The apps that will be useful in China will vary depending on the length of your stay. Therefore, the following recommendations are essential apps that will save your life during your visits to China, especially for first-time visitors and those staying for a short period
1. Download a VPN before you come to China
When you arrive in China, you will need to use a VPN to use American apps like WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and Google etc. Therefore, you should definitely download a VPN before you come to China. Otherwise, you may experience some problems connecting to these applications. You may experience various problems with free VPNs. We recommend that you purchase a paid VPN, even for a short period, to avoid connection problems.
2. Alipay
Alipay is an application in China that serves both as a payment app and a solution to many problems by allowing you to connect to various applications such as metro, shared bike, food ordering, and taxi hailing apps by loading your credit card onto your Alipay account.
3. WeChat
This application, which we could call China’s WhatsApp, performs more comprehensive functions than WhatsApp. Besides allowing you to add friends and chat, WeChat can handle a wide range of tasks including payments, money transfers, purchasing train and plane tickets, translation, and booking hotels and taxis. Almost everyone in China uses WeChat.
4. Didi
This is the best app for hailing a taxi cheaply in China. It’s also very practical because there’s an English version available for those who don’t speak Chinese.
5. Eleme & Meituan
You can order food or shop for your hotel or accommodation very affordably with Eleme and Meituan. Ordering from some restaurants on the app will be cheaper than eating out.
6. MetroMan
In biggest cities in China, public transportation is generally very well-developed. Therefore, public transport, especially the subway, is indispensable. In large cities like Shanghai and Beijing, there are over 20 subway lines, allowing you to reach many points in the city much faster than by taxi. Furthermore, metros in China are both inexpensive and quite clean and safe. For cities in all provinces of China, MetroMan is a very practical application for knowing your destinations and estimating travel time; it’s also available in English for those who don’t speak Chinese.
7. Pleco
Pleco is a dictionary app that helps you understand Chinese characters or clarify your meaning when you’ve been misunderstood. However, the app is only available in English and Chinese.
8. Taobao
Taobao is China’s most well-known online shopping platform. However, it’s unlikely to be very useful if you’re only staying in China for a short time. This app is suitable for those staying in China for more than a few days. You’ll be happy to receive items you buy from Taobao for a few Yuan without any shipping costs. But be careful not to spend too much money by being tempted by how cheap everything is.
9. Dianping
If you don’t know the city, this app will show you restaurants, cafes, bars, and entertainment venues in your location. The app also displays restaurant images, menus, and budget-friendly options to help you get an idea of what to expect. You can also choose from the budget-friendly menus to eat more affordably, or get restaurant coupons after ordering to make your meals even cheaper. However, remember that this app is in Chinese.
10. XunFei TingJian (讯飞听见)
Developed by iFlytek, Xunfeitingjian (讯飞听见) is an application that uses artificial intelligence to translate live chats from Chinese into other languages. However, while the application is available in English, Japanese, German, Spanish, French, Italian, and Korean, it does not have a Turkish version. Therefore, you can translate conversations from English. It performs translations from Chinese to English quite accurately.
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