Our advice on how to say 'goodbye' in Japanese

Ayami Ando advises:

Say 'sakini' when you have finished your work and others are stil working.

Yuka Sato and Nozomi Iwahashi advise:

When young people say good-bye informally, they often use the expression 'baibai' (bye-bye)! However, if you leave a more formal meeting, you should say 'osakini' , 'osakini shitsurei shimasu' or 'otsukaresama deshita'.

Risako Uchida advises:

'Shitsurei shimasu' is a formal expression which is similar to "Excuse me, but I must be going now." in English

Asami Kumagai advises:

You can say 'mata ne' when you are leaving your friend, but you are going to see him or her again."

Emiko Ando advises:

You can also say 'jaa ne' when you and your friend part. If you are meeting the folowing day, you may say 'ashita ne'.

Mariko Sekido advises:

'Sayonara' can be used when you are leaving for somewhere faraway or when you are saying goodbye more formally to your teacher or friends at school.