Business Terms in Spanish — Company, Finance, Meetings and HR Vocabulary

Welcome to your language journey

- 01
Learn through the article!
- 02
Pass a language test
- 03
Check the results
- 04
Subscribe to reach fluency!

Key takeaways

Core business vocabulary: la empresa (company), el negocio (business/deal), la reunión (meeting), el contrato (contract), el presupuesto (budget).

Title distinctions: el jefe/la jefa (direct boss), el gerente (manager), el director (director), el director general (CEO).

Finance essentials: la factura (invoice), los ingresos (revenue), los gastos (expenses), la ganancia (profit).

Regional variation: el aguinaldo (Christmas bonus — Latin America), las prestaciones vs los beneficios (employee benefits).

Key verbs: negociar (to negotiate), contratar (to hire), facturar (to invoice), presupuestar (to quote/budget).

You're in a video call with a client in Mexico and they mention el presupuesto — you know it's something financial but not whether they mean budget or quote. Or you're writing a professional email in Spanish and aren't sure if Atentamente or Un cordial saludo is the right sign-off. Or your new colleague introduces himself as el gerente de operaciones and you're not sure how that maps to your company structure.

Business Spanish connects directly to professional credibility. In a Spanish-speaking work environment, knowing the right vocabulary for meetings, contracts, finances, and professional communication marks you as someone who understands the context — not just the language.

This guide covers company and organizational vocabulary, meeting and communication terms, finance and accounting language, HR and employment vocabulary, key business action verbs, and phrases for professional communication in Spanish.

Company and organizational vocabulary

Spanish	English	Example
la empresa / la compañía	company	Trabajo para una empresa multinacional. — I work for a multinational company.
el negocio	business / deal	Abrió su propio negocio hace dos años. — He opened his own business two years ago.
los negocios	business (general) / deals	Viaja mucho por negocios. — She travels a lot for business.
la firma	firm / signature	La firma especializada en derecho corporativo. — The firm specializing in corporate law.
el socio / la socia	partner / business associate	Fundaron la empresa con dos socios. — They founded the company with two partners.
el emprendedor / la emprendedora	entrepreneur	Es una emprendedora exitosa en el sector tecnológico. — She's a successful entrepreneur in the tech sector.
la sucursal	branch / subsidiary office	La empresa tiene sucursales en doce países. — The company has branches in twelve countries.
la sede	headquarters / head office	La sede central está en Ciudad de México. — The headquarters is in Mexico City.
el sector / la industria	sector / industry	Trabaja en el sector financiero. — He works in the financial sector.

Job titles and hierarchy

Spanish (m / f)	English	Notes
el director general / la directora general	CEO / general director	Top executive role
el director / la directora	director	Senior leadership
el gerente / la gerente	manager	Department or area manager
el jefe / la jefa	boss / supervisor	Direct line manager — also used informally between colleagues in Latin America
el empleado / la empleada	employee	General employee
el colaborador / la colaboradora	collaborator / team member	Preferred in many companies over "empleado"
el/la asistente	assistant	Universal
el/la contador/a / el/la contable	accountant (Latin America / Spain)	Regional variation
el/la analista	analyst	Universal

Language note: El jefe is the most informal of the boss/manager titles — it means your direct supervisor. In Latin America, especially Mexico, jefe is also used casually between friends and colleagues as a term of address (like "boss" in English street slang). El gerente implies a management function (gerente de ventas = sales manager, gerente de proyectos = project manager). El director is a higher, more formal executive title.

Meetings and professional communication

Spanish	English	Example
la reunión / la junta	meeting / board meeting	Tenemos reunión de equipo los lunes a las nueve. — We have team meeting on Mondays at nine.
el orden del día	agenda	¿Puedes enviarme el orden del día antes de la reunión? — Can you send me the agenda before the meeting?
el informe / el reporte	report (Spain / Latin America)	El informe trimestral está listo. — The quarterly report is ready.
la presentación	presentation	Preparé una presentación para los inversores. — I prepared a presentation for the investors.
el correo electrónico / el email	email	Te mando la propuesta por correo electrónico. — I'll send you the proposal by email.
la conferencia / la videoconferencia	conference / video conference	La conferencia anual se celebra en Madrid. — The annual conference is held in Madrid.
la propuesta	proposal	Presentaremos la propuesta la próxima semana. — We will present the proposal next week.
el acuerdo	agreement / deal	Llegamos a un acuerdo con el proveedor. — We reached an agreement with the supplier.
el contrato	contract	Revisé el contrato con el departamento legal. — I reviewed the contract with the legal department.

