Baidu Advertising: Costs, Setup, and Pro Strategies for Success

Baidu advertising costs start from 6,600 RMB for a minimum deposit and can exceed 100,000 RMB per month in competitive industries. Overseas companies can now open a Baidu account without a legal entity in China.

Estimating the cost of Baidu advertising can be difficult for non-Chinese speakers, and Baidu is frequently changing its deposit prices. This guide breaks down the fees across three account setup routes (Baidu Official, Oxygen, and Baidu Hong Kong), daily and monthly ad spend, and additional costs like hosting and translation.

Baidu Account Set-Up Fees

While creating a Baidu account is technically free, the deposit amount significantly impacts the benefits you receive. There are three main channels for making deposits when setting up a Baidu account: Baidu Official Site, Oxygen, or the Baidu Hong Kong Office. The best option depends on your company's documentation and budget.

Baidu Official China

Once you qualify to open a Baidu advertising account with Baidu official China office, you must select a deposit amount and sign a contract with Baidu. Unlike Google, Baidu requires advertisers to maintain a balance in their accounts before launching ads.
The deposit table below is for any Chinese companies or overseas companies. We simplify the benefits associated with different deposit amounts, giving you a clear comparison of what each tier offers.

Note:
- Baidu charges a one-time 1,000 RMB service fee and an annual 600 RMB company verification fee, both deducted from your deposit.
- Official Baidu is required to use their designated translation agencies to do the required documentation translation, which usually takes 1,000-2,000 RMB, depending on the document's language.

Baidu Ads Deposit Options (RMB) - Overseas & Chinese Company | Official Baidu

Deposit	Annual Fee	Company Verify Fee	Coupon (After opening account)	Baidu Search Ads Coupon	Baidu Feed Ads Coupon	Total Account Balance
6,600	-1,000	-600	+600	+1,000	+1,300	7,900
10,000	-1,000	-600	+600	+1,500	+1,300	11,800
15,000	-1,000	-600	+600	+1,900	+1,300	17,200
20,000	-1,000	-600	+600	+2,400	+1,300	22,700
30,000	-1,000	-600	+600	+3,400	+1,300	33,700
40,000	-1,000	-600	+600	+4,600	+1,300	44,900
50,000	-1,000	-600	+600	+6,000	+1,300	56,300

Translation Fee (Overseas Company): 1,000 - 2,000 RMB

Oxygen - Baidu Agency

If you qualify to open a Baidu advertising account but prefer to avoid the 1,000–2,000 RMB fee for using Baidu's designated translation agency, you can work with Oxygen, a trusted Baidu agency. Oxygen allows you to use Google Translate for document translation, helping you save on costs.

Note: Oxygen waives the one-time 1,000 RMB account opening service fee, but an annual 600 RMB company verification fee still applies.

Baidu Ads Deposit Options (RMB) - Overseas Company | Oxygen

Deposit	Account Opening Service Fee	Company Verify Fee	Baidu Search Ads Coupon	Baidu Feed Ads Coupon	Total Account Balance
7,000	-1,000 (Waived)	-600	None	None	6,400
10,000	-1,000 (Waived)	-600	None	None	9,400
15,000	-1,000 (Waived)	-600	None	None	14,400
20,000	-1,000 (Waived)	-600	None	None	19,400
25,000	-1,000 (Waived)	-600	None	None	24,400

Baidu Hong Kong Office

If you prefer to pay Baidu directly while avoiding translation agency fees, you can opt for the Baidu Hong Kong Office. This option allows you to use Google Translate for document translation, reducing costs. However, unlike Official Baidu and Oxygen, which charge a one-time 1,000 RMB account service fee, Baidu Hong Kong imposes an annual account service fee of 1,500 RMB.

Note: Baidu Hong Kong charges an annual 1,500 RMB service fee and a 600 RMB annual company verification fee (waived for the first year). Both fees are deducted from your deposit.

Baidu Ads Deposit Options (RMB) - Overseas Company | Hong Kong Office

Deposit	Annual Fee	Company Verify Fee	Baidu Search Ads Coupon	Baidu Feed Ads Coupon	Total Account Balance
7,000	-1,500	-600 (Waived)	None	None	5,500
10,000	-1,500	-600 (Waived)	None	None	8,500
20,000	-1,500	-600 (Waived)	None	None	18,500
30,000	-1,500	-600 (Waived)	None	None	28,500

Minimum Deposit Package (RMB): Overseas Company (Baidu vs Oxygen vs Hong Kong)

The minimum deposit amount for opening a Baidu Ads account with an International Business Registration is RMB 7,000 with Oxygen or HK Baidu office, or RMB 6,600 with a mainland China Baidu office.

