Tools · For travellers
Hongbao (红包) amount guide
How much to put in a red envelope, by relation × occasion × region. Includes the lucky-number rules (8 good, 4 taboo) and the modern WeChat hongbao cap.
Universal rules: use crisp new bank-fresh notes (banks provide them in the weeks before Spring Festival); prefer amounts containing 8 or 6 (lucky); strictly avoid any number containing 4 (sounds like 'death'); at funerals, use a WHITE envelope with an ODD amount.
| Relation | Occasion | Tier-1 city (BJ/SH/GZ/SZ) | Other mainland cities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Own child (elementary school age) | Spring Festival | ¥200 – ¥600 | ¥100 – ¥300 |
| Own child (teen / young adult)Rises with age; peaks around university enrolment. | Spring Festival | ¥500 – ¥2,000 | ¥200 – ¥1,000 |
| Niece / nephew (young) | Spring Festival | ¥100 – ¥500 | ¥50 – ¥200 |
| Niece / nephew (teen / adult) | Spring Festival | ¥200 – ¥800 | ¥100 – ¥500 |
| Godchild (干女儿/干儿子) | Spring Festival | ¥200 – ¥1,000 | ¥100 – ¥500 |
| Parents (given by adult child)Increasingly common; a filial-piety signal. Amount typically rises with income. | Spring Festival | ¥1,000 – ¥5,000+ | ¥500 – ¥2,000 |
| Grandparents (given by adult grandchild) | Spring Festival | ¥500 – ¥2,000 | ¥200 – ¥800 |
| Friend's child (visiting their home)Kids of close friends only; not a general obligation. | Spring Festival | ¥100 – ¥300 | ¥50 – ¥200 |
| Employee (from boss)The 13th-month bonus is more formalised than a personal hongbao; often paid via payroll. | Chinese New Year bonus | One month's salary is typical | One month's salary is typical |
| Colleague / acquaintanceNot attending: send half. Attending with a plus-one: 1.5×. | Wedding | ¥500 – ¥800 | ¥200 – ¥500 |
| Friend (regular) | Wedding | ¥800 – ¥1,600 | ¥400 – ¥1,000 |
| Close friend / best-man / bridesmaid tierReciprocity applies — match what they gave at your wedding, adjusted for inflation. | Wedding | ¥1,600 – ¥3,000+ | ¥800 – ¥2,000 |
| Sibling / cousin | Wedding | ¥2,000 – ¥6,000 | ¥1,000 – ¥3,000 |
| Fujian / Wenzhou / Chaoshan weddingThese regions run notably higher than the national average — check with a local before deciding. | Wedding | ¥1,000 – ¥6,000+ | ¥1,000 – ¥6,000+ |
| Colleague's newborn (满月, 100-day) | Baby's first month | ¥200 – ¥600 | ¥100 – ¥300 |
| Close friend's newborn | Baby's first month | ¥500 – ¥1,600 | ¥300 – ¥800 |
| Milestone birthdays (16, 18, 60, 70, 80)Elderly milestone birthdays (60, 70, 80) call for larger amounts; 66-year-olds sometimes receive a special ¥66,666 or ¥6,666. | Birthday | ¥600 – ¥1,600+ | ¥300 – ¥800 |
| Regular adult birthday | Birthday | ¥200 – ¥800 | ¥100 – ¥400 |
| Child's birthday party | Birthday | ¥100 – ¥400 | ¥50 – ¥200 |
| Colleague / neighbour bereavementUse a WHITE envelope, never red. Amounts are always odd numbers (opposite of the even rule for hongbao). ¥101, ¥301, etc. | Funeral condolence (白包 báibāo) | ¥100 – ¥300 | ¥100 – ¥200 |
Numerology quick-reference
- Lucky: 8 (发 fā, prosperity), 6 (顺 shùn, smooth), 9 (久 jiǔ, longevity)
- Neutral / common: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7
- Taboo (avoid): 4 (死 sǐ, death). Never ¥400 / ¥4,000 / any amount containing 4.
- Slang trap: ¥250 = colloquial slang for 'idiot' — never use it.
FAQs
- How much hongbao do I give at a Chinese wedding?
- As a guest: ¥500–800 for a colleague or acquaintance in a tier-1 city, ¥800–1,600 for a regular friend, ¥1,600–3,000+ if you're in the bridal party. In smaller cities halve those numbers; in Fujian, Wenzhou, and Chaoshan they run notably higher. Reciprocity is the underlying rule — match what the couple gave (or would give) at your wedding. Attending with a plus-one: add ~50%. Not attending: send half the amount you would have brought.
- What are the lucky and unlucky hongbao amounts?
- Lucky: numbers containing 8 (八, bā — sounds like 发 fā, prosperity) and 6 (六, liù — smooth) are the strongest. ¥88, ¥168, ¥288, ¥666, ¥888, ¥1,668, ¥1,888 are all common wedding amounts. AVOID any number containing 4 (四, sì — sounds like 死 sǐ, death). ¥400, ¥440, ¥4,000 are strongly taboo. Also avoid ¥250 — colloquial slang for 'idiot'. Even numbers are preferred (except at funerals, where odd numbers are used).
- Is a WeChat digital hongbao the same as a physical red envelope?
- Yes — WeChat's 微信红包 (Wēixìn hóngbāo) is the standard channel for Spring Festival hongbao among Chinese under 40 today. The individual cap is ¥200 per envelope for non-friends (added-friend limits are higher). For amounts above the cap, use WeChat's transfer (转账) function instead — which is functionally equivalent and doesn't have the same limit. Group-chat hongbao 拼手气红包 are a party game rather than a serious gift channel; keep those small.
- Do I need to give hongbao if I'm a foreign guest at a Chinese wedding?
- Yes, if you accept the invitation you're expected to give one — foreigners aren't exempt from the reciprocity norm. Ask a Chinese friend of the couple for the appropriate amount; when in doubt, give slightly less than the local range but never nothing. If you're a distant colleague or acquaintance, ¥300–500 in a red envelope handed at the door is completely acceptable.
- Do Chinese employers still give Spring Festival hongbao?
- Some do — usually a symbolic amount (¥88, ¥168) handed out on the last work day before the holiday. The bigger practice is the 13th-month salary, formalised through payroll rather than a physical envelope. Some companies also do a WeChat group-chat 'grab' hongbao where the boss drops ¥1,000 into the group and staff race to grab a share.
- White envelope for a funeral — really?
- Yes, at Chinese funerals the equivalent gift is a white envelope (白包 báibāo) rather than red. Amounts follow the OPPOSITE numerological rules — odd numbers are used (never even), and the closing 1 in ¥101, ¥201, ¥301 signals that the death is a single, unrepeated event. Never give a funeral gift in a red envelope.
- How much do I give my own parents for Spring Festival?
- There's no fixed amount — it scales with your income and how much they need it. ¥500–2,000 is common in second-tier cities; ¥2,000–5,000+ in Beijing or Shanghai. Some children give a fixed monthly living-expenses transfer year-round instead of one large Spring Festival amount. The signal (regular filial support) matters more than the specific number.
Verified July 2026
Ranges reflect current mainland norms in 2026. Regional variance is real — coastal Fujian, Wenzhou, and Chaoshan trend notably higher than the national average.