coger or tomar?

The rule

In Spain coger is the everyday verb for to take, to catch or to pick up: coger el autobús, coger el teléfono. In Mexico, Argentina and much of Latin America it is vulgar, and tomar or agarrar is what people say instead (in Colombia, Venezuela and the Caribbean coger stays perfectly neutral). Tomar is safe everywhere, Spain included, so the only real risk is taking coger to the wrong country. This is the most useful regional split to know, because the failure mode is not being misunderstood - it is being understood perfectly.