Can you use your credit card in China?
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Short answer
Yes. Bring the right card: Visa and Mastercard can be added to both Alipay and WeChat Pay, and are taken at checkouts that show their logo.1
Link it to Alipay or WeChat Pay before you go.
Pay with the card itself where its logo shows, such as at hotels of three stars and up, top tourist sites and the metro in several big cities.
Take out cash at ATMs that show your card’s logo.
Bring the right card
You can add UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Diners Club and Discover cards to Alipay, and all of these plus American Express to WeChat Pay.1 In Alipay, American Express works only if the card was issued by American Express directly — not by another bank.2 WeChat Pay takes both debit and credit cards3, and travelers report debit cards working in Alipay too.
A card with no foreign transaction fee saves you money: your bank’s fee, if any, is added on top of any fee the apps charge.
Bring a second card from another bank: when one card is turned down, another usually works. Many travelers take a Wise debit card as their second card and report that it works in Alipay.
Before you go, tell your bank you are traveling to China, and keep your phone able to receive its text messages: your bank might block payments from China, and a call to unblock it is all it takes. Your bank may also send a code by text to confirm a payment.
Link it to Alipay or WeChat Pay
You don’t need a Chinese bank account: register the app with your phone number from home, add your card, and give your passport details when the app asks.4, 5, 6, 7 Step by step: Alipay for foreigners and WeChat Pay for foreigners. Set up both if you can: when one app turns your card down, the other often works.
With a card from home, both apps work only for purchases at shops in mainland China — you can’t send money to people.6, 7 Pay a private driver or guide in cash.
Pay with the card itself
Look for your card’s logo at the checkout; if there is none, ask the cashier whether they take your card. A UnionPay card works at every shop’s card machine.1, 8
Hotels with three stars or more and major tourist sites accept cards from home8, but at small shops and street stalls, expect to pay by phone or in cash.
In several big cities you can tap a contactless card from home at the metro gate: Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou take UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, American Express and JCB; Visa says its cards work in Chengdu, and Mastercard says its cards work in Shenzhen.9, 10, 11, 12, 13 Look for the card logos on the gate.
Take out cash at ATMs
ATMs that show your card’s logo give you yuan.8 You will find them at the airport when you arrive and in city centers.1 One ATM withdrawal gives you about 3,000 yuan at most, and your own bank’s limits also apply.14, 15 Check what your bank charges for each withdrawal before you go.
How much cash to carry and where to change money: How to pay in China.
When your card is turned down
The app won’t add your card
Some banks’ cards don’t work in Alipay — it depends on the card brand and the bank.5 Try a card from another bank, or use WeChat Pay instead.
The app turns your card down when you pay
Some cards link without trouble but are turned down when you pay: switch to your second card. If every payment fails, call your bank: it may be blocking payments from China.
A small shop’s code refuses your card
At some small shops and stalls, your card won’t work — they use the owner’s personal payment code, which does not take cards from home. Pay cash there.
Fees
Alipay and WeChat Pay charge no fee on a payment of 200 yuan or less with a card from home, and 3% of the total on a larger payment.4, 16 The payment page shows the fee before you confirm. Checked .16 New to WeChat Pay? No card fee for 90 days from your first payment, up to 1,000 yuan a day.17
On a big bill, such as at a hotel, paying with the card itself saves you the apps’ fee; any foreign transaction fee from your bank still applies.
Updated
Sources
Every rule on this page links to the official page it comes from: 17 pages in all, checked between November 13, 2026 and November 15, 2026.
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- 1People's Bank of ChinaGuide to Payment Services in China
UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Diners Club, and Discover cards can all be added to Alipay.
UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, JCB, Diners Club, and Discover cards can all be added to Weixin Pay.
Bank cards issued in your home country/region can be accepted if the logos of your bank cards, such as UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard and other payment organizations, are displayed at the checkout counter (see picture below). If not, please ask the cashier whether your bank card can be accepted. If you hold a UnionPay card, it can be accepted by all merchant POS terminals in China's mainland.
You can withdraw RMB cash from ATMs that accept international bank cards at the port of entry, where you can also exchange other currencies for RMB through exchange service providers or self-service exchange machines. In downtown areas, you can still get RMB cash via these methods.
- 2AlipayAmerican Express and Alipay to Enable Seamless Payments for International Travelers in China
All eligible global American Express Card Members1 can now link their Cards to the Alipay digital wallet, enabling seamless and secure payments at tens of millions of merchants across the Chinese mainland.
