Red envelopes (紅包, 红包): how much to give and why

A red envelope, 紅包 (红包) hóngbāo, is cash in a red paper sleeve, handed over at moments when a society wants to say "good luck" and "this relationship matters" at the same time. In Cantonese it is 利是 lai see, in Hokkien âng-pau, which is why you will see "lai see" in Hong Kong and "ang pow" in Malaysia and Singapore.

The amounts below are orientation, not a tariff. They differ by region, by generation and above all by how close you are to the person, and the safest method is always to ask a local friend of similar age what they are giving.

When are red envelopes given?

• Lunar New Year. The main season. Money for children is called 壓歲錢 (压岁钱) yāsuìqián.
• Weddings. Guests bring cash instead of presents. On the mainland this is 份子錢 (份子钱) fènziqián, in Taiwan usually 禮金 (礼金) lǐjīn.
• Births and birthdays. A baby's first month, 滿月 (满月) mǎnyuè, and the big birthdays of older relatives.
• Work. Bosses hand out envelopes on the first working day after the holiday, and year-end parties run on them. More on that below.
• Thanks. A small envelope for a helper at a wedding or a similar favour.

Funerals are the exception that proves the colour rule. Condolence money goes in a white envelope, 白包 báibāo, and red would be a serious mistake.

One correction to an older Kungfucius text: the Dragon Boat and Mid-Autumn festivals are not red envelope occasions. People exchange rice dumplings and mooncakes, which are harder to count.

Who gives red envelopes at Chinese New Year?

The basic direction is from older to younger and from senior to junior. Parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles give to children. In southern China and Hong Kong the dividing line is traditionally marriage: married people give, unmarried people receive, whatever their age.

Money also flows upwards. Working adults give envelopes to their parents and grandparents, and in Taiwan this is often the largest envelope of the year. Some traditional grandparents used to give grandsons more than granddaughters. That habit is fading, and nobody will miss it.

In Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, small envelopes also go to doormen, cleaners and security guards in the first days of the new year.

Red envelopes at work, and where they are a bad idea

Company year-end parties, 尾牙 wěiyá in Taiwan and 年會 (年会) niánhuì on the mainland, usually include a lucky draw, 抽獎 (抽奖) chōujiǎng, and cash envelopes are favourite prizes. Kungfucius's observation from mainland offices: managers are often expected to add a few envelopes out of their own pocket, say 800 yuan each. Foreign managers sometimes find this odd. Their teams find it odder when they do not. The toasting that follows is covered under drinking culture in China.

The same envelope becomes a problem when the receiver has power over you. Cash for officials, doctors or teachers is bribery, whatever the wrapping, and mainland rules forbid teachers and civil servants from accepting it. Thank a teacher with a card.

How much money do you put in a red envelope?

Lunar New Year

For Taiwan, a 2026 guide in the business magazine Manager Today suggests roughly:

Recipient	Typical amount (NT$)
Children of relatives and friends	200 to 1,200
Your own children	600 to 6,600, rising with age
Grandparents	3,600 to 6,000
Parents and parents-in-law	6,000 to 10,000, or 3,600 early in a career

On the mainland the spread between provinces is enormous. Surveys by finance apps regularly put Shanghai and Beijing at the top, with averages around 1,000 yuan per envelope in one 2021 survey, while Guangdong sits at the bottom. There, 利是 are handed to almost everyone and often hold only 5, 10 or 20 yuan. For children of acquaintances elsewhere on the mainland, Kungfucius has mostly seen 50 to 200 yuan, and more within the family.

Weddings

The old rule of thumb is that the envelope should at least cover your seat at the banquet, with something on top for the couple. That is why the venue matters as much as the friendship.

In Taiwan, a guide by the job platform 104 lists NT$1,600 to 2,600 for an acquaintance or colleague at an ordinary restaurant and NT$2,600 to 3,600 for a good friend, rising to 6,000 and more for five-star hotels and close relatives. If you cannot attend but want to send something, NT$1,200 to 2,000 is usual.

On the mainland, a survey by the finance app Wacai, reported by the South China Morning Post in 2017, found the going rate ranged from about 100 yuan in Guangdong and Yunnan to 1,000 in Shanghai and Zhejiang. Kungfucius's own rule in the big cities: 600 or 800 yuan is a respectable floor, 1,000 or more for a good friend, and several thousand within the family.

