What is Dianping, and why does it matter to a Malaysian business?
Dianping (大众点评) is the app Chinese consumers use to find restaurants, read reviews and buy deals, at home and when they travel. Its parent company is Meituan (美团). For a Malaysian business it is where Chinese visitors, 4.66 million in 2025, and local Chinese diners choose where to go, and a verified listing also appears on Meituan.
What is Dianping used for?
Chinese consumers open the app before they decide where to eat or what to do: they search for restaurants, read real reviews and buy group-buy deals or vouchers. Beyond food, the platform covers leisure, beauty, hotels, family, shopping, fitness, healthcare and weddings. Dianping was founded in 2003.
Its parent company is Meituan. The two companies merged in October 2015 and both brands kept their own names. For a merchant, the practical point is that a verified business is also cross-listed on Meituan, with the same details, photos and deals: one setup, two platforms.
Why does Dianping matter to a Malaysian business?
Because Chinese visitors to Malaysia keep growing, and they check Dianping before they go out.
They search, read reviews and buy deals on Dianping before they fly; mutual visa-free entry has applied since 17 July 2025.
Once here, they open Dianping again to find places, read reviews and buy deals.
Up 15% year on year.
National Day 2025: daily active users +26%, new reviews +96%.
Overseas food orders +114% year on year.
From nearly 1.5 million travellers.
Malaysia received 4,661,878 Chinese arrivals in 2025, up 25.1% on 2024Tourism Malaysia, Malaysia Tourism Key Performance Indicators 2025, Sep 2026. Dianping's overseas sites now cover 3,000+ cities and draw 110M+ visits a yearChina Business Journal, 2026-09-01, quoting Li Tianlei, head of Dianping overseas.
The business is not only tourists. Dianping and Meituan are also widely used by the local Chinese-Malaysian community, and for F&B in Malaysia, local Chinese diners often match tourist volume.
What is the Dianping Must-Eat List, and how many Malaysian restaurants are on it?
The Must-Eat List (必吃榜) is Dianping's annual restaurant ranking. It is selected from real user reviews and accepts no manual nominations and no commercial partnerships, so no agency can buy a place for you. What a merchant can control is the quality of its page and its reviews.
The platform held the list's 10th-anniversary overseas ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on 26 August 2026. The 2026 list includes 45 Malaysian restaurants in 5 cities, 13 of them in Kuala Lumpur; Malacca and Semporna joined this year. Traffic to newly listed Malaysian merchants rose 91.5% after publicationShenzhen News, 2026-08-27.
In 2026 Kuala Lumpur also hosted the overseas ceremony of the Must-Visit List (必玩榜): 30 venues in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kota Kinabalu made it, and listed Malaysian venues saw traffic rise 109%Beijing News, 2026-09-01.
- Kuala Lumpur13
- MalaccaNew this year
- SempornaNew this year
How does a Malaysian business get listed on Dianping?
Getting listed takes four steps, and go-live is typically 2-4 weeks once materials are complete. MerchantNgin (赢商), Dianping's official partner in Malaysia, handles the Chinese-platform side; you supply your store materials. The service is annual, with a 1-year minimum.
- Free consult
We assess your store, your customer mix and the realistic opportunity, then recommend a plan.
WhatsApp or in person - Materials
Store information, photos and your menu or service list from a bilingual checklist, plus SSM registration and the owner's NRIC or passport; Dianping may ask for other verification documents.
Bilingual checklist - Setup and verification
Listing creation, official verification, storefront and banner design, photo gallery management, menu translation and signature highlights. Platform review takes 3-5 working days; go-live is typically 2-4 weeks once materials are complete.
Review: 3-5 working days - Promote and grow
CPC campaigns, group-buy deals and vouchers, and review management, optimised monthly with a data report.
Monthly data report
We serve merchants in person in the Klang Valley (KL + Selangor); for other areas, please ask us.
What can a Malaysian business do on Dianping?
From listing to growth, we handle the Chinese-platform side. Each service has its own page.
Once I am on Dianping, can people find my store on Meituan too?
Yes. Meituan is Dianping's parent company. Set your store up once on Dianping and Meituan shows the same details, photos and deals; there is no separate Meituan setup.
Reviews stay separate: a review stays in the app it was written in. Payment happens inside the platform too: the platform settles redeemed deals, so you never handle RMB yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Is Dianping or Meituan better for my business?
You do not have to choose. Meituan is Dianping's parent company, and a verified business is also cross-listed on Meituan, so one setup gives you a presence on both platforms; reviews are kept separately on each. Chinese consumers who find you on Dianping can find the same store on Meituan. For a Malaysian merchant, getting Dianping right covers both.
Is there an English version of Dianping?
Yes. The iOS app, listed on the App Store as Dianping: Discover Good Places, supports English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified and Traditional ChineseApple App Store Malaysia. Its main users read Chinese, though, so a merchant page works best with a Chinese store name, menu and description.
Can a Malaysian business list on Dianping?
Yes. Dianping has a Malaysia city page, and restaurants, leisure, beauty and retail businesses can all apply for an official verified merchant account (商户通); medical aesthetics needs verification first. Each store is still subject to the platform's review, and we assess yours in a free consultation. Through Dianping's official partner in Malaysia, go-live typically takes 2-4 weeks after complete materials, and the verified listing also appears on Meituan. The account is annual, with a 1-year minimum.
Can people in Malaysia sign up for Dianping with a +60 number?
Yes. Consumers in Malaysia can register for Dianping with a +60 phone number and use it to find places, read reviews and buy deals, so your page reaches local Chinese-Malaysian diners as well as visitors from China. Merchants do not need a Chinese number either: listing works with a Malaysian +60 number, with no China company or Chinese bank account.
Can a restaurant pay to get on the Dianping Must-Eat List?
No. The Must-Eat List is selected from real user reviews and accepts no manual nominations or commercial partnerships, so no agency can buy you a place. What a merchant can do is keep its page, food photos and review replies in good shape so real customers leave good reviews. The 2026 list includes 45 Malaysian restaurants in 5 cities.
How can a Malaysian restaurant reach Chinese tourists?
Start by being findable on Dianping, where Chinese travellers search for restaurants, read reviews and buy deals before they go out; overseas food searches passed 100 million in the past year. Get verified, write your menu and description in Chinese, upload store photos, list a group-buy deal or voucher and reply to reviews. Customers pay in the app, and the platform settles redeemed deals.
By industry: what fits your business?
F&BRestaurant on Dianping in Malaysia: how to reach Chinese diners
Beauty & SpaSpa or beauty salon in Malaysia: how to reach Chinese tourists on Dianping
LeisureLeisure business in Malaysia: how to reach Chinese tourists on Dianping
AttractionsTourist attractions in Malaysia: how Chinese visitors find you on Dianping
RetailRetail in Malaysia: how shops reach Chinese tourists on Dianping
IndustriesDianping for businesses in Malaysia: which industries fit?