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Dating in China as an expat is easier than you think, with popular apps like Tantan, WeChat, and ChinaLoveCupid giving foreigners solid options for finding connections from casual dates to serious relationships.
You can’t always Tinder, but you can Tantan. You can choose between chatting with new friends on popular social networking apps or swiping right to interact in Chinese or English on an engaging, colourful interface to find your next dinner date. Want something even more niche?
You can even use an app that’s specifically designed to find a dining partner by matching users by food preference and restaurants nearby. Welcome to the world of online dating in China.
If you’re planning to relocate to China or have just made the move and looking to spread your wings in your newly adopted home, know that online dating sites and matchmaking apps are a big part of the social culture in most cities and towns throughout the country.
But dating, like so many things about living in China, is unique to anything you’ll experience at home.
To help you navigate through what may seem like the overwhelming world of online dating in China, below we’ve covered the best dating apps and sites used by expats and locals alike.
You’ll find out which ones have English-language options, what people are looking for on the apps, and the highlights of each platform so you can find your ideal match in no time.
Contents
Key Takeaways
- Online dating is widely used in China, even among foreigners, especially in major cities like Beijing and Shanghai.
- Apps like Tantan and Momo are popular for casual dating and short-term connections but often have issues with fake profiles and limited English support.
- WeChat remains a go-to platform for socializing and can be used to find dating opportunities through groups or the “People Nearby” feature.
- Language can be a barrier on most Chinese-language dating apps, so basic Chinese skills will give you a big advantage when looking for a match.
- Many Chinese users are direct about their dating goals, especially when seeking long-term relationships.
- Most local platforms like Jiayuan and Baihe are geared toward serious relationships but are available only in Chinese.
- If you’re an expat looking for a serious, long-term relationship in China, ChinaLoveCupid is a great option. It has a large base of verified profiles and is designed for meaningful international connections, making it easier to meet genuine Chinese singles who are also seeking commitment.
Online Dating Boom
Whether you’re living in your 20s, 30s, or your 60s, there are online dating apps and websites available for you in China. Whether you’re still figuring out the basics of cost of living in China or settling into a new job after finding work in China, the dating scene is active and accessible.
Whether you’re fresh off the plane and still moving to China or you’ve been here for years, the dating scene is easy to plug into once your apps are set up.
Online dating has been a popular (and oftentimes essential) pastime in the Middle Kingdom over the last few decades, but the use of many apps and dating sites skyrocketed in 2020 when the world was locked down.
China Dating Websites
While mobile dating apps are much more common in China, there are still a few dating websites available for expats to use. Here are the best dating websites in China, who’s using them, and what people on the platform are looking for.
ChinaLoveCupid
Who’s using it: Popular with people in their mid 20s to 30s, but also attracts an older demographic. Most users are Chinese singles and Western men.
What they’re looking for: Meaningful connections, long distance relationships, and serious relationships.
According to their website, ChinaLoveCupid has over 1.4 million members. Established in 2005, this is the Chinese dating site to use if you’re not yet in China but want to look for your potential mate beforehand.
While it’s a popular site for Chinese people to find love, when it comes to international dating ChinaLoveCupid is mostly used by Western men looking for a local Chinese woman.
A majority of profiles here are also verified. This means they are real people, unlike other apps that are full of fake profiles.
Users can chat in any language, but if you aren’t confident in your Chinese skills and still want to communicate in a user’s local language, there’s an automatic translator available.
ChinaLoveCupid is a reputable website for dating, so the member verification process is pretty thorough.
If you want to start browsing for your match, you can easily sign up free of charge. The free version will give you access to basic matching and likes, but you can only chat with paying members. An upgrade is needed to chat with all members.
The Gold membership is US$29.98 per month and the Platinum membership is US$34.99 per month, with deals available for longer subscriptions.
Jiayuan
Who’s using it: People in their mid 20s and 30s
What they’re looking for: Long-term relationships
Jiayuan is one of the largest online dating sites in mainland China and its users are looking for serious connections. To raise the bar, it’s even partnered with a matchmaking service. The unfortunate thing for expats is that the website and all of the functions are only in Chinese.
So, if you’re Chinese or are fluent in the language, Jiayuan has a lot of advanced features available to paid users looking to find a long-term partner.
