Internet connection; the enabler
As my previous trip to China was 9 years ago, this is my first visit since the country went largely cashless. I came prepared and everything worked like a dream. I didn’t use any cash or my credit/debit cards for any travel-related expenses during my whole stay!
An internet connection is essential for payment apps to work. I was fortunate to have an excellent roaming plan on my Malaysian number. This is better than buying a local SIM card as roamers are not subject to the Great Firewall of China.
Using cashless payments in China
In terms of cashless payment mechanisms, WeChat Pay is by far the king. Trailing behind but still fairly common is Alipay, which is also compatible with Alipay+ on my Malaysian Touch ‘n Go e-wallet. UnionPay (in the app or card form) is hardly seen.
Each app may be used very easily in one of two modes, as determined by the retailer:
- Scan the retailer’s barcode with your app (usually in small shops).
- Retailer scans your in-app barcode (usually bigger shops integrated into their point-of-scale hardware).
The charge flows through to one’s credit card which has been linked to the WeChat or Alipay app. Older information floating around suggests that foreigners need to store a balance in Alipay (valid for 90 days then any remainder refunded), but this seems to be no longer applicable, having changed to a “flow through” model.
The catch
While payment is easy, the set-up was problematic. I encountered problems registering both my WeChat Pay and Alipay accounts. My Alipay one was locked indefinitely at the facial verification step and I was fortunate to have a second phone number so I could start all over again.
The ease is almost too good to be true. Transactions flow on to one’s credit card “for free” on the part of WeChat or Alipay, with the user paying only the currency conversion margin imposed by one’s card. The catch comes when one’s payment is CNY200 or more with WeChat, where they impose a 3% fee on top of one’s card currency conversion margin.
Cashless public transport
In Guangzhou, public transport tickets may be purchased from self-service kiosks and paid using one’s WeChat Pay.
However, a Guangzhou Metro sub-app is available within WeChat. In it, there is a QR code (constantly refreshed rather than static), scannable at the entry and exit turnstiles at the metro. This makes transport far too easy, without having to buy tickets. The charge is calculated at the end of the ride and flows through to one’s credit card linked to the WeChat app.
I heard that there is a national public transport sub-app as well. My attempts to register for this failed and with my limited Chinese skills, it was too hard to resolve.
Cashless taxi/rideshare
Taxis in China use the meter without question and will accept WeChat Pay and/or Alipay at the end of the ride.
Didi rideshare appears a little cheaper. As with payment apps, my setup of Didi was problematic and my account was locked indefinitely. My attempt to use a different number also ran into problems.
Fortunately, Didi is also available as a sub-app within WeChat. This worked like a dream!