Nowadays, many people are considering buying products from Chinese stores. For saving some money on their purchases, or reselling them in their e-commerce or physical store at more expensive prices for making profits.
In today’s guide you’ll learn:
- How to choose the best China stores to buy online?
- Reveal the cheapest China stores (few foreign buyers knew)
- How to cooperate with Chinese suppliers?
- How to make the payment safely?
Without further ado, Let’s jump right in.
1, Alibaba
Alibaba.com is one of the China online stores that I most recommend, because it’s very easy and simple to use, from there you can find almost everything. Mainly focus on the B2B business.
You can easily register a buyer account on Alibaba, or just sign in with Facebook /Google+/ LinkedIn/ Twitter.
Trade Manager: online chat on Alibaba, you can communicate with China suppliers at any time. You can also connect with them via email, phone, WeChat, etc.
Payment way: Alibaba has a good channel for buyers and suppliers called Trade Assurance. It protects online orders when payment is made through Alibaba.com.
Multiple payment methods are supported, including credit/debit card, wire transfer- T/T, Western Union, etc., so you have the flexibility in choosing how to pay.
When payment is made through Alibaba.com, once the quality of the bulk goods you received is different from the sample sent by your supplier, you can ask for a refund.
Advantage:
- A wide range of products and suppliers; you can find almost everything you want
- Directly negotiations on Trademanager
- Payment insurance
Disadvantage:
- Need a minimum order quantity
- Difficult to distinguish the trader and manufacturers
Pro Tips: For small quantity orders, don’t spend too much time distinguishing the supplier type on Alibaba, focus on the product you need, try to get a better price with good quality.
Conclusion: it’s suitable for a small-middle business starter, the owner who wants to customize your products, experienced importer…all kinds of buyers who want to import from China.
More Reading: How to find reliable suppliers in Alibaba?
2, Made-in-China
Made-in-China.com: similar to Alibaba, it’s one B2B platform, but they only allow Chinese suppliers to be their members, to publish Made in China products.
For buyers, you can join and register your account for free, or with a quick sign in with Facebook. You can contact with China supplier by On-line chat or send an inquiry directly.
Payment way: Made-in-China not only serves as bridges for your inquiry but also served as a trusted third party. You can choose to make Payment via STS service (Secured Trading Services), they will only release your payment to China supplier as per your confirmation of the product quality and shipment. Besides, you can also discuss with your supplier the other payment way, something like L/C, T/T, D/P, PayPal, Western Union.
Advantage:
- Easier to verify suppliers, from Audit Profile
- Directly talk with the supplier online
- Mainly concentrated in Consumer
- goods like Apparel & Accessories, handicrafts, transportation, Industrial supplies like electronic, machinery
Disadvantage:
- Not too many options of suppliers, products
Request MOQ
Tips: if you buy branded or original products, you need to ask for the authorization documents or certificates from the supplier.
Conclusion: it’s more suitable for experienced buyers and importers
3, Global Source
GlobalSources.com is a B2B platform that serves buyers and suppliers online and offline. Unlike Alibaba, Made-in-China platform, they also offer service for suppliers like offline Exhibitions: the company organizes export sourcing shows in Hong Kong every April and October, they also provide Free Sourcing e-Magazines for buyers.
The suppliers of Global Source are generally big factories and large trading companies. It’s hard for small trading companies to enter the market because the cost is very high.
You can Create Your Account for free or just sign in with LinkedIn, and contact with suppliers using Online Chat or send Inquire.
Payment way: Global Sources only serve as a platform for your inquiry, so, you need to discuss with your supplier the payment way, something like L/C, T/T, D/P, PayPal, Western Union.
Advantage:
- Easy to find some leading suppliers
- Serves buyers and suppliers online and offline
- Feature industries: electronics and gifts
Disadvantage:
- High MOQ
- Sample charge is very high
Conclusion: it’s more suitable for big buyers and professional buyer and importers
4, AliExpress
AliExpress.com, the branch of Alibaba.com, mainly focuses on B2C business. It’s easy to register or quick access with all kinds of social accounts. My foreign friends told me, they can always buy much cheaper price products from AliExpress than buy in their own countries. It’s one of the most popular Chinese retail online stores for foreigner buyers.