Finance and accounting vocabulary

Spanish	English	Example
el presupuesto	budget / quote / estimate	El presupuesto para el proyecto es de 50,000 euros. — The budget for the project is 50,000 euros.
la factura	invoice	Le enviaré la factura por correo electrónico. — I'll send you the invoice by email.
los ingresos	revenue / income	Los ingresos del tercer trimestre superaron las expectativas. — Third quarter revenue exceeded expectations.
los gastos / los egresos	expenses / expenditures	Hay que reducir los gastos operativos. — We need to reduce operating expenses.
la ganancia / la utilidad	profit / earnings (Spain / Latin America)	La empresa registró ganancias récord este año. — The company recorded record profits this year.
la deuda	debt	La empresa logró reducir su deuda a largo plazo. — The company managed to reduce its long-term debt.
la inversión	investment	Buscamos inversión para expandir el negocio. — We are looking for investment to expand the business.
el balance / el balance general	balance sheet	El balance anual muestra un crecimiento sólido. — The annual balance sheet shows solid growth.
el flujo de caja / el flujo de efectivo	cash flow	El flujo de caja positivo es clave para la estabilidad. — Positive cash flow is key for stability.
el IVA (Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido)	VAT / sales tax	El precio incluye IVA. — The price includes VAT.

Marketing and sales vocabulary

Spanish	English	Example
el mercado	market	Estamos expandiendo al mercado latinoamericano. — We are expanding into the Latin American market.
la marca	brand	La marca tiene una fuerte presencia en redes sociales. — The brand has a strong social media presence.
el cliente / la clienta	client / customer	La satisfacción del cliente es nuestra prioridad. — Customer satisfaction is our priority.
la competencia / el competidor	competition / competitor	Tenemos que analizar a la competencia. — We need to analyze the competition.
la estrategia	strategy	Rediseñamos la estrategia de marketing. — We redesigned the marketing strategy.
el proveedor / la proveedora	supplier / vendor	Cambiaremos de proveedor el próximo trimestre. — We will change suppliers next quarter.
el producto / el servicio	product / service	Lanzamos un nuevo producto al mercado. — We launched a new product to market.
la campaña	campaign	La campaña publicitaria fue muy efectiva. — The advertising campaign was very effective.

Human resources and employment

Spanish	English	Example
los recursos humanos (RRHH)	human resources (HR)	Consulta con recursos humanos sobre tu contrato. — Check with HR about your contract.
el contrato indefinido	permanent contract	Después de seis meses me ofrecieron contrato indefinido. — After six months they offered me a permanent contract.
el contrato temporal	temporary contract	Empecé con un contrato temporal de tres meses. — I started with a three-month temporary contract.
el salario / el sueldo	salary / wages	Negocié un salario más alto en la entrevista. — I negotiated a higher salary in the interview.
la nómina	payroll / payslip	Revisa tu nómina cada mes. — Check your payslip every month.
las prestaciones / los beneficios	employee benefits (Latin America / general)	Las prestaciones incluyen seguro médico y fondo de pensión. — Benefits include health insurance and pension fund.
el aguinaldo	Christmas bonus (Latin America)	El aguinaldo equivale a quince días de salario. — The Christmas bonus equals fifteen days' salary.
la jornada completa / la jornada parcial	full-time / part-time	Busco trabajo a jornada completa en el sector tecnológico. — I'm looking for full-time work in the tech sector.
trabajar en remoto / a distancia	to work remotely	Trabajo en remoto tres días a la semana. — I work remotely three days a week.
la entrevista de trabajo	job interview	Tengo una entrevista de trabajo mañana a las diez. — I have a job interview tomorrow at ten.

Key business action verbs

Spanish	English	Example
negociar	to negotiate	Negociamos las condiciones del contrato. — We negotiated the contract terms.
contratar	to hire	Van a contratar a diez nuevos empleados. — They're going to hire ten new employees.
despedir	to fire / to lay off	Despidieron a varios trabajadores durante la reestructuración. — Several workers were laid off during the restructuring.
invertir	to invest	Decidimos invertir en tecnología. — We decided to invest in technology.
facturar	to invoice / to bill	Facturaremos el servicio a final de mes. — We will invoice for the service at the end of the month.
presupuestar	to budget / to quote	¿Puede presupuestarnos el proyecto completo? — Can you quote us for the complete project?
gestionar	to manage / to handle	Ella gestiona las cuentas de los clientes principales. — She manages the key client accounts.
implementar	to implement	Implementamos un nuevo sistema de gestión. — We implemented a new management system.

Professional communication phrases

Opening a business email:

Me dirijo a usted para... — I am writing to you regarding...
En respuesta a su correo del... — In response to your email of [date]...
Me pongo en contacto con usted para informarle que... — I am contacting you to inform you that...

In meetings:

Pasemos al siguiente punto del orden del día. — Let's move to the next item on the agenda.
¿Podría resumir los puntos clave? — Could you summarize the key points?
¿Cuál es el plazo de entrega? — What is the deadline?
Queda pendiente para la próxima reunión. — This is pending until the next meeting.

