How Much Is It in Japanese? いくらですか (Ikura Desu Ka) for Beginners

You are in a shop and find something you want to buy, but you cannot see the price. Point to it and ask:

The key phrase is いくらですか on its own, “How much is it?”:

This is a useful beginner phrase for shops, markets, ticket counters, cafés, and other situations where you need to ask the price.

Start with いくらですか

Imagine you are looking at a bag in a shop and want to know the price. Point and ask:

Each part of the question has its own job:

• これ (kore) — this
• は (wa) — marks what you are asking about
• いくら (ikura) — how much
• ですか (desu ka) — makes this a polite question

The useful pattern is a thing, は, then いくらですか. Put any item in the slot:

When the item is obvious, just ask いくらですか

You do not always need the full sentence. If you are holding an item or pointing directly at it, the situation already makes the item clear, so you can ask:

If you want to make the item explicit, add これは:

Both are useful. The shorter version depends more on context. The longer version clearly identifies what you are asking about.

Ask the price of a named item

You can replace これ (kore), “this,” with the name of the item. Ask about this particular bag, the coffee, or a ticket:

1. このバッグはいくらですかKono baggu wa ikura desu ka.How much is this bag?
2. コーヒーはいくらですかKoohii wa ikura desu ka.How much is the coffee?
3. きっぷはいくらですかKippu wa ikura desu ka.How much is the ticket?

The pattern stays the same even without この, whichever noun you put in front of は:

1. バッグはいくらですかBaggu wa ikura desu ka.How much is the bag?
2. コーヒーはいくらですかKoohii wa ikura desu ka.How much is the coffee?
3. きっぷはいくらですかKippu wa ikura desu ka.How much is the ticket?

Once you know the noun, you can ask its price.

Use これ when you can point

If you do not know the Japanese name for an item, これ (kore) is extremely useful. Point to the item and ask:

You do not need to know whether the object is called a jacket, charger, souvenir, or something else. You only need これ (kore), “this,” plus いくらですか (ikura desu ka), “how much is it?” That makes the phrase especially useful for an early beginner.

Add すみません to get someone’s attention

Imagine a shop employee is nearby. Instead of immediately asking the question, you can first get their attention:

Then ask the price:

Together, the two lines make one polite opening:

This gives you a simple shop interaction you can use even with very little Japanese.

For more on this phrase, see すみません (Sumimasen): How to Say “Excuse Me” in Japanese.

What kind of answer should you expect?

When you ask これはいくらですか, the answer will normally give you a price:

1. これはいくらですかKore wa ikura desu ka.How much is this?
2. ごひゃくえんですGohyaku en desu.It is 500 yen.
3. せんえんですSen en desu.It is 1,000 yen.

You do not need to understand every word the other person says to know what information to listen for. You asked a price question, so listen for number + えん (en), where えん (en) means yen:

1. さんびゃくえんsanbyaku en300 yen
2. ごひゃくえんgohyaku en500 yen
3. せんえんsen en1,000 yen

Recognizing Japanese numbers is a separate skill, but knowing the shape of the expected answer makes the conversation easier to follow.

いくらですか asks the price, not for the item

This distinction matters. Suppose you point to a drink and ask the price:

You are asking for information about its price. You are not ordering it. If you decide to buy the item, a useful phrase is これをください:

So a simple shopping exchange moves from asking the price to requesting the item:

1. これはいくらですかKore wa ikura desu ka.How much is this?
2. これをくださいKore o kudasai.This one, please.

The first phrase asks the price. The second requests the item.

いくらですか vs これをください

Imagine you see a snack. You are interested, but you want to know the price first:

The staff member tells you the price, and you decide to buy it:

Do not use これをください when your actual question is the price. It communicates that you want the item.

And do not expect これはいくらですか by itself to mean that you definitely want to buy it. It asks how much it costs.

いくらですか vs なんですか

These questions look similar, but they ask for different information. Use なんですか when you do not know what the thing is:

Use いくらですか when you want to know the price:

Imagine you see an unfamiliar food. First you might ask what it is:

Once you know what it is, you might ask the price:

The structure is similar, but the question word changes what information you are requesting.

Do not confuse いくら with どこ

Another useful beginner question asks where something is:

Compare a location question with a price question:

1. トイレはどこですかToire wa doko desu ka.Where is the bathroom?
2. これはいくらですかKore wa ikura desu ka.How much is this?