American Express Cards issued by third parties outside of the Chinese mainland are currently not eligible to be added to the Alipay Digital Wallet.
- 3TencentTencent’s Weixin Pay Enhances Mobile Payment Experience for Overseas Users Visiting China to Pay Like a Local
People entering the Chinese Mainland can use their passports, Mainland Travel Permit and Mainland Residence Permit for Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan residents, or Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card to set up their Weixin Pay, link an international credit card or debit card, and start enjoying mobile payments across the country.
- 4Shanghai Municipal People's GovernmentPay with overseas bank cards
International visitors can link eligible bank cards issued outside the Chinese mainland to Alipay or Weixin Pay (WeChat Pay) without opening a bank account in the Chinese mainland.
Service fees for overseas bank cards linked to Alipay or Weixin Pay:
A transaction of 200 yuan or less is generally exempt from the platform's service fee.
A transaction above 200 yuan may incur a service fee of 3 percent of the full transaction amount.
Check the payment page for applicable fees and promotional exemptions before confirming a payment.
- 5Shanghai Municipal People's GovernmentHow to use mobile payments in Shanghai
Download the Alipay app and register with your mobile phone number.
You can register with an overseas number before arriving in China. If you later get a Chinese SIM card, you can update your registered number in the app.
Open Alipay and go to: Me > Bank Cards
Whether a card can be linked may also depend on the card network and the issuing bank.
- 6WeChat Help CenterGuide to Add and Use International Cards with Weixin Pay
Q: Do l need a Chinese Mainland (+86) phone number?
No. You can use your international phone number as long as it can receive SMS verification codes.
In Wallet, tap Bank Cards - Add a Bank Card. Read the Weixin Pay User Service Agreement and Privacy Policy and tap Agree.
Follow the steps on the screen to fill in your identity information. Tap Next to add your card.
Currently, international cards can be used for everyday purchases within the Chinese Mainland. However, international cards do not support certain features such as red packets and money transfers etc.
- 7Alipay · In ChineseNotice of update to the User Service Agreement《用户服务协议（User Service Agreement）》更新公告
Before paying with the Bank Card for the first time, you shall submit the information of your passport or Exit-Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan according to the page prompts.
you may pay for your purchase from merchants within the People’s Republic of China (for the sole purpose of this Agreement and for the avoidance of any doubt, this does not include the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Macao Special Administrative Region and Taiwan)
You can only use this service to pay for your purchase from the PRC Merchants and shall not use this service for the purpose of money transfer, wealth management, cash withdrawal or other non-consumption purposes.
- 8The State Council of the People's Republic of China (gov.cn)Payment service guide for overseas visitors to China
Bank cards can be accepted if logos of the payment organizations are displayed at the checkout counter. Unionpay cards can be accepted by all merchants' point of sales (POS) terminals.
A circular, jointly issued by several government organs including the People's Bank of China (PBOC), stipulates that domestic and overseas bank cards should be accepted in all three-star and above tourist hotels, 5A-level and 4A-level national tourist attractions, national and provincial tourist resorts, as well as national tourism and leisure districts.
Foreign visitors can directly conduct exchanges at bank outlets with currency exchange signs, outlets of qualified financial institutions, or self-service kiosks. RMB cash can be withdrawn with bank cards at ATMs with logos of corresponding bank card organizations.
- 9Beijing Municipal People's GovernmentBeijing Subway Supports Tap-and-Go with 5 Most Used Overseas Cards
It made Beijing's urban rail transit system become the world's first city rail system to achieve full-network coverage of payment services from all five major card organizations: China UnionPay, Mastercard, Visa, JCB, and American Express.
This service upgrade covers all 29 operational lines (including the two express lines to the airports, Xijiao Line, and Yizhuang T1 Line) and 523 stations across the city's entire network, as well as the Suburban Railway Line S2, enabling contactless card-tapping through all fare gates at all stations during their entire operating hours.
Passengers can pass through the gates instantly by holding their cards near the designated sensor areas on the fare gates without purchasing tickets or downloading Apps beforehand.
- 10Shanghai Municipal People's GovernmentMetro
Passengers can tap eligible contactless cards, including UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and JCB, as well as eligible e-CNY hardware wallets, at the gates for Tap to Ride.
- 11Guangzhou Municipal People's Government · In ChineseGuangzhou Metro improves gate entry for more bank cards: tap cards issued abroad at the gates from October 12广州地铁提升多种银行卡过闸体验 10月12日起可拍境外卡过闸搭地铁Our translation
With this, all Guangzhou Metro stations now cover payment services from the five major card organizations: China UnionPay, Mastercard, Visa, JCB and American Express.
