--- title: "así está bien" translation: "That's enough, stop there." type: "word" category: "expression" url: "https://consalsa.app/words/asi-esta-bien" canonical: "https://consalsa.app/words/asi-esta-bien" published: "2026-10-16" updated: "2026-10-16" author: "Andrey the Nomad" site: "ConSalsa.App" license: "https://consalsa.app/terms#ip" --- # así está bien URL: https://consalsa.app/words/asi-esta-bien Translation: That's enough, stop there. Pronunciation: /aˈsi esˈta ˈbjen/ Category: expression Region: Mexico Register: polite, everyday, safe in every direction Variants: ahí está bien, así está bien, gracias, ya con eso, hasta ahí, ¿así está bien? Literal meaning: Like that, it is fine. You are approving the current amount rather than refusing what comes next. Published: 2026-10-16 Quick answer: - Así está bien means that's enough, stop there - said while somebody is pouring, serving or filling. - It approves the amount already there rather than refusing what comes next, which is why it does not sound abrupt. - It also means leave it as it is - to a barber, to somebody moving furniture - and ¿así está bien? is the question form you will be asked. What it means: - A stop signal delivered as approval. Somebody is in the middle of giving you something and you want them to halt - so you say that what is already there is fine, and they stop. - The grammar is doing the politeness. Refusing more would be a small rejection; approving the current amount is a compliment to the pour. - The second sense is leave it. Said to a barber mid-cut, to somebody adjusting a photo, to somebody about to move the sofa again, así está bien means do not change it - it is fine as it is. - And it comes back at you as a question. ¿Así está bien? is what the barber, the server or the attendant asks you, and answering sí, así está bien is the whole exchange. Literal meaning: - Like that, it is fine. Así points at the state of things right now - this much, this level - and está bien approves it. - That is why it works where the alternatives do not. No más refuses the next thing. Para is an order. Ya cuts the action off. Así está bien is the only one of them that says something positive about what has already happened. How Mexicans use it: - At a table it is constant, and it is what stops a serving spoon. Somebody is putting rice on your plate and it does not stop until you say something - this is the something. - At a gas station it comes later than a learner expects. ¿Cuánto le pongo? is asked before the pump starts and wants a number - lleno, por favor, or quinientos de magna. Así está bien is what you say once it is running, when you are topping up and watching the meter. - With coffee and with drinks it comes with a small hand gesture over the cup, which does half the work. The words and the hand arrive together and nobody separates them. - Adding gracias is the default and it is worth the extra word. Así está bien, gracias is the full polite version and it is what you will hear from everybody around you. - Handing over cash it means keep it. Así está bien, said as you give a note to a driver or a delivery, is the ordinary way to leave the change without making a speech about a tip. Common mistake: - A bare hard ya with no smile. Ya, gracias and ya con eso are completely normal and completely polite at a Mexican table, usually with a laugh - it is the flat one-word version, from a guest, that lands as an order. - Saying no más when you mean stop here. It refuses what has not happened yet, which is a different social act mid-pour - and it collides with nomás, the Mexican word for just or only that you will hear all day. - Taking the second offer as the host not listening. You are expected to be asked again, and to say it again. One así está bien is often ignored on purpose, and that is the ritual working rather than failing. Examples: - Así está bien, gracias. — That's plenty, thanks. - Ahí, así está bien. — There, that's enough. - Póngale de la verde... ahí, así está bien. — Fill it with the green one... there, that's enough. - Un poquito más... ya, así está bien. — A little more... okay, that's good. - ¿Así está bien? - Sí, así está bien. — Is this okay? - Yes, that's fine. Mini dialogue: A: ¿Le sirvo más arroz, mija? B: Tantito nada más. A: ... B: Así está bien, así está bien. Gracias. A: Ay, come poquito usted. B: Es que ya me sirvió dos veces, doña Mari. FAQ: Q: What does así está bien mean? A: That's enough, stop there. It is said while somebody is pouring, serving or filling, and it approves the amount already there. Q: Why not just say ya? A: You can - ya, gracias and ya con eso are perfectly polite. It is the flat one-word ya, with no smile and no gracias, that lands as an order from a guest. Q: How do you tell a gas station attendant to stop? A: Say it once the pump is running. ¿Cuánto le pongo? is asked before it starts and wants a number - lleno, por favor. Así está bien is for mid-fill. Q: Is no más the same thing? A: No. No más refuses what is coming rather than accepting what has arrived, which reads oddly mid-pour - and it collides with nomás, the Mexican word for just or only. Q: What is hasta ahí? A: The same job, a shade more directive - up to there. Fine at a gas station, slightly firm at somebody's table. Q: Should I add gracias? A: Yes, and it is the default. Así está bien, gracias is the full polite version and it is what you will hear from everybody around you. Q: Is there a gesture? A: Yes - a small flat hand over the cup or the glass, arriving with the words. Nobody separates the two, and the hand alone works if your mouth is full. Q: What does ¿así está bien? mean when somebody asks me? A: Is this okay? A barber, a server or an attendant checking before they go further. Sí, así está bien is the whole answer. Q: Can I use it to leave the change? A: Yes. Handing over a note and saying así está bien is the ordinary way to say keep it, without making a speech about a tip. Q: What is ahí está bien? A: The same thing. For stopping a pour you will hear ahí está bien and ahí, ahí as often as así está bien, and they are interchangeable. Related words: con-confianza, provecho, mande, tienes-cambio, comida-corrida