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To my knowledge there are three words which can be used in thanking and they
seem to be usable together in some combinations:

  * どうも (d­ōmo)
  * どうもありがとう (dōmo arigatō)
  * ありがとう (arigatō)
  * ありがとうございます (arigatō gozaimasu)
  * どうもありがとうございます (dōmo arigatō gozaimasu)

Are there nuances of each of these words? I know "dōmo" alone is informal and
I assume the longer the combination the more formal or respectful.

Are there rules as to how they can and can't be combined? (Did I include any
wrong combinations)?
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word-choice politeness synonyms formality
Can somebody explain the various words and combinations thereof used for thanking?
A page I linked recently had it schematised, I'll report it here in a better
way:

> There are different ways to thank someone in Japanese depending on who you
> are speaking to. Just like other phrases in Japanese the politeness levels
> change in different settings.
>
>   * どうもありがとうございます [ _dōmo arigatō gozaimasu_ ] Most polite;
>   * ありがとうございます [ _arigatō gozaimasu_ ] Very polite;
>   * どうもありがとう [ _dōmo arigatō_ ] More polite;
>   * ありがとう [ _arigatō_ ] Polite;
>   * どうも [ _dōmo_ ] Casual.
>

>
> The word ございます (gozaimasu) is a polite ending that can also be changed into
> past tense. When you thank someone for something that already happened you
> would say:
>
>   * ありがとうございました [ _arigatō gozaimashita_ ]
>

>
> The words arigatō and dōmo can be used for both the present and past
> situations:
>
>   * 昨日はどうも [ _kinō wa dōmo_ ] = Thank you for yesterday.
>

>
> Note: Sometimes you will see arigatou written in kanji (有り難う), but it is not
> as common as seeing it written in hiragana.
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I would use

  * どうもありがとうございます/ました at speech

  * ありがとうございます/ました to superiors, and business

Other threes to colleges and my juniors, to some friends.

ありがとうございます's slang form あざーっす to some close friends/colleges
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To put it in a more of an English equivalency you can compare them to the
following:

•Thanks - どうも (domo)

•Thanks a lot (or much thanks) - どうもありがとう (domo arigato)

•Thanks (more polite than domo) ありがとう (arigato)

•Thank you ありがとうございます (arigato gozaimasu)

•Thank you very much - どうもありがとうございます (domo araigato gozaimasu)

From my experience and understanding (though not an expert in Japanese
etymology) domo arigato was not much used until after the Styx song, which
almost every Japanese I have met knows or knows of. In more conservative
regions or with more traditional people you will generally not hear it being
used, but rather they would use arigato gozaimasu.
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You can't just gloss words like that with Japanese (i.e. Thank you = arigatou,
go = iku etc.)

To express thankfulness, there is a whole palette of expressions that Japanese
people use.

For example:

  1. yoroshiku: said after you have asked someone a big favor and they haven't done it yet but have promised to do it. 
  2. tasukatta: means like "thanks man I appreciate it". 
  3. o-seiwa ni natta: said after someone helped you out when you were in a bind. 
  4. kansha shimasu: I'm truly thankful. 
  5. arigatou: thanks man. 
  6. arigatou gozaimasu: said to people you should respect. 
  7. o-tsukare: thanks in appreciation for someone's hard effort. 
  8. o-tsukare sama deshita: same as above but towards people you should respect. 
  9. gokuro sama: like "good job man" thanks for doing the work that you were supposed to do anyways.
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I'm surprised no one mentioned すみません yet.

See [this answer to another question about
thanks](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/317/usage-of-sumimasen-
versus-gomennasai/318#318).
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It's important to realize that there are two dimensions at play here. One is
the "heartfelt" dimension, and the other is the "formality" dimension.

Both ありがとう and どうもありがとう are casual in the sense that you should only use them
with people that you do not use 丁寧語 with. どうもありがとう shows more sincerity than
ありがとう, but even (本当に)どうもありがとう would not be appropriate to, say, your boss.

ありがとうございます and どうもありがとうございます are for people that you use 丁寧語 with. Again the
version with どうも is more heartfelt. Some people might feel that it is also
more formal, but I would say that is merely because very formal situations
often call for exaggerated words of sincerity. You would _not_ use ありがとうございます
with, say, a close friend who you do not use 丁寧語 with, no matter how grateful
you are, except maybe for comic effect.

As for どうも by itself, the situation is a bit complicated. You will often hear
どうも used in situations where the speaker would use 丁寧語, but depending on the
formality of the situation, it might be seen as a bit curt. Note, though, that
it would be a different reaction from the one that one might get using ありがとう
which might be seen as downright disrespectful.
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