• Apps

The Only Apps You Actually Need in China

The best apps for China travel in 2026 — a tier list from must-have to skip, covering Alipay, WeChat, Amap, Didi, Meituan, and more, from a local developer.

Every “best apps for China” list I’ve seen online includes 15-20 apps, half of which you’ll never open. I live here. I’ve helped foreign friends set up their phones before landing for years. Here’s what you actually need, organized by how much it’ll ruin your day if you don’t have it — a proper tier list from a Chinese developer who’s watched too many friends download everything and use three things.

Quick Answer

Install three apps before you fly: Alipay (支付宝), WeChat (微信), and Amap (高德地图). Those three handle payments, communication, and navigation — the only things that will genuinely strand you without them. Everything else is nice-to-have. Download your VPN and a translation tool too, and you’ve covered 95% of daily life in China.

Tier 1: Install Before You Board the Plane

These are non-negotiable. If you only download three apps, make it these three.

Alipay (支付宝)

What it does: Mobile payments, and increasingly everything else.

Alipay is how you pay for things in China. Street food, restaurants, taxis, convenience stores, train tickets, vending machines — if money changes hands in China, Alipay handles it. Foreign visitors can now link Visa, Mastercard, and Amex cards directly. I have a full setup guide at How to Pay in China, but the short version: download it, link your foreign card, verify your passport, done.

Beyond payments, Alipay has become a mini-app platform. You can order food, book hotels, hail rides, pay utility bills, and buy train tickets all from within Alipay without downloading separate apps. The “Travel” section in the app is specifically designed for foreign visitors and includes a currency converter, translation tool, and local recommendations.

Setup time: 15 minutes at home. Do it days before, not hours before.

WeChat (微信)

What it does: Messaging, payments, social networking, mini-programs, and basically being Chinese.

WeChat is not just a chat app. It’s the operating system of Chinese social life. When someone in China says “add me,” they mean on WeChat. When a restaurant has a menu, it might be a WeChat mini-program. When you want to join a group tour, share photos, or get a local recommendation, it happens on WeChat.

For travelers specifically, WeChat matters because:

  • Communication. If you meet anyone in China — hostel staff, tour guides, fellow travelers, the friendly stranger who helps you find the subway — you’ll exchange WeChat contacts, not phone numbers.
  • WeChat Pay (微信支付). Your backup payment method after Alipay. Some small vendors only have a WeChat Pay QR code. See How to Pay in China for the setup process.
  • Mini-programs (小程序). These are lightweight apps inside WeChat that don’t require separate downloads. Restaurants, museums, bike rentals, and hotel check-in systems increasingly run on mini-programs. More on this in WeChat Mini-Programs Guide.
  • Translate. WeChat has a built-in translation feature. Long-press any message and hit “Translate.” It’s not perfect, but it’s fast.

Setup time: 10 minutes. Create an account with your phone number. Add WeChat Pay later once you’ve sorted out the card linkage.

Amap / Gaode Maps (高德地图)

What it does: Navigation that actually works in China.

Google Maps does not work properly in China. I explain exactly why in Why Google Maps Fails in China, but the summary: GPS coordinate offsets, missing data, blocked services, and outdated map tiles make it unreliable to dangerous. Apple Maps is slightly better but still not good enough for walking directions or public transit routing.

Amap (高德地图, also called Gaode Maps) is what locals use. It has:

  • Accurate walking, driving, and transit directions
  • Real-time public transportation data (bus arrival times, subway crowding)
  • Indoor maps for shopping malls and airports
  • English interface (toggle it in Settings)
  • Offline maps for when you lose signal

Download it, switch the language to English, save your hotel address, and download the offline maps for the cities you’re visiting. When someone gives you a Chinese address, paste it into Amap. It’ll get you there. Google Maps probably won’t.

Setup time: 5 minutes. Download, switch to English, save hotel address.

Tier 2: Install After Landing (Or When You Need Them)

These apps make your trip significantly better but won’t strand you if you don’t have them on day one.

Didi (滴滴出行)

What it does: Ride-hailing. China’s equivalent of Uber.

