How to Buy from 1688.com Outside China?

Estimated reading time: 13 minutes

Do you want to know how to buy from 1688.com? You might not be in China, but how to find quality Chinese suppliers in 1688?

For foreigners who are new to 1688, it might not be easy to use. However, this blog will help you understand this website and show you how to buy from 1688.com.

Let go and explore it.

What are the advantages of buying from 1688.com?

• The buying cost could be more competitive than on Alibaba if you know how to work with Chinese suppliers.
• The chance you found the direct factories through the online wholesale market
• Various categories on 1688.com and you can find everything at a competitive price
• Find the best-selling products on Amazon/Wish/Aliexpress at 1688

5 Features About 1688 You Should Know

1. Most Chinese buyers buy in bulk on 1688 instead of Alibaba.
2. The suppliers who are listed on 1688 might be the origin suppliers for those sellers on Alibaba.com.
3. 1688 is designed as the China wholesale market for domestic buyers, so it’s in Chinese.
4. Most of the suppliers on 1688.com are not familiar with FOB Price, International Shipping…etc. You can learn relevant information by reading Basic Trade Terms Alibaba Incoterms.
5. The best sellers on larger B2C websites like Taobao/Tmall/Wish/Aliexpress/DHgate/eBay/Amazon buy wholesale from 1688.com

Why Alibaba Group has two Wholesale Websites? Alibaba.com & 1688.com

The Alibaba Group owns two large online B2B China buy wholesale sites: Alibaba.com and 1688. These two sites are targeting different customers.

Alibaba is the largest wholesale website for global importers when they are sourcing China products. 1688.com is a China shopping website for domestic buyers, Chinese trading companies, China sourcing agents…etc.

1688.com and Alibaba	1688.com	Alibaba
Primary Audience	Mainly targets the domestic Chinese market.	Primarily caters to international businesses and customers.
Language	Primarily in Chinese.	Multilingual, including English.
Pricing	Generally lower prices due to targeting the domestic market.	Prices vary, often higher due to international market and export costs.
Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ)	Often lower MOQ, suitable for small businesses.	Higher MOQ, targeting larger businesses and bulk orders.
User Interface	Designed for Chinese users, may be less intuitive for non-Chinese speakers.	User-friendly interface for global users.
Payment Options	Payment options are more suited to Chinese customers.	Diverse payment options for international transactions.

Both sites support purchasers in buying in bulk online.

Why Choose Owlsourcing for Procurement?

At Owlsourcing, we understand that today’s businesses need more than off-the-shelf solutions. Success comes from offering products that stand out, not those that anyone can easily find.

That is why our expertise lies in developing custom and custom-packaged products that truly reflect your brand’s unique identity.

We’re here to make the complex simple in sourcing from China. Connecting you with carefully vetted suppliers and managing every detail of communication, quality control, and logistics ensures your product journey is as seamless as it is professional.

For businesses valuing precision, creativity, and quality, Owlsourcing is the partner you can trust to bring your vision into reality. We specialize in turning your ideas into tangible, market-ready products. Contact Us!

How to Buy From 1688 in 5 Steps?

Several friends who wanted to buy directly from Chinese online shopping sites asked me about 1688.

That’s one of the reasons why I decided to write this post to help people buy things from China.

Step 1: Type in the Correct Chinese Character Keywords

For example, You are a Canadian ceramic mug importer and want to find mugs in 1688.com

The first thing is to translate the English description into Chinese. Remember, this is a Chinese wholesale site, so use the local language to guarantee you find a good source.

Then what you need to do is copy and paste the Chinese character 陶瓷杯 into the search bar on 1688.com

After that you need to translate the whole 1688 page into English then you can recognize the dashboard on 1688.

Use the Google translator extension on Chrome browser and convert the entire page from Chinese to English.

Below is the result. It shows you the search result pages by the keyword “陶瓷杯” (ceramic mug).

It displayed various options of products that might be relevant to ceramic mugs.

Now we can move to the next step and start to learn more about the dashboard features and icon on 1688.

If you want to take advantage of product sourcing in 1688, then learning the dashboard and knowing how to source in 1688 is very important.

Step 2: Learn About the Dashboard on 1688|Icons, and Features

In this section, I will show how to recognize the critical icons and features on the page of 1688.

Finding a good supplier is more important than sourcing the right product because you are going to work with people together for your project.

