A Complete Guide to the Best Payment Methods in China

How to pay in China? Mobile payments are notably popular, with a penetration rate of up to 86%. Among them, Alipay and WeChat Pay are unquestionable leaders. They are accepted almost everywhere, from high-end shopping malls to streetside vendors, from supermarkets and restaurants to taxis and barbershops. Cash is also widespread. Bank cards are not very prevalent. 

Alipay is one of the main digital payment platforms in mainland China. For international travelers, it offers a wide range of services beyond simple payments. These include money transfers, tax refunds, transportation services like paying for metro and bus rides, food delivery, travel bookings, shopping, and even renting portable phone chargers.

Both apps won’t charge any service fees for transactions under 200 RMB. Payments above 200 RMB will include a 3% service charge. 

In terms of payment limits, Alipay and WeChat Pay have different standards. 

 Alipay:
A single transaction: up to USD 5,000
Daily limit: up to USD 50,000

 WeChat Pay: 
A single transaction: up to 6,000 RMB
Daily limit: up to 60,000 RMB

Note: 
The above restrictions and regulations apply to international bank cards. If you have linked a Chinese bank card, there are no transaction fees, and the limits are different. If your Alipay and WeChat accounts are connected to a foreign bank card, just split the bill to below 200RMB to avoid the 3% service fee. 

 

	Alipay	WeChat
English Version	Yes	Yes
Car-hailing	Yes	Yes
Metro/ City Bus Ride	Yes, and good	Yes, and average
	You can easily find "Transport" on the Alipay home page, right next to "Pay/Receive", easier to be found than on WeChat.
Food Delivery	Yes	Yes
Hotel Bookings	Yes	Yes
Attraction Ticket Reservation	Yes, and average	Yes, and good
	Many attractions operate their official accounts on WeChat, where you can book tickets, make reservations and receive updates. Alipay also sells attraction tickets, but it may charge additional fees or give slower confirmation.
Tax Refund	Yes, and covering more cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chongqing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, and Guilin.	Yes, and covering Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen
Movie Ticket	Yes	Yes
Real-time Communication	No	Yes, but only with "WeChat" friends
Civic Service, such as viewing health insurance and social insurance funds	Yes	Yes

 The official currency here is Renminbi - RMB. Other currencies are not accepted, such as the US Dollar, the euro, the British pound, and the Australian Dollar. Travelers can withdraw cash from ATMs or exchange money at banks and currency exchange counters in airports, hotels, or major commercial areas in China. You can identify the supported card types based on the icons displayed on the ATM. Generally, ATMs accept Visa, Mastercard and UnionPay cards. 

Although cash remains accepted, many businesses prefer mobile payments and may not have changes to give back. For example, when you ride the city bus, drivers don’t give change. Therefore, it’s best to prepare cash of different denominations on your own. 
 UnionPay is China’s national bank card network and one of the major payment systems in the country. The UnionPay QuickPass provides a convenient mobile payment service that allows users to pay with their bank cards through QR codes or contactless payment. In recent years, the acceptance of UnionPay has expanded significantly. Basically, wherever Alipay and WeChat Pay are accepted, UnionPay is also accepted. 

However, UnionPay Quick Pass doesn’t support linking international cards like Visa and Mastercard. Then, it’s international version is developed. 
 Nihao China is an app launched by China UnionPay, designed to address various challenges faced by international visitors to China regarding currency exchange, payments, and communication. 

 Main Functions 
1. It supports QR code payments. Users can link it with UnionPay international cards and other major global cards like Visa and Mastercard. 
2. It connects various services that are useful during a trip. Through the app, you can purchase high-speed rail tickets, order food delivery, and buy attraction tickets.
3. It provides real-time exchange rate information for more than 160 currencies, including major currencies such as USD, RMB, and EUR. 
4. It includes a transportation QR code that can be used for metros and buses. It currently covers metro systems in 43 major cities and city bus services in more than 1,700 cities in China. 
5. It supports digital tax refund services for departing international travelers, which are available in Beijing, Shanghai, Haikou and Sanya. Users can submit tax refund applications directly through the app. The system can recognize and process invoices, which helps speed up the refund process.
 Many hotels, large shopping malls, and international brand stores accept bank cards. Major card types such as Visa, Mastercard, and UnionPay are commonly supported. If there is a display of your bank logos at the checkout counter, it means your bank card is accepted. 

However, card payment is less common in small shops and restaurants, and street food stalls. For example, at some small boutique stores, the POS machine may display the Visa logo, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be able to successfully swipe your card. 
 Alipay and WeChat Pay also support cross-border mobile wallet payments. Visitors from certain countries and regions do not need to download separate apps. They can simply scan the Alipay or WeChat Pay QR code displayed by merchants in China using their domestic mobile wallet apps. The system also supports the reverse process, where the merchant scans the payment code generated by the user’s e-wallet. 

As of present, Alipay supports the following overseas e-wallets or bank apps. These e-wallets are acceptable wherever Alipay+ is acceptable.
Hong Kong, China: AlipayHK
Indonesia: DANA, Doku, Kredivo 
Italy: Tinaba 
Japan: PayPay 
Kazakhstan: Kaspi 
Macao, China: MPay
Malaysia: Boost, Touch ’n Go eWallet, MyPB, Bigpay, Shopee Pay
Mongolia: Hipay 
Pakistan: Nayapay  
Philippines: BillEase, GCash, HelloMoney by AUB, Maya, BPI
Singapore: Changi Pay, EZ-Link Wallet, GrabPay, OCBC Digital, Bigpay, Shopee Pay
South Korea: Kakao Pay, NAVER Pay, Toss
Thailand: K Plus, TrueMoney Wallet, LINE Pay, SCB Planet Plus, Bigpay, Shopee Pay
Vietnam: Zalopay  

These are e-wallets that WeChat Pay supports: 
Cambodia: Bakong
Hong Kong, China: BoC Pay, Octopus, PayMe, Tap & Go
Malaysia: ICBC Pay
South Korea: NAVER Pay 
Thailand: Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking, K PLUS