Originally Posted by mcjava
Not sure if this has been noted, but US passports are now eligible for one year multiple entry tourist visas (M). When you consider all the hassles of getting a China visa and the possibility of going in and out during one trip, to me the multiple (now that it is easily available) is the way to go. Before when you only could get single or double entry M visas or jump through hoops to get business F visas, I ended up getting singles/doubles a lot (they suck up pages in your passport like crazy!).
i've never heard about the m visas you speak of, but l, f, x, and z all qualify for mulitple entries for up to 2 years (or 5, if you do it right).
in any case, you should always try to get the best visa they'll offer you, even if it costs more money because you can do better with each successive application.