Shopping in China is the easy part. Paying is one scan of a QR code, delivery arrives in a day or two, and the sheer range of things you can buy is absurd. The hard part comes later, when the jacket is two sizes off or the gadget arrives dead. Then you are in after-sales territory — 售后 (shòuhòu) — and the interface, whether a chat window or a shopkeeper’s face, runs entirely in Chinese.
Returns in China are more ordinary than foreigners expect. Online platforms have built-in return windows, most physical shops accept exchanges within a few days with a receipt, and sellers know the drill. What stops people is not the policy. It is not knowing the four words that make the whole system click. This guide gives you those words, the platform flows behind them, and the sentences for talking to a human when the flow breaks down.
The Four Words That Open Every Door
- 退货 (tuìhuò, return goods) — send the item back. The verb pair is 退 tuì (return/refund) + 货 huò (goods).
- 退款 (tuìkuǎn, refund money) — get the money back. 款 kuǎn means funds.
- 换货 (huànhuò, exchange goods) — swap for another size or color. 换 huàn = change.
- 售后 (shòuhòu, after-sales service) — the whole support category: returns, repairs, warranties. On every app it appears as a button or menu entry with exactly these two characters.
Most real sentences are built from these plus one reason word:
- 不合适 (bù héshì, doesn’t fit / not suitable) — the everyday reason for clothes and shoes
- 质量有问题 (zhìliàng yǒu wèntí, there’s a quality problem)
- 跟图片不一样 (gēn túpiàn bù yíyàng, it doesn’t match the pictures)
- 发错货了 (fā cuò huò le, they shipped the wrong item)
- 坏了 (huài le, it’s broken / arrived damaged)
- 少了一个配件 (shǎo le yí ge pèijiàn, a part is missing)
In an Online Shop: Taobao, JD, and Friends
The platforms have formalized this into a tap-through flow, and the button labels are the vocabulary:
1. 我的订单 (wǒ de dìngdān, My Orders) — find the order.
2. 申请退款 / 售后 (shēnqǐng tuìkuǎn / shòuhòu, Apply for refund / After-sales) — the entry point.
3. Choose the type. This is where the vocabulary pays:
- 仅退款 (jǐn tuìkuǎn, refund only) — keep or discard the item, just get the money. Used when the seller agrees there’s a problem and the return shipping isn’t worth it for either side.
- 退货退款 (tuì huò tuì kuǎn, return and refund) — send it back, then get refunded. The standard route for wrong size or “not as described.”
- 换货 (huànhuò, exchange) — swap for a different variant.
4. 填写原因 (tiánxiě yuányīn, fill in the reason) — pick from the dropdown or type. Common free-text reasons are the phrases from the section above.
5. 寄回 / 上门取件 (jì huí / shàngmén qǔjiàn, send it back / door-to-door pickup) — most platforms generate a prepaid shipping label or let a courier come to you. You may see 退货运费 (tuìhuò yùnfèi, return shipping cost) — who pays depends on the reason and the seller’s 七天无理由 (qī tiān wú lǐyóu, seven-day no-reason return) policy.
6. 退款到账 (tuìkuǎn dào zhàng, refund arrives in your account) — usually within a day or two of the seller receiving the return.
Payment routes matter for where the money lands. If you paid by mobile payment — 微信支付 (Wēixìn zhīfù, WeChat Pay) or 支付宝 (Zhīfùbǎo, Alipay) — the refund returns to the same wallet, and you will see a 退款通知 (tuìkuǎn tōngzhī, refund notification). Bank card payments take a day or two longer. The currency is always the same one you spent: 人民币 (Rénmínbì, RMB), counted in 块 (kuài, colloquial yuan).
Timelines worth knowing before you start counting days: sellers must respond to an after-sales request within roughly 48 hours, and if the platform itself steps in, the decision usually comes within a few days. Watch the 退款进度 (tuìkuǎn jìndù, refund progress) screen rather than the chat for status.
Two platform notes worth knowing. First, 七天无理由退货 (qī tiān wú lǐyóu tuìhuò, seven-day no-reason return) is the consumer norm on Taobao/Tmall and JD for most goods — you pay return shipping in the no-reason case, sellers pay when the item was actually faulty. Second, Chinese e-commerce has been tightening and loosening 仅退款 rules; if a seller resists, the platform’s 小二 (xiǎo’èr, customer service agent) can step in — ask 客服介入 (kèfú jièrù, customer service intervention).
