SmartShanghai
How much does SmartShanghai cost?
Prices are current as of 11 Sept 2026.
SmartShanghai has no in-app products on record in the United States.
10+ alternatives to SmartShanghai
| SmartShanghai |   MetroMan China |   MetroMan Shanghai |   MetroMan Beijing |   Explore Shanghai |   Explore Beijing |   MyChinaTaxi - China Taxi Rides |   Shanghai Interactive Metro Map |   Beijing Travel Guide Offline |   Gother: Travel platform |   Shanghai Travel Guide . | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating / 5 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.2 |
| Reviews | 3.5K | 109K | 48K | 8.8K | 8.3K | 2.9K | 1.5K | 1.2K | 282 | 241 | 207 |
| Released | 2010 | 2011 | 2011 | 2011 | 2009 | 2010 | 2017 | 2011 | 2010 | 2024 | 2010 |
| Monthly price | — | $0.99 | $0.99 | $0.99 | — | — | — | $1.99 | — | — | — |
| One-time price | — | $14.99 | $14.99 | $14.99 | $4.99 | $4.99 | — | — | $1.99 | — | $1.99 |
The going rate for each plan in United States, in its own currency, shaded from the cheapest price on the row to the dearest. Plans fewer than four in ten of the priced apps sell are left out.
SmartShanghai reviews
4.7 out of 5, based on 3,529 reviews.
What people like
- Taxi cards save your life
- Best guide for expats
- Great offline restaurant maps
What they complain about
- Events cancel with no notice
- Subway map is outdated
- App crashes constantly
WORST APP EVER!
The app is really bad, events randomly canceled and pushed around with no notice, QR codes with tickets that don’t work, event locations are wrong horrible app. Wasted so much time and money trying to go for events which never happened!
sign in extremely clunky
kept having issues signing in despite resetting password successfully.
Pretty good
Smart shanghai is the best expat guide out of any expat guide ever. Hands down. Thus app is just a (less than perfect) way to access their amazing content without trying to Jerry rig it through your stupid safari browser. They did alright.
Is anyone maintaining this?
Every other thing I look up is no longer there. Restaurants out of business, stores that moved. The only thing nice is the Amap integration.
Would be 5 stars but...
I really enjoy this app, it’s extremely helpful, but my favorites STILL aren’t popping up and when I search things it says “no results:(“ every time! Why?! 😭😭😭
Very Good
Best Useful App
Terrible customer service
There is no customer service
Gelungene Version - mit Abstrichen!
Eigentlich gelungene Version der App (nach etwas bescheidenen ersten Versuchen). Gutes Design plus aktuelle News, Eventinfos und Adressen. Webseite in der Tat umfangreicher. Denke aber, dass die App so trotzdem gut passt. Allerdings stürzt die App unter iOS 10 direkt beim Öffnen ab - bitte schnell beheben!
No listings
Bought the app thinking I could access the apartment listings but you still have to go through the website for that
Crashes a lot since they updated it
Please fix that!
ily
This app is the reason I love Shanghai. Bored? Need to do something in Shanghai? Just check this app. There’s always something to do in this city.
“something went wrong” with latest update
the app barely works after the latest update. pages constantly come back with “something went wrong” error; takes 5-10 times clicking “try again” before results load. real bummer.
Update killed the bar map...
...But it's still the best guide in town. Hoping the fix comes soon. Nothing like being able to have a location specific bar map in your pocket anywhere you go.
No iPhones 6/6+ Support
Needs updating for the iPhones 6/6+. Looks ridiculous otherwise. Come on developers, these devices have been out a while now and it's a small amount of work to update.
Subway Map
Please update the subway map- it is very out of date!! Besides that this is a very useful app for getting taxi cards for places around the city
The Most up-to-date directory for Shanghai
Smartshanghai is an institution in Shanghai, and I think we can go so far as to say, that it is embedded within the expat culture of the city. Unlike the other apps, it is the most updated with correct listings, and they curate the most interesting things to do in the city. App crashes from time to time, but it is still indispensable.
Bugs and crashes
Paid app for bugs and constant crashes. Fix it.
Webpage besser
SmartShanghai fasst die Stadt Shanghai sehr gut zusammen und bietet ein nutzerfreundliches Interface. Jedoch hat man durch die App keinen Zugang zu vielen Funktion die auf der Website zur Verfügung stehen. Deshalb nur 4 Sterne.
Needs a lot of work
I feel fairly certain, the previous rating was by the developer. This could eventually be a good tool. Presently though, it has more holes than Swiss Cheese. The menu is not helpful, if you add to favorites, you can't find favorites because there is no favorites in the menu. I hope they work out all the bugs, because this app could be great!
Outdated
Just bought this app. Sadly the metro has not been updated for some time.
Great features
Taxi cards is what I use it for most - that and knowing where to go on the weekend. Great and up to date info.
Worse and Worse
Update 7/30/2016 - another update, another fail. Now the app closes automatically when I try to type a venue. No wonder Bonapp is killing it. Old review: Since the update this app has gotten progressively worse. It freezes and restarts constantly, the map function is terrible, it doesn't automatically copy the addresses anymore. Each time it updates it gets worse. Disappointing, and not worth the money.
Very good app
Considering that in china many websites are so slow or forbidden, this app really helps you in finding places in shanghai! Well done!
Updates take too long to load
The previous version of the app was much better. If I'd tried this one I would not have updated. You could look up things quickly when offline but this one takes forever to load. Better to just go to their website and download other apps for the city.
Gordon
Very useful. You need this app for taxi cards. Get location and take a screen shot so you don't need wifi or roaming full time
Updated and Accurate
This is a great app and a must have for a English speaking person in Shanghai. Almost always accurate and updated. As long your phone is charged and has data, you can explore Shanghai on your own with ease.
broken, do not buy
App is stuck on may listings, and doesn't provide any updates to events around town.