Payment way: AliExpress’s payment method is flexible. You can pay as following way:
AliExpress provides Buyer Protection: they guarantee your purchases will be delivered on-time and as described, please check detail by click here.
Advantage:
- No minimum order quantity
- The shipping fee is free.
- Friendly to dropshipping
- No need to communicate with suppliers, you can buy directly on AliExpress, as easily as buying on Amazon.
Disadvantage:
- Shipment delay: For the cheap products, normally the package will be delivered via China Post or ePacket, and can’t reach buyers in time, especially during peak seasons (for example the Christmas month), many packages get stuck in Customs even more than one month.
Pro Tips:
1, If you want to buy a little big quantity (something like 100 pcs or more), try to discuss with China suppliers to get a discount. At the same time, you can find more suppliers from Alibaba.
2, On the website, will show the estimated delivery for reference. Check carefully where your package is shipped from: if the seller has an overseas warehouse in your country then the shipping time could be very fast; If the package is shipped from China and not by express delivery, you always need to wait a long time.
Conclusion: it’s suitable for people who love shopping or small business starter.
5, DHgate
Dhgate.com is a B2C platform both for wholesale and retail, which is very similar to AliExpress. You can join free with your account or just sign in with Facebook/Google+. You contact sellers via online chat.
Payment way: DHgate has a variety of payment methods. Buyers often use Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, or online bank transfer. They have buyer protection with Secure payments, guaranteed refunds and Escrow protection on every order.
Advantage:
- Feature products: electronic products and wedding dress
- No minimum order quantity
- Show the different prices for different quantities.
- No need to communicate with suppliers, you can buy directly
Disadvantage:
- The quality of the supplier is relatively low compared with Alibaba.
- The product range is not as huge as AliExpress
Tips: if you ordered high-value goods, express delivery is the better choice.
Conclusion: it’s another option of China stores for people who love shopping or small business starter, especially on electronic products and wedding dresses.
6, The BIG reveal: 1688.com
1688.com is the cheapest China online stores, but why few foreigners knew? Let’s continue reading:
Alibaba, AliExpress, 1688.com is created by the same person, MaYun.
1688.com, like Alibaba, is also a B2B platform for wholesale and dropshipping, but mainly focus on domestic business. Most suppliers in 1688.com only focus on the Chinese domestic market, and 95% of them don’t speak English. Buying from 1688.com is much cheaper than other platforms, but communication and the payment way are big challenges for foreign buyers. That’s why few foreigners knew about it.
If I told you the truth that many Alibaba/AliExpress traders, China domestic trading company or some agent, etc. when they get orders, they will always make the purchase order on 1688.com, do you still want to ignore this important website?
Advantage:
- Full category of products
- The best way to contact China real manufacturers
- The cheapest price for the same products
Disadvantage:
- Language barrier
- Payment security
Don’t worry here, I will show you the way how to cooperate well 1688.com suppliers:
You can use online translation or download some translate tools, for helping you communicate with 1688 suppliers, then you can get some first-hand information(like price, MOQ, delivery date, etc.). Meanwhile, you can cooperate with one China sourcing agent, most of them only charge a small service fee when the purchase order is confirmed, which you can find a lot from the website. They will help you import from China.
Conclusion: it’s a good option, for people who want to import products from China with the most reasonable price, suitable for small-middle businesses.
You can also learn all about www.1688.com in the following video.
Now It’s Your Turn
I really hope you enjoyed my guide for the 6 best CHINA stores to buy online.
Now I’d like to hear from you:
From today’s guide, which China store are you going to buy?
Do you still have other questions by buying from China's online store?
Or maybe you want to try other China stores.
Either way, let me know by leaving a comment below right now or contact us directly.
This information is useful to me. I thought that only Alibaba was available, but now it looks like I have a lot of extra options. Thank you, Claire!
You are welcome!:)