How to setup and use Wechat & Alipay for China?

[@bnmto360]

Very helpful indeed! Should share this with all foreign visitors!

[@EastWest-yr2xy]

Thank you so much for taking the time and effort to do all the experiments! You are tremendously helpful to the visitors to China.

[@Tazlina2006]

Very practical information for travelers. Short & to the point. Thank you!

[@amarbaha]

Thank you for the video! I installed both Alipay and WeChat Pay it works! I dreaded going to China because I couldn't pay for anything!

[@roundingcorners]

Thanks for the vid, I just setup WeChat for an upcoming trip, entered my bank card after setup and it accepted it immediately like Alipay. Crossing fingers it all works. I'm guessing WeChat upped their software to be as competitive. (Aug 2024)

[@roisutsan8714]

You're THE man. Thanks so much!!!

[@binder4965]

You make it sound so simple but i tried downloading wechat ones installed it wants a wechat user to scan the qr code! Where am i hoing to find a wechat user in UK?

[@xploit811]

Thank you so much very helpful. One question, what is the Chinese app gallery called? Can it be downloaded from Google Playstore before I fly to Beijing?

[@DroneandPhone]

I would download WeChat and Alipay from your current App provider before you rather than try and deal with the Chinese one.

[@ripon882000]

Thanks. Could you please tell me if i add international credit card can i use this app to pay without add balance? Cause its asking mainland bank card while adding balance?😢

[@ChinaDailyDOCS]

As far as I know if you add a foreign credit card it debits that card for each purchase rather than adding credit to the account.

[@ripon882000]

yes already returned from China last week...Grateful to your video 🫡

[@Matt-px2ev]

so AliPay is not an e-wallet? All transactions will be charged DIRECTLY to your foreign bank/credit card?

[@ChinaDailyDOCS]

Yes I think that is how it works.

[@wannaspeakbyveroniq]

very useful!! thank you

[@jbaily9270]

Just came across the channel, great information. I am planning a trip to china in the near future and i normally travel with 2 or 3 phones, personal, business and local/travel. Would you recommend a phone brand that works well in china and Asia, so i could set it up for everything china and Asia has to offer. I know that a few people having issues with apple and google devices.

[@DJClark]

I don’t think there is an issue with the phones just many websites and apps are blocked. Apple and android phones are very popular in China.

[@ITeachChinese]

I think once Alipay is bound to the bank card and authenticated, it can handle 90% of consumption scenarios.

[@DJClark]

Yes for most things you are right but we made this video for our ski series and there we found a number of services that worked only on WeChat.

[@shaunmadrid1]

I would like to register and install the Wechat application because I would like to use it for a trip to China starting on Sep 8th with my Spanish telephone, but it asks me to "invite another user" to help with registration. I don't know any WeChat users in Spain. How can I get past this issue?

[@DJClark]

This is something WeChat often does. You don’t have to find WeChat users in Spain, any WeChat user will work.

[@popjunior5545]

I have filled all the required fields on wechat. But i couldn't receive a code on my phone number. Must i have a chinese sim card to receive the code for verification?

[@DJClark]

No should work with any phone

[@stefanoandrianopoulos9071]

So i can just add my Capital One credit card (master card in America) to ali pay and use the scan system and I'm good to go?

[@malin5468]

Thanks. Useful information, but the problem you don’t explain is how to get a WiFi account in China. Can one simply purchase a SIM card at the port of entry airport. I am flying to Wuhan. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[@DJClark]

It’s normally better if your mobile provider offers affordable roaming in China as this may also get round the firewall. If not you can get SIM cards at most airports or go to a mobile provider shop after you arrive. You will need your passport and expect to wait a while to get it all done.

[@malin5468]

@@DJClark Thanks for the advice. I will explore roaming from my Verizon account

[@DougASAP]

Thank you very much!

[@dimaworldboy]

Hi friend! If i understand well, i can choose how i want to pay via Alipay: by scanning or show and put my payment code, right ?

[@OddRagnarDengLerstl]

Any advice on eSIM or VPN?

[@DroneandPhone]

I am not familiar with eSIM as Hong Kong phones don't have that option. For VPNs it's a moving target as different services work and don't work in different cities around the Chinese Mainland. If you invest in a VPN I suggest you check their guarantees for China before you buy. If your current mobile provider offers a China roaming package this may come with a VPN installed already as it does for the Hong Kong roaming packages, which we find the most reliable (though expensive).

[@kemahmad]

Hi, must we get a local simcard to get the metro QR code? because I tried to fill in my homecountry phone no as I’m planning to use roaming but It did not accept that

[@DJClark]

Possibly, I too had a problem getting the Beijing Metro card two weeks ago, but could buy a ticket easily.

[@Scott2001-k3w]

Did you use your own country sim card to book didi? Or china sim card?​@@DJClark

[@625as-pj5mg]

术语库 If you have an iPhone, you should be able to use an NFC Metrocard. This is faster than QR codes and can be used when there is no power

[@100-q8v]

This is so helpful!!!! Thank you so much!

[@casalist5426]

So you recommended Alipay to make payments and WeChat to communicate with people.

[@DJClark]

I was able to link a Hong Kong credit card to WeChat but not a U.K. credit card. A U.K. friend also tried two weeks ago and was not able to get his U.K. cards to link with WeChat but did manage to use Alipay. I guess things may change over time.

[@Jack-em1xe]

What's your suggestion on getting internet on your phone during a day trip to Shenzhen?

[@DJClark]

If you are in Hong Kong then check with your mobile provider if they have a mainland package included or can be bought. This will normally give you the best option.

[@LeHa-ct9ds]

@@DJClark Thanks for taking time to go through all the processes for installing and using the Apps. How do I get Chinese internet data while I am in the UK so that I can be ease as soon as I arrive in a Chinese airport? Cheers!

[@DroneandPhone]

@@LeHa-ct9ds That's a difficult one, you can check to see if your mobile company in the UK has a China plan, if that looks expensive then I suggest getting a sim card at the airport as you arrive. They normally help you install it. Otherwise you will need to go find a mobile shop after you settle down, but in my experience this can use a lot of time as you need to register your passport etc.

[@casalist5426]

Hi, but couldn’t you use credit cards to pay?

[@DroneandPhone]

@@casalist5426 I spent two weeks recently traveling in China with a friend from the UK. He tried to use credit cards when he could but they only worked in about 25% of cases, mainly for the bigger chains or hotels.

[@curesnow6493]

Did you have to get a China mobile number to use DIDI?

[@DroneandPhone]

Not necessary but if you don't have one the driver will not be able to call you if you can't find each other. That said I have never had an issue with that.

[@curesnow6493]

@@DroneandPhone were you able to communicate to the drive through Alipay ?

[@DroneandPhone]

@@curesnow6493 yes there is a messaging system inside the app that will translate. It's pretty simple once you use it.

[@Scott2001-k3w]

Did you use your own country sim card to book didi? Or china sim card?

[@DroneandPhone]

You can use you local sim if you have a data plan but the didi driver won't call you if he/she can't find you. Normally it is not an issue as you can text as well.

[@TheSweetasheaven]

thank you somuch!

[@xlixlixli1]

Nice. Thx

[@DroneandPhone]

Thank you for watching

[@simonkkj]

Pretty poor instructions. Don't skip steps.