Religious site · SHANGHAI
Jade Buddha Temple
玉佛寺 · Yùfó Sì
About
Active urban Buddhist temple in central Shanghai. Famous for two life-size jade Buddhas brought from Burma in 1882.
Jade Buddha Temple was founded in 1882 specifically to house two jade Buddha statues brought from Burma by the monk Hui Gen after a pilgrimage. The seated Buddha, carved from a single piece of white jade, stands 1.95 metres tall and is dressed in a gem-studded robe; the reclining Buddha is smaller but equally fine. Both are displayed in an upper hall that requires a separate admission charge. The original temple on Jiangwan Road was destroyed during the upheaval of the Qing dynasty's collapse; the current complex on Anyuan Road was built between 1918 and 1928 in a style that draws on several classical Chinese Buddhist architectural traditions.
The temple is an active Rinzai Chan monastery, not a heritage site — monks live and practise here, and morning sutras are chanted in the main halls before the gates fully open to visitors. The Jade Buddha hall is the primary draw, but the Heavenly King Hall, the Grand Hall, and the Guanyin Pavilion each reward the additional time to walk through properly. The main courtyard is compact; the temple can feel crowded on weekends and Buddhist festival days, particularly Guanyin's birthday and Lunar New Year.
The in-house vegetarian restaurant on the ground floor serves lunch and is popular enough that a queue forms from around noon. Allow an hour to ninety minutes for the temple itself. It sits in a dense residential neighbourhood in Putuo District with few other tourist sites nearby; most visitors combine it with Jing'an Temple, a short metro ride south.
How to get there
Metro Line 7 or 13 to Jiangning Road.
When to visit
Weekday morning.
Other attractions in Shanghai
Itineraries featuring this site
- Shanghai weekend — 3 days in the city
3d · Three full days in Shanghai covering the Bund, French Concession, Yu Garden, Tianzifang and Pudong — the city's distinct neighbourhoods at a pace that leaves time for coffee and wandering.
- Beijing + Shanghai — 5-day first-timer classic
5d · Two of China's three great cities in five days: imperial Beijing followed by the modern skyline of Shanghai, linked by a quick domestic flight or overnight train.
- Solo female — 10 days in Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu
10d · Ten days across three cities chosen for safety, English-language accessibility and a good solo-travel atmosphere — with practical notes on accommodation, transport and navigating China as a solo woman.
- First-timer China — 14 days with Yunnan loop
14d · Two weeks covering the Beijing–Xi'an–Shanghai circuit plus a Yunnan extension through Kunming, Dali and Lijiang — the combination that most first-time visitors leave wishing they had done.
Other religious sites in China
- Big Wild Goose Pagoda大雁塔
Tang-dynasty Buddhist pagoda, built 652 CE to house the sutras brought back by Xuanzang. 64m, seven storeys, climbable.
- Donglin Temple (East Forest Monastery)东林寺
One of the most important Buddhist monasteries in Chinese history, founded in 386 CE at the foot of Mount Lu and considered the birthplace of Pure Land Buddhism in China.
- Drepung Monastery哲蚌寺
UNESCO · Once the largest monastery in the world (10,000+ monks). 8 km west of Lhasa. Active Gelugpa monastery; debating courtyard sessions in the afternoon.
- Famen Temple法门寺
1,700-year-old Buddhist temple 110 km west of Xi'an. The 1987 discovery of a finger relic of the Buddha in its underground crypt was a major archaeological event.
- Ganden Monastery甘丹寺
The mother monastery of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism, founded in 1409 by Tsongkhapa atop Wangbur Mountain 47 km east of Lhasa, offering sweeping plateau views and an important kora trail.
- Gyantse Kumbum Stupa江孜白居寺
A nine-storey mandala stupa built in 1427 containing 108 chapels on multiple floors, considered one of the finest examples of Tibetan religious architecture and the most important landmark in Gyantse.
- Hanging Temple悬空寺
1,500-year-old wooden temple complex pinned to the side of a 75m cliff at Mt Heng. Engineered with horizontal posts driven into the rock face.
- Jing'an Temple静安寺
Active Buddhist temple in Shanghai's central financial district, with golden-tiled roofs incongruously beside steel-and-glass towers.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does Jade Buddha Temple cost to visit?
- Adult entry to Jade Buddha Temple is ¥20, ¥10 for children. Plus ¥10 for the Jade Buddha hall.
- When is Jade Buddha Temple open?
- Jade Buddha Temple opening hours: 8am–5pm.
- How long do you need at Jade Buddha Temple?
- Allow 1–2 hours for Jade Buddha Temple. Add buffer time if you plan to visit at peak season or include nearby sights in the same trip.
- When is the best time to visit Jade Buddha Temple?
- Weekday morning.
- How do you get to Jade Buddha Temple?
- Metro Line 7 or 13 to Jiangning Road.
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