China is well-known as a place with the best wholesale terms for all popular products.
Due to the distant location from other world markets, Chinese suppliers had some issues with distribution channels.
However, modern technologies broke this wall and dozens of wholesale web platforms were created.
Some of them are more suitable for beginners, while others can be used only if you have certain knowledge.
We’ve tried to sort the top 10 of the best Chinese wholesale websites that provide the best prices and qualitative services to their customers.
Without further ado, let’s begin our tour.
Alibaba.com
Alibaba is one of the largest B2B eCommerce websites worldwide.
It can be considered not only as the first website that introduced the concept of wholesale eCommerce but also as the service which opened the doors of the Chinese factories to the worldwide market.
Before Alibaba was created, it was quite a complicated thing to search for and negotiate with the Chinese suppliers (due to various factors like language, huge distance, and so on).
So, Alibaba was the very first platform that solved these issues and allows you to deal with Chinese suppliers with the help of few clicks.
Alibaba doesn’t sell products itself: in practice, it is just a marketplace where buyers and sellers can meet each other and conclude agreements.
Sellers create special accounts, list their products, interact with buyers and proceed deals.
In short, Alibaba just acts as an intermediary between buyers and suppliers
It primarily facilitates the discovery of products, communication & payment.
Founded by Jack Ma in 1999, Alibaba group is headquartered at Hangzhou, China.
Buyer safety measures
One of the strongest features of Alibaba is buyer safety assurance.
In fact, this service has solved the biggest issue between Chinese suppliers and foreign buyers: lack of trust.
The following are the key mechanisms that are used to guarantee the buyer’s safety.
# 1. Trade assurance
Trade assurance is a concept wherein Alibaba assures buyers of timely and properly made delivery.
If the supplier doesn’t deliver goods on time, or if such goods have low quality, then Alibaba will refund your money.
If you want to be a part of this program, you have to apply for a trade assurance contract with the supplier.
To do so, follow the next simple steps:
- Contact the supplier to require the needed info about products.
- Receive quotes from such a supplier.
- Ask the supplier about the trade assurance order contract option.
- Accept the contract and make payment.
Before closing the deal, make sure that the contract mentions product specifications and stipulated delivery time.
If the supplier doesn’t carry out everything properly, you can report it to Alibaba customer support.
Maybe the best part of it is that the trade assurance service is totally free of charge.
# 2. Gold suppliers
Another reliable way to make your deals more secure is to make business only with so-called “Gold suppliers”.
A gold supplier is a premium membership program that comes at a cost to the suppliers.
A seller who wants to register as a Gold supplier needs to pay a membership fee to Alibaba.
After this, gold suppliers are checked and verified by Alibaba’s third-party inspectors.
So, it is impossible to become a gold supplier if you don’t have a legally registered business with a physical presence.
According to Alibaba’s analytical department, 85% of the buyers are willing to deal only with Gold suppliers.
# 3. Company profile metrics
If you open a supplier’s profile on Alibaba, you can see a few crucial metrics like:
- transaction level;
- buyer ratings and reviews;
- recent transactions;
- trade capacity;
- production capacity;
- R&D (research and development) capacity.
The above-mentioned indicators can help you to figure out if some seller is reliable or not.
As an example, if the production capacity doesn’t match your requirement then that supplier isn’t a long-term fit.
Another example: if the seller’s recent transactions don’t show any activity then it’s a sign that the seller isn’t popular.
# 4. Quality inspection service
Another means for the buyer’s protection is the independent quality inspection service.
Alibaba quality inspectors can visit each supplier or factory on your behalf and inspect the needed goods.
These inspections can be performed at various manufacturing stages like pre-production, during-production or post-production.
Please, keep in mind that this service comes at the cost of a buyer.
Thus, it is worth to apply for this service if you order a big amount of products.
Delivery time and modes
Speaking of the delivery time and transportation modes, it is entirely the seller’s choice.
As we already figured out, Alibaba is a marketplace so it doesn’t have direct control over sellers’ inventory and its movement.
However, Alibaba has its own logistics service that integrates with top players like DHL, FedEx, TNT, and so on.
Also, a real-time online tracking service is available.
Payment methods
Another great thing about Alibaba is a feature called secure payment.
