7 ways to say I love you in Korean (사랑해, 좋아해 and what comes between)
Korean couples say 사랑해 later and less often than English speakers expect. The relationship is usually declared with 좋아해 (I like you), carried for months on 보고 싶어 (I miss you), and only then does 사랑해 arrive, when it means something.
Most of these are in casual speech (반말), because that is what people in love speak to each other; the polite forms are there for couples who still use 요, and for family.
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사랑해.
saranghae.
I love you.
Casual (반말), between couples and within families. It is the line from every drama and ballad, and it is said far less lightly than the English; many couples take months to get here.
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사랑해요.
saranghaeyo.
I love you. (polite)
The polite form, for couples who still speak 요 to each other, or in a message to your parents or grandparents. Some find it sweeter than 사랑해, others more distant; the gap between them is the whole relationship.
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사랑합니다.
saranghamnida.
I love you. (formal)
Formal. Wedding vows, letters, idols to a stadium, song titles. Said to one person across a table it is either a joke or a very serious moment.
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좋아해.
joahae.
I like you.
Casual. This is where most Korean relationships are actually spoken into existence; 사랑해 comes much later. The verb is 좋아하다, to like, and with a person as the object it is a confession, not a compliment.
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많이 좋아해요.
mani joahaeyo.
I really like you.
Literally: I like (you) a lot.
Polite, with 많이 (a lot) so there is no mistaking it. A common line in early dating, for the stage when 사랑해요 would be too much and 좋아해요 too little.
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보고 싶어.
bogo sipeo.
I miss you.
Literally: I want to see (you).
Casual. Said far more often than 사랑해 in a Korean relationship, by text and at the end of calls. 보고 싶어요 in polite speech; 보고 싶었어 (I missed you) when you finally meet.
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너밖에 없어.
neobakke eopseo.
You're the only one for me.
Literally: There is nobody but you.
Casual and heavy. For a serious moment, not a greeting. It is the closest Korean gets to a vow without a ring.
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A pattern worth noticing: the Korean leaves out the 'you'. 사랑해, 좋아해 and 보고 싶어 all stand alone, and 나 너 사랑해 with both pronouns sounds stilted outside a drama. The person is understood; the verb carries the feeling.