Dating Apps in China for Expats
Here’s a rundown of the top English-language dating apps for expats in China. Bumble in particular has become a favorite with English-speaking foreigners over the past couple of years.
Tantan (探探)
Who’s using it: Typically younger users in their 20s and 30s in urban areas
What they’re looking for: Everything from hookups to serious relationships
The Chinese answer to Tinder, Tantan remains one of the most used dating apps in China. The company was acquired by the popular app Momo in 2018 and has over 10 million daily active users as of 2025.
The style and interface is essentially the same as its global counterpart, where users swipe based on location and are instantly matched.
This is the best mobile dating app to use in China if you’re looking for the familiarity of Tinder, but want more connections with locals. And because Tinder is blocked on mainland China’s app stores, more foreigners default to Tantan; see the dedicated Tinder section below for the workaround.
Sign up with your local phone number or, like Tinder, sign up through your Facebook account (which you’ll need a VPN for in China).
Users can post up to six photos to their profile, and there’s a “Moments” feature where you can upload extra images/daily updates that only your matches can see. You can download the app for free and use the basic swipe, match, and chat features on Tantan, but anything extra requires a subscription.
At the cost of 60 RMB per month, the VIP subscription gives you unlimited likes, swipes, and the ability to go back to a profile where you accidentally swiped left (haven’t we all done that a few times).
This paid membership comes with a 3-day free trial (just make sure you properly cancel your subscription before the three days are up).
Recent reviewers of Tantan on the Google Play Store have been reporting lots of fake profiles, slow contact support, and issues with face verification. Once you match, most users quickly move the conversation to WeChat, which has become the standard follow-up channel for Chinese dating apps.
Bumble
Who’s using it: English-speaking expats and internationally-minded locals, especially in Tier 1 cities
What they’re looking for: Genuine connections, with less of the ghosting and fake-profile mess common on Tantan
Bumble isn’t on Chinese app stores, same as Tinder. You’ll need an Apple ID or Google Play account registered outside mainland China, plus a working VPN, to download and run it.
The format works the same as everywhere else: women message first. That one rule cuts out a lot of the low-effort matches you’ll run into on Tantan, and it’s a big part of why Bumble has become the go-to pick for foreign women dating in China over the past couple of years.
Match volume is lower than Tantan simply because fewer people in China use it, but expats consistently rate the conversation quality higher.
Tinder
Who’s using it: Expats and internationally-minded Chinese professionals in big cities like Shanghai and Beijing
What they’re looking for: Everything from casual dates to long-term relationships
Tinder is blocked in mainland China, so you won’t find it on the local Apple App Store or on Android stores like Huawei or Xiaomi. Set up your account before you arrive using an overseas Apple ID or Google Play account, then connect through a reliable VPN once you’re in the country.
Once it’s running, Tinder works the same as it does anywhere else. Because getting it set up takes a bit of effort, the people you’ll match with tend to be other expats or Chinese users who’ve specifically gone looking for a foreign-friendly app.
Who’s using it: Everyone in China
What they’re looking for: New friends, social circles, and long-term connections.
Although not technically a dating app, you can expand your online connections and romantic prospects on WeChat, the ultimate social network app in the Middle Kingdom.
Through WeChat, you can do a number of things from paying for your tomatoes at the market, to work tasks, to discovering the best events happening in your city this weekend.
But beyond making digital payments and brainstorming with your coworkers, the app is also a great tool for finding expat meetups and groups near you. It’s especially useful if you’re navigating life in a large city like Beijing or looking into renting in Shanghai.
And when it comes to online dating, WeChat has a few functions to help you branch out:
- Join dating groups: To be a part of the online dating scene and connect with potential mates on WeChat, you can create a dating group yourself and make yourself an admin or find a dating group that you’d like to be a part of and ask one of the members for permission to join. As with other WeChat groups, there’s also the option to ask a group admin for the QR code which you can scan to join the group.
- Find people nearby: With this function enabled, you can see other users of the same gender within a close km radius and start chatting if they accept your message.
Beyond dating groups and the People Nearby feature, WeChat is also the backbone of social networking in China, so the two constantly overlap.
