How to Pay in China as a Foreigner: Alipay, WeChat Pay, Cards & Cash

Set up two wallets—not one perfect wallet.

Register Alipay and WeChat/Weixin Pay with a phone number that can receive verification messages, link an eligible international card and complete any identity check before the arrival day.

Current official guidance allows registration with an overseas or Chinese phone number. Card linking still depends on the card issuer authorizing the request, so a failed link can be an issuer or risk-control decision rather than proof that the wallet never supports foreign cards.

Have the passport ready. Some small transactions may work without full identity collection, but a wallet may request passport verification for activation, higher limits or a risk check. The current mainstream setup links an eligible international credit or debit card directly; old instructions requiring a prepaid Tour Pass or top-up account are no longer the normal route.

1. 01

   Install the official apps

   Download Alipay and the current WeChat app from an official app store or platform site. Avoid lookalike payment apps.

2. 02

   Register while messages still work

   Use a phone number that can receive SMS and keep access to the card issuer’s one-time-password or verification channel.

3. 03

   Link an eligible card

   In Alipay, open Bank Card / Add Now. In WeChat, use Me → Services → Wallet → Bank Cards. Follow the current in-app verification prompt.

4. 04

   Complete identity checks

   Enter passport details exactly when requested. Higher limits and risk review can require additional verification.

5. 05

   Test a small payment after arrival

   Use an ordinary low-value merchant purchase first, then confirm which card and issuer fees appear before depending on the wallet for a train or hotel.

Card eligibility is similar—but not identical.

The latest government guide lists a slightly different international-card set for each wallet. Keep both apps because a card that fails in one may work in the other.

A wallet logo or supported network is not a guarantee that every issued card will link. The card product, country, issuer authentication and platform risk checks can all narrow eligibility. If linking fails, confirm international and online transactions with the issuer, then try the second wallet or another card.

Scan their code—or let them scan yours.

Everyday merchant payments normally use one of two flows: scan the merchant’s QR code and enter the amount, or open your payment code for the merchant to scan.

1. 01

   Confirm the merchant and amount

   Read the business name and total on the app before approving. If you typed the amount, show the confirmation to the cashier.

2. 02

   Choose the funding card

   Check that the intended international card—not an unavailable balance—is selected.

3. 03

   Read the fee before approval

   For a transaction above the small-payment threshold, the app should show the applicable wallet service fee before final confirmation.

4. 04

   Keep the receipt or app record

   For hotels, tickets and larger purchases, save the merchant receipt and wallet transaction record until the trip is complete.

• An international card linked to a wallet is mainly for merchant consumption; personal transfers, red packets and financial products can remain unavailable.
• Do not send a payment to a personal QR code simply because someone says the merchant terminal is broken. Confirm the payee and refund process first.
• Keep the second wallet, a physical card and RMB available when a network, issuer or app check interrupts the preferred method.

A wallet fee waiver is not a fee-free card.

The published wallet standard is no additional service fee at RMB 200 or less and 3% of the full transaction above RMB 200. The checkout screen is controlling, and an issuer may separately charge foreign-transaction or currency-conversion fees.

For the published 3% standard, a RMB 500 purchase implies RMB 15—not 3% only on the amount above RMB 200. Before approving any meaningful purchase, read the exact fee, card and currency shown by the wallet.

Keep a route that does not depend on a QR code.

Carry a physical card and a modest amount of RMB. Use the matching card-network logo at a terminal or ATM, and choose CNY rather than home-currency conversion when the terminal offers the choice.

Current cash rules require RMB cash support in face-to-face payment settings and in online-booked services that are delivered and can be paid for in person. Purely online transactions and unattended equipment have defined exceptions or alternative arrangements, so “every service must always accept cash” is too broad.

Use bank, airport, port, licensed exchange or compatible ATM channels for RMB. A card or ATM may still add issuer, operator or foreign-exchange charges. Dynamic currency conversion presents a home-currency total, but Visa warns that its rate can include an added markup or fee; selecting CNY lets the normal card-network and issuer conversion apply.

• Look for the specific network logo before assuming a physical international card is accepted.
• Use a compatible ATM and decline optional home-currency conversion when you want the transaction processed in CNY.
• Keep enough RMB for a small meal, local transport or a temporary app outage—not the entire trip budget in cash.
• The current official limit for carrying RMB cash across the border is RMB 20,000 per person per entry or exit; it is a carrying limit, not a spending limit.