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma?. It is a shopping phrase you would use in China.
What does 可以便宜一点吗？ mean in Chinese?: 可以便宜一点吗？ (Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma?) means "Can you make it cheaper?". Broken down word by word: 可以 (kěyǐ) means "can / may"; 便宜 (piányi) means "cheap"; 一点 (yìdiǎn) means "a little"; 吗 (ma) means "question particle".
When would you use "Can you make it cheaper?" in Chinese?: Say it in markets, night stalls and tourist streets, and say it with a smile — in those places the first price is an opening, so asking for less is expected rather than rude. Expect to settle somewhere in the middle, and expect the answer to be a number rather than a word: the seller usually replies with a price, not with a yes.

Where you'll use it

可以便宜一点吗？ comes up in these situations, in this order.

🧺 Bargaining at a market7 steps

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