According to the rules of this system, the supplier won’t receive your money until you confirm the delivery of products in proper condition.
Basically, secure payment feature functions as an escrow system.
However, you won’t be able to use this option if you pay the Alibaba supplier directly.
Instead of that, you can pay via Alibaba using its secure payment feature.
Alibaba supports various payment modes like:
- Credit card.
- T/T.
- e-Checking.
- Western Union.
- Pay Later.
- Boleto.
Product quality assurance
So, Alibaba assures goods quality with the help of the next services:
- trade assurance;
- inspection;
- secure payment.
Also, the transaction indicators are effective in judging the quality of products or suppliers.
Prices
Alibaba has an enormously large seller and buyer base, so there is a huge competition out there.
Therefore, sellers try their best to give the cheapest rates for their customers.
Also, Alibaba periodically runs offers and discounts for active customers.
Pros of Alibaba
- huge seller and product base;
- effective buyer safety measures;
- good prices;
- logistics and quality inspection support;
- bulk RFQ (Request for a quote) feature.
Cons of Alibaba
- not so user-friendly and quite an outdated interface;
- inaccurate product prices and descriptions;
- the complicated ordering process (browse, contact multiple sellers, require quotes and compare them, apply for the trade assurance, make a payment).
Aliexpress.com
While Alibaba focuses on huge wholesale and bulk orders, AliExpress was introduced to fulfill consumers’ and small wholesale orders.
In fact, AliExpress is considered as one of the world’s largest B2C and B2B portal.
It is owned by the Alibaba group as well.
AliExpress follows a special pricing structure: when you increase the quantity of the products, the price per unit would drop accordingly.
Also, buying from AliExpress is faster than in the case of Alibaba.
Basically, AliExpress is just like Amazon: you simply add the needed goods to your cart and pay for them.
There is no need for quotations like when you trying to deal with Alibaba sellers.
Also, AliExpress manages everything else like logistics, buyer assurance, etc.
Buyer’s safety measures
Logically, AliExpress also has its assurance mechanisms to keep its buyers safe.
Let’s have a short look at some of them.
# 1. Refund guarantee
Just like in the Alibaba case, you can request a full refund if you don’t receive bought goods or if their quality differs from the description.
To do so, you should fill the complaint form and wait for a reply from the AliExpress support team.
Also, some documents from the postal office and pictures of goods might be needed to prove your position.
# 2. Guarantee of on-time delivery
AliExpress guarantees the receivement of your shipment before a certain date.
If the delivery happens too late, you can also raise the issue with their support team.
# 3. Extra warranty
If you live in one of the EU countries, you can be a part of the AliExpress “Extra warranty” program.
With its help, you can get two years of guarantee for the vast majority of products listed on the website.
Don’t hesitate to ask the AliExpress seller about such an option.
Delivery time and transportation modes
When you proceed through the checkout process, you can choose between several transportation methods.
So, the delivery time purely depends on the selected logistics service provider, as well as on your location.
The following providers are available when you are buying on AliExpress:
- UPS;
- FedEx;
- DHL;
- TNT;
- EMS etc.
The logistics providers might vary from one buyer to another.
Premium logistics companies like UPS, FedEx, DHL, and TNT provide quite a fast delivery (within 6 to 12 days to the USA).
And public companies like EMS take a longer time to deliver (about 25-30 days to the USA).
AliExpress also has a great logistics option called “ePacket” to the buyers of select countries.
If you choose ePacket, then you can expect a quicker service (within 15 days to the USA) at a very profitable price.
So, you may have to pay much more for the services of premium logistics like DHL, while ePacket would cost less and deliver goods within practically the same amount of time.
So, if you see that AliExpress offers you an ePacket option, it is highly recommended to use it.
Finally, there is also a standard AliExpress shipping option, which is free of charge in the better part of cases.
But, it is also the slowest way, about 40 days to the USA.
Payment methods
When buying from AliExpress, you can choose between the next payment methods:
- Credit card.
- Paypal.
- Wire transfer.
- Webmoney.
- Western union.
- Boleto.
- SMS payment.
- Cash payment.
- AliExpress pocket etc.
Some payment modes (like Paypal and cash payment) are available for certain countries only.
In general, the AliExpress payment system operates quick and smooth.