Image courtesy of Unsplash. Photo by Road Trip with Raj
You can also follow accounts like DateNightChina on WeChat (WeChat id: datenightchina) to get updates on their latest podcast episodes about dating in China, as well as meetups happening in Beijing.
Beyond WeChat, Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) has turned into another place expats meet people naturally. Locals often comment on or message foreigners who post there, which makes it a low-pressure way to meet someone with shared interests.
Who’s using it: Mostly foreigners and Chinese in the younger demographic (18-30)
What they’re looking for: Friends, socializing, and casual to serious dating.
If you’ve been living in China for a while now, you know that QQ by Tencent is a great app to use for socializing and dating in English in China. QQ used to be the Chinese equivalent to messenger software like MSN or ICQ, and now the app has evolved with features that make it a useful dating app for foreigners and Chinese alike.
As a way to meet other singles in your area, you can use the location-based “find friends” feature. There’s also the option to add friends on QQ from your phone contacts list and from linked third party accounts such as Facebook.
Getting Tinder working in China takes an overseas account and a VPN. See the dedicated Tinder section above for the details.
Popular Chinese Language Dating Apps
With Chinese-language only apps in the mainland you’ll be offered much more variety – from active users, interface, theme, and more. Here are some of the top dating apps in China to use in Chinese.
Momo
Who’s using it: People in their 20s and 30s
What they’re looking for: Casual dating to long-term relationships
Momo is currently one of the most popular dating apps in China. Although Momo used to be available in English and Chinese, it’s been a Chinese-language only dating app since 2014.
This is another location-based app meant to match people looking for their perfect date in China. However, Momo has rebranded to a more social networking app in recent years, after having a reputation of being a popular tool for casual dating.
If you’re able to use Momo in China, you’ll enjoy the number of fun built-in features: things like ads for suggested date locations, games, and groups to meet new people.
Baihe
Who’s using it: Chinese and some foreigners, 30s and above.
What they’re looking for: Serious relationships
Baihe is a dating app in China that doesn’t mess around. The rigid sign-up process may be your first hint, as you have to verify everything from the house/apartment and car that you own as well as share information with the app like your credit score and school diploma. If you’ve already sorted practical matters like opening a bank account in China, the verification steps will feel familiar.
Even though it is a lot of verification at first, these features are all meant to attract users in China that are looking for serious partnerships. If settling down long-term is the goal, it also makes sense to look into practical resources like health insurance in China as part of building a stable life here.
If you are fluent in Chinese and looking for a long-term partner, then an app like Baihe is one of the more serious choices available on the market.
Quick Tips for Online Dating in China
Before choosing which platform you’re going to use to start your online dating adventures in China, let’s go through some of the basic dos and don’ts and things to keep in mind when using these apps and websites for socializing and dating. If you’re new to expat life in Asia and want to compare approaches, it’s also worth reading about dating in Malaysia for a different regional perspective.
Be Direct When Looking for a Potential Date
If you’ve been living in China for a while you probably already know this, but Chinese people can be much more direct when it comes to socializing and making new friends.
Topics like salary, family history, and education are not off the table when meeting someone new – in fact, they are very much welcomed in many cases, and the dating world is one of them.
This is the total opposite of dating in another country like Thailand, where you never want to be direct about these topics on your first date. If you’re curious about how dating compares across the region, check out our guide to dating sites in Thailand as well.
So to avoid any awkward situations upon meeting, it’s best to be open to discussing details like this beforehand while you’re still in text mode. Think about what you’re looking for in a dating partner (and in a serious partner) and don’t shy away from asking.
If you are a single foreign woman in China, you might find Chinese men are very curious about dating you but perhaps a bit intimidated. Know that it’s not always men who make the first move in China, so be bold and direct with your intentions. That’s a good skill to practice in general, and in China, it’s rewarded.
Adapt Your Level of English to the App or Site
While there are some English language options, Simplified Chinese is used on most dating apps and websites throughout China. So if you’re using English, depending on the app or dating site you use (and who you’re chatting with) you’ll have to vary your level of English.
If you’re in a big city like Beijing or Shanghai and you match with a Chinese person and you clearly have a foreign face and an English (or German, French, etc.) language profile, chances are that your match will interact with you in your native language.
