Updated August 2026 · 5 min read · Based on traveler reports, official documentation, and community discussions. How we research →

How to Use Meituan in China — Food Delivery & Restaurants Guide for Foreigners (2026)

Meituan (美团) is China's dominant local-services super-app. What started as a group-buying site has grown into an all-in-one platform used by nearly 700 million people annually. From your hotel room you can order food delivery, browse nearby restaurants, book a hotel for tomorrow night, and buy timed entry tickets to a museum — all in a single app. For foreign visitors, Meituan is not optional; it is how modern China eats.

The one real hurdle: Meituan's checkout relies entirely on Alipay or WeChat Pay. If you have not linked a payment method before you arrive, you cannot complete an order. Sort that out first.

What Meituan Can Do for You

• Food delivery (外卖) — Order from thousands of local restaurants with delivery times typically 25–45 minutes.
• Restaurant discovery (美食) — Browse rated restaurants on a map, read reviews, and book a table.
• Hotel booking (住宿) — Competitive rates on hotels, hostels, and short-stay apartments across China.
• Attraction tickets (景区/门票) — Timed-entry tickets to major tourist sites, theme parks, and museums, often cheaper than the gate price.

Step 1 — Download Meituan

1. Download the Meituan app

   Meituan is available on the App Store (iOS) and Google Play worldwide. Search "Meituan" — the icon is a yellow kangaroo. There is no separate international version; you use the same app as local users.

2. Register with your phone number

   Open the app and tap 注册 (Register) or 登录 (Log In). Enter your international phone number with country code (e.g. +44 for UK, +61 for Australia, +49 for Germany). Tap to receive an SMS code, then enter it to confirm.

3. Set your location

   Grant Meituan location permission when prompted. The home screen will populate with restaurants and services near you. If you are registering before arriving in China, set a manual address for your planned destination so you can browse ahead of time.

Step 2 — Set Up Payment

Meituan's checkout accepts Alipay and WeChat Pay. Both platforms now allow foreigners to link an international Visa or Mastercard — but that setup must be done in the Alipay or WeChat app separately before you can use Meituan.

• Tap Me (我的) → Payment (支付) inside Meituan to see linked wallets.
• If nothing is linked, the app will prompt you to open Alipay or WeChat Pay to connect.

Getting payment set up is the only genuinely difficult part of using Meituan. The rest is straightforward once your wallet is connected.

Step 3 — Order Food Delivery

1. Tap 外卖 (Waimai / Delivery) from the Meituan home screen.

2. Browse or search for a restaurant. You can search by cuisine type or dish name — common English terms like "pizza", "sushi", or "burger" often work. The restaurant list is sorted by delivery time and rating by default.

3. Select your items. Tap a restaurant, browse the menu with photos, and tap + to add items to your cart. Minimum order amounts (起送价) vary — typically ¥15–30.

4. Review your cart and confirm the address. Meituan uses your GPS location as the delivery address. Tap the address bar to type a specific floor or room number if needed.

5. Choose a delivery time. Standard is ASAP (约xx分钟). Scheduled delivery (预约) lets you set a specific time window.

6. Pay and track. After paying via Alipay or WeChat Pay, a live tracking map shows your rider's position in real time.

Step 4 — Find a Restaurant to Dine In

Tap 美食 (Dining) from the home screen. A map view shows rated restaurants nearby — star ratings, price per person, and cuisine type are visible before you tap in. Filter by distance, cuisine, or price range using the tabs at the top.

Restaurant pages include user photos, dish recommendations (招牌菜), opening hours, and address. Tap 导航 to open the location in a maps app. Some restaurants on Meituan offer online table reservations (预约订座) — useful for popular spots on weekends.

Step 5 — Book a Hotel or Buy Tickets

Both functions are accessible from the Meituan home screen:

• Hotels (住宿): Enter a city and check-in date. Results include photos, guest reviews, and room rates. Booking flow is similar to Booking.com — select your room, enter a name, and pay.
• Tickets (景区门票): Search by attraction name or browse by city. Many major sites in China require advance timed-entry tickets that sell out — Meituan is one of the fastest ways to secure them. Look for 立即预约 (Book Now) on the listing.

The Language Problem — and How to Deal with It

Meituan's interface is almost entirely in Chinese with no official English mode. These workarounds help:

• iPhone users: Enable Screen Translation in iOS Settings — point the camera at the screen or use Safari Reader translations.
• Android users: Google Translate's Tap to Translate overlay works on most Meituan screens.
• Restaurant menus: Most items have photos. For dishes without photos, a quick Google Translate photo scan of the screen is enough to identify the main ingredients.
• Address entry: Ask your hotel reception to write your address in Chinese characters — paste or type it directly into the delivery address field.

Field Notes from Visitors

• Delivery fees are low — often ¥3–6 — and Meituan frequently runs first-order discounts (首单立减) for new users that take ¥10–20 off your first delivery.
• The 拼好饭 (Pin Hao Fan) section is a budget group-order option where meals can be as cheap as ¥9–12. Delivery times are longer but quality from known chains is consistent.
• Hotel listings on Meituan sometimes undercut other platforms by 10–15% — worth a quick comparison for last-minute bookings.
• If a restaurant listing shows 仅外卖 it is delivery-only and has no dine-in option.
• Attraction tickets on Meituan often require passport verification at the gate. Enter your passport number accurately during booking — mismatches can prevent entry.