DiDi 滴滴出行

China’s main ride-hailing app. It works in English with your own phone number and card, or inside Alipay with no extra account.

EssentialSet up before you flyWorks with your own phone numberTakes foreign cards

App Store Android

Set it up at home

1
Install the right app
In the App Store or Google Play, install “DiDi China: Ride Hailing”, published by Didi Chuxing (Beijing). Other DiDi apps and look-alikes exist; the developer name is what to check.
2
Sign in with your own number
Choose your country code, enter your home mobile number and type the code sent by text. Keep your home SIM active so codes arrive in China too. If the app opens in Chinese, switch the language to English in its settings.
3
Add a card
Add a Visa or Mastercard in the app’s payment or wallet section. Your bank may block the first charge from China as suspected fraud, so keep your banking app at hand to approve it. If DiDi refuses the card, do not keep retrying; use DiDi in Alipay instead.
4
Set up DiDi in Alipay as a backup
Open Alipay, search for “DiDi” and open the mini-program. It uses your Alipay account and the card already linked there, so there is nothing new to sign up for. Through Alipay, payments of ¥200 or less have no foreign-card fee; above that, expect about 3%.
5
Save your hotel in Chinese
Add your hotel as Home or a favourite, using its Chinese name or address from your booking confirmation. Getting back is then two taps, even when you are tired and your battery is low.
6
Find the safety tools
Before your first ride, find the emergency button and the trip-sharing feature. The emergency button lets you call the police (110).

Using it in China

Put the pin where a car can stop

The app uses your location, but check the pin: a pedestrian street or the wrong side of a big road means a long wait. Hotels, stations, malls and airports often have marked pickup points. At airports and stations, follow the signs for online ride-hailing (网约车).

Enter the destination in Chinese

English names work for famous places, but the Chinese name or address is more reliable. Copy it from your booking or from our sight pages and paste it into the search box, then check the pin on the map.

Check the plate before you get in

The app shows the plate number, car colour and model. Only get into a car whose plate matches, and sit in the back.

Chat instead of calling

Drivers often call when they arrive, in Chinese. Reply in the in-app chat instead: it translates between English and Chinese. Say where you are standing and what you are wearing.

Payment happens by itself

The fare is charged when the trip ends, to your card in the app or through Alipay in the mini-program. You do not pay cash or scan anything in the car, and tipping is not expected.

Problems and fixes

My card is declined when I add it or pay

Usually your bank blocked it as possible fraud. Approve the payment in your banking app or call the bank, then try once more. If it still fails, try a card on another network, or book through DiDi in Alipay. Stop after a few tries, because repeated failures can trigger extra checks.

The sign-in code never arrives

Check that you picked the right country code and did not type a leading 0. Make sure your home SIM is on and can receive texts while roaming, wait a minute, then request a new code. If it still does not come, use DiDi inside Alipay, which needs no separate sign-in.

The driver keeps calling and speaks Chinese

You do not have to answer. Send a message in the in-app chat, which is translated, for example “I am at the main entrance, wearing a red jacket”. If you do pick up, say “wǒ bù huì shuō zhōngwén” (I don’t speak Chinese) and switch to the chat.

The driver cannot find me, or I cannot find the car

Watch the car on the map and walk to the kerb on the side it is coming from. Big places such as stations, airports and malls often have a fixed pickup area, sometimes on a car-park level; the app shows where it is. Tell the driver a landmark in the chat. If it is hopeless, cancel and move the pin to a spot a car can reach.

No driver accepts my request

Rush hour, rain and late nights are the hardest times. Select more than one car type, including regular taxis, and wait a little longer. If nothing comes, walk to the official taxi rank or try booking through Amap.

The app cannot find my destination in English

Paste the Chinese name or address instead; you can copy it from your booking or from our sight pages. You can also drag the map and drop the pin on the spot. Pinyin without tone marks sometimes works, but it can match the wrong place, so check the map before you confirm.

I was charged a cancellation fee

Cancelling after a driver has been on the way for a while can cost a small fee. If the driver asked you to cancel, never came, or went to the wrong place, open the trip in your history and contact customer service in the app, which is available in English around the clock.

I left something in the car

Open the finished trip in your history. From there you can contact the driver or customer service about lost items. Do it quickly, while the driver is still nearby.