Ranking on Top Search Engines in China: The Ultimate Guide

top ranking search engines in China
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SEO (search engine optimization) already stands out for a company that seeks word visibility anywhere. All website platforms, search engines, and social media create quite a large number of competitors. Therefore, the problem of the Chinese language search engines is urging companies to obtain the leading position in Chinese search engines by ranking above if they want to appear at the top. Yet China’s market can be opened to savvy businesses provided that the right knowledge and marketing tactics are in place, such as visibility and outreach.

In this article, we will explore the top search engines in China. We will see the features of these search engines. You will also learn the advantages of these Chinese search engines. Here is a list of 8 top search engines in China: 

  • Baidu
  • Sogou
  • Youdao
  • Bing
  • Jike
  • Shenma
  • Haosou
  • China so 

As China is the world’s largest consumer market, 78% of 989 million internet users depend on these search engines to find and buy products and services. These search engines serve as incentives for carving up a higher standing of the country as the highest spender. Here, we describe some of the more famous Chinese search engines.

Top 8 Search Engines in China in 2024

Baidu

Baidu is the number 1 search engine in China.  It offers various services, such as web search, image search, video search, and others.

The search engine has more than 500 million monthly active users. It is furnished both for iOS and Android. It goes along with AI and Machine Learning and is a perfect fit for personalized search results. Baidu is a powerful internet search engine and web services company. Baidu, a local search engine, produces the results principally in simplified Chinese. It also is closer to local Chinese websites, which is more convenient.

baidu search

China’s most popular search engine offers the most diverse search and services, such as maps, news, cloud storage, and music. Baidu works to provide a top-notch and fair platform for people to seek what they want to look for on the Internet.

Sogou

Sogou is a search engine in second place in China. It is famous for its language input mode, which facilitates typing Chinese characters.

Sogou is a top search engine in China that helps users search quickly and accurately. It provides a variety of functions and services customized for Chinese internet users. It serves more than 10 billion web pages. Sogou also applies advanced AI algorithms that enable it to deliver better search outcomes. Therefore, it can do lots of things.

Youdao 

Youdao is a division of a Chinese online technology company called NetEase.  It functions as an online education tool rather than as a common search engine you would expect. It enables users to check websites, images, news, etc., and another important thing–enter information in Chinese.

youdao search engines

Youdao will translate Chinese Mandarin into more than 20 languages and transcribe the English subtitles into Mandarin. It is the largest translation tool and online dictionary in PRC, offering word pairing and analysis of long sentences. It is mainly used by individuals who are students and those from the higher income group who are appreciative of foreign companies who are looking for chances to sell their international goods into China.

Bing

Bing, the search engine, is quite popular among Chinese internet users. It is available in domestic and international versions. The international service search result page might bring up several results in English, so it may also prove to be a successful partner for users who need to speak English at the destination. Bing receives a portion of the Windows user base from Microsoft.

This provides users a full-blown search experience where relevant and diverse multimedia content results are served. The Bing search engine offers various features and mechanics for better search experience and usability. In Bing advanced, the search engine uses complicated algorithms to understand the user’s goal and to show more appropriate and relevant results.

It has advanced image and video search functions that enhance the quick and easy sourcing of 2-dimensional content. This search engine tends to provide the answer directly in the search engine results, so users don’t need to click a specific webpage to learn more information.

Jike 

Jike is a well-known search engine in China. It gives people a fast and dependable option to look for information or resources online. It strives to offer top-quality search results that can meet Chinese users’ needs.

Jike provides sophisticated search options, such as web search, news search, image search, video search, and others. Moreover, it provides real-time updates about search results and trending topics, helping users always have access to the latest information. People can access media of all kinds, such as images, videos, music, etc.

jike search

By employing professional natural language processing techniques, Jike can better understand and process user queries. The search engine has a clear and straightforward interface; users can easily navigate and find what they need there.

Shenma

Shenma is a Chinese mobile search engine. It is a product of Alibaba and can be used on mobile devices. It shows relevant search results and provides users with different services, such as news, pictures, videos, and maps.

Shenma emphasizes mobile search and its integration with the Alibaba e-commerce platform. The search results also contain direct links to product pages on Tmall and Taobao, Alibaba’s two most popular shopping platforms. Customers can easily buy products by just clicking on the search results.

Shenma is also one of the most used platforms for app discovery. Its app store is also provided, and the search results usually include the apps associated with the user’s search query. Therefore, it is easy for users to search and add new applications.

Haosou

Haosou, previously known as Qihoo 360 Search and s.com, is a dominant search engine in China. It was published in 2012, and it has rapidly drawn attention due to its security provision and integration with the renowned Qihoo 360 security software.

Having Qihoo 360, the biggest Chinese internet provider, as its major investor and setting itself as the default browser on most Chinese computers gives Haosou the upper hand regarding its market size.

haosou search

According to most Chinese companies, Haosua is considered the gold standard of security. Websites are ranked based on their authority and trustworthiness, so it is likely that more authoritative sites are ranked higher. The site has about 3 million active users.

China So

China So is a search engine commonly used in China to provide a diversified collection of search services. The search engine offers a localized search identical to the Chinese market.

Hence, China So has a large consumer base, making it one of the country’s most commonly used search engines. It allows users to work with both simple and traditional Chinese characters, which means that they can search in the language they prefer. The China So directory covers full web search capabilities and indexing websites and content.

China So provides an image search function that allows users to search images based on keywords or uploaded images. ChinaSo is a one-stop destination news website where people can find the latest news articles from various sources everywhere.

