Goodbye In German (Auf Wiedersehen, Tschüss Explained)

My first goodbye in Germany was… not elegant.
I was leaving a small office, panicked, and said „Tschüss!“ /t͡ʃʏs/ to a very serious man in a suit who had just addressed me with Sie /ziː/ and three job titles. He blinked, gave me a polite half-smile, and answered with a very careful „Auf Wiedersehen.“ /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/

Outside, my German friend groaned: “You just ‘bye!’-d the director of the department.” That’s when I realised German goodbyes are not one-size-fits-all. There’s a difference between “Bye!” and “Goodbye, Sir Extremely Important.”

So let’s sort out your German goodbyes so you can leave rooms, phone calls, and awkward parties with exactly the right level of politeness.

Quick Primer

Here are the four goodbye phrases that do most of the work for you:

If you remember only this:

• With strangers, older people, or formal situations → auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/
  
• With friends, classmates, people your age → tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/
  
• To sound extra friendly → add bis bald /bɪs balt/ or mach’s gut /maxs ɡuːt/
  

The Two Core Goodbyes: Auf Wiedersehen And Tschüss

Let’s start with the main pair: the “suit” goodbye and the “hoodie” goodbye.

auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/
Literally “until seeing again.” In real life, it’s simply a polite, neutral goodbye.

Use it:

• in offices, banks, and official places
  
• with teachers, doctors, or people you address as Sie /ziː/
  
• when you want to sound respectful or professional
  

Examples:

• Auf Wiedersehen, Frau Müller. /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən fʁaʊ ˈmʏlɐ/
  Goodbye, Ms Müller.
  
• Auf Wiedersehen und vielen Dank. /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən ʊnt ˈfiːlən daŋk/
  Goodbye and thank you very much.
  

You will never sound rude with auf Wiedersehen. At worst, you will sound slightly formal with friends, which is cute.

tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/
Short, cheerful, and very common.

Use it:

• with friends, classmates, colleagues you know well
  
• in casual shops, cafés, and informal situations
  
• with people you normally address as du /duː/
  

It’s basically German “bye!”

You can stretch it or decorate it:

• Tschüssi /ˈt͡ʃʏsi/ – extra cute, used with children or very friendly tone
  
• Tschüss, bis morgen. /t͡ʃʏs bɪs ˈmɔʁɡn̩/ – bye, see you tomorrow
  

If you’re not sure which to use, look at the relationship:

• polite distance? → auf Wiedersehen
  
• casual connection? → tschüss
  

Sounding Natural: Pronunciation Tips

Both auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/ and tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/ are easier than they look, once you break them up.

auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/

Break it into pieces:

• auf /aʊ̯f/ – like “ow” in cow plus f
  
• Wie- /ˈviː/ – like “vee”
  
• -der /dɐ/ – a relaxed “duh” with an r colour at the end
  
• sehen /ˈzeːən/ – “zay-en,” with a long eː
  

Now glue:

• auf WIE-der-se-hen
  
• Stress on WIE-: aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən
  

Say it slowly a few times:
aow VEE-der-zay-en

Then make it smoother until it flows as one word.

tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/

One syllable, tiny but mighty.

• tsch- /t͡ʃ/ – like English “ch” in cheese
  
• -üss /ʏs/ – the vowel is between “i” in sit and “u” in put
  

Imagine you’re saying:

• English “chiss” but round your lips more → tschüss
  

Say it softly: t͡ʃʏs. You want it quick, not chewed for three seconds like bubble gum.

Formal Vs Informal Goodbyes

Your goodbye should match the “you” you’re using: Sie /ziː/ (formal) or du /duː/ (informal).

Formal Goodbye Toolkit (With Sie)

Use these with people you don’t know well, older people, or in professional contexts:

auf Wiederhören /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐhøːʁən/ is the phone version of auf Wiedersehen. Use it at the end of formal phone calls.

Example formulas:

• Auf Wiedersehen, bis nächste Woche. /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən bɪs ˈnɛːkstə ˈvɔxə/
  Goodbye, see you next week.
  
• Auf Wiederhören, danke für Ihre Hilfe. /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐhøːʁən ˈdaŋkə fyːɐ̯ ˈiːʁə ˈhɪlfə/
  Goodbye, thank you for your help. (on the phone)
  

Informal Goodbye Toolkit (With Du)

Use these with friends, classmates, roommates, and relaxed colleagues:

Example:

• Tschüss, mach’s gut! /t͡ʃʏs maxs ɡuːt/
  Bye, take care!
  
• Bis morgen, tschüss! /bɪs ˈmɔʁɡn̩ t͡ʃʏs/
  See you tomorrow, bye!
  

If you accidentally say tschüss to someone formal, don’t panic. It’s not an insult; it’s just a bit too cosy. People usually forgive cozy.

