I'm an American that has been working at an American company in China for the last year. I'm ethnically Chinese and can speak okay (HSK5 - HSK6) Chinese. Overa

I'm an American that has been working at an American company in China for the last year. I'm ethnically Chinese and can speak okay (HSK5 - HSK6) Chinese. Overall, it's been a negative experience but I don't regret at least giving it a shot. -Even in multinational companies people are in the office for much longer hours than in the west. However, a lot of that time is on wechat, super long lunches and who knows what. -My compensation is a bit more than half as much I was making in the US but my taxes and living costs are much much lower. I can save almost as much as I used to. If you get a job in China, make sure to really understand your pay structure and tax implication. Your taxes could either be super high or super low depending on the structure. -Pollution is awful. It's really oppressive some days and you just don't want to go outside. -Chinese ability is a must. Basically all my technical discussions are in Chinese. -The 差不多 (good enough) mentality is exhausting sometimes. Even in tier 1 cities, everything is falling apart and looks like crap up close. -I have a mix of foreigner and Chinese friends. When I first came here, I was super insistent on only hanging out with Chinese people to get the "real experience" but realistically as a westerner there is too much of a culture gap. Most Chinese people that I've met are very very focused on work and their income. -Chinese people are pretty nice individually when you get to know them, but it's a different story in public. Cutting in line, shoving their way, watching shows full volume on their phone in the subway, riding their bikes into you, etc... -Phone usage is crazy here. It seems like nearly everyone is glued to their phones at all times. -Dating is really easy (if you're a man). I haven't heard this mentioned in this thread yet, but it is a big reason why a lot of expats move to China. However, I would tread very carefully. I wouldn't recommend starting a serious relationship here unless you're in love with China and are in it for the long haul. Also, casual dating isn't very common here so girls get attached very quickly. If you're planning on just dating around, you'll feel awful eventually unless you're a sociopath. -Red tape everywhere. It seems difficult to do nearly everything, especially if you're a foreigner. I definitely wouldn't live in China for the long term, but it's been a pretty interesting experience. Do it for a year or two for the experience and then GTFO.