Practice Chinese in Shanghai: Live Exchanges with Native Speakers
Practice Mandarin in Shanghai without the Line 2 commute. Group classes and 1-on-1 video exchanges with nativos, fitted around Shanghai work hours.
Create your free accountNo card needed. Exchanges between members are always free.
In Shanghai, most people trying to practice spoken Chinese are expats working in Jing'an, Xuhui or the Lujiazui financial district in Pudong, plus students around Hongqiao and the university clusters in Yangpu. The problem is never finding someone who speaks Chinese, it's finding thirty free minutes at the same time. Shanghai runs on long hours: 996 in tech, late closes in finance, and if you work in Pudong and your exchange partner lives in Puxi, Metro Line 2 alone can eat 45 minutes each way during rush hour.
The old fix was showing up at People's Square on a Sunday, where retirees have been running an English corner for decades, but that crowd wants to practice English with you, not help you with your tones. Cafes on Anfu Lu or Wukang Lu work for a one-off coffee chat, but they fall apart as a routine once someone's ayi cancels, a client call runs long, or it's raining and nobody wants to cross town.
Doing it by video removes the commute entirely. You do half an hour in Chinese with a native, half an hour in your language with them, from your desk in Lujiazui or your apartment near Jing'an Temple, no metro card needed and no meetup that quietly stops happening after the third rescheduling.
Words you will actually hear
| Here | Elsewhere | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 阿拉 (ala) | 我/我们 (wo/women) | Shanghainese for 'I' or 'we', used constantly by older locals even when speaking Mandarin |
| 侬好 (nong hao) | 你好 (ni hao) | Shanghainese greeting, 'hello', you'll hear it from shopkeepers in the old lanes |
| 弄堂 (longtang) | 胡同/巷子 (hutong/xiangzi) | the narrow Shanghai lane housing, like the ones around Tianzifang |
| 加班 (jiaban) | 加班 (same, but said constantly) | working overtime, the reason your Puxi exchange partner texts to reschedule at 7pm |
| 小笼包 (xiaolongbao) | 灌汤包 (guantangbao) elsewhere | Shanghai's soup dumplings, the local pronunciation and order matter to natives |
| 打车 (dache) | 叫车 (jiaoche) | to call a car/taxi, what everyone says when leaving Xintiandi late |
| 白领 (bailing) | 白领 (same term, but a real identity here) | white-collar worker, the demographic filling Jing'an's coworking spaces |
| 阿姨 (ayi) | 阿姨 (same, wider use) | used for domestic helpers and older women alike, a fixture of daily Shanghai life |
| 外滩 (Waitan) | 外滩 (same) | the Bund, said in every set of directions when meeting someone in Puxi |
| 地铁二号线 (ditie er hao xian) | N/A | Metro Line 2, the Pudong-Puxi line everyone complains about at rush hour |
Classes coming up
Times in your own time zone. This list changes every day.
Exchanges looking for a partner
How it works here
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Sign up and say your level
Two minutes. If you do not know your level, we place you in the first class.
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Pick a class or an exchange
Classes are led by a native teacher. An exchange is with another member: half the time in their language, half in yours.
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Join by video, nothing to install
From your phone or your computer. If you cannot make it, cancel and get your place back.
Questions about this
I work in Lujiazui until 7 or later most days, is there anyone free at that time?
Yes, exchanges run in the evening precisely because so many members here work in finance or tech with late hours. Video means you can do your half hour in Chinese from your desk before you even leave the office.
Do I need to meet up in person somewhere in Shanghai?
No, everything happens over video, which is the whole point given how spread out Shanghai is between Pudong and Puxi. You keep the routine going without factoring in Line 2 or traffic on the Yan'an elevated road.
My Mandarin is still basic, can I join the 1-on-1 exchanges or should I start with group classes?
Group classes with a native teacher are the better starting point if you can't yet hold a simple conversation, since the pace is built for that. Once you can string sentences together, the 1-on-1 exchanges work well because your partner adjusts to your level in real time.
How much does this cost compared to a private tutor here?
It depends on which format you pick, group classes or 1-on-1 exchanges, and the current plans are listed on the pricing page. It's generally lower than hiring a private Mandarin tutor in Shanghai, since you're also giving your own language in return during the exchanges.
Keep looking around
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A free account, a free first group class, and exchanges that never cost anything.
