Cheat-sheet to daily life in China

Work in progress. Last updated 2018-11-10. Keep checking back. u/bailsafe

This website works without a VPN. Feel free to share and bookmark; it will be updated frequently.

Quick navigation:

Computing

  • Search: Bing, Яндекс
  • Email: QQ (desktop site in English), NetEase (Mail Master app in English), Outlook.com
  • Browser: Chrome (global DL; China DL)
  • VPN: VyprVPN, NordVPN (ExpressVPN not recommended now due to connectivity issues; don't believe the ads!)
    • Buy the VPN before you come! You won't be able to access sites like Facebook, YouTube, Reddit, Discord, Twitch, Twitter, or Instagram without it.

Online services

Most services only available in Chinese unless otherwise noted; all will work without a VPN connection.

  • Chat: WeChat (En)
  • TV: Sohu TV, Tencent TV, iQiyi, Renren Video (mobile only), Bilibili (separate episodes and live-streams of shows)
  • Music: NetEase Music (En), Xiami Music (En), QQMusic
  • Maps: Baidu Maps, Amap
    • One of these apps are typically preloaded on Chinese smartphones. They're not too hard to figure out if you know the Chinese name of your destination.
  • Shopping: Tmall, JD.com, NetEase Koala, Pinduoduo (group buying)
  • Taxi: DiDi Chuxing (En)
    • In light of recent safety concerns, DiDi has amped up safety. See the "Safety Center" in the app and enable the safety functions.
    • You can typically request either a rideshare (Express) or a public taxi.
  • Food: Meituan Waimai, Eleme Xingyuan, McDelivery (or call 4008-517-517) (En)
    • Your delivery driver may call and ask where your entrance is or for help with the access card. It's best to know a bit of Mandarin for this, or have a helpful friend/coworker around.
  • Travel: Trip.com (En), or order hotels/tickets from WeChat (see "Mobile pay" section)
  • Translate: Google Translate, Baidu Translate, WeChat "Scan“ for photo translation
    • Google Translate, along with Maps, is one of the few Google services to work in China. This includes website translation in Google Chrome.
  • Mobile pay: WeChat (En), Alipay (En)
    • WeChat Wallet includes helpful features to purchase train/plane/hotel reservations (in Rail & Flights, En), top up your phone's data or calling credit (in Mobile Top Up, En), and pay for utilities (in Utilities, Zh).

Mobile & Internet

  • Phones: Xiaomi, Huawei, Honor, Oppo, Apple
  • Carriers: China Unicom, China Mobile
    • I recommend China Unicom as the best carrier; it has the same, if not better, coverage in urban/suburban areas than China Mobile, data and phone calls are cheaper (no in-country roaming!), and data reliability tends to be better.
    • Pro-tip: Refill your phone credit/data, or anyone else's, from WeChat! Go to Me > Wallet > Mobile Top Up. Available in English.
    • You can refill in Alipay too. Tap Phone Top-up on the main screen. This is also in English.
    • Start your cell service at any carrier store; all you need is your passport and money, then choose a phone number.
  • Broadband: China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom
    • Broadband is typically prepaid for 12-24 months, and packages range from 50Mbps to 500Mbps.
    • Expect VPN connections to achieve between 3Mbps to 8Mbps.
    • Chinese sites run much, much faster than Western sites; keep this in mind when streaming video, sending large emails, gaming online, etc.
    • Public WiFi connections are generally safe and reliable, though keep a good antivirus on your PC (preferably a paid antivirus with firewall).
    • Start your cell service at any carrier store; all you need is your passport and money. Note that a router may not always be included (depends on the local office).

Household goods

Reputable top brands will be listed here for your shopping pleasure. Note that some major appliances (laundry machine, television, air con) will typically come with English menus/labels as well as Chinese. There are a lot of great brands here!

Edit
Pub: 01 Nov 2018 17:20 UTC
Edit: 10 Nov 2018 15:45 UTC
Views: 1611