You can now use Alipay at all Starbucks stores in China!

We have some exciting news for all you coffee fiends out there this Golden Week: never again will you be forced to carry your wallet with you to get your daily dose of caffeine!

Thanks to a new partnership between Alipay and Starbucks, you can now simply pay with your phone through Alipay's mobile payment app at all 2,800 Starbucks locations in China, as well as those in Macau, Malaysia and even some in Japanese airports.

Nowadays, 84 percent of Chinese people say that they feel comfortable leaving home without any cash in their wallet, as China has skipped right over credit cards and plunged straight into the mobile payment revolution with paying by phone becoming second nature to most.

Starbucks has grand ambitions in China of almost doubling its number of outlets in the country to 5,000 by 2021. To help in this effort, the international coffeehouse chain aligned itself with WeChat Pay last year and now has locked down an even more expansive agreement with Alipay.

To promote the use of its mobile payment app in Starbucks locations across the country, Alipay will be running a temporary promotion where customers who spend 50 yuan at Starbucks will receive a five yuan voucher to use upon their next visit.

Alipay is currently in the process of expanding abroad, following the trails set by the tens of millions of Chinese tourists who head overseas each year, hoping to help businesses connect with travelers from the mainland used to the convenience of mobile payments. The way that things are going, it looks like it won't be long before you'll be able to pay for your coffee with your phone anywhere you travel.

Recently, we paid a visit to Starbucks' flagship store in Shanghai to give paying with Alipay a whirl.

Watch below ▼
https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=u055770g386&width=500&height=375&auto=0