This section covers the key vocabulary and grammar you need to ask about prices and costs in German.

Questions

German price questions are just like any other noun question — the question word comes first, then the verb, then the rest.

Common question words for prices are:

Wie viel …? — How much …?
Was kostet …? — What does … cost?
Wie teuer ist …? — How expensive is …?
Was kostet das? — What does that cost?
Wie viel kostet das? — How much does that cost?
Wie teuer sind …? — How expensive are …?

Common Price Questions

German Example	English Example
Wie viel kostet das?	How much does that cost?
Was kostet ein Apfel?	What does an apple cost?
Wie teuer ist das Buch?	How expensive is the book?
Was kostet das Brot?	What does the bread cost?
Wie viel kosten die Schuhe?	How much do the shoes cost?

Nouns

German noun questions use was (what) or wie viel (how much), followed by a singular or plural noun.

Here are the common plural forms, which you will need when asking about multiple items:

der Apfel → die Äpfel (apples)
die Schuhe (shoes, plural)
die Bücher (books, plural)
die Kartoffel → die Kartoffeln (potatoes)
die Eier (eggs, plural)

Useful Nouns for Asking Prices

German Singular	German Plural	English Singular	English Plural
der Apfel	die Äpfel	apple	apples
das Buch	die Bücher	book	books
die Kartoffel	die Kartoffeln	potato	potatoes
das Brot	die Brote	bread	breads/loaves
die Schuh	die Schuhe	shoe	shoes
das Kleid	die Kleider	dress	dresses
das Ei	die Eier	egg	eggs
die Flasche	die Flaschen	bottle	bottles
die Banane	die Bananen	banana	bananas
das Wasser	—	water	—

books

das Bücher

die Bücher

die Bucher

die Büchens

die Bücher

The plural of Buch (book) is Bücher, with the umlaut, and the article die.

Verbs

Most price questions use kosten (to cost). Some also use sein (to be), especially with adjectives like teuer (expensive) or billig (cheap).

kosten — to cost (used with was or wie viel)
sein — to be (used with adjectives like teuer, billig)
zahlen — to pay
kaufen — to buy
haben — to have (less common in price questions)
wollen — to want (used when asking prices in the context of buying)

Conjugation of kosten (to cost) in Present Tense

Pronoun	German	English
ich	koste	I cost
du	kostest	you cost
er/sie/es	kostet	he/she/it costs
wir	kosten	we cost
ihr	kostet	you all cost
sie/Sie	kosten	they/you (formal) cost

Typical Price Verbs

German Verb	Meaning	Example Sentence
kosten	to cost	Was kostet das Buch?

zahlen	to pay	Ich zahle zehn Euro.
sein	to be	Das Buch ist teuer.
wollen	to want	Ich will das Kleid.

Which verb do you use when asking about the price in the context of purchasing?

zahlen

wollen

haben

sein

wollen

Wollen means "to want" and is used when you want to buy something, e.g., Ich will das kaufen.

Adjectives

When asking about prices, German speakers often use the adjectives teuer (expensive) and billig (cheap).

teuer — expensive
billig — cheap
günstig — reasonable/affordable
kostenlos — free (no cost)
hoch — high (price)
niedrig — low (price)

You can use these adjectives with sein (to be) to describe the price:

Das Buch ist teuer. (The book is expensive.)
Die Schuhe sind billig. (The shoes are cheap.)

Common Adjectives for Prices

German	English	Example German	Example English
teuer	expensive	Ist der Apfel teuer?	Is the apple expensive?
billig	cheap	Sind die Schuhe billig?	Are the shoes cheap?
günstig	reasonable/affordable	Das Angebot ist günstig.	The offer is reasonable.
kostenlos	free	Die Lieferung ist kostenlos.	The delivery is free.
hoch	high (price)	Die Preise sind hoch.	The prices are high.
niedrig	low (price)	Die Preise sind niedrig.	The prices are low.

Phrases

Most German price questions are very straightforward. Here are the most common ones you need to ask about prices:

Was kostet das? — What does that cost?
Wie viel kostet …? — How much does … cost?
Wie teuer ist …? — How expensive is …?
Was kostet ein …? — What does one … cost?
Wie viel kosten …? — How much do … cost? (plural)
Ist das teuer? — Is that expensive?
Ist das billig? — Is that cheap?

Useful Price Phrases

German	English
Was kostet das?	What does that cost?
Wie viel kostet ein Apfel?	How much does an apple cost?
Wie teuer ist das Buch?	How expensive is the book?
Wie viel kosten die Schuhe?	How much do the shoes cost?
Ist das teuer?	Is that expensive?
Ist das billig?	Is that cheap?
Was kostet ein Kilo Kartoffeln?	What does a kilo of potatoes cost?
Haben Sie das auch billiger?	Do you have that cheaper?
Kann ich mit Karte zahlen?	Can I pay by card?
Zahlen Sie bar oder mit Karte?	Are you paying cash or by card?

Common Small Talk

German speakers often add polite phrases when asking about prices in stores or markets:

Entschuldigung, wie viel kostet das? — Excuse me, how much does that cost?
Können Sie mir sagen, was das kostet? — Can you tell me what that costs?
Gibt es einen Rabatt? — Is there a discount?
Ist der Preis verhandelbar? — Is the price negotiable?

Small Talk Formulas

German	English
Entschuldigung, wie viel kostet das?	Excuse me, how much does that cost?
Können Sie mir sagen, was das kostet?	Can you tell me what that costs?
Gibt es einen Rabatt?	Is there a discount?
Ist der Preis verhandelbar?	Is the price negotiable?
Kann ich mit Karte zahlen?	Can I pay by card?

You are now equipped with the key German vocabulary and grammar to ask about prices. Remember:

Use Was kostet …? or Wie viel kostet …? to ask about cost.
Use the plural question Wie viel kosten …? for multiple items.
Use sein + teuer/billig/günstig to describe price quality.
Add polite phrases like Entschuldigung to be courteous.

Flashcards (1 of 43)

English Example: How much does that cost?

Last updated: Wed Jun 18, 2025