Good to know. Since the Houston consulate happens to be my "home" consulate, I obviously haven't encountered any issues there. But, I can tell you that DC doesn't seem to care much about jurisdiction (e.g. I've talked with couriers there that are getting visas for customers from all over the US).

thats fine, I am just trying to find out the best service to use for the money. If the 2 of us can't use the same one thats ok, but if we can thats great

Aren't all visa service fees per person? I can't recall even seeing a discount on the express mailing or courier service fees when two apply together. Maybe legally they must send each passport separately to its "owner."

OTOH, if you use a visa service that has offices in various locations, at least you could save some time on reading their instructions carefully and maybe getting confused by two procedures that could be a bit different.

yeah definitely, but some of these visa processing companies can work with all of the consulates. Some of them are specific to certain regions. Im just looking to (safely) save some money

My impression is that the visa service agencies that work with all of the Chinese consulates have some sort of an office in each city with a Chinese consulate. You send your passport and other stuff to the office near the consulate that will be used. Otherwise, you just waste time and increase the risk of things being lost if you sent your stuff to one office and then they send it to another city for the actual visa from the consulate.

An example is that there's a sort of travel agency in the Minneapolis suburbs that apparently specializes in China, including specialized tours, and advertises China visa services. I asked and, sure enough, the way they do visas is to send the materials to some other visa service office in Chicago. As a result, all of their visa processing times are correspondingly longer. No thanks!

http://www.mychinavisa.com/tourist.php

While it doesn't say the FedEx fee is per mailing it was when we used them a few years ago. Two passports, one FedEx fee.

I just got an 'M' visa with a travel letter sponsored by my employer. It is a 10-year, multiple entry visa with 60 day maximum stay length.

My trip to China may ultimately end up being cancelled. If so, am I allowed to travel on this same M visa for leisure, or will I need to re-apply for an 'L' visa in that case?

Just check off the "business" box on the arrival card each time; a single Starbucks conversation that broaches upon "business" topics meets the threshold. This is a complete non-issue.

It works the same when BaiJu replaces Starbucks.
Just check the business box in the entry form. I have never placed 20 questions with Chinese border officers unlike CBSA and CBP.

I had several visas for pleasure travel. I always checked the "holiday" box. No issue.

Agree, non-issue. If you possess an M visa, on the arrival card check the Business box and if you possess an L visa, check the Tourism box. Even if that specific visit is for the opposite purpose, or you are mixing activities on the same trip. Similarly, if you possess an S or a Q visa, check the Family Visit box regardless of what other activities you might be doing during your stay in China. Don't rock the boat, don't give the Chinese incongruent data points.

Well said.^

Made a mistake in my post above (missing words).
To be more clear, over a period of 3 years I had business visas and only traveled to China for pleasure (probably 12 to 15 times) and always checked the "holiday" box. I don't think that they care.

Aren't most trips to China a mixture of business and tourism?

Most are I guess. But I have business visas for 3 years and not once traveled for business. Was never an issue.