1688.com is Alibaba Group’s domestic wholesale and factory-sourcing marketplace in China. It connects factories, manufacturers, trading companies, and wholesalers with buyers looking for China-market pricing, supplier options, samples, small-batch testing, and bulk procurement.
For international buyers, 1688 can be useful for supplier discovery and price research, but it is not built like a global cross-border marketplace. The interface is Chinese-first, many sellers expect domestic China delivery, and payment or after-sales communication can be difficult without Chinese-language support, a purchasing agent, or a freight forwarder.
Key Features
🏠Factory and Wholesale Listings
1688 includes manufacturers, wholesalers, trading companies, and source-market suppliers across a wide range of product categories.
đź’° China-Market Pricing
Prices often reflect domestic wholesale expectations, which can make 1688 useful for benchmarking supplier costs before negotiating.
📦 Samples, MOQs and Bulk Orders
Some suppliers support samples or small trial orders, while others focus on larger minimum order quantities and repeat wholesale buyers.
🔎 Image Search and Comparison
Use product images or Chinese keywords to find similar listings, compare suppliers, and identify repeated products across different shops.
Can International Buyers Use 1688?
International buyers can browse 1688, use product search, compare suppliers, and collect price references, but buying directly is often difficult. The platform is built mainly for China-based buyers, with a Chinese-first interface, domestic delivery expectations, and seller communication that usually happens in Chinese.
For real purchases, many overseas buyers use a purchasing agent, sourcing agent, or freight forwarder. This helps with local payment, seller questions, product checks, warehouse receiving, package consolidation, and international shipping.
Before treating a 1688 price as the final cost, add agent fees, domestic shipping, inspection, repacking, international freight, duties, taxes, and possible return risk. A low listing price only matters if the full landed cost still works for your order.
How 1688 Sourcing Works
- Search with product terms or images. Use Chinese keywords, translated product names, or image search to find similar listings and supplier clusters.
- Compare several suppliers. Check price ranges, MOQ, product variants, shop activity, transaction signals, response quality, and whether the supplier appears to fit your product category.
- Confirm specifications before paying. Ask about material, size, color, packaging, logo options, samples, lead time, stock, certificates, and whether the listing price applies to your exact order quantity.
- Order samples when risk is meaningful. For new suppliers, custom products, electronics, cosmetics, branded items, or anything quality-sensitive, a sample or inspection step is safer than ordering in bulk immediately.
- Calculate the landed cost. Add domestic shipping, agent fees, inspection, repacking, international freight, duties, taxes, and possible return costs before deciding whether the 1688 price is still attractive.
Agents, Payment & Shipping
Many overseas buyers use a purchasing agent or sourcing agent for 1688. An agent can help with Chinese communication, local payment, parcel receiving, quality checks, consolidation, export paperwork, and international shipping.
Payment options can vary by seller, account, order type, and agent workflow. Some buyers may see Alipay or other China-based payment paths, but many international buyers rely on an agent to pay the supplier locally and then invoice them separately.
Most 1688 sellers focus on domestic China shipping. If you need delivery outside China, confirm whether your agent or freight forwarder can receive the goods, inspect them, consolidate packages, and ship to your destination.
Supplier Verification Checklist
🏢 Business Checks
Review the supplier profile, years in business, business scope, shop activity, transaction signals, response speed, and whether the company appears aligned with the product category.
📦 Product and Order Checks
Confirm the exact SKU, materials, dimensions, color, packaging, MOQ, sample availability, customization options, lead time, and whether the listed price changes with quantity.
âś… Quality and Compliance Checks
For electronics, cosmetics, children’s products, batteries, food-contact items, medical-adjacent goods, or branded products, ask for relevant certificates, test reports, photos, videos, or third-party inspection before scaling the order.
đź’ł Payment and Shipping Checks
Avoid direct transfers to unknown personal accounts. Keep order records, chat screenshots, invoices, inspection photos, and shipping documents, especially for larger orders or repeat supplier relationships.
1688 vs. Alibaba vs. Made-in-China
| Comparison | 1688 | Alibaba | Made-in-China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Role | China domestic wholesale and sourcing | Global B2B sourcing marketplace | Global B2B supplier directory and RFQ platform |
| Best For | China-market pricing, supplier discovery, samples, agent-assisted buying | International wholesale, Trade Assurance flows, cross-border suppliers | Industrial sourcing, RFQs, verified manufacturers, supplier comparison |
| Language | Chinese-first | Multi-language | Multi-language |
| International Buying | Usually needs agent or forwarder | Built for global buyers | Built for global buyers |
| Pricing Signal | Often closer to domestic wholesale pricing | International wholesale pricing | Supplier quotation and RFQ pricing |