Talking to the Seller
The 旺旺 (Wangwang) chat or in-app message window is where returns are actually negotiated. Keep it short and factual:
- 你好，我收到的货有问题。 — Nǐ hǎo, wǒ shōudào de huò yǒu wèntí. — “Hi, there’s a problem with what I received.”
- 收到的时候就是坏的。 — Shōudào de shíhou jiù shì huài de. — “It was already broken when it arrived.”
- 尺码不合适，想退货。 — Chǐmǎ bù héshì, xiǎng tuìhuò. — “The size doesn’t fit, I’d like to return it.”
- 麻烦帮我办理退货退款。 — Máfan bāng wǒ bànlǐ tuìhuò tuìkuǎn. — “Please process a return and refund for me.” (麻烦 máfan softens any request; 办理 bànlǐ is the formal “process/handle.”)
- 运费谁出？ — Yùnfèi shéi chū? — “Who pays the shipping?”
- 什么时候能退款？ — Shénme shíhou néng tuìkuǎn? — “When will the refund come through?”
If the conversation stalls: 如果不能解决，我申请客服介入。 (Rúguǒ bù néng jiějué, wǒ shēnqǐng kèfú jièrù — “If we can’t resolve this, I’ll ask platform customer service to step in”). That sentence is not rude; it is the normal escalation, and it usually speeds things up.
A few negotiation extras when the seller pushes back:
- 这个价格和质量不匹配。 — Zhège jiàgé hé zhìliàng bù pǐpèi. — “The price and the quality don’t match.”
- 我买了才两天。 — Wǒ mǎi le cái liǎng tiān. — “I only bought it two days ago.” (才 cái adds the “only” tone.)
- 你们承诺七天无理由退货。 — Nǐmen chéngnuò qī tiān wú lǐyóu tuìhuò. — “You promised seven-day no-reason returns.” (承诺 chéngnuò, promise — quoting the store’s own policy is effective.)
Stay factual and the seller usually stays cooperative. Escalation sentences are for when they don’t.
In a Physical Shop
Brick-and-mortar returns need a receipt — 小票 (xiǎopiào, receipt) or 发票 (fāpiào, official invoice, which also matters for company expense claims). The conversation is a shorter version of the online one:
- 我想退这个。 — Wǒ xiǎng tuì zhège. — “I’d like to return this.”
- 能换一个吗？ — Néng huàn yí ge ma? — “Can I exchange it for another one?”
- 有小票，没穿过。 — Yǒu xiǎopiào, méi chuān guò. — “I have the receipt, it’s unworn.” (没穿过 méi chuān guò — literally “have not worn through” — signals the item is unused.)
- 能退钱吗？ — Néng tuì qián ma? — “Can I get my money back?”
Some shops will offer 代金券 (dàijīnquàn, store credit / voucher) instead of cash. If that is not what you want: 不好意思，我想退现金。 (Bù hǎoyìsi, wǒ xiǎng tuì xiànjīn — “Sorry, I’d prefer a cash refund”).
Words You Will See on Buttons and Forms
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 退款进度 | tuìkuǎn jìndù | refund progress/status |
| 退货地址 | tuìhuò dìzhǐ | return address |
| 物流单号 | wùliú dānhào | tracking number |
| 上传凭证 | shàngchuán píngzhèng | upload proof (photos) |
| 平台介入 | píngtái jièrù | platform intervenes |
| 鉴定 | jiàndìng | appraisal/authentication (for disputed quality) |
| 客服 | kèfú | customer service |
| 维修 | wéixiū | repair (warranty service) |
| 保质期 | bǎozhìqī | shelf life / expiration date |
上传凭证 is the one people miss: photograph the problem before you pack the item back. A photo of the broken zipper or the wrong color shortens any dispute from days to hours.
Where to Go From Here
Returns sit at the end of the shopping chain — pair them with the bargaining vocabulary for markets, and with phone calls if a seller asks you to confirm details by voice. The same 售后 window also handles 换货 for gifts and 保修 (bǎoxiū, warranty repairs) for electronics.
If you are learning Chinese partly for travel or a name or a brand, you will want tools as well as phrases. For personal and brand name checks in Chinese, try ChineseToolkit’s name checker and brand-name checker — they will tell you if the name you picked sounds natural, auspicious, or slightly unfortunate.
退货退款 is four characters and one confidence jump. Learn them before you need them — and if a return goes sideways and you need to phone the seller about it, the phone-call phrases will carry you the rest of the way.