Didi works well for foreigners. The app has an English interface, you can pay with Alipay or WeChat Pay, and it shows the fare estimate upfront. In most Chinese cities, Didi is cheaper and more convenient than hailing a street taxi — partly because you avoid the communication barrier of explaining your destination to a driver who doesn’t speak English.

When you need it: Getting from restaurants, attractions, or anywhere that’s not conveniently next to a subway station. Also invaluable at night when subway systems are closed.

Tip: You can also hail a Didi from within the Alipay app (through a mini-program), so technically you don’t need the standalone app. But the standalone app has a better interface and shows more vehicle options.

Caveat: Didi drivers sometimes call to confirm the pickup location. This call will be in Mandarin. If you can’t take the call, they’ll usually still show up at the pin location. But having a show-card with your location in Chinese ready helps.

Meituan (美团) or Ele.me (饿了么)

What it does: Food delivery, restaurant discovery, reviews, tickets, hotel booking — China’s super-app for local services.

Meituan is the app Chinese people use to decide where to eat. Think of it as Yelp + Uber Eats + Groupon combined, except it actually works well. Restaurant ratings on Meituan are more reliable for local food than any English-language review platform because the reviewers are locals eating local food.

For travelers, Meituan is useful for:

  • Finding restaurants nearby with ratings and photos
  • Food delivery to your hotel when you’re jet-lagged and don’t want to go outside
  • Attraction tickets — often cheaper than buying at the gate
  • Reading local reviews (use WeChat’s translate function on screenshots if needed)

The interface is primarily Chinese, which limits its usability for non-Chinese speakers. But even without reading Chinese, you can browse nearby restaurants by photo and rating, which tells you a lot.

Ele.me (饿了么, “Are you hungry?”) is the competitor, owned by Alibaba. It’s integrated into Alipay. Functionally similar. Pick whichever you prefer.

Trip.com (携程 / Ctrip)

What it does: Train tickets, flights, and hotels.

Trip.com is the English-language version of Ctrip (携程), China’s largest travel booking platform. It’s the easiest way to book high-speed rail tickets as a foreigner. You can search routes, compare times, select seats, and pay with your foreign card.

You can also book on the official 12306 (铁路12306) app, but it’s entirely in Chinese and the foreign passport verification process can be finicky. Trip.com solves both problems.

When you need it: As soon as you want to travel between cities. Book high-speed rail at least a few days in advance for popular routes (Beijing-Shanghai, Chengdu-Chongqing).

A Translation App

What it does: Survives menus, signs, and conversations.

You have options:

  • Apple Translate (built into iPhone) — Works offline if you download the Chinese language pack. Good enough for quick text and conversation translation.
  • Google Translate — Better for camera/OCR translation of signs and menus, but requires a VPN to work in China. Download the offline Chinese package before you go.
  • Baidu Translate (百度翻译) — Works without a VPN in China. The English-Chinese translation quality is competitive with Google for common phrases. If you want a translation app that works natively without VPN hassle, this is it.
  • Pleco — A dedicated Chinese dictionary app beloved by Chinese language learners. Overkill for a tourist, but if you’re studying Chinese at all, it’s essential.

My recommendation: download Apple Translate’s offline Chinese pack (it’s free and works without internet) and install Baidu Translate as a backup. Between the two, you can handle signs, menus, and basic conversations without depending on a VPN connection.

Tier 3: Nice to Have

These are useful in specific situations but not essential for most visitors.

Xiaohongshu / RedNote (小红书)

China’s Instagram-meets-Pinterest. It’s where young Chinese people post travel recommendations, restaurant reviews, and shopping finds. If you want to find the cool coffee shop in a neighborhood or see what locals think about a tourist attraction, Xiaohongshu has better content than any English-language guide. The challenge: it’s entirely in Chinese. Use it with a translation app open alongside it.

Xiaohongshu has recently become popular with foreign visitors too — there’s a growing community of English-speaking users. Worth downloading if you’re into food and culture discovery.

Taobao (淘宝) / JD.com (京东)

Online shopping. If you need to buy something specific — a power adapter, a phone cable, a specific snack — you can order it to your hotel. Delivery is absurdly fast in Chinese cities: same-day or next-morning is common. Taobao is mostly in Chinese; JD.com has a slightly better English experience.

