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PhrasesAt the TobacconistQuanto costa?
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Quanto costa?

How much does it cost?

Pronunciation

QUAN-to CO-sta — equal stress on both words; the 'qu' is /kw/ as in English 'quantity'.

When to use it

Use this at any point when you want to know the price of an item. It is the most fundamental shopping phrase in Italian.

What it means

'Quanto' (how much) + 'costa' (third-person singular of costare = to cost). For multiple items use 'Quanto costano?' For a specific item you can point and say 'Quanto costa questo/questa?' (this one).

Variations

Quant'è in tutto?

How much is it all together?

Contraction of 'quanto è' — used when paying for multiple items

Quanto costano questi?

How much do these cost?

Plural 'costano' for multiple items

Ha qualcosa di meno costoso?

Do you have something less expensive?

Polite way to ask for a cheaper alternative

Mini Dialogue

— Quanto costa questo accendino? — Due euro. — E questo? — Uno e cinquanta. — Prendo quello da uno e cinquanta.

— How much does this lighter cost? — Two euros. — And this one? — One fifty. — I'll take the one-fifty one.

Cultural Note

Italians are comfortable asking about prices directly and without embarrassment. Bargaining (contrattare) is generally not done in tabaccherie as prices are fixed, but asking before buying is completely normal and expected.