In case of any issues, you can contact their support team.
Also, AliExpress uses a so-called “3D secure” technology which adds an additional layer of safety for online card transactions.
Product quality assurance
AliExpress is a huge marketplace with thousands of suppliers listing their products.
So, you have to assess the sellers well before buying some goods.
When you get on the page of some product, on top of it you can find some important info like:
- store open date;
- customers satisfaction score;
- customers feedback like Item as described, communication, shipping speed, etc.
Make sure to check all the quality indicators thoroughly.
Also, you can choose between several products according to their ratings which could be found below the product title.
Prices
AliExpress pricing seems to be the most reasonable when we are talking about small wholesale quantities.
Another attractive thing is the fact that AliExpress offers regular flash deals and sale coupons to their customers.
Pros of AliExpress
- quite simple and quick ordering process;
- worldwide delivery;
- 100+ million product categories;
- 24/7 live customer support.
Cons of AliExpress
- prices are not competitive for large wholesale orders.
Made-in-china.com
Just like Alibaba, Made In China might be considered as one of the oldest Chinese wholesale websites for international buyers.
Made In China is a marketplace just like the better part of websites on our list.
It was founded in 1998, headquartered in Jiangsu, China.
Buyer safety measures
Made in China uses several methods to guarantee the safety of its buyers.
# 1. Verified suppliers
Made In China states that they have only verified suppliers listed on their platform.
All verified suppliers achieve the corresponding badge, which can be seen near their name.
# 2. Secured trading services
Just like Alibaba, Made In China staff releases payment to the sellers only when you confirm the delivery of such products in proper state.
Also, under this policy, Made In China provides inspection services.
That means you can hire some third party inspectors who can check the quality of goods in real life.
# 3. Offline and online sourcing meetings
We mostly appreciate this option from the Made In China.
In fact, the platform staff can help you to meet interested suppliers face-to-face.
Yes, that’s totally possible.
If you don’t have time to meet the supplier face-to-face, you can require the online meeting option.
In this case, Made In China staff will arrange the online meeting with the seller of your choice.
# 4. Business information report
If you want more information about the seller, you can always request an info report from Made In China.
Typically, the following report will contain the next data:
- risk analysis;
- trade payments;
- history;
- operations;
- corporate structure;
- finance & banking;
- public records.
# 5. 360-degree virtual tour
Another unique thing about the Made In China is that a lot of suppliers have made a 360-degree virtual tour to their offices and factories.
You can find a corresponding icon near the seller’s name.
# 6. Audit report
Made In China presumes the audit option for the better part of its sellers.
You can check the Audit icon beside the name of the seller to figure this out.
The audit is needed to verify the next info:
- Product and manufacturing capacities.
- Management system and certification.
- Production quality control.
- Financial capacity.
- Working processes and environment.
Note: we recommend you to deal only with suppliers that have been audited by Made In China.
Delivery time and transportation modes
Please, bear in mind that Made In China isn’t a simple straight forward purchase platform like DHgate or AliExpress.
It means that you can’t just select the needed goods, delivery partner and pay for it.
Instead of that, you have to contact the seller and request a quote, like in the case of Alibaba.
So, when it comes to logistics partners, you have only two basic options.
First of all, you can use the seller’s logistic partner or choose one from the Made In China logistics marketplace.
Made In China supports some reputed logistics agents, as well as direct shipping companies like DHL, FedEx, etc.
As in any other case, the delivery time depends on your location and chosen transportation mode.
Payment methods
Made In China supports the use of credit cards only.
It means that you can’t use popular payment systems (like Paypal or Webmoney) to checkout on this platform.
Product quality assurance
Firstly, the quality of Made In China goods is assured by the aforesaid buyer safety features.
Secondly, the product quality is assured due to the high competitiveness of this marketplace.
Finally, Made In China lists various MEI (manufacturing excellence and innovation) award-winning products.
The MEI awards are categorized into the gold award, silver award, individual award, nominated award, and selected award.
Prices
Made In China is a huge marketplace, so you can be sure that you can find reasonable wholesale prices here.
Pros of Made In China
- buyer safety mechanism;
- intuitive user interface;
- wide range of suppliers and goods.
Cons of Made In China
- complicated buying procedure;
- slow customer support.
