Payments
Set up one way to pay before you fly
Cash still exists. Daily life in Chinese cities mostly does not wait for it. A visitor who lands with only a foreign card and no wallet app spends the first day looking for an ATM.
Pick one app first
Alipay and WeChat Pay are the two wallets shops actually scan. You do not need both on the morning you land. Set up one, complete the identity check it asks for, bind a card the app accepts, and make a small real payment while you still have your usual phone service.
Travel write-ups often point first-timers at Alipay because its visitor flow is spelled out. WeChat is the same app people use for messages, so it is the better first app if someone in China will contact you there. Either can be enough.
What we will not pretend to know
Fees, daily caps, and which foreign cards clear are set inside the app and by the card issuer. Published guides disagree with each other on the exact fee. Do not budget from a blog's percentage. Read the screen in your own app, then keep a small amount of cash for a ticket window or a shop whose scanner rejects the foreign card.
The test that matters
- Install the official app from your phone's own store, not from a link in a message.
- Finish the passport or identity step the app shows.
- Bind the card.
- Pay for something small and read the receipt.
- Save a screenshot of the working payment page somewhere you can open offline.
Questions
Can I just use a foreign credit card in shops?
In big hotels and some city-center restaurants, sometimes. In metros, small restaurants, and markets, usually no. Assume the wallet app is the normal way to pay.
Do I need a Chinese phone number?
The apps ask for a number during signup. A number you already control is the thing to try first. If the app rejects it, that is a problem to solve before you fly, not at the airport rank.