If money is tight

Give within your means. A smaller envelope with a warm sentence is fine, and people remember who came more than what was inside. It is also acceptable to decline the wedding of a distant contact politely. For family and close friends, turn up, even with a modest amount.

Lucky and unlucky amounts

• Even is good. Good things come in pairs, so amounts are built on even numbers: 200, 600, 1,200, 2,600.
• Never 4. 四 sì sounds like 死 sǐ, death. No 400, no 4,000, no 1,400.
• 8 is lucky, with one exception. It echoes 發 (发) fā, to prosper, so 800 or 888 yuan is a classic on the mainland. Taiwanese wedding guides, however, advise against 8 because it recalls 別 (别) bié, parting.
• 6 is smooth. 600, 666 and 6,600 are popular everywhere.
• Odd is for funerals. In Taiwan, condolence money is deliberately built on odd numbers: NT$1,100, 1,300, 1,500.
• The rules bend. On the mainland, 500 and 1,000 yuan are common wedding gifts, while stricter Taiwanese guides avoid plain 1,000 or 3,000 as odd.

The sound logic behind these numbers is explained in puns and homophones.

Etiquette for giving and receiving

• New notes. Use crisp, unfolded banknotes. Banks are crowded before the holiday for exactly this reason. No coins.
• Two hands. Give and receive with both hands, and say something. Phrases are in the table below.
• Do not open it in front of the giver. Put it away and look later.
• Refuse a little. Adults often protest once or twice before accepting. It is theatre, and everyone knows their lines.
• At a wedding, write your name on the envelope. You hand it over at the reception desk on arrival, where one or two trusted relatives or friends of the couple record each name and amount in a gift book, 禮金簿 (礼金簿) lǐjīnbù. At large banquets the couple may not know every guest, such as business partners of an uncle, so the list matters.
• Remember what you received. The gift book is also a ledger. When the giver marries or has a child, you return at least the same amount.

Envelopes are sold at stationery shops, supermarkets and convenience stores, and banks often give them away before the New Year. Avoid ones printed with last year's zodiac animal. The Chinese zodiac page tells you which one is current.

What to say

Occasion	Chinese	Pinyin	Meaning
New Year, to anyone	新年快樂 (新年快乐)	xīnnián kuàilè	Happy New Year
New Year, to anyone	恭喜發財 (恭喜发财)	gōngxǐ fācái	Congratulations and prosperity
New Year, to elders	祝您身體健康 (祝您身体健康)	zhù nín shēntǐ jiànkāng	Wishing you good health
New Year, to children	學業進步 (学业进步)	xuéyè jìnbù	Progress in your studies
Children, cheekily	紅包拿來 (红包拿来)	hóngbāo ná lái	Hand over the red envelope
Wedding	新婚快樂 (新婚快乐)	xīnhūn kuàilè	Happy wedding
Wedding	百年好合	bǎinián hǎohé	A hundred years of harmony
Handing over any envelope	一點心意 (一点心意)	yìdiǎn xīnyì	Just a small token
Receiving	謝謝 (谢谢)	xièxie	Thank you
Funeral	節哀順變 (节哀顺变)	jié'āi shùnbiàn	My condolences

Digital red envelopes

WeChat introduced its red envelope function for the Lunar New Year of 2014, and it changed the custom within two seasons. A single WeChat envelope holds at most 200 yuan. In group chats, the sender can split a sum into random shares, 拼手氣紅包 (拼手气红包) pīn shǒuqì hóngbāo, and whoever taps first gets a share: this is 搶紅包 (抢红包) qiǎng hóngbāo, "grabbing red envelopes". Amounts play with number puns, such as 6.66 or 8.88 yuan, or 5.20 for "I love you".

Alipay answered in 2016 with an annual game of collecting five "blessing" cards, 集五福 jí wǔ fú. In Taiwan, the LINE messenger has a red envelope function through LINE Pay Money, launched in December 2025, and both sides need a registered account.

Digital envelopes suit friends, colleagues and group fun. For grandparents, weddings and anything formal, paper still carries more respect.

What to do before your next invitation

1. Ask a local friend of your age what they are giving. Match it.
2. Check the amount against the list: even numbers, no 4, and no 8 for a Taiwanese wedding.
3. Get new notes from a bank a few days ahead.
4. Write your name on a wedding envelope, and learn one phrase from the table.
5. Note what you receive from whom. You will need it sooner than you think.