There are more than 20 bus lines inside the city, connecting all districts of Xining, as well as those long distance buses to Datong County and Ping'an County. It is necessary to take enough small changes to take bus for most buses are automatically selling tickets.

Big bus charges various fare of one yuan or two yuan, so make it clear before getting on. Mini-bus charges according to the distance you take. Since Xining is not a very big city, taxi is comparatively cheap. Most are Xiali with a basic rate starting from six yuan, and some Citroen starting from seven yuan. The minimum charging mileage for all the taxis is 3km before a rate range from 1.1 to 1.4 yuan.