1688 Website: How to Register, Buy and Dropship From 1688
Quick answer: 1688.com is Alibaba Group’s wholesale website for the Chinese domestic market, where factories and wholesalers sell at local prices in RMB. Foreigners can register with a supported mobile number and search by image, but the site is in Chinese, payments are in RMB and most suppliers only ship within China. To dropship from 1688, most international sellers use a China sourcing or dropshipping agent that buys from 1688, inspects the goods and ships orders abroad.
1688.com is virtually the largest go-to wholesale and sourcing site in China (one of the most popular wholesale sites in China), focusing on wholesaling and manufacturing. All suppliers are required to obtain a government business license so that they can sell their products on 1688. com.
1688.com Login
Having a 1688.com account is the first step in starting your purchasing journey there.
Alibaba does not restrict foreigners from registering, as long as you have a mobile phone number, you can register.
However, 1688 does not support every country’s cell phone number, for example, Ghana, Cambodia, Botswana, and some other countries are not supported.
In 2022, 1688.com supported a total of 136 countries and regions for account registration. The following table shows the list from that time:
Why You Need a 1688.Com Account
Alibaba has been increasingly restricted from viewing products on 1688.com for non-members, and if you can’t log in, you can’t view many pages on 1688.
Occasionally, if you are not logged in, you cannot use 1688’s image search.
The only way you can see promotional prices and discounts on many products is if you are logged in.
You can save and bookmark products you see to your 1688 account.
You can communicate directly with suppliers in 1688.
Five Steps To Register for a 1688 Account
Step 1. Go To The Registration Page
On the homepage of 1688.com, click on Register to go to the registration page.
Step 2. Fill In Account Information
Step 3. Fill In The SMS Verification Code
Step 4. Complete The Profile Of The Account(Optional)
Step 5. Update Or Add Your Account Information
1688 Shopping
1688.com is a renowned website and one of the largest wholesale websites in China. Chinese buyers use it because of its relatively low prices. Many trading companies also buy products through 1688.com and sell them all over the world. There are over 50,000 legitimate sellers on 1688.com, so you can almost always find what you need.
How do I pay suppliers on 1688.com?
There are various payment methods that you can use. Whichever method suits you so that you can get the product you want to buy. Here is a list of payment methods.
Pay through Alibaba
Pay via WeChat
Pay via your personal bank account
Pay via your company bank account
Tips: 1688 suppliers accept Renminbi (RMB or CNY) only, not US dollars.
The buyer must have an import/export license if the supplier’s bank account accepts US dollars. If you want to pay in US dollars, you need an agent to help you with the payment. A sourcing agent can accept US dollars from you, for example by bank transfer (T/T) or PayPal, and then pay your supplier directly in RMB.
1688 Picture Search
1688 has a built-in search by image, and browser extensions such as AliPrice add extra tools. Main features of the 1688 picture search extension:
- Drop price alert: add products to your favorites and you will be notified when the price drops.
- Added Wildberries and vvic.com search by picture.
- Price history: on 1688.com you can check the price history within 3/6/12 months. This is also a 1688 image downloader and a Taobao image downloader.
- Sales statistics: analyzing order and price distribution on Aliexpress and Shopee product listing pages, percentage of seller sales, etc.
- Copy Link: added a copy Link button to help you copy links to products on Taobao and 1688.
- Capture and translate: capture photos and translate the text on them. 1688 picture search extension
- Review analysis: analyze the country distribution of reviewers on the Aliexpress product details page.
- Display coupons on Taobao
1688.com search by image has disclosed the following information regarding the collection and usage of your data. More detailed information can be found in the publisher’s privacy policy.
1688 vs Alibaba
There is a difference between the two in that 1688 is primarily for the domestic market, while Alibaba is primarily for international business trade.
1688.com is only available in Chinese and is aimed at the Chinese markets only.
Alibaba.com is an international platform and can be viewed globally in many different languages. There are Spanish, German, French, Italian, Russian, Korean, Japanese, Thai, Turkish, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Arabic, Hindi, Indonesian, Dutch, and Hebrew.
| Metrics | Alibaba | 1688 |
|---|---|---|
| Product Pricing | Alibaba usually has higher product pricing as it caters to the foreign market. | 1688 has cheaper products because it targets the local Chinese market. |
| Product Quality | Suppliers on Alibaba sell higher quality products to meet international export standards. | The product quality on 1688 is a hit or miss. You can either get top-quality products or a complete knock-off. |
| Payment Methods | Alibaba offers numerous payment methods to meet the demands of its international audience. | 1688 offers domestic payment methods like Alipay, WeChat, and local bank transfers. However, receiving international payments here can be a nightmare for Chinese suppliers. |
| Export Experience | When it comes to exporting products, the suppliers on Alibaba are more experienced, mainly because they’re targeting a foreign market. | The suppliers in 1688 lack foreign trade experience as they mainly operate in the domestic market. |
| Site and App | The site and app of Alibaba are laggy and disorganized. It could use a revamp. | 1688 has a more polished app and site. Not only is it easier to navigate on it but it’s also quite responsive. |
Can You Dropship From 1688?
Most 1688 suppliers do not ship internationally, do not accept foreign payments and do not offer dropshipping to overseas customers, so dropshipping directly from 1688 is difficult. The practical way is to work with a China dropshipping agent. The agent finds suppliers on 1688 and from factories, pays them in RMB, receives the goods at its warehouse in China, inspects them, and ships each order to your customer with tracking. Honest FulPhilment, for example, provides sourcing quotes in 4–5 days, checks 20% of units by default, supports private label and custom packaging, and connects to Shopify and WooCommerce so your orders are fulfilled automatically.
If you’re looking for an all-in-one eCommerce app for your business, as well as other fulfillment services, get in touch with our team today.
FAQ
What is the 1688 website?
1688.com is Alibaba Group's wholesale marketplace for the Chinese domestic market. Factories and wholesalers sell there at local prices, and the site is in Chinese and aimed at buyers in China.
Can foreigners register on 1688.com?
Yes. Foreigners can register with a mobile phone number from a supported country. A few countries are not supported, and you need to verify the number by SMS code.
Can I dropship from 1688?
Not directly in most cases. 1688 suppliers sell in RMB and ship within China, so international sellers use a sourcing or dropshipping agent that buys from 1688, receives and inspects the goods in China, and ships orders to customers abroad.
What is the difference between 1688 and Alibaba?
1688 serves the Chinese domestic market in Chinese with lower prices and RMB payments. Alibaba.com serves international buyers in many languages, with suppliers who have export experience and accept international payment methods, usually at higher prices.
How do I pay suppliers on 1688?
1688 suppliers accept RMB through Alipay, WeChat Pay or Chinese bank transfers. If you only have US dollars, a sourcing agent can accept your payment and pay the supplier in RMB for you.