Everyday Goodbye Add-Ons

Once you’re comfortable with auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/ and tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/, you can stack extra phrases to sound more natural.

Common “extra goodbye” phrases:

Combine them:

• Tschüss, bis bald. /t͡ʃʏs bɪs balt/
  Bye, see you soon.
  
• Auf Wiedersehen, schönen Tag noch. /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən ˈʃøːnən taːk nɔx/
  Goodbye, have a nice rest of the day.
  
• Tschüss, mach’s gut und bis morgen. /t͡ʃʏs maxs ɡuːt ʊnt bɪs ˈmɔʁɡn̩/
  Bye, take care and see you tomorrow.
  

Think of these as goodbye sprinkles you can add on top.

Region Notes

Standard phrases like auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/ and tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/ work everywhere in German-speaking countries. They are your safe, universal tools.

But you’ll hear regional flavours:

• Southern Germany and Austria:
  
  • Servus /ˈzɛʁvʊs/ (often more like /ˈsɛɐ̯vʊs/) for hello and goodbye in informal settings.
    
• Switzerland:
  
  • Adieu /aˈdjøː/ and Ade /aˈdeː/ in some regions, alongside tschüss.
    
• Northern Germany:
  
  • Tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/ is extremely common; you’ll hear it all day.
    

Basic rule:

• As a learner, stick to auf Wiedersehen and tschüss, plus the simple add-ons like bis bald and schönen Tag noch.
  
• If you live in a region long-term, you can start copying the local goodbye flavour one word at a time.
  

Mini Dialogues

Dialogue 1 – Leaving A Doctor’s Office (Formal)

Auf Wiedersehen, Frau Doktor Schmidt.
/aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən fʁaʊ ˈdɔktɐ ʃmɪt/
Goodbye, Dr Schmidt.

Auf Wiedersehen, und gute Besserung.
/aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən ʊnt ˈɡuːtə ˈbɛsəʁʊŋ/
Goodbye, and get well soon.

Danke, schönen Tag noch.
/ˈdaŋkə ˈʃøːnən taːk nɔx/
Thank you, have a nice rest of the day.

Ihnen auch, auf Wiedersehen.
/ˈiːnən aʊ̯x aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/
You too, goodbye.

Dialogue 2 – Saying Bye To Friends At A Café (Informal)

So, ich muss los.
/zoː ɪç mʊs loːs/
Okay, I have to go.

Alles klar, tschüss!
/ˈaləs klaːʁ t͡ʃʏs/
All right, bye!

Tschüss, bis bald!
/t͡ʃʏs bɪs balt/
Bye, see you soon!

Mach’s gut, bis morgen.
/maxs ɡuːt bɪs ˈmɔʁɡn̩/
Take care, see you tomorrow.

Dialogue 3 – Ending A Phone Call (Formal)

Vielen Dank für Ihre Hilfe.
/ˈfiːlən daŋk fyːɐ̯ ˈiːʁə ˈhɪlfə/
Thank you very much for your help.

Gern geschehen.
/ɡɛʁn ɡəˈʃeːən/
You’re welcome.

Auf Wiederhören.
/aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐhøːʁən/
Goodbye. (on the phone)

Auf Wiederhören, schönen Tag noch.
/aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐhøːʁən ˈʃøːnən taːk nɔx/
Goodbye, have a nice rest of the day.

Quick Reference

Here’s a compact goodbye kit you can memorise quickly:

If everything else disappears from your brain, this combination will still save you:

• Auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/ for formal
  
• Tschüss /t͡ʃʏs/ for informal
  
• Add bis bald /bɪs balt/ or mach’s gut /maxs ɡuːt/ to sound extra friendly.
  

Five-Minute Practice Plan

• Say auf Wiedersehen /aʊ̯f ˈviːdɐzeːən/ ten times slowly, then ten times at normal speed, keeping the stress on WIE.
  
• Alternate out loud: Auf Wiedersehen – tschüss – Auf Wiedersehen – tschüss, focusing on switching from formal to informal rhythm.
  
• Act out a tiny scene: stand up, walk to the door, turn, say Auf Wiedersehen, schönen Tag noch, then “leave” the room. Do this three times.
  
• Write three short text messages in German ending with an informal goodbye (like Tschüss, bis morgen!) and read them aloud.
  
• Record yourself saying Tschüss, mach’s gut, bis bald and listen once, checking that tschüss is quick and not “choooose.”
  
• For the rest of the day, whenever you hang up a call in your own language, quietly whisper the German version after it: Auf Wiederhören or tschüss.
  

Leaving Like A Local Yak

Once your mouth can switch smoothly between auf Wiedersehen and tschüss, you stop doing the awkward half-wave, half-mumble exit and start leaving like someone who actually belongs there. Goodbyes are the last impression you leave in German; make them clear, confident, and just a little bit charming—very much like a yak backing out of a room with style.