From October 12, passengers holding contactless Mastercard, American Express, Visa and JCB cards issued outside China, as well as contactless Mastercard and American Express cards issued in China that support RMB transactions, can tap their cards directly at the gates marked with the card organizations' logos at all Guangzhou Metro stations.
至此，广州地铁实现所有车站覆盖中国银联、万事达、维萨、JCB、美国运通五大卡组织支付服务。
10月12日起，乘客持境外发行、具备非接触支付功能的万事达卡、美国运通卡、维萨卡、JCB卡，以及境内发行、具备非接触支付功能且支持人民币交易的万事达卡、美国运通卡，可在广州地铁所有车站标有卡组织标识的闸机直接“拍卡过闸”。
- 12Visa · In ChineseVisa launches Tap to Ride on the Guangzhou Metro, making it easier for inbound visitors to get around GuangzhouVisa 在廣州地鐵啟動 Tap to Ride 便利入境旅客暢遊廣州Our translation
In the Chinese mainland, Visa Tap to Ride is live in three major cities, Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu, covering more than 50 metro lines and 1,000 metro stations.
Chengdu is the first mainland city to launch Visa Tap to Ride on buses. The service covers more than 400 metro stations and more than 7,000 buses, giving inbound visitors a seamless travel experience.
在中國内地，Visa Tap to Ride 已在北京、上海、成都三大城市上線，覆蓋超過 50 條地鐵路線，涵蓋 1,000 個地鐵車站。
成都是首個在巴士上推出 Visa Tap to Ride 的内地城市。服務覆蓋 400 多個地鐵站和 7,000 多輛巴士，為入境旅客提供無縫出行體驗。
- 13Mastercard · In ChineseMastercard officially launches tap-to-enter on the Shenzhen Metro万事达卡正式开通深圳地铁“拍卡过闸”Our translation
The tap-to-enter function now officially launched on the Shenzhen Metro covers both Mastercard cards issued outside China and the new “China Mastercard” cards issued in China.
此次正式开通的深圳地铁“拍卡过闸”功能，同时覆盖中国境外发行的万事达卡以及中国境内发行的全新“中国万事达”卡。
- 14Agricultural Bank of China · In ChinesePayment Service Guide of Agricultural Bank of China for Visitors to China (Second Edition)中国农业银行境外来华人员支付服务指南（第二版）
You may withdraw RMB from ABC ATM conveniently and quickly by virtue of your foreign debit /credit cards (currently VISA, MasterCard, American Express cards supported), subject to individual cash withdrawal limit of RMB 3,000 and single-day accumulated cash withdrawal of no more than RMB 20,000 (which are ABC’s limit requirements, also subject to requirements of your card issuers).
- 15Bank of ChinaATM
The single transaction limit for ATM cash withdrawals using foreign cards within China is 3,000 yuan ($421.36). Other limits, including daily and annual cumulative limits, are determined by the issuing bank.
- 16Tenpay · In ChineseExplanation of the rules related to international card payment services关于国际卡支付服务相关规则的说明Our translation
International card transactions with a single transaction amount of RMB 200 or less (including RMB 200) are exempt from the international card fee; where a single transaction amount exceeds RMB 200, an international card fee of 3% of the single transaction amount is charged.
单笔交易金额人民币200元以下（包括人民币200元）的国际卡交易，免收国际卡手续费，单笔交易金额超过人民币200元的，按照单笔交易金额的3%收取国际卡手续费。
Our translationIf an international card fee is to be charged, we will clearly state on the service page the amount and rate of the international card fee and the reductions or exemptions (if any), with the amount accurate to 2 decimal places.
If the fee rules are adjusted, we will announce this publicly in advance.
如需收取国际卡手续费，我们将在服务页面明示国际卡手续费的金额、费率及减免情况（如有），金额精确到小数点后2位。
收费规则如有调整，我们将进行提前公示。
- 17TencentTencent Announces Three Initiatives to Make Inbound Payments for International Visitors Easier Than Ever During APEC 2026
First-time users who link an international bank card to WeChat will, from the moment of their first transaction, enjoy a waiver on international card processing fees for 90 consecutive calendar days, up to RMB 1,000 per day.
Each small number in the text is one of the 17 official pages under Sources at the end, checked between November 13, 2026 and November 15, 2026.
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