DHgate.com
We can recommend DHgate as the best Chinese wholesale website for beginners in international trade.
The fast and easy wholesale buying experience is the main feature of DHgate.
As it becomes clear from the previous examples, buying wholesale isn’t an easy process.
You need to find and shortlist a bunch of verified sellers, talk to them, request quotes, choose transportation modes, then close the deal.
And we have to mention that such activities take a lot of time.
And when using DHgate, you have to simply add the needed goods to your cart and checkout.
Also, on DHgate you can make both small and large wholesale orders with ease.
The popularity of DHgate is also explained by the fact that it hosts more than 30 million products.
DHgate headquarters is located in Beijing, China.
Buyer safety measures
It is absolutely safe to buy from DHgate, mainly due to mechanisms used to protect buyers while they are dealing with local sellers.
# 1. Escrow payment model
Your seller won’t receive money until you confirm the delivery of ordered products in proper conditions.
# 2. On-time delivery
Some DHgate sellers have the on-time delivery badge beside their names.
This means that such a supplier has a nearly perfect proportion of successful on-time deliveries.
# 3. China brands badge
You can check if the seller has a China brand badge or icon in its profile.
It means that such a supplier deals with genuine and original made-in-china goods.
# 4. Facility certification
DHgate does field-level verification to check the supplier’s facility or manufacturing site.
These tests are conducted and performed with the help of independent third parties.
So, if a supplier has the field certification badge then you can be sure that such a supplier is totally legit.
# 5. SquareTrade
If you are a US citizen, you can use the SquareTrade feature to get an extended warranty for electronic products.
You can see the corresponding badge near the supplier’s name, just like in previous cases.
# 6. Premium merchant
Suppliers who provide excellent customer service and high-quality goods are tagged by DHgate as premium merchants.
# 7. Top merchants
Premium merchants who also have high-volume sales are marked as top merchants.
This is one of the first badges you should look for when buying on DHgate.
# 8. Return and refund policies
Like many other platforms, DHgate offers a full refund in case you haven’t received ordered goods or if their conditions do not correspond to the description.
In some cases, you might be disappointed with the product quality, but still, decide to keep it.
When it happens, you can ask for a partial refund from the DHgate customer support.
Delivery time and transportation modes
When buying from DHgate, the next logistics agents are available:
- China post.
- DHL.
- EMS.
- FedEx.
- ePacket.
- UPS.
When choosing a product, you can see available shipping methods, as well as the corresponding delivery time.
There is also a system called DH Storage: the thing similar to Amazon FBA.
Under this program, DHgate suppliers store their goods in warehouses located in the US and the UK.
That ensures fast shipping (about 5 days) to US and UK buyers.
Also, you can be sure of the faster return and refund process when ordering products from the DH storage.
Payment methods
DHgate supports the next methods of payment:
- Credit card.
- Bank transfer.
- E-wallet.
- Debit card.
- Apple pay (only for certain countries).
Product quality assurance
To conclude, there are the following mechanisms which help to ensure the quality of DHgate products:
- Supplier rating and feedback from customers.
- Product rating and feedback from customers.
- Partial and full refund.
- DHgate badges.
- Third-party quality check.
Prices
DHgate prices are decided by the suppliers, however, each product listed on DHgate supports tiered pricing system (more goods – lesser price).
Also, DHgate runs promotions, gives coupons, and makes other special offers regularly.
You can find discount coupons ranging from 10 to 100 USD.
Pros of DHgate
- multilayer buyer safety measures system;
- simple and fast ordering procedure;
- DH Storage option;
- a huge amount of sellers and available goods;
- friendly for beginners.
Cons of DHgate
- the search algorithm is far from flawless.
Globalsources.com
Global Sources is a website that is basically a one-stop platform for all your sourcing needs.
Global Sources is not only a marketplace but also a trade show organization body and sourcing service provider.
As a web marketplace, it connects wholesale suppliers with buyers, just like DHgate, Alibaba, and AliExpress.
As a trade show organization body, it lists and helps to register for upcoming trade shows or Chinese fairs.
Speaking of the sourcing services, Global Sources can help its customers with:
- product samples;
- smart sourcing;
- private sourcing events;
- bulk RFQ;
- sourcing news and advice.