But that won’t always be the situation, so best not to use colloquial language or complex language right off the bat. Just keep it basic to start and let it flow from there.
Also, if you have solid Chinese skills and are looking to meet a local, then you’ll have many more choices when it comes to dating apps. It will always help you to have some level of Chinese language ability, so you might want to read about how to learn Chinese as a beginner.
You’ll Need a Local Number to Sign Up
Every major dating app in China, foreign or domestic, asks for a phone number during sign-up, and most won’t take an overseas one. Get a local Chinese SIM sorted before you start swiping.
WeChat, Tantan, and Momo all use your number as the main way to confirm you’re a real person, and some add a face scan on top. It’s the same real-name system China applies to SIM cards and hotel check-ins, just extended to dating apps.
Sort your number out first. Nothing on this list works without one.
Beware of Fake Profiles
Catfishing is pretty much a global problem in our digital world, but beware of some online dating platforms with a quick verification process, because this will attract countless fake profiles.
Photo courtesy of Gigi on Unsplash
However, there have been a number of features added recently to popular dating apps and sites in China to combat this problem.
Watch for Investment and Romance Scams
Beyond fake profiles, there’s a more expensive scam making the rounds on Chinese dating apps: someone builds a relationship with you over weeks or months, then introduces a can’t-miss opportunity to invest in crypto, forex, or some trading platform you’ve never heard of. It’s often called pig butchering, and it has cost victims worldwide billions of dollars.
The warning signs repeat themselves: a match who avoids video calls, a relationship that moves fast, and eventually a pitch to move money somewhere. Real romantic interest doesn’t come with an investment tip attached.
If a match brings up trading platforms or asks you to send money for any reason, stop replying and report the profile.
Post Engaging, Modest Pictures of Yourself
When building your dating profile, always choose your pictures carefully. Non-PG photos aren’t allowed on many Chinese dating apps and websites, so keep the pictures for your profile more on the modest side.
Online dating has evolved in China over the past few years, with lots of local sites temporarily banned amidst various reforms. The most popular dating sites and apps for foreigners looking to date in China currently are WeChat, Tantan, and ChinaLoveCupid.
Which Dating Site is Right for You?
As you can see, when it comes to online dating, there are so many niches and options available to you in China. And you’ll have an advantage if you’re fluent in Chinese or even have a basic grasp on the language as lots of the most unique apps are in the local language.
If you’re an expat and especially if you’re new to China, social networking apps like WeChat can really be a useful tool to navigate life in the Middle Kingdom, meet new people, and build a foundation in your newly adopted home. Before diving into the dating scene, make sure you’ve covered the basics — take a look at our Chinese visa overview to ensure your paperwork is in order.
However, if you are looking for a serious relationship, ChinaLoveCupid is recommended.
FAQs
Is Tinder blocked in China?
Yes. Tinder isn’t sold on mainland Chinese app stores. Set up your account with an overseas Apple ID or Google Play account before you arrive, then connect through a VPN once you’re in the country.
What’s the best dating app for foreigners in China?
Bumble and Tantan are the two most recommended by expats. Bumble skews toward English-speaking users and fewer fake profiles; Tantan has far more users overall, Chinese and foreign alike, but more spam.
Do I need a VPN for dating apps in China?
Only for the foreign apps. Tinder and Bumble are both blocked on the mainland and need a VPN to load. Tantan, Momo, WeChat, and the Chinese-language sites work without one.
Is Bumble available in China?
It’s blocked the same way Tinder is. You’ll need an overseas app-store account and a VPN, but once it’s running it works exactly like it does anywhere else, women message first.
Do Chinese dating apps require a local phone number?
Yes, almost without exception. WeChat, Tantan, and Momo all use your phone number to verify you’re a real person, and some add a face scan on top. Sort out a Chinese SIM before you start signing up.
What dating app do most Chinese people use?
Momo and Tantan lead by user numbers inside China. Both are Chinese-language apps, so you’ll get more matches with at least basic Mandarin.
Are dating scams common in China?
Fake profiles are common on the more casual apps, and a slower-burning investment scam (sometimes called pig butchering) targets people who’ve built up weeks of trust with a match. Never send money or move funds into an investment app a match introduces you to.
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