How does payment work in China, where digital wallets dominate the market? During our trip, we spent 18 hours in Shanghai and quickly realised just how outdated cash is, with bank cards not working at all. Without Alipay and WeChat Pay, it’s difficult to get by, but what’s the solution? In this article, we share our experiences and tips!
Cash or Digital Wallet?
When we travelled to New Zealand, we found a budget-friendly flight. The catch? A layover in Shanghai, China. One thing about layovers in Shanghai – they can be ridiculously long. In our case, we had about 18 hours to kill. But instead of seeing it as a hassle, we saw it as an opportunity to explore a new city and get a taste of a different culture.
As we all know, things work a little differently in China compared to what we’re used to. A prime example? The internet. It’s heavily censored, meaning you can kiss goodbye to Facebook, Messenger, and every single Google service (Gmail, Maps, YouTube, etc.). This level of restriction also extends to banking and payments. We’d read that using a foreign bank card could be a challenge – in fact, it might not work at all. So, we did a bit of research to see what our options were:
- Withdraw cash from an ATM at the airport.
- Use WeChat Pay or Alipay.
We decided to go with one of the apps while keeping ATM withdrawal as our backup plan. Installing Alipay wasn’t too difficult since it was available on the Google Play Store. Signing up seemed simple enough – we entered our phone number and waited for a verification code. But the code never arrived. (As I’m typing this now, I decided to try registering again – and of course, the code has just come through… classic timing, now that I don’t need it anymore!) Since registration wasn’t an option, Plan B kicked in, and we withdrew cash from an ATM at the airport.
A Sip of Coffee and a Payment Culture Shock
We weren’t keen on spending money at the airport, so as soon as we could, we hopped on the Maglev train and headed into the city. We arrived ridiculously early – in fact, we managed to catch the very first train of the day. Our first stop was in the heart of the business district, where we experienced the most surreal walk. The roads and streets were practically deserted.
After a few hours of wandering around, battling some serious jet lag, all we wanted was a good, strong coffee and somewhere to sit and wake up properly. It wasn’t until well after 8 or 9 AM that the city started to come to life, and that’s when we spotted a café.
The first surprise hit us as soon as we walked in – the menu was entirely in Chinese. We stood at the counter, trying to work out which picture might be a cappuccino and which might be a long black. Behind the counter, it was a hive of activity – baristas constantly preparing takeaway coffees and pastries, but nothing seemed to stay on the counter for long. Customers would come in, scan their phones using Alipay, grab their order, and be on their way in a matter of seconds. This went on for a while, and we started to feel slightly invisible – until, finally, a brave employee stepped forward and asked what we wanted.
With a confident “Hello,” I asked for two flat whites in English. Silence. We stared at each other for a few seconds. I repeated my order. Still nothing. Then, a lightbulb moment – the staff member pointed to a large digital board behind him, proudly displaying the menu… still entirely in Chinese. I tried to explain that I didn’t speak the language. This caught the attention of another employee, who clearly found it odd that we were having such a long conversation at the counter. Luckily, this second person spoke English, and we finally managed to order our coffee.
The next hurdle? Payment.
The barista told us the total and pointed at the little Alipay/WeChat Pay terminal, expecting us to scan and pay. We signalled that this wasn’t going to work and pulled out a banknote from our wallet instead. Their eyes widened in shock. With a look of mild panic, they held up a finger, motioning for us to wait, then hurriedly sent a colleague off on an urgent mission.
A few moments later, the colleague returned, carrying a huge plastic bag filled with banknotes and coins. As they counted out our change, we noticed something interesting – they were carefully studying the numbers on the banknotes and examining the different shapes and images on the coins, as if they’d never seen them before. That’s when it hit us – they really hadn’t! They were so used to living in a cashless society that handling physical money felt completely foreign to them.
And this wasn’t the only place where our cash payment raised eyebrows. Everywhere we went, paying with physical money made us a novelty. At a food market, they even led us to a hidden corner where the only cash register was located. Every stall, on the other hand, had at least two or three card terminals.
Ah, modern China – where carrying cash makes you the odd one out! 😀
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