alipay worked for me. here's how i set it up.

Anna

was worried about payments before my trip. turned out fine.

i used alipay. downloaded the app before leaving. signed up with my us phone number. uploaded a photo of my passport and a selfie.

verification took about a day. then i added my credit card.

once in china, i used it everywhere. street food, subway, didi, restaurants. maybe 90 percent of places accepted it.

cash worked for the rest. i withdrew 200 yuan from an atm at the airport and that lasted me 2 weeks.

bring some cash as backup but alipay covers most things.

one tip. set it up before you go. verification takes time.