So we only look at the search results pages by listing all the relevant suppliers instead of related products.

Just like the above image, by clicking the “supplier” button, you would see the result pages sorted by “suppliers” upon the Chinese keywords “陶瓷杯” （Ceramic Mug).

Don’t forget to translate the result page into English if it comes out of the language in Chinese. Below are the results and show all the supplier’s information.

Now you can see there is a total of 9281 different Chinese shops that can provide ceramic mugs. It must be overwhelming for you!

How do we select the best suppliers among these search results?

We need to filter by the critical features and understand the vital icons in 1688.

5 Key Filter Features You need to include when selecting for the massive suppliers.

• Business Type: Production/Manufacturing
• The number of workers:  Select 51-100 for this case (Sometimes you can select even 5-50 workers if the target is small and assembling targets).
• Select the “Powerful Merchant” icon: It means the factory verified by 1688
• Select “Buyer guarantee” icon
• Select “Has Certification Report”

Let’s see the magic results after we selected all these five critical features. Now the qualified suppliers number is down to 259 suppliers!

The tip here is that you also need to know the “Red Bull” and “factory verified “icons when you check the supplier’s profile.

See the photo below:

Here the “red bull” means the “powerful merchant,” as I listed in “5 Key Filter Features”.

Under the “red bull” icon is the symbol “厂” in Chinese, which means the “factory,” which indicates the supplier has the certificate report and verified by 1688.

Remember, these two icons would support you in recognizing the supplier profile when ordering from 1688.

Step 3: How to find reliable suppliers on 1688.com?

Now it’s time to check if you can find suitable suppliers from these options. But still, 259 suppliers are too many for us to choose from, so we need the “filter screen mesh” to get the ideal results.

Here are three critical features when selecting the most relevant suppliers. I also call them the supplier selection “filter screen mesh.”

1. Analyze Supplier’s Company Name 
2. Check the Product Images, Categories
3. Check the Plant size, Staff Numbers

1. Analyze the Supplier’s Company Name

Usually, the Chinese company name consists of four factors, which include Location | Name | Product | and Business Type.

Here is an example:

Now you understand the consists of the Chinese supplier company name. Then it’s time to test and glance at the result page while skipping the non-relevant supplier like below.

The company name includes “glass,” which is out of our target, which is a ceramic mug. We can pass these kinds of suppliers with irrelevant products.

2. Check the Product Images|Categories 

You can easily recognize if the supplier is offering the products you want or not by looking at the product images.

When looking at the below image, you will realize that it’s not your ideal ceramic mug vendor as they are providing plastic and stainless steel material cups.

3. Check the Plant size | Staff Numbers

The plant size can be a critical reference factor when selecting the right vendor for your project.

If you are in a mug business, then you should know that the manufacturers require quite a large production area for manufacturing the ceramic mugs.

Look at my final selection for your reference. Why have I selected this supplier and ready to approach them?

The reasons might be as below:

By analyzing the supplier name, they should be a ceramic manufacturer, which indicates I might get a reasonable price. They also have the “Red Bull” and “Factory” icons when checking the profiles.

The supplier looks like a professional manufacturer of ceramic mugs with more than 12 years of experience in the industry.

They have a plant size of over 20,000 square meters with more than 60 workers, which seems operating at a sizeable scale.

By looking at the product image, I believe they can produce a bunch of ceramic mugs in different shapes.

Above all are the useful tips when sourcing the vendors on 1688.

Step 4: Contacting the 1688.com Suppliers

Since now, we already have several ideal suppliers, and then the next step is to contact them.

Three ways you can approach your vendors on 1688.com

1. Click the online chat button to open the dialogue window and chat with them directly
2. Call them directly
3. Email them and ask the detailed product information

I would suggest you either email them or online chat with the suppliers on 1688. to see if they would reply to you.

As I have mentioned most of the suppliers on 1688 can’t speak English so you need to find out the supplier who might be interested in doing business with you

and meanwhile be familiar with how to work with overseas customers.

Step 5: How to Order from 1688.com?

Before we go and learn how to order from 1688 and get items from China, we would need to avoid buying products that are too heavy or in a large size, especially when you couldn’t issue the inspection to the product.

It would be fine if you are intended to buy stuff in low value and lightweight/small size, then it would be easy for you to manage the import process.

You also need to finalize the complete information of products: price, packing information, lead time, payment term, material, artwork…etc.

