Living in China

How to Use DiDi in China as a Foreigner (2026 Setup & Payment)

By the 17Talk teaching team - certified Mandarin teachers, 8+ years of classroom experience, 3,500+ students in 40 countries
Last updated: 2026-09-16

Quick answer

DiDi is China's ride-hailing app and it is built to work for visitors: register with an overseas phone number, switch the interface to English, and pay with an international card or through Alipay or WeChat Pay. The flow is: install the app, register, add a payment method, then set your destination on the map - the price is fixed and shown before you confirm. The real friction is the pickup point, not the payment: Chinese addresses are complex, so meet at the map pin and use the in-app chat, which translates between you and the driver. If the app fails you, the street taxi has rules of its own: the driver must use the meter, hand you a valid receipt, and may not refuse you, haggle over the fare, take a detour or put you out mid-trip. Those violations carry a fine of RMB 200 to 500, and complaints about a taxi or a ride go to 12328, the national transport service supervision hotline, which accepts reports around the clock.

What DiDi is, and why it is the default

DiDi is the app Chinese cities actually run on, and the service you will use is formally called online ride-hailing - the same category of transport that the national rules define and regulate. You set the destination, the app quotes a fixed price before you commit, and payment happens inside the app. No cash changes hands, and no argument about the route is possible, because the route and the price were fixed before the car arrived.

It also works without a separate app download: DiDi runs as a mini-program inside both Alipay and WeChat Pay, which is useful if you would rather not install another app to your phone.

Setting it up before you need it

Do this on airport wifi rather than on a street corner at midnight.

1. Install DiDi from your official app store. 2. Register with your home phone number - an overseas number is accepted, and the SMS code is the only verification step. 3. Switch the interface to English in the settings. 4. Add a payment method: an international card in the app, or let it charge through Alipay or WeChat Pay once one of those is set up with your foreign card. 5. Take one short ride to confirm everything works before the day you actually need it.

How a ride actually works

Enter the destination, check the fixed price, and confirm. The app matches a driver and shows the plate number and car model. The driver will usually message or call through the app rather than your phone number, and the in-app chat translates both directions, so you can say where you are standing in English and the driver reads it in Chinese.

Watch the car on the map, check the plate before you get in, and confirm the destination is right once you are moving. Payment is automatic at the end of the trip - there is no tipping culture for rides in China, and no need to hand anything over.

The pickup point problem, and how to solve it

The failure mode for visitors is not payment, it is the meeting point. Airports, rail stations and shopping districts have designated ride-hailing pickup zones, and the pin the app drops may be on the wrong side of a barrier.

Three things fix it: drag the pin to the exact spot rather than accepting the default, name a landmark the driver can see (the exit number, the hotel entrance, a corner shop), and use the in-app chat instead of trying to describe the location out loud. At major rail stations and airports, follow the signs for the ride-hailing pickup area rather than the taxi rank - they are different places.

Payments: what actually works in a car

In a DiDi, payment is inside the app: an international card added to the app, or Alipay or WeChat Pay if those are linked to your foreign card. In a street taxi, the driver will normally offer a QR code for Alipay or WeChat Pay.

Cash is the fallback that policy keeps alive. The national payment policy treats transport as one of the priority sectors, tells businesses to accept cash and keep change on hand, and calls for continued enforcement against businesses that refuse RMB cash. So a driver does not have the option of refusing your banknote - though having something close to the fare helps, because change is not guaranteed.

Street taxis: the rules that protect you

China's rules for street taxis are specific, and knowing them changes how a disagreement goes. Under the national regulation on cruising taxis, a driver must use the meter, apply the official fare and hand over a valid fare receipt; they must follow the reasonable route you asked for and may not refuse a passenger, negotiate the fare, take a deliberate detour, or put you out mid-trip.

Violations are not just bad manners. Refusing a passenger, haggling over the fare, dropping a passenger mid-trip, taking a detour, not using the meter, overcharging or failing to issue a receipt are all listed as offences punishable by an order to correct and a fine of RMB 200 to 500. At airports and rail stations, drivers must queue and follow the dispatch rules instead of soliciting passengers in undesignated areas.

If something goes wrong

For a problem with a DiDi ride, use the app's own support - the trip record is there, which makes the complaint easy to substantiate. For a problem with a street taxi - a refusal, a meter that was never switched on, a fare that does not match the meter, a receipt that never appears - the channel is 12328, the transport service supervision hotline run by the transport authorities.

12328 is a national public-service line that also operates by WeChat, app and website, and it handles enquiries, complaints and reports for road transport and urban passenger transport. Its rules call for accepting reports around the clock. Keep the receipt or the plate number before you call, and for anything that feels unsafe, call 110 first and complain afterwards.

DiDi or street taxi: which to use when

Both are cheap by international standards. The choice is about predictability and language, not price.

	DiDi (ride-hailing)	Street taxi
Price known before the trip	Yes, fixed in the app	No - metered, and traffic affects the total
Language barrier	In-app chat translates both ways	Depends on the driver; have the address written in Chinese
Payment	In the app	QR code, or cash which must be accepted
Where to complain	DiDi in-app support, with the trip record	12328, the national transport supervision hotline
Easiest place to catch one	Designated pickup zones at stations and airports	Taxi ranks and street hailing

Common questions

Do I need a Chinese phone number to use DiDi?

No. You can register with an overseas number and receive the verification code by SMS. You do need mobile data, so sort out a SIM or eSIM before you rely on it.

Can I pay for DiDi with a foreign card?

Yes - an international card can be added in the app, and Alipay or WeChat Pay work too once they are linked to your card. Payment is taken inside the app at the end of the trip.

Do taxis in China take cash?

They must. The national payment policy keeps cash as the fallback, tells transport operators and other businesses to accept it and keep change, and calls for enforcement against refusing RMB cash. Cash close to the fare helps, since change may be limited.

What if a driver refuses me or will not use the meter?

That is a regulated violation. Refusing a passenger, negotiating the fare, taking a detour or leaving the meter off is punishable by an order to correct plus a fine of RMB 200 to 500 from the transport authority.

Should I tip the driver?

No. Tipping is not part of ride-hailing or taxi culture in China, and the fare is the fare.

Is it safe for a solo traveller?

Use the app rather than an unmarked car, check the plate before getting in, and share the trip with someone. For anything that feels unsafe, call 110 first.

Sources

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