A customer is someone who buys goods or simple services in a shop, café or online store. A client is someone who uses a professional service from a person or company: a lawyer, a designer, an agency. With a client, people usually work on that person's particular task, while a customer simply buys.
customer or client — can you pick the right one?
Pick a word and write a sentence — we'll check right away that it fits the meaning and explain any mistakes.
The check is taking longer than usual. Your feedback will appear here automatically.
shop/café/online store + customers; lawyer/agency/designer + clients; a regular customer; a client meeting; customer service
- The bakery gives regular customers a free coffee on Fridays.
- Our agency is designing a new logo for a client from Berlin.
- If there's a problem with your order, contact customer service.
What changed
First versionOur café usually has more clients in the morning than in the evening.
RevisionOur café usually has more customers in the morning than in the evening.
Client may look like a general word for anyone who pays a business. But a café sells coffee and pastries, not a professional service, so the people who come in are customers. Client is for lawyers, agencies and consultants.
The line depends on the kind of work, not the size of the bill. Hairdressers, personal trainers and tutors also say my clients, because they work with each person individually. For example: My hairdresser has so many clients that I book two weeks ahead.
Your turn
The lawyer spent the whole afternoon preparing documents for her ___.
Show the answer
client — A lawyer provides a professional service and prepares documents for a particular person, so that person is her client. A customer buys things in a shop or café, and people don't use this word for a lawyer's clients.
Think about your job, or the job of someone you know, in the service sector. Write who you have to deal with and call these people by the right word: customers or clients.
I work as a freelance translator, so most of my clients are small companies that need contracts in English.
Learn to use new words without mistakes
Write phrases with the words you are learning. LetsWords shows mistakes in usage and grammar, suggests corrections and explains them, and review helps the words stick.