China Shopping Guide
China is one of the easiest places in the world to pay and shop — once you set up the right apps before you arrive. This guide covers the three things every foreign visitor actually needs: how to pay without cash, how to get your tax refund (退税, tuì shuì) at the airport, and what is worth buying while you are here.
Start here
Payment & Cards
Set up Alipay (支付宝, zhī fù bǎo) and WeChat Pay (微信支付, wēi xìn zhī fù) with a foreign card, plus UnionPay (银联, yín lián) and when cash still helps.
Read more →Tax Refund (退税, tuì shuì)
Who qualifies, how the departure tax refund works, and how to get it instantly instead of waiting.
Read more →What is worth buying
Chinese brands and traditional goods are the real finds — often cheaper and better than back home. Three guided deep-dives:
Electronics & gadgets
DJI (大疆, dà jiāng) drones, Insta360 (影石, yǐng shí) cameras, Huawei (华为, huá wèi) foldables, power banks (充电宝, chōng diàn bǎo) — and where to shop: Huaqiangbei (华强北, huá qiáng běi).
Read more →Traditional gifts
Tea (茶, chá), silk (丝绸, sī chóu), porcelain (瓷器, cí qì), hanfu (汉服, hàn fú) and museum cultural-creative (文创, wén chuàng) souvenirs to bring home.
Read more →Chinese brands
New-consumer brands worth buying in 2026: bags, shoes, fragrance and art toys (潮玩, cháo wán).
Read more →Where to shop
Big cities have everything from mega-malls to night markets. Pick a city for districts, what to buy, and a Chinese phrase sheet:
Beijing (北京, běi jīng)
Wangfujing (王府井, wáng fǔ jǐng), Sanlitun (三里屯, sān lǐ tún), the Xiushui (秀水街, xiù shuǐ jiē) Silk Market and Forbidden City (故宫, gù gōng) souvenirs.
Read more →Shanghai (上海, shàng hǎi)
Nanjing Road (南京路, nán jīng lù), the Bund (外滩, wài tān) and glossy malls — China's style capital.
Read more →Shenzhen (深圳, shēn zhèn)
Huaqiangbei (华强北, huá qiáng běi) — the world's biggest electronics market — and Luohu (罗湖, luó hú) fashion.
Read more →Yiwu (义乌, yì wū)
The planet's largest small-goods market — earphones (耳机, ěr jī), luggage (行李箱, xíng li xiāng), art toys (潮玩, cháo wán) in bulk.
Read more →Chengdu (成都, chéng dū)
Sichuan tea (茶, chá), Shu embroidery (蜀绣, shǔ xiù), Chinese liquor (白酒, báijiǔ) and a laid-back shopping scene.
Read more →Xi'an (西安, xī ān)
Terracotta Army replicas (兵马俑, bīng mǎ yǒng), stele rubbings and the Muslim Quarter (回民街, huí mín jiē) bazaar.
Read more →Want to explore more shopping sights by city? Browse all China destinations →
Tools
Payment, tax and customs rules change without notice. Always confirm with the official sources (UnionPay, the tax refund operator, or customs) before you rely on this guide.