China trip guide

Does Google work in China?

No, not on Chinese networks. Google Search, Gmail, Maps, Docs and Drive are blocked in mainland China, so you need a roaming eSIM on your phone or a VPN on Wi-Fi and a laptop. Before you fly, make sure Google can still check it’s you while you’re away.

Updated 4 Nov 2026

Fig. 01

What’s blocked, and where. GreatFire, which tests sites from inside mainland China, has recorded interference with Gmail since 2016.

What’s blocked

Google Search and Gmail are blocked in mainland China, and so are Maps, Docs, Drive, Calendar and Translate. GreatFire, which tests sites from inside mainland China, has recorded interference with Gmail since 2016.

The blocks apply on Chinese mobile and hotel networks: hotel Wi-Fi, café Wi-Fi and Chinese SIMs.

Don’t get locked out

When you sign in from a new place, Google may ask for an extra step to check it’s you. Sort that out at home:

1. Check your recovery phone and email. Google says to set up your recovery phone before you leave, keep it with you, and make sure it can still get text messages while you travel.
2. Stay signed in on your phone, and set up phone prompts before you go. Prompts need your phone to be online and reach Google, so on Chinese networks they only work with an eSIM that routes data outside China, or a VPN.
3. Save your backup codes. Google gives you 10, each one works once, and it suggests keeping them where you keep your passport.
4. Add an authenticator app, such as Google Authenticator. It gives you codes even when texts don’t arrive.

Fig. 02

Sort these out at home. Google may ask for an extra step when you sign in from a new place.

Keep your files at hand

1. Turn on offline access for Docs, Sheets and Slides at home: it needs Chrome or Edge and an internet connection.
2. Then mark the files you’ll need as available offline.
3. Keep copies of tickets and hotel bookings on your phone too.

Fig. 03

Keep your files at hand before you fly.

Where Tunnelz fits

Tunnelz is for the laptop on hotel Wi-Fi. On your Mac, Tunnelz sends Gmail, Docs and Drive through your own server, not shared with thousands, and the Smart route sends Chinese sites direct. If your server is ever blocked, Replace Server can set up a new one in minutes, as long as the app can reach Vultr. In China that may take eSIM data or another network (how).

Gmail, Docs and Drive
Go through your own server, not shared with thousands.
Chinese sites
Go direct, with the Smart route.

Fig. 04

Tunnelz on your Mac, on hotel Wi-Fi. Simplified. No route is promised to stay open.

Only have a phone? A roaming eSIM usually covers this today; Tunnelz for iPhone is coming.

On a Mac: a 10-day Trip Pass, not a yearly plan.

$29.99 + tax, one payment, nothing to cancel. Your own server, not shared with thousands.

Download Tunnelz for Mac

Tunnelz for Mac needs Apple silicon and macOS 14 or later. iPhone and iPad are coming to the App Store: get notified. Android and Windows: join the Android waitlist or the Windows waitlist.

Monthly $34.99 + tax and Yearly $199.99 + tax start with 3 days free. Every plan covers 2 devices and has a 30-day refund. Your server is billed to you by Vultr, about $5 a month.

Questions

Does Gmail work in China?

Not on Chinese networks, hotel Wi-Fi included. It can work on a roaming eSIM’s mobile data if the plan routes data outside mainland China, or through a VPN.

Will I get Google verification codes by text in China?

Only if your phone can still get texts on your home number. Backup codes and an authenticator app don’t need texts, so set one up before you fly.

Will Google Docs work offline in China?

Yes, for the files you make available offline before you go. Turn on offline access in Chrome or Edge while you’re still online, then mark the files you need.

Do I need a VPN for Gmail on my laptop?

On hotel Wi-Fi, yes: it’s a Chinese network, so the blocks apply. You can share your phone’s eSIM data with the laptop through Personal Hotspot if your plan allows it, but a laptop uses data fast.