Getting online: VPNs and accessing blocked websites

✅ Updated Jun 2026

Many international sites and apps are not reachable on ordinary Chinese networks — Google (Search, Gmail, Maps, Drive), YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, X, and most Western news. Chinese alternatives cover daily life well (WeChat for messaging, Alipay for payments, Amap or Baidu for maps, Bilibili and Youku for video). To reach blocked services, foreigners commonly use a few approaches. First, international roaming on your home SIM usually routes your data through your home carrier, so blocked sites often just work — convenient for short trips but expensive for daily use. Second, some travel eSIMs route traffic via Hong Kong or overseas, so they can reach blocked sites with no extra setup; check the plan details before buying. Third, a local SIM gives the best price and speed for Chinese services, but blocked sites then need a VPN. On VPNs: many foreigners and companies use commercial VPN apps, but the legal status is a grey area — only government-approved services are formally authorized, reliability varies (especially around sensitive dates), and using one is at your own discretion. If you expect to need a VPN, install and test it before you arrive, because the app stores and provider websites may themselves be unreachable once you are in China. For work, ask your employer about a sanctioned corporate VPN.