Works again after latest update
Excellent app. The taxi cards alone make it well worth the price. Makes getting around Shanghai a breeze.
Directory disappointment
I do not like the new Smart Shanghai app, particularly with respect to the directory. There is no way to filter both by, for example, restaurant and neighborhood or restaurant and feature. The restaurant directory is a key feature of Smart Shanghai. The new app is primarily helpful only to search a restaurant you already know, not to select a restaurant by area, cuisine, or feature.
NEEDS AN UPDATE
Needs to be updated and have a few bugs fixed. Mostly good for taxi cards for places you know are open.
Essential App for Expats
This app makes being up on current events and being able to get around Shanghai a breeze. I used to carry "cheat cards" for taxi drivers... but now that is completely unnecessary.
Do not buy
They haven't updated it in 7 months. It's broken and won't even update events anymore. Total garbage now.
best app for Shanghai dwellers ^^
hands down the best app if you're living in Shanghai. 100% helpful
Not as big an improvement as I'd hoped
Nice app, I've used this app for years but the update is missing two features that I used most often. First, the transportation section (Rides) is gone. To get the taxi company number now you have to look up "taxi" in the directory. Also, the Subway map seems to have been eliminated. Second, in the old app you could copy and paste the address (both in Chinese and English) and the phone number of the place. This was a great feature for organizing dinners, etc. with people, particularly if they are from out of town. As far as I Cantrell, this is gone. Very disappointed. Other features are better in this app but those were the most useful and they seem to be gone. Smart Shanghai needs to bring these back...
Very good until it stopped working
In the 1 day that I used the app, very happy. But now it just locks while loading - some programme bug I guess? So, whoever is supposed to be fixing it please could you do so ASAP, you've got my money so please give me the promised service.
Useful Directory
Always a useful feature to have all venues available on your iphone without internet connection.
Not up to date info..
The info is not up to date. I found venues closed and new places that I cannot find on this app. I live in SH and this app should be FREE. What a waste of money.
ABOUT TIME !
Endlich das langerwartete update !...you need to run 3.2 though to get it to work. I run 3.1.3 and am shut outof this useful little tool. BAD programming I say. Save the money
Sad face
Doesn't work after I updated it 😥. Fix please!!
Great app, catastrophic update
This app was a lifesaver when I first moved to Shanghai, I would have been literally and figuratively lost without it. Unfortunately, the recent update corrupted some of the taxi cards and now the app has stopped working completely. This is a great app, I just hope they get a fix out quickly!
Great!
It's really comprehensive
Used to be good
This App used to be great survival tool in Shanghai, until they added the live update feature. For me the taxi card was the only incentive to ever own this app. If I am the developer I would go back to making the app support offline mode first (it's a mobile app. after all and internet doesn't work so well in this city) Based on all the comments below doesn't seem like the developer is taking any user feedback into consideration though.
Great ap. Easy to use. Convenient
I like the search tool split in three sections. what, where, price. got nice metro map, restaurants and bars maps, with address to read and in Chinese. they should in fact update but also add some more stuff in their search tool greatly satisfied!
Glad to see it's not only me - sorta
WTF? As stated before, all venues disappeared. No hotel cards, no value. Give me my money back now
Meh. Not what I expected. Specially for $6.
OK so it's got the venue reviews from the website, fine. Great even. But for $6, Massive Gaps: GPS integration! I can't believe it doesn't do a "stuff near me". Amazing Integrated MAPPING! Smart Shanghai has for a long time had some of the best mapping of restaurants/bars/etc. available. The fact that there's not their own good mapping is shocking. The Google Maps click is very minimal functionality (and note other comments about addresses not being found if spelling is not right). Why can't I see a map of where I am with all the venues they list marked on it? My emoticon for this app is Mr. Frowny Face.
Makes Shanghai Easier
Finally this app is for free, and it's great for finding the latest restaurants and events, as well as addresses to practically anywhere you'd want to get to. The most useful Shanghai-specific app out there by far.
Worthless CrApp
Could be a great app...if it ever worked when you needed it to. Freezes during update daily. Expensive and poorly designed. Guess I should have expected something shoddy to be made in china. Smart Shanghai??? More like Dumb Shanghai.
Excellent, a real savior for non-Chinese speakers
The Chinese-language address cards alone are worth the app and have saved me several times a day when taking a cab; it also comes with a slew of up-to-date recommendations for bars and restaurants, excellent for newcomers who don't speak the language and are not sure where to go. Highly recommended over Hi Shanghai Taxi, which has led me astray several times.
Crashing
Wonderful app until it stopped being capable of even opening anymore
Nice app, but make sure address is written with rd, not lu
Nice app, very handy in Shanghai, but please note: if you have an address that ends with lu and not rd, it will not be found on a map. Please fix that.
SmartShanghai FAQ
- Is SmartShanghai free?
- Yes. The app is free, in all 175 countries it sells in, and it sells nothing inside it.
- Does SmartShanghai have a free trial?
- No. None of its offers (US) come with a free trial.
- What are the best alternatives to SmartShanghai?
- MetroMan China (4.8 from 108,961 reviews, premium from $0.99), MetroMan Shanghai (4.8 from 48,079 reviews, premium from $0.99) and MetroMan Beijing (4.8 from 8,755 reviews, premium from $0.99).
SmartShanghai download
Last updated 3 months ago.
SmartShanghai sells in 175 countries. It was released 16 years and 8 months ago, on 5 Feb 2010. It holds a 4.7 rating from 3,529 reviews.
Supports 1 language: English.
How much does SmartShanghai make?
Third-party estimates for the last 30 days, worldwide — not the store's own figures, which Apple publishes for nobody.