WeChat Pay Fees in China is changing

Chinese social media giant Tencent Holdings Ltd is slashing transaction fees by 10% for small and medium merchants using its WeChat payment system, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

The discounts will apply from September 1, 2021 and run until September 30, 2024, the company added.

In order to qualify for the discount, merchants must meet the classification standards for small and medium enterprises set by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The company will also reduce fees on money withdrawals from users’ bank accounts, according to the statement.

The policy follows similar moves by Chinese tech companies last week.

Here’s a concise yet comprehensive overview covering WeChat’s fees (personal & business), its core functions, and 2025 trends:

1. What is WeChat?

WeChat (微信) is China’s “super app” by Tencent, combining:

Social media (Moments, messaging)
Payments (WeChat Pay, 1.3B+ users)
Mini-programs (light apps within WeChat)
Business tools (official accounts, ads)
Lifestyle services (food delivery, rides, gov’t services)

2. WeChat Fees (2025)

A. Personal Users

Feature	Fee	Notes
Wallet balance withdrawals	0.1% fee (min ¥0.1)	Free for transfers between users
Credit card payments	0.6-1%	Charged to merchants, not users
Red Packets (红包)	Free	Limited to ¥200/packet

B. Businesses & Companies

Service	Fee	Details
WeChat Pay merchant	0.6-1% per transaction	Higher for international cards
Official Account	¥300/year	Verification required
Mini-Program	Free to publish	Paid developer tools (¥300+/year)
WeChat Ads	CPC: ¥0.5-5 CPM: ¥20-100	Auction-based pricing
Cross-border payments	1-3% + forex fee	Varies by currency

Key Note: Fees can change based on industry (e.g., gaming pays higher rates).

3. WeChat Trends for 2025

A. Social-Commerce Evolution

Live shopping 2.0: AI-powered hosts, VR try-ons (Douyin rival).
Mini-program dominance: 70% of users spend 90+ mins/day in them.

B. AI Integration

Tencent’s Hunyuan AI: Chatbots for customer service/sales.
AI-generated content: Auto-create ads, product descriptions.

C. Global Expansion

WeChat “International Edition”: Focused on SEA, Chinese diaspora.
Cross-border payment growth: Partnering with Alipay+ (50M+ int’l merchants).

D. Super App “OS” Model

Embedded services: Car rentals, healthcare, gov’t IDs within WeChat.
Open API ecosystem: More third-party integrations.

E. Stricter Compliance

4. Key Takeaways for Businesses

✅ Leverage mini-programs for low-cost sales funnels.
✅ Use AI tools to cut customer service costs.
✅ Budget for ads + 1% transaction fees in financial planning.
⚠️ Monitor policy changes (China’s tech regulations evolve fast).

WeChat remains China’s digital “Swiss Army knife”—indispensable for users and brands alike. Stay ahead by adopting its AI and commerce features early