Most tourists won’t need these. But if you’re staying for more than a week and need something specific, knowing they exist saves a trip to a store where nobody speaks your language.

Baidu Maps (百度地图)

The other major Chinese mapping app. Functionally very similar to Amap. Some people prefer it. I use Amap because the English interface is more polished, but if you find Amap’s English mode lacking for a specific city, Baidu Maps is a solid alternative.

Metro Apps

Most Chinese cities have their own metro app for scanning QR codes at turnstiles instead of buying physical tickets. Beijing has Yitong Xing (亿通行), Shanghai has Metro Da Du Hui (Metro大都会), Guangzhou has Guangzhou Metro (广州地铁). You can also use Alipay’s transport mini-program in many cities, which saves you from downloading five different metro apps.

Alternatively, just buy single-journey tickets from the machines at stations. They accept cash and sometimes Alipay. Not as seamless as scanning through, but it works fine.

Tier 4: Skip These

Google Maps

Doesn’t work properly in China. Use Amap. See Why Google Maps Fails in China.

WhatsApp / Telegram / Signal

Blocked in China without a VPN. You can use them with a VPN, but everyone you meet locally will be on WeChat anyway. Keep them for messaging people back home, not for communicating within China.

Uber

Uber exited China in 2016 by selling to Didi. The Uber app does not work in China. Use Didi.

Facebook / Instagram

Blocked without VPN. You can access them through your VPN for posting, but they’re not useful for anything China-specific.

Most “China Travel” Apps

There are dozens of apps marketed to China tourists that aggregate information you can find better on Amap, Meituan, or a quick search. Most of them are ad-supported, poorly maintained, and contain outdated information. Stick with the apps locals actually use.

The Pre-Flight Download Checklist

Here’s the exact order I tell friends to install apps before flying to China:

  1. VPN — Download, log in, test it. This must happen before you enter China. See the firewall guide.
  2. Alipay — Download, link card, verify passport. Full setup guide.
  3. WeChat — Download, create account. Set up WeChat Pay after your card is linked.
  4. Amap — Download, switch to English, download offline maps for your cities.
  5. Translation app — Download offline Chinese language pack for Apple Translate or Google Translate.
  6. Didi — Download, link to Alipay for payment.
  7. Trip.com — Download if you plan to take trains between cities.

Everything in Tier 3 and below can wait until you’re in China and discover you want them.

A Note on App Stores Inside China

The Apple App Store works in China, but some apps may not be available or may show a different version. Google Play does not work in China at all. If you’re on Android, download everything you need before you arrive.

This is particularly important for VPN apps — they are actively removed from China-region app stores. You cannot download most VPN apps after you land. This is the single most common preventable mistake I see foreign visitors make.

FAQ

Do I need to know Chinese to use these apps?

Alipay, WeChat, Didi, and Trip.com all have English interfaces. Amap has a functional English mode. Meituan and most local apps are Chinese-only, but you can navigate them with a translation app or by following the visual interface (pictures of food are universal). You don’t need Chinese language skills to get through a trip using these apps.

Can I use Apple Pay or Google Pay instead of Alipay?

Apple Pay works at some locations with NFC terminals — mostly chain convenience stores and a few subway systems. Google Pay barely works anywhere. Neither is a substitute for Alipay, which works at essentially every business in China. Think of Apple Pay as a bonus when it works, not a strategy.

How much phone storage do these apps need?

Alipay: about 300 MB. WeChat: about 200 MB (grows significantly with use). Amap: about 150 MB plus offline map data (varies by city, typically 200-500 MB per city). Didi: about 150 MB. Total for the essential stack: roughly 1-2 GB. Clear out some old photos before you fly if you’re tight on storage.

What if my phone is old or low-end?

All the Tier 1 apps work on phones from 2018 onward without issues. If your phone is older than that, you might experience slowness with Alipay specifically, which has become increasingly bloated. WeChat works on basically anything. If storage is extremely tight, Alipay and Amap are the two you cannot compromise on — skip the others and pay with cash as backup.