Comparison
Alipay or WeChat Pay
Set up one and test it. The second app can wait until the first one has already paid for a real purchase.
Set up Alipay if
- Nobody in China needs to message you.
- You want the app that visitor guides usually mean by the foreign-card flow.
- You want a wallet that is only a wallet.
Set up WeChat Pay if
- A host, a hotel, or a colleague will reach you in WeChat anyway.
- You would rather learn one app that also carries the messages.
- You already have WeChat and only need to turn on pay.
What this comparison refuses to do
It does not name a fee. The apps and the card issuers change the percentage and the cap. A comparison that quotes a fee from last spring is how people underfund a trip. Read your own binding screen.
Some small scanners take one code and stumble on the other. That is why a little cash stays in the bag. It is not a reason to delay the first app until both are perfect.
- Train or flightThe other either-or
Questions
Should I set up both the week before?
If you have an hour, yes. If you have twenty minutes, one tested app beats two half-finished ones.