How to pay in China as a tourist: apps, cards and cash

What to do

1. Install Alipay or WeChat from your official app store. Register with a phone number that can receive verification messages while you travel.
2. Follow the app’s current instructions to add your international card. Check the cardholder name, issuer approval and any passport or identity prompt. The app’s own screen is the current source for fees and limits.
3. Keep the regular phone number that receives banking and app SMS codes active if you need those codes. A data-only travel plan does not necessarily replace that number.
4. After arrival, make a small payment where the merchant accepts your chosen method. Learn whether to scan the merchant’s QR code or show your own payment code.
5. Carry a second working payment method and a modest amount of RMB cash. Check card-network logos at a point of sale or ATM rather than assuming every terminal accepts your card.

Alipay and Weixin Pay

Official visitor guidance describes registration using a foreign or Chinese phone number, linking a supported international card, then scanning a merchant code or showing a payment code. Alipay and Tencent have published their own information on international-card support. The exact set of card brands, merchant functions and checks may vary by product and account.

Weixin Pay is the payment function inside WeChat. Tencent says overseas visitors can link international cards and may need additional identity verification for some uses. Treat the live app’s prompts as binding for your account. A promotional fee waiver or a number quoted in an old guide is not a guarantee for your payment.

Bank cards and cash

Government guidance says international bank cards are accepted where the relevant card-network logo is displayed. It also describes RMB cash exchange at banks and cash withdrawals at compatible ATMs. Acceptance can differ by merchant and machine. Ask before a large purchase, and ask your bank about withdrawal fees and foreign transactions.

RMB cash remains a practical fallback. Use an authorised exchange provider or a compatible ATM, keep some small notes, and check the amount before leaving a counter. If a merchant cannot process your first method, ask which of its accepted options works rather than repeatedly trying the same declined transaction.

What to check before a large payment

Government and payment-provider sources describe mobile-payment options for visitors, but the amount available to one person depends on account verification, app terms, issuer and merchant. We do not publish a universal unverified-account ceiling. Before relying on one app for a hotel or group expense, inspect the current limit in that app and confirm the card issuer can authorise the charge.

Common problems