# Talking money: bolivianos, luca, ¿a cómo?

> id: regional.bo.money-prices-talk · category: regional · depth: standard · levels: A2 · review: internally_reviewed

**Summary.** Currency is the boliviano (Bs); 'luca' = 1000 in slang. Market talk: ¿a cómo?, ¿en cuánto me deja?, la yapa. QR payment is now everywhere.

The currency is the boliviano (written Bs); 'luca' is slang for 1,000. Market price questions use ¿a cómo? / ¿a cuánto? (¿a cómo el kilo?), ¿en cuánto me deja? to open bargaining, and la yapa for the little extra. QR payment is now ubiquitous, even at small stalls.

Prices are written 'Bs 20' or '20 Bs'. Bargaining is normal in ferias and with metered-less taxis (fix the fare first) but not in supermarkets; the caserita relationship affects price, and loyalty earns the yapa.

Two everyday frictions: small change is genuinely scarce, so ¿tiene cambio/sencillo? is a constant question and vendors may refuse big notes; and a polite ¿me hace una rebajita? is the standard way to nudge a price down at a feria. Tipping is minimal — rounding up or leaving small change is plenty.

## Examples
- ¿A cómo el kilo de papa, casera? — How much for a kilo of potatoes, (vendor)?
- Son 20 bolivianos; ¿le paso el QR? — That's 20 bolivianos; shall I send you the QR code?
- ¿Tiene cambio de cien? No tengo sencillo. — Do you have change for a hundred? I've got no small bills.

Related: regional.bo.greetings, regional.bo.lexicon-food

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