Closing an email:

Quedo a su disposición para cualquier consulta. — I am available for any questions.
En espera de su respuesta. — Awaiting your reply.
Adjunto encontrará... — Please find attached...
Atentamente / Un cordial saludo — Kind regards / Best regards

Cultural note: Business communication in Spanish tends to be more formal than in English, especially in Spain and in written correspondence. Usted (formal you) is standard in professional emails with people you don't know well. In Latin America, business communication is often warmer and more relationship-oriented — small talk about family and personal matters before getting to business is normal and valued. Jumping straight to the agenda is sometimes perceived as cold.

How to build business Spanish vocabulary

Read Spanish business news: El País (Spain), Expansión, El Economista (Mexico), La Nación (Argentina) — financial and business journalism uses authentic professional vocabulary in context.
Switch your work tools to Spanish: Email clients, project management tools, and spreadsheets in Spanish expose you to the exact vocabulary your role uses.
Practice email formulas: Master the opening, body, and closing phrases for professional emails — these formulas transfer across most professional contexts.
Learn your industry's specific vocabulary: Finance, tech, marketing, law, and healthcare each have specialized vocabularies — prioritize what's relevant to your work.
Use AI conversation practice: Apps like Promova offer professional conversation scenarios including meetings, negotiations, and workplace communication — practical contexts for business vocabulary.

Summary

Business Spanish vocabulary centers on a few core areas: company structure (empresa, sede, sucursal), roles (director, gerente, jefe, empleado), meetings and communication (reunión, orden del día, informe, acuerdo), finance (presupuesto, factura, ingresos, gastos, ganancia), and HR (contrato, salario, nómina, prestaciones).

Key verb distinctions: negociar (to negotiate), contratar (to hire), facturar (to invoice), gestionar (to manage). Regional note: el informe (Spain) vs el reporte (Latin America) for report; la ganancia vs la utilidad for profit.

Professional emails in Spanish use formal closings — Atentamente or Un cordial saludo — and tend toward formality and relationship-building, especially in Latin America. Knowing the vocabulary is only part of business Spanish; understanding the professional culture is equally important.

FAQ

What are the most important business terms in Spanish?

The most important business terms in Spanish include: la empresa (company), el negocio (business/deal), la reunión (meeting), el contrato (contract), el presupuesto (budget), la factura (invoice), el cliente (client/customer), el mercado (market), los ingresos (revenue/income), los gastos (expenses), la ganancia/la utilidad (profit), and los recursos humanos (human resources). These cover the core vocabulary for most professional contexts.

How do you say "meeting" in Spanish?

"Meeting" in Spanish is la reunión — the most common and universal term. A formal meeting or board meeting is la junta. A conference is la conferencia. A work session is la sesión de trabajo. Common phrases: Tenemos una reunión a las diez (We have a meeting at ten), Convocó una reunión de emergencia (She called an emergency meeting), El orden del día de la reunión (The meeting agenda).

What is the difference between jefe, gerente and director in Spanish?

All three are management titles but at different levels. El jefe/la jefa is the direct boss or supervisor — the person who manages you day-to-day. El gerente/la gerente is a manager with a department or area of responsibility (gerente de ventas = sales manager). El director/la directora is a director — a higher leadership position (director general = CEO/general director). In Latin America, el jefe is often used informally to mean "boss" in general, even between colleagues as a casual address.

How do you talk about salary and contracts in Spanish?

Key salary and contract vocabulary: el salario/el sueldo (salary/wages), el contrato (contract), el contrato indefinido (permanent contract), el contrato temporal (temporary contract), la nómina (payslip/payroll), las prestaciones/los beneficios (benefits), el aumento de sueldo (salary raise), el aguinaldo (Christmas bonus — Mexico and Latin America), la jornada completa (full-time), la jornada parcial (part-time), trabajar en remoto (to work remotely).

What are useful Spanish phrases for business emails?

Useful Spanish phrases for business emails: Me dirijo a usted para... (I am writing to you regarding...), En respuesta a su correo... (In response to your email...), Adjunto encontrará... (Please find attached...), Quedo a su disposición para cualquier consulta (I am available for any questions), En espera de su respuesta (Awaiting your reply), Atentamente / Un cordial saludo (Kind regards / Best regards). Spanish business emails tend to be more formal than English ones, especially in Spain.

How do you say "budget" and "invoice" in Spanish?

"Budget" in Spanish is el presupuesto — used both for a financial budget and for a price quote/estimate. Example: ¿Puede enviarnos un presupuesto? (Can you send us a quote?). "Invoice" is la factura. To invoice: facturar. Example: Le enviaré la factura por correo electrónico (I will send you the invoice by email). Related terms: el albarán (delivery note — Spain), la nota de entrega (delivery note — Latin America), el recibo (receipt).