Xiaohongshu Ads in Singapore: Juguang, Shutiao Boosting and Budgets
Short answer: XHS (小红书) has two paid tools, and Start Media helps Singapore businesses use both. Juguang (聚光) is the full ads platform for search and feed ads, and it is built for companies with a China-side setup or an authorised agency account. Shutiao (薯条) is the simpler in-app tool for boosting a single note. For most Singapore businesses that want local Chinese-speaking customers, the best return comes from strong organic notes and KOC visits first, then a small boost behind the notes that already work.
Key takeaways
Juguang (聚光) is Xiaohongshu's ads manager. It is in Chinese only and runs in a desktop browser.
Overseas companies usually open Juguang through an authorised cross-border agency, or through a China entity.
Agencies report a first top-up of around 5,000 RMB on Juguang, and cross-border agency packages often start at 10,000–20,000 RMB.
Shutiao (薯条) lets you boost one note from inside the app, with a much smaller budget.
Paid ads only amplify content. If a note does not get saves organically, paying to show it to more people rarely fixes that.
What is Juguang (聚光)?
Juguang is Xiaohongshu's self-serve advertising platform, similar to Meta Ads Manager. You create campaigns, set a budget, choose targeting and bid for placements. The main placements are:
Search ads: your note appears for chosen keywords in XHS search.
Feed ads: your note appears in the discovery feed for people who match your targeting.
Targeting options include interest tags, age, gender, device and keywords. Bidding can be manual cost per click (CPC), cost per thousand views (CPM), or smart bidding.
Can a Singapore business run Xiaohongshu ads?
Yes, but it takes more setup than Facebook or Google ads. Juguang checks advertisers against their business documents and bills in Chinese yuan. In practice, a Singapore company has three routes:
An authorised cross-border agency account. The agency opens the ad account for you and handles top-ups.
A China entity. If you already have a company, bank account and business licence in China, you can open Juguang directly.
Paid creator notes instead of ads. You pay or host creators to post about you. No ad account is needed.
Before opening any ad account, you need a verified professional account. Our Blue V verification guide explains the documents for a Singapore company.
What is Shutiao (薯条) note boosting?
Shutiao is a promotion tool inside the Xiaohongshu app. You pick a note you have already posted and pay to show it to more people, for example to gain more views or more profile visits. It is quick to set up and works with small budgets, which makes it useful for testing.
The best way to use it: wait a few days after posting, see which notes get the most saves and comments, then boost those. A boost works best on a note people already like.
How much do Xiaohongshu ads cost?
There is no official public price list. Costs depend on your category, keywords, targeting and competition. As a guide:
Juguang: agencies report a first top-up of around 5,000 RMB on the platform, and many cross-border agency packages start at 10,000–20,000 RMB.
Shutiao: small budgets per note, suitable for testing.
KOC store visits: at Start Media, campaigns start from SGD 2,000 plus the product or service you give creators. See our KOC marketing cost guide.
Ads, organic notes or KOCs: which should you start with?
For a restaurant, café, salon, clinic or shop in Singapore, we usually suggest this order:
Set up and verify the account, and post 6–15 search-friendly notes a month in native Chinese.
Add KOC store visits, so several local creators post about you and you appear under more search terms.
Boost the notes that already perform, using Shutiao or, at larger budgets, Juguang.
Paid ads are most useful when you have a clear offer, notes that already convert, and a budget to test for at least a few weeks. Starting with ads on an empty account usually wastes money, because new visitors find nothing to trust.
Common mistakes with Xiaohongshu ads
Running ads before the account has enough good notes.
Using hard-sell captions. XHS users trust notes that read like honest reviews.
Making absolute claims ("best", "No. 1") or medical claims. These are often rejected in review.
Judging results on clicks alone. Track saves, private messages and actual bookings.
How Start Media can help
Start Media is a Singapore Xiaohongshu agency founded in 2022 by Dawn, who has 8 years on XHS and has trained 1,000+ students. We build the organic base that makes paid promotion work: XHS account management from SGD 1,600–2,500 a month, KOC store visits with 100+ local creators, and boosting of the notes that perform best.
FAQ
What is Juguang (聚光)?
Juguang is Xiaohongshu's ads manager for search and feed ads. It is in Chinese only and runs in a desktop browser.
Can foreign companies advertise on Xiaohongshu?
Yes. Most foreign companies open an ad account through an authorised cross-border agency, or through their China entity if they have one.
What is the difference between Shutiao and Juguang?
Shutiao (薯条) boosts a single note from inside the app with a small budget. Juguang (聚光) is the full ads platform with campaigns, keyword targeting and bidding.
Do I need ads to succeed on Xiaohongshu?
No. Many Singapore businesses grow with organic notes and KOC store visits alone. Ads help most when you already have notes that perform well.
Not sure whether ads make sense for you yet? Get a free XHS account review.
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