Delivery in Korean: 배달, 택배, and 배송 — Which Word You Actually Need
"Delivery" in Korean is three different words, and Koreans pick one without thinking. 배달 (baedal) is food or drinks brought to you by a rider — fried chicken, tteokbokki, iced coffee. 택배 (taekbae) is a package carried by a courier company. 배송 (baesong) is the shipping of something you bought, the word you see on a shopping app's tracking screen. If you only learn one, learn 배달: it is the one you will say out loud most, as in 치킨 배달시킬까요? — "Shall we order chicken for delivery?"
- 배달 (baedal) — delivery of food, by a rider
- 택배 (taekbae) — courier parcel, the package itself
- 배송 (baesong) — shipping of an order (online shopping)
- 배달시키다 (baedalsikida) — to order something for delivery
- 배달비 (baedalbi) — delivery fee
- 배송 조회 (baesong johoe) — order tracking
- 문 앞에 두고 벨 눌러 주세요 — Please leave it at the door and ring the bell
The good news: in real life, the situation usually picks the word for you. Food is 배달. A box with a courier logo is 택배. A status line on an app is 배송. The rest of this post shows where each one lives and what to say around it.
배달 vs 택배 vs 배송 at a glance
| Word | Pronunciation | What arrives | Who brings it | Where you see or hear it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 배달 | baedal | food, drinks, groceries from a nearby shop | a motorbike rider | ordering apps, phone calls from the rider |
| 택배 | taekbae | a box or envelope | a courier company driver | your door, apartment lobby, courier text messages |
| 배송 | baesong | anything you bought online | whoever ships it | shopping apps, "배송 중", "배송 완료" |
A simple way to remember it: 배달 is about distance — it comes from down the street, today, while it is still hot. 택배 is about the box — it went through a courier warehouse. 배송 is about the process — the word a company uses to describe moving your order.
That is why one online order can use two of them. The app says 배송 중 (baesong jung, "in transit"), and the text from the driver says 택배 문 앞에 두었습니다 — "I left the parcel at your door."
Practice this out loud with SULSUL — the app says it, you repeat it →
배달: food at your door
Korea runs on 배달. Riders bring chicken to riverside parks, coffee to offices, and late-night snacks to apartments long after most kitchens elsewhere have closed. The verb you need is 배달시키다, "to have something delivered," or the shorter everyday form 시켜 먹다, "to order in and eat."
치킨 배달시켜 먹을까요? (chikin baedalsikyeo meogeulkkayo?) — "Shall we order chicken?" 오늘은 그냥 시켜 먹어요. — "Let's just order in today." 여기 배달 돼요? (yeogi baedal dwaeyo?) — "Do you deliver here?" (useful when you call a shop)
(V)을까요? is the textbook "Shall we…?" pattern, and it is how Koreans actually suggest ordering in. Nobody says "Let us make a delivery order." They say 시켜 먹을까요?
On the app, three words matter before you pay:
- 배달비 (baedalbi) — the delivery fee. Koreans compare this before anything else.
- 최소 주문 금액 (choeso jumun geumaek) — the minimum order amount.
- 요청 사항 (yocheong sahang) — the note to the shop or rider.
The most common note, word for word: 문 앞에 두고 벨 눌러 주세요 — "Leave it at the door and ring the bell." If you would rather get a text, write 문 앞에 두고 문자 주세요. For the full app walkthrough, including ordering to a park with no address, see ordering food delivery in Korea.
택배: the package and the driver
택배 is both the service and the package. You say 택배 왔어요 (taekbae wasseoyo) — "A package came" — the same way English speakers say "the mail came." The person is the 택배 기사님 (taekbae gisanim), the courier driver; the 님 makes it polite, and that is exactly how Koreans refer to them.
Lines you will use:
택배 보내고 싶어요. — "I want to send a package." (at a post office or convenience store) 택배 아직 안 왔어요. — "My package hasn't come yet." 경비실에 맡겨 주세요. (gyeongbisire matgyeo juseyo) — "Please leave it with the security office."
If a driver calls you, the conversation is short. They usually say 택배입니다, 집에 계세요? — "Courier here, are you home?" You answer 아니요, 문 앞에 두고 가 주세요 — "No, please leave it at the door." The detailed version of that phone call, with the questions drivers ask, is in parcel delivery phrases.
배송: the word on the tracking screen
You will read 배송 far more than you say it. Shopping apps show your order moving through these steps:
| Status | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 결제 완료 | gyeolje wallyo | payment complete |
| 배송 준비 중 | baesong junbi jung | preparing for shipping |
| 배송 중 | baesong jung | in transit |
| 배송 완료 | baesong wallyo | delivered |
| 무료 배송 | muryo baesong | free shipping |
| 새벽 배송 | saebyeok baesong | early-morning delivery (before you wake up) |
The button you want is 배송 조회 — "track my order." When you talk about it, though, Koreans slide back to everyday words: 언제 와요? — "When is it coming?" — or 벌써 도착했어요! — "It already arrived!" That second one uses the textbook pattern 벌써 (V)았어요, "already did," and it is the happiest sentence in Korean online shopping.
A real exchange: ordering in with a Korean friend
You are at a friend's place on a rainy evening.
Friend: 비 와서 나가기 싫다. 시켜 먹을까? It's raining, I don't want to go out. Shall we order in?
You: 좋아요! 뭐 시켜요? 치킨? Sure! What should we get? Chicken?
Friend: 응. 근데 배달비가 좀 비싸네. Yeah. But the delivery fee is kind of high.
You: 그럼 떡볶이도 같이 시켜요. 최소 주문 금액 넘게요. Then let's add tteokbokki too. So we're over the minimum order.
Friend: 오, 좋은 생각. 요청 사항에 "문 앞에 두고 벨 눌러 주세요" 쓸게. Oh, good idea. I'll write "leave it at the door and ring the bell" in the note.
You: 아, 그리고 오늘 제 택배도 온대요. 배송 완료 뜨면 알려 주세요. Oh, and my package is coming today too. Tell me when it says "delivered."
All three words in one evening, each doing its own job.
Mix-ups that confuse people
Calling food 택배. If you say 치킨 택배 시켰어요, Koreans will understand, but it sounds like your chicken was shipped in a cardboard box from another city. Food is always 배달.
Using 배달 for online shopping. 옷 배달 왔어요 is not wrong, but most people say 옷 택배 왔어요. Clothes, books, and cosmetics travel as 택배.
Saying 배송 in conversation. "제 배송이 왔어요" sounds like reading a tracking screen aloud. In speech, the thing that arrives is the 택배; 배송 is the process.
Forgetting 시키다. 배달해요 means you are the one delivering. If you want to order delivery, say 배달시켜요 or 시켜 먹어요.
Mishearing 택배. It sounds like taek-bae, not tack-bay. The first syllable is short and clipped. Say it fast, as one word.
Practice the lines out loud
- 치킨 배달시켜 먹을까요? — suggesting delivery.
- 문 앞에 두고 벨 눌러 주세요. — the delivery note.
- 택배 아직 안 왔어요. — when something is late.
- 벌써 도착했어요! — when it comes early.
Read each one aloud three times, then switch the noun: 피자 배달시켜 먹을까요? 커피 배달시켜 먹을까요? Once the pattern is in your mouth, you can order anything Korea delivers — and that is almost everything.
SULSUL is a speaking gym for moments like this: pick a pattern, say it out loud, get an instant fix from the AI pronunciation coach, then run the real situation as a mission. The 100-pattern PDF workbook comes along as a bonus.
