# Spanish slang for money, country by country

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Updated 2026-11-09 · By Jacob Pradels · HTML version: https://learnwithkin.com/spanish/money-slang

> The standard word is *dinero*, and it works everywhere. Casually, most of Latin America says *plata*. Mexico says *lana*, Spain says *pasta*, Argentina and Uruguay say *guita*, Central America says *pisto* and Puerto Rico says *chavos*.

*Dinero* is never wrong. But it's a bit like saying "money" every time in English, when your friends say cash, bucks or dough. Each country has its own.


| Word | Where | Also means |
| --- | --- | --- |
| plata | most of Latin America | silver |
| lana | Mexico, and also Argentina, Peru and Uruguay | wool |
| feria | Mexico, especially the north | a fair |
| varos | Mexico | one varo is one peso |
| pasta | Spain | dough, paste |
| pelas | Spain | the old pesetas |
| guita | Argentina, Uruguay and Spain | — |
| pisto | El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras | hard liquor, in Mexico |
| chavos | Puerto Rico | cents |

*Pasta* works exactly like English "dough": a food word that turned into money. *Lana* is wool, and *plata* is silver, back when coins were made of it.

## The ones that mean something else next door

- **Pisto.** Money in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. In Mexico it's hard liquor, so *¿traes pisto?* gets a different answer depending on where you ask.
- **Chavo.** In Puerto Rico *chavos* is cash. In Mexico a *chavo* is a kid or a guy.
- **Feria.** Money in Mexican slang, but also a fair or a street market everywhere.
- **Pasta.** In Spain it's money. Everywhere else it's mostly just pasta.

## In a sentence

- **No tengo lana.** (noh TEHN-goh LAH-nah): I'm broke.
  Mexico.
- **¿Tienes plata?** (TYEH-nehs PLAH-tah): Do you have any money?
  Most of Latin America.
- **Cuesta una pasta.** (KWEHS-tah OO-nah PAHS-tah): It costs a fortune.
  Spain.
- **Me quedé sin guita.** (meh keh-DEH seen GEE-tah): I ran out of money.
  Argentina, Uruguay.

Argentina and Spain also have *mosca* (literally a fly) and *tela* (cloth). There are dozens more. You won't learn them from a list: you pick up the ones from the place you hear Spanish, and the place comes attached.

For other everyday words that change by country, like straw, bus, T-shirt and cool, there's the [word map](https://learnwithkin.com/spanish/words-by-country).

## Questions

### What is slang for money in Spanish?

It depends on the country: *lana* in Mexico, *plata* in most of Latin America, *pasta* in Spain, *guita* in Argentina and Uruguay, *pisto* in Central America and *chavos* in Puerto Rico. *Dinero* is the standard word everywhere.

### What does lana mean in Spanish slang?

Money, mostly in Mexico. Literally it means wool.

### What does plata mean?

Silver, and across Latin America it's also the everyday word for money: *no tengo plata* is "I've got no money".

### What does pisto mean?

Money in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. In Mexico it means hard liquor, and it's also the name of a vegetable dish, like ratatouille.

### What does chavos mean in Puerto Rico?

Money, cash. A *chavo* is a cent, the way you might say pennies. In Mexico a *chavo* is a kid or a guy instead.

## Sources

- Thesaurus: dinero. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Thesaurus:dinero
- plata. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/plata
- lana. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lana
- pasta. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pasta
- pisto. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pisto
- chavo. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/chavo
- feria. Wiktionary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/feria

## Related

- [Spanish words by country, on a map](https://learnwithkin.com/spanish/words-by-country.md)
- [One thing, many words: Spanish by country](https://learnwithkin.com/spanish/regional-words.md)
- [Fine here, rude there: Spanish words that change by country](https://learnwithkin.com/spanish/words-that-change-meaning.md)

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