The apps to install before you fly — and the habits that save your trip
You don't need a folder full of apps. You need about five, all installed at home before you land, plus three small habits that quietly prevent most first-timer disasters.
The 30-second version
Install these before you fly, on your home wifi: a VPN, a travel eSIM, Alipay, DiDi, and Amap. Add WeChat if you'll be messaging anyone in China. That's the whole kit. Do it now, not at the airport — some of these are hard to get once you've landed.
01The five apps that do everything
Ignore the giant "50 apps for China" lists. For a first trip, this short set covers paying, moving, navigating, and staying online:
VPNInstall first
Keeps Google, WhatsApp, Instagram and your email reachable. Install and test it at home — it's unreliable to set up after you land. Many travelers keep two as backup.
Travel eSIMInstall first
Gives you mobile data the moment you arrive, no plastic SIM to swap. Buy and install before the flight; activate when you land.
AlipayPayments
Your wallet for the whole trip. Link a foreign Visa/Mastercard and you can pay almost anywhere by scanning a QR code. Set it up before you go.
DiDiTaxis
China's Uber, with an English mode. Type your destination, the driver gets it in Chinese — no conversation needed.
Amap (Gaode)Maps
The navigation app that actually works here, now with English. Use it instead of Google Maps for walking, metro and driving.
WeChatOptional
Add it if you'll message anyone in China — tour guides, hosts, local contacts all expect it. Also works as a backup payment app.
Why "before you fly" matters
A VPN and some apps are genuinely hard to download or activate once you're inside China — the connections you'd need are the restricted ones. Setting up at home, on open wifi, turns a stressful arrival into a non-event.
02Three habits that prevent most disasters
Apps aside, these tiny things save the most trouble — and cost nothing:
Habit 1
Screenshot your hotel's name and address in Chinese characters and keep it handy. When you can't explain where you're going, you just show the screen. This single habit prevents the classic "I can't get back to my hotel" moment.
Habit 2
Turn your VPN off when you pay. With it on, your phone looks like it's abroad while you're standing in China, and the payment gets blocked. Toggle off, scan, toggle back on. This kills most "my payment keeps failing" panic.
Habit 3
Carry a little cash — roughly 200–500 RMB — as backup. You'll pay for almost everything by phone, but a small stash covers the rare older vendor, a rural stop, or a moment when your phone's being difficult.
03What you can safely skip
You don't need a Chinese bank account. You don't need to learn the language to get around. You don't need a stack of niche apps. The kit above plus a charged phone (and ideally a power bank) is genuinely most of what a first-timer needs to move through China comfortably.
Before you rely on this
Apps, their features, and which services are reachable all change over time. This reflects the situation on the checked-on date at the top. Install and test everything before you travel, while you still have an open connection at home, and check each app's current information.
Based on current traveler guidance · Last verified June 14, 2026 · Next review: July 2026