02 · Set Up Payments & Internet

China runs on two super-apps and a different map. None of it is hard — but all of it needs to be installed, linked and tested while you still have unrestricted internet at home. Arriving with this done, your first hour in China looks boring in the best possible way.

Payments: set up both, use both

• Alipay and WeChat Pay both accept foreign cards (Visa/Mastercard) linked in a few minutes. Set both up: some merchants, mini-programs and ticket gates only accept one of them.
• Expect small frictions. Foreign-card transactions carry per-transaction limits and a small fee on some rails — carry a little cash for the edge cases, and change money at a bank branch rather than the airport when you can.
• Test before you fly. Make one small payment at home — a virtual top-up works — so your first scan in China is not also your first debug session.

Internet: three layers

• An eSIM or physical data SIM with China data is the simplest path — it gives you maps, translation and search on day one without extra setup.
• Roaming from your home carrier keeps your usual apps reachable but costs more; treat it as the backup layer, not the plan.
• Hotel and cafe Wi-Fi is fast but sits behind the domestic internet — install whatever tools your own accounts need before arrival, because you cannot download them from inside.

The apps that replace your defaults

Maps (Amap or Baidu Maps switched to English), a translation app with camera mode, and ride-hailing — available as mini-programs inside Alipay and WeChat. Install all of them at home, log in once, and let the taxi queue be the hardest thing you do on arrival day.