Which apps do I need on my phone in China?

The six that matter

WeChat (微信) covers messaging, payment, identity, appointments, official accounts and mini programmes. Most of daily life runs through it, so install it first and give yourself an evening to learn your way around it.

Alipay (支付宝) is the other payment app, and a large number of government and travel services live inside it. Have it even if WeChat is your default.

Amap (高德地图) handles navigation and transit routing and has an English mode. Baidu Maps is the alternative. Google Maps does not work.

Meituan (美团) or Ele.me (饿了么) are the delivery apps, and food delivery in Shenzhen is cheap and quick. The same apps cover groceries and pharmacy items, and Meituan runs the shared bikes.

Didi (滴滴) is taxis and private hire.

Pleco is the dictionary. Point the camera at a menu, a form or a sign and it reads the characters back to you. It works offline once the dictionaries are downloaded, which matters at a desk with no signal.

Others you will end up installing

• Taobao or JD.com for everything you would otherwise walk out to buy
• Trip.com or 12306 for trains and flights
• Xiaohongshu (小红书) for finding places, which is where the city’s restaurant knowledge actually lives
• Your bank’s own app, once the account exists

What will not work

Google search, Gmail, Google Maps, Google Drive, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube are not reachable on ordinary Chinese networks. Sort this out before you go: move the documents you rely on somewhere you can still open them, and set up WeChat with your family before you fly.

Email other than Gmail generally works, so Outlook, Yahoo and university mail are all fine.