Last updated: August 2026
Essential Apps and tools
- Access: Sims & VPNs
- Payments: Alipay & WeChat
- Navigation: A-map & Baidu
- Transportation: Didi, Trip, Railway12306, & Alipay
- Accommodations: Trip.com
Extras
- Food Delivery: Meituan takeout
- Coupons: Meituan
- Luggage forwarding and delivery: Jingdong
- Ride-sharing: Shunfengche (WIP)
- Online shopping: Taobao (WIP)
Etiquette and observations
- Dining (WIP)
- Noise Levels (WIP)
- Navigation
A-map (高德地图）
This is my navigation app of choice. I usually use the Chinese version, but the English version is pretty good; you generally don’t need the address written in Chinese to find your way, and it’s actually a cleaner experience since the Chinese version has some distracting ads and features.
A-Map is intuitive and has stellar public transport information across the country.
Detailed instructions for public transportation.
You can also hail a car directly from the app (I have not personally done this, but many people use it since it can be cheaper than DiDi).