Always remember that the price listing on 1688 is only for reference because the accurate price is based on your requirements regarding the material, packaging, order quantity, private label design…etc.

Then what you need to do is to pay the vendor and let them ship to the destination.

What Would be the Challenge When Buying From 1688.com?

1. Language | Communication Barrier: Remember you are exploring the territory that belongs to the Chinese domestic buyers.
2. Ordering from China (International transfer): Need to find payment solutions while can not pay USD directly to the seller.
3. Sellers in 1688 were not professional in international trading. The risks of making a mistake in quoting the price, calculating the logistic costs…etc.
4. Potential Quality Issue if you don’t issue inspection while buying wholesale from China.

How to Avoid Scams and Assure Product Quality

Buying from 1688 requires an understanding of some red flags to avoid scams and deal with reliable suppliers.

Red Flags to Watch Out For:

• Supplier Profile: The supplier profile tells the buyer if they are trustable or not; this would be indicated with verification icons. These should be identified before confirming a supplier.
• Unprofessional Communication: Any unprofessional replies from the supplier, showing no interest in international deals, may indicate a danger.
• Unrealistically Low Prices: If it seems too good to be true, most likely it is. Many scams operate with much-reduced prices just to make people buy from them.

Assurance of Quality

• Ask for Samples: Requesting samples in advance before placing an order is the best option to inspect the quality on one’s own.
• Certifications: Ascertain that the supplier is certified for the product being sourced. Lack of certification could mean poor quality or non-compliance with specifications.

Several ways to pay suppliers and order from 1688

• Apply the Alipay account and pay your vendor in 1688.
• Work with a 1688 agent or a sourcing agent (Chinese purchase agent) to buy from 1688.
• Pay them through PayPal if they have a PayPal account.
• Wire them the money directly when the supplier has the offshore USD bank account, or they have a partner who has a USD bank account.

If you want to order 1688 directly, but if you are not in China, then you would need also to find a shipping forwarder to help you collect the goods from China and then ship them to you.

Either you can find it by yourself through Google, or you can ask your vendor or sourcing agent if they have a good option. Options like: DHL, FedEx, UPS, air freight, and even sea shipping…etc.

Payment Method	Pros	Cons
Alipay	Secure, widely used in China, easy for small transactions	May require a Chinese bank account
WeChat Pay	Popular in China, fast, easy for mobile payments	Can be challenging to set up for foreigners
PayPal	Trusted by international buyers, offers buyer protection	Not commonly used by all suppliers on 1688
Wire Transfer	Direct payment, can be cheaper for large transactions	Risk of fraud without proper verification

How to Avoid Payment Risks and Scams

• Avoid Direct Wire Transfers to Unknown Accounts: Always confirm the bank account details and ensure the supplier is legitimate.
• Use Secure Payment Methods: Alipay and PayPal offer buyer protection and are safer than wire transfers, especially when dealing with new suppliers.
• Work with a Sourcing Agent: If you’re unfamiliar with the process, using a sourcing agent will be able to help you safely navigate 1688 and ensure payment security.

3 Useful Tools when You are buying from 1688

What are the valuable tools when ordering items from China direct factories?

• WeChat: Everyone in China uses WeChat during daily life and even for payments. Get yourself used to the local environment then it’s easy to explore your business in China. Here you can find more details about How to Contact Chinese Manufacturers.
• Google Translator: You need it when talking to the direct factories
• Quotation format: Most of the suppliers on 1688 are not professional in providing a decent quotation sheet you with complete information. Switch your mind and give them a list to fill in the necessary information. It would be beneficial when ordering products from China.

Read More Similar Posts Here:

• Top 5 China Wholesale Websites: Buying from China Step-by-Step
• How to Buy From China | Buying from China Step by Step
• Alibaba: How to Buy From the China Wholesale Website?
• How to Contact Chinese Manufacturers?
• Best Tips Buy From Alibaba Hacks: 8 Steps to Ensure My Alibaba Safe Buy 2020

Final Thoughts

Is it worth buying from 1688.com?

Yes, because you can navigate the Chinese wholesale market and get more China suppliers | and made-in-China products. Also, you can get more clues about how Amazon best-sellers are importing from the Chinese market. And the most important thing is that you can find out what to buy in China through direct factories.

If you need support when buying from 1688.com, then contact our agents, and we will help you find the best factory.

Please share with us if you would have any comments when buying from 1688.