Use どこ (doko) for location and いくら (ikura) for price.

If you are shopping, this distinction is especially useful. One question finds the checkout; the other finds out a price:

1. レジはどこですかReji wa doko desu ka.Where is the checkout?
2. これはいくらですかKore wa ikura desu ka.How much is this?

One helps you find something. The other helps you find out its price.

A simple shop conversation

You see something you like and approach the staff member:

Then point and ask:

The staff member answers:

You decide to buy it:

That gives you a complete beginner sequence: get attention, ask, then request.

1. すみませんSumimasen.Excuse me.
2. これはいくらですかKore wa ikura desu ka.How much is this?
3. これをくださいKore o kudasai.This one, please.

You do not need complicated grammar to handle the basic interaction.

If you do not understand the price

You ask the price, the staff member answers, but you miss the number:

You do not need to pretend you understood. Ask them to repeat it:

Then listen again for the price.

This is a useful combination because real shopping conversations do not end when you successfully ask the question. You also need a way to repair the conversation when the answer is difficult.

Common mistake: using なんですか for the price

Suppose you point at a bag and ask this:

That means “What is this?” It does not mean “How much is this?” For price, use いくら:

Think of it this way: to ask what something is, use なん (nan). To ask how much it costs, use いくら (ikura).

Common mistake: treating いくら as “how many”

In this phrase, いくら (ikura) asks how much something costs:

Do not use it as a universal question for every English sentence containing “how much” or “how many.” To ask how many things there are, Japanese usually uses other question words, such as いくつ (ikutsu) or なん (nan) with a counter, which you can learn later.

For now, connect it strongly to the practical price question:

That gives you a reliable phrase before you learn the wider Japanese counting system.

Choose the right phrase

1. You see a bag and want to know its price.

A. これはいくらですか。 (Kore wa ikura desu ka.)　B. これはなんですか。 (Kore wa nan desu ka.)

Answer: A.

2. You see an unfamiliar object and want to know what it is.

A. これはいくらですか。 (Kore wa ikura desu ka.)　B. これはなんですか。 (Kore wa nan desu ka.)

Answer: B.

3. You already know the price and want to buy the item.

A. これをください。 (Kore o kudasai.)　B. これはいくらですか。 (Kore wa ikura desu ka.)

Answer: A.

4. You asked the price but did not catch the answer.

A. もういちどおねがいします。 (Mou ichido onegaishimasu.)　B. どこですか。 (Doko desu ka.)

Answer: A.

Practise building the question

Start with the shortest form:

Now specify “this”:

Then swap in named items: coffee, a ticket, and this bag.

1. コーヒーはいくらですかKoohii wa ikura desu ka.How much is the coffee?
2. きっぷはいくらですかKippu wa ikura desu ka.How much is the ticket?
3. このバッグはいくらですかKono baggu wa ikura desu ka.How much is this bag?

The question stays stable. You change only what you are asking about.

Practise the whole interaction

Imagine you are standing in a shop. Say each line aloud: get attention, ask the price, hear the answer, and decide to buy.

1. すみませんSumimasen.Excuse me.
2. これはいくらですかKore wa ikura desu ka.How much is this?
3. ごひゃくえんですGohyaku en desu.It is 500 yen.
4. これをくださいKore o kudasai.This one, please.

Now repeat the interaction without looking at the English:

• すみません。 Sumimasen.
• これはいくらですか。 Kore wa ikura desu ka.
• ごひゃくえんです。 Gohyaku en desu.
• これをください。 Kore o kudasai.

The goal is to make これはいくらですか something you can retrieve when you actually need it, not just something you recognize on a page.

The phrase to remember

If you remember only one line from this lesson, make it this one:

If the item is already obvious, the short form is enough:

And if you decide to buy it, switch to a request:

That gives you a useful three-step shopping skill: point to something, ask the price, then decide whether to request it.

Continue learning

Once you know the price and want to buy the item, use How to Order Food in Japanese: これをください for Beginners.

If you miss the price when someone answers, use How to Ask Someone to Say It Again in Japanese: もういちどおねがいします.

For another practical question you can use while shopping or travelling, continue with How to Ask “Where Is…?” in Japanese: どこですか for Beginners.