Buyer safety measures
Global Sources has quite a complicated system of buyer safety assurance.
Let’s look at some tools used in this mechanism.
# 1. Verified manufacturers
The seller having a Verified Manufacturer badge has been checked and verified by Global Sources staff members.
Such a verification involves checking of business licenses and other legal documents of the manufacturer.
# 2. O2O (Online-To-Offline) supplier
O2O supplier is the one who has maintained a comprehensive online profile for a long time and is active participants in trade shows.
These O2O suppliers are denoted by a corresponding badge.
# 3. Verified company certificates
To get verified company certificates badge, the supplier has to give its company certificates for verification by independent agencies like TUV, Experian, Dun, Bradstreet, and so on.
# 4. Verified product certificates
Same as with company certificates, product certificates are checked by aforesaid independent verification agencies.
Delivery time and transportation modes
Unfortunately, there is no direct buy mechanism on Global Sources.
Each time you’ll have to request a quote from the seller and then speak about various terms (e.g. price, delivery, payment).
So, you will be deciding on delivery mode after discussing it with the supplier.
In practice, all the popular logistics agencies (like UPS, DHL, China post) are available.
Payment methods
There are several payment methods available for Global Sources parties.
However, due to the incompletion of the payment security system, it is better to use PayPal.
PayPal comes with an in-built buyer protection system, so if your supplier makes wrong moves, you can always rely on the return.
To do so, you have to keep all the trade documents to provide them to PayPal customer support as a piece of evidence.
Product quality assurance
We found buyer safety features quite useful when it comes to product quality assurance.
The high competitiveness of the Global Sources marketplace also leads to a good quality of products distributed by each seller.
Prices
Global Sources lists some of the best Chinese wholesalers, suppliers, and manufacturers.
Therefore, you can be assured of the best product price on Global Sources.
Pros of Global Sources
- trade shows and exhibitions option;
- premium sourcing value-added services;
- a huge pool of verified sellers;
- friendly website.
Cons of Global Sources
- not suitable for beginners;
- not enough security in the case of payment.
1688.com
1688.com is a part of the Alibaba Group.
After the creation of Alibaba.com, 1688.com became the next massive project of the company.
From first glance, you might say think that the name was chosen by chance, which is not true.
The hieroglyphs that correspond to the number 1688 sound like the word Alibaba.
From the very beginning, the site was focused on the domestic market of China.
Also, the B2B model was chosen, which is the sale of goods by one legal entity to other legal entities.
These features predetermined the key points that create inconvenience for foreign buyers when working with 1688.com:
- the interface language is available only in Chinese;
- payment for goods can be made via the card issued by one of the Chinese banks, or from the Alipay wallet to replenish which, you will need a card from a Chinese bank as well;
- delivery of purchases is made within China only and usually, you have to pay for it.
Such barriers can be easily overcome with the help of a trustful sourcing agent (please, read this Tj chinafreight guide if you want to learn more).
Buyer safety measures
Although the vast majority of 1688 suppliers offer 7 days return and exchange policy, it takes at least 1 month for the shipping of the goods from China and returned by the clients from overseas.
Obviously, in such a situation you surpass the 1688 return and exchange policy.
The main thing which can help you to avoid fraud is the quality inspection or sample service conducted by your sourcing agent right after the deal is done.
Also, you can view product and supplier’s ratings, as well as other useful metrics (e.g. seller’s popularity).
Delivery time and transportation modes
The delivery time depends on the location of your sourcing agent and shipping methods which he can offer you.
Payment methods
As we said above, there is a huge gap when it comes to payment methods and security.
Unlike Aliexpress where you can pay via PayPal and international credit cards, 1688 accepts only Alipay and UnionPay, as well as China bank debit cards.
So, the only way to pay for the goods in 1688 is to use sourcing agent services.
Product quality assurance
On one hand, Chinese buyers are more experienced in their market, and since 1688 works entirely as an inner-state trading platform, suppliers here are not interested in manufacturing dummies.
On the other hand, some prices are so cheap, that it just can’t be a sign of good quality.
That is why we strongly recommend conducting independent quality inspections after buying goods (especially in the case when big money is involved).
Prices
After reading previous paragraphs you might think “Why even bothering buying from 1688 if it takes so much time and eff