Cost item	Oxygen	Hong Kong Baidu	Mainland Official Baidu
Minimum Deposit	7,000	7,000	6,600
Annual Account Fee	0	-1,500	-1,000
Annual Company Verification Fee	-600	-600 (waived for the first year)	-600
Translation Fee	None	None	-1,000
Coupon (After opening account)	None	None	+600
Baidu Search Ads Coupon	None	None	+1,000
Baidu Feed Ads Coupon	None	None	+1,300
Total Current Assets	6,400	5,500	6,900

Master Baidu Advertising - 2025 Baidu Master Guide

Daily and Monthly Costs of Baidu Ads

When planning your Baidu ad budget, it's essential to factor in the daily ad costs. The minimum required spend for Baidu ads is 50 RMB per day, but just like Google Ads, highly competitive keywords cost more due to market demand. Your total budget will depend on the competitiveness of your industry and target keywords.

Below is an estimated monthly cost breakdown based on average daily spending in niche and high-demand industries.

Industry Type	Daily Budget (RMB)	Monthly Budget (RMB)
Niche	300 - 500	9,000 - 15,000
High-Demand	1,000 - 4,000	30,000 - 120,000

Additional Costs to Budget For

When planning a Baidu advertising campaign, it's important to factor in additional expenses beyond deposits and ad spend. These costs can significantly impact your overall budget and campaign success:

Website Hosting: Hosting your website locally in China is crucial for faster load times and compliance with local regulations. Many businesses choose Alibaba Cloud, which costs around 3,000 RMB per year. A locally hosted site enhances campaign performance and improves user experience for Chinese audiences.
Translation Fees: Since all ad content must be in Mandarin, professional translation services may be necessary. Costs typically range from 1,000–2,000 RMB, depending on the content's complexity and volume.
Agency Handling Fees: Managing a Baidu campaign can be challenging, especially as the platform operates entirely in Chinese. To learn more about this, take a look at our blog regarding finding the right Baidu agency to help with your marketing efforts in China. Many businesses hire specialised agencies to handle account setup, strategy, and optimisation. These agencies usually charge 10–20% of the ad budget as a service fee, along with a setup fee. However, most agencies require a minimum monthly ad spend of 100,000 RMB, making this option more suitable for larger companies looking to invest heavily in Baidu advertising. If you go this route, here are 6 things to check before hiring a China marketing agency.

The cost of Baidu advertising varies greatly depending on your strategy. With a minimum deposit and a focus on niche keywords, you can start with a budget of 6,600 RMB to test the water. However, for a successful campaign, it's essential to consider your industry competitiveness and be prepared to invest more for better results.

Want to learn more about Baidu advertising? We've compiled a Baidu Master Guide for you to learn everything you need to know about Baidu advertising.

Need expert guidance for advertising in China? Connect with our Baidu specialists to plan your next campaign in China.

FAQ on Baidu Advertising

Baidu restricts certain industries due to Chinese regulations, including gambling, medical products, auctions, pharmaceuticals, and more. If your business falls into one of these categories, you can consult our China marketing expert to explore alternative advertising platforms. For a full list of regulations, see our guide to China's advertising laws.

Yes, Baidu provides analytics tools like Baidu Tongji, which function similarly to Google Analytics. These tools help advertisers track performance metrics, audience engagement, and keyword effectiveness, allowing for better campaign optimisation.

Baidu's ad ranking system is based on a combination of bid price, ad quality score, and user engagement metrics. To secure premium placements, businesses should focus on high-quality, relevant ads with competitive bids.

No, all ad content must be in Mandarin to comply with Baidu's language requirements. To ensure effective and culturally appropriate ads, hiring a localisation expert is highly recommended.

Due to China's Great Firewall, overseas websites often experience slow load times in mainland China, which can lead to poor user experience and wasted ad spend. To optimise ad performance, businesses can use Baidu's landing page solution (Jimuyu) or host their website within China. Jimuyu offers lower setup costs, simpler functionality, and easier maintenance. Industries such as healthcare, business services, and logistics often require Baidu landing pages, while other industries may have more flexibility. For more detail on Jimuyu and recent policy changes, read our Baidu Jimuyu updates guide.

Hosting your website locally in China improves page load times and ensures reliable access within China's internet infrastructure. Faster load speeds enhance user experience, reduce bounce rates, and positively impact ad performance.

Baidu Advertising: Costs, Setup, and Pro Strategies for Success