Zhangye, although not its old self, thriving commercially as a stopping point on the Silk Route, still boasts a large supply of shopping specialties. The city is widely recognised as a big producer of liquor/wine and the people of this region are major purchasers of these products. Varieties include Zhangye Rice Wine (Zhangye huangjiu), Zhangye Nan Wine (Zhangye nanjiu) and Siluchun Liquor (Siluchun baijiu).

Although not the best in China, the city is also good for those who are after a taste of Chinese medicine, and amazing miracle cures here include liquorice (Gancao), musk (Shexiang), pilose antler (Lurong) and Chinese ephedra (Mahuang, the plant that is used to make ephedrine). For those after something to take home there is one peculiar handicraft made here, Yeguang bei, a type of translucent stone cup that is made from the jade of a nearby mountain.