What time do 12306 tickets go on sale each day?

There is no single daily time. Each departure station has its own release minute between roughly 08:00 and 18:00 — for example Shanghai Hongqiao at 13:45, Hangzhou stations at 10:45, Tianjin stations around 16:00–16:15. Check your station in the 12306 app under 出行向导 → 起售时间.

How many days in advance can I buy Chinese train tickets?

15 days, counting the current day. Tickets for 1 October 2026 went on sale 17 September; tickets for the 7 October return peak opened 23 September.

Why is my ticket sold out at the exact release moment?

Popular routes on holiday dates can exhaust the initial inventory within minutes of the drop. Submit the official waitlist (候补) right away — cancellations and added capacity flow to the queue fairly. Third-party booking apps have no priority over the queue, whatever they advertise.

Do foreigners use the same on-sale times on 12306?

Yes — passport accounts buy on the same presale calendar and station clocks as everyone else. Register and verify the passport as a passenger before the on-sale date so nothing blocks the purchase at the drop.

Can I change the on-sale time of my station?

No — the release minute belongs to the departure station and cannot be changed. What you can control is preparation: saved passengers, pre-filled orders, and being logged in several minutes early.

12306 On-Sale Times by Station: When Train Tickets Actually Drop

Short answer

12306 sells tickets 15 days ahead, and the moment they drop depends on the departure station, not the arrival. Stations release between 08:00 and 18:00 in batches — verified examples: Shanghai Hongqiao 13:45 (other Shanghai stations 14:45), Hangzhou East and most Hangzhou stations 10:45, Tianjin stations 16:00–16:15. Look up your exact station in the 12306 app under 出行向导 → 起售时间, then be ready with passenger details saved a few minutes before your station's moment.

The rule, then the clock

Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu and every other major hub has its own moment in the same 08:00–18:00 band. Rather than trusting a cached table — stations occasionally adjust — check the authoritative source per station.

Departure station	On-sale time	Verified
Shanghai Hongqiao (上海虹桥)	13:45	spring 2026, via state-media ticketing guide
Shanghai, Shanghai South, Songjiang, other Shanghai stations	14:45	spring 2026, same source
Hangzhou East / Hangzhou / Hangzhou South / Hangzhou West	10:45	spring 2026, Hangzhou government ticketing notice
Fuyang, Tonglu, Jiande and other county stations under Hangzhou	10:30	same notice
Tianjin, Tianjin West, Tianjin North	16:15	spring 2026, Tianjin government ticketing notice
Tianjin South, Binhai, Binhai West	16:00	same notice

Looking up any station's on-sale time in 30 seconds

Open the 12306 app → 出行向导 (Travel Guide) → 起售时间 (On-Sale Times).
Enter the departure station and a date; the app returns that station's exact release minute.
Set the same lookup for your return leg — the return departure station runs on its own clock.
Web users: the same lookup exists on 12306.cn under 出行向导.

Using the moment, not just knowing it

Save all passengers (passport details included) before the on-sale date — completing forms during the drop is how seats vanish.
Use 购票信息预填 (pre-fill) on the train list the day before: your order submits in one tap at the release minute.
Missed the first minute? Do not refresh blindly. Submit the official waitlist (候补) immediately — it keeps queueing for returned tickets and cancellations and outperforms every paid 'accelerator', which has no priority whatsoever.
Since 19 January 2026 a free correction refund exists: bought the wrong ticket? Cancel free within 30 minutes of payment if departure is 4+ hours away, once per person per day — useful for fixing a wrong date without paying the tiered refund fees.

Related guides

Where these matter

Official sources

Policies and booking channels change — check the official channel before you rely on it.