Benefits of Using Top Search Engines in China

There are several advantages to using Chinese search engines. Some of these benefits are: 

Better User Experience

An efficient China SEO plays a key role in promoting your website and enhancing user experience. SEO is all about website loading speed, the use of correct keywords, and making sure the site is designed for all mobile devices.

Users will be attracted more to your site, which means you will get longer sessions, which in turn will increase conversion rates. Moreover, by making your website design faster and more user-friendly, users will be able to access the desired information faster and more effectively. This will make the process more effective in easing their frustration and allow users to get what they need with less hassle of scanning through irrelevant content.

Cost Saver

Investing in SEO in China can be a way past saving money in time. With the accompanying costs of setting up and executing an efficient SEO tactic, these costs are still much lower when compared to the cost of other advertising methods, such as TV or print ads. Aside from that, SEO does not require a sizable initial investment and can be done on a modest budget.

The moment you have put your SEO effort on track, it will keep working for you in the background, and you will continue to get more visitors and customers to your site without incurring more expenditures. However, as time passes, your SEO activities will also become quite effective as search engines become increasingly advanced and users become super smart while doing online searches.

Improved Brand Recognition

Investing in SEO specific to the Chinese market and maximizing the user response in that market can give you a step up as a brand and develop trust for your site. Therefore, since your website will emerge in search engines if someone searches for the same topic, more customers will find your site.

It would also result in improved website ratings and more visitors, which would enhance the local market’s perception of your brand.

More so, think of your Chinese consumers through personalized content generation, such as product descriptions or Chinese versions of your service offers. Hence, they will be in a position to keep your brand in mind, and by doing so, an association is created between your brand and their good experience in their calculation.

Increased Profits for Investors 

Applying the SEO techniques learned from Chinese SEO experts and optimizing your website for the local area will make strides in your website ranking and generate higher organic traffic.

It will allow you to let more new customers discover your products or services, which will finally bring more sales and revenue. Also, people with a positive experience on your website are more likely to become repeat customers or refer it to others.

Furthermore, targeting particular keywords and specific phrases used by Chinese consumers posits the fulfillment of the needs of the people who end up on your website. This will assist you in attaining high conversion rates and growing your business in the end.

How Can SEO in China Be Used to Gain Profits?

Keyword Research

Chinese SEO requires research into the Chinese language and its cultural features before the campaign launch. In addition to what Chinese users would search for related information in their language, the focus has to be given to the most frequently used Chinese keyword.

This connection is similar to any other SEO research, except that it means analyzing the competition within a particular field or market to find holes that can be filled by the campaign to take advantage of this opportunity.

Optimising Website Content

Once relevant keywords have been chosen, optimizing the website content becomes a matter of the correct context and prominence of the used keywords. It is just another term for the same thing; therefore, content should be optimized and edited for websites of different types to make it more relevant to the searcher’s queries.

Link Building

Link-building features are among the most important parts of SEO in any country, but no other country requires them to be as critical as Chinese websites. Search engines retrieve links and use them to decide a website’s relevance. A website returns to search engines highly and more appropriately than texts.

Local web pages using anchor texts with anchor will help to associate a website with other related web pages. The link building strategy can be implied differently, like publishing high-quality content on various site directories and participating in marketing activities through social media networks and guest posting on relevant blogs.

Localization

The website should be modified to meet the needs of the desired audience and adapt to the Chinese market. If it would be suitable, they could add Chinese too. That Chinese website is now accessed overseas, which requires that webpages be carefully refined so that the structure is understood simply and completely by Chinese users.

Such a thing could assume the completion of translating all text into Mandarin or Cantonese, where applicable, of replacing all the currency signs with the local counterparts. Taking Local SEO into consideration should also be important. 

Monitoring and Reporting

It’s erroneous to just do it and forget it. The website must be monitored, and the progress of changes made must also be tracked. This task can be carried out by simply having the page rankings, load speeds, indexing rates, keywords, and so on tested regularly.

FAQs

What is China’s search engine market worth?

China’s search engine market virtually sets the tone for the world to follow, with over one billion users worth billions of dollars. We can name several search engines available in China, but the most popular ones are Baidu, Sogou, and Bing. Baidu claimed more than 70% of the market share, while Sogou and Bing each got about 10%.

Are Chinese search engines monopolized by Google?

The global search engine market is probably monopolized by Google. However, China is in great contrast to this, dominated by local Chinese search engines. Generally, this is still a leading position of Baidu, while the others are all becoming bigger and bigger.

What is China’s top search engine?

Baidu is China’s most popular search engine and can be compared to Google in the Western world. 

Is Google banned in China?

Google services are not completely banned in China. However, access to them may be restricted in some places.

Conclusion

In short, China has a remarkably huge population, and its online realm is expanding rapidly. The Chinese market has made the situation even more competitive among search engines since it was reported that there are almost 940 million internet users in China. Domestic search engines like Baidu, Sogou, and 360 Search have a competitive advantage due to their leading position in the market.

In the last few years, Baidu has unquestionably become the most commonly used search engine in China, and these days, it serves more than 70% of the whole search engine market. Although Baidu holds the chief role, other search engines have begun to appear, and the rivalry has soaked in, with the competition expected to get furious in the coming times.

It should not be forgotten that SEO in China is an evolving field that necessitates hands-on practice. However, do not count on the methods; there are no guarantees, but you can get on the right track with the right tips. By staying devoted and attending more conferences on understanding domestic search engine optimization in China, it is hoped that you could achieve higher rankings and greater exposure in the Chinese search engine market.

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