“Alibaba is a SCAM” – you’ll find this written everywhere online! The truth is, yes, it is possible that you may get scammed on Alibaba.com IF you don’t know what you’re doing. However, with the information you learn in this blog post, the chances of you getting scammed on Alibaba will be very slim.
Is Alibaba Legit?
Just to be clear: Alibaba itself is not a scam. In fact, it’s one of the largest companies in the world, with a market value of tens of billions of dollars. Alibaba.com is simply a platform where buyers and sellers meet. Yes, there are some scammers on Alibaba, just like any other online platform, but that doesn’t mean Alibaba itself is a scam. By that logic, you can say that eBay, Amazon and Gumtree are scams because you can find MANY unscrupulous businesses on those websites, too.
That’s why I find it hard to answer when people email me asking for an Alibaba review, because that depends entirely on the seller. If you’re asking purely for my review of Alibaba as a website, then the answer is I love it! Yes, it is reliable! It’s made sourcing from China, and many other countries, incredibly easy and opened up opportunities for people who previously would never have been able to start their own private label business. So if you’re wondering if Alibaba is legit and safe to use, then my answer is a resounding yes. But of course, that is true IF you know what you’re doing.
And that’s what today’s blog post is all about. I’m going to show you how to spot scams on Alibaba and how to find trustworthy and reliable Alibaba suppliers, using the 15-step system which I’ve used to find suppliers for my own 7-figure Amazon FBA business.
The Myth of the Alibaba Scam
And for me the biggest problem that this “Alibaba scam” myth creates is that it makes people who are new to importing too afraid to even start their research process. They have that one line repeating in their minds “Alibaba is a scam, Alibaba is a scam, Alibaba is a scam….” and that’s why, with today’s blog post, I want to clear the air once and for all. I will give you a step-by-step filtering system that you can use to spot Alibaba fraudsters and avoid 99% of scams on Alibaba and unlock the potential of one of the world’s biggest online marketplaces.
Also, we need to differentiate scams from bad suppliers. A scam is when you buy something and never receive it. Or receive a fake item. That’s a scam. A bad supplier is someone who suddenly changes an item’s price in the middle of the order, has a high defect rate in the final order, sends you poor quality goods, etc. That’s a bad supplier and unreliable supplier and someone who you should no longer consider trustworhty with respect to your expectations, but it’s hard to call it a scam, as maybe they simply can’t produce goods that are up to quality you want. That is a whole other conversation, of course, but this article is specifically focused on obvious SCAMS where the “supplier” takes your money and disappears with it.
Before we get into the actual verification and scam filtering process, let me quickly remind you that you cannot get any kind of branded items wholesale from mainland China. I’m talking about everything from electronics, video games and software to designer clothes, shoes and other similar items. If you’re looking for anything branded, China is NOT the place to go. At worst, you’ll get scammed and receive nothing. At best, you’ll receive worthless fakes.
What is a branded product?
By branded products, I mean products that are manufactured by well-known companies, like:
- Apple
- Under Armour
- Samsung
- Nike
- Sony
- Lego
- Etc.
These are brands that are well known to everyone, and even though most of their products are manufactured in China, you CAN’T buy them wholesale from Alibaba or other similar sites—you simply cannot!
Companies with manufacturing operations in China have very strict distribution policies in place, so it’s not like someone can walk out of a Foxconn factory (they do most of Apple’s products) with ten iPhones or iPads in their pockets to sell on Alibaba. It is simply not possible to buy iPhones directly from Foxconn, even though they’re the ones who manufacture them.
This is NOT how things work in China!!
All of those well-known brands only distribute their goods through official, tightly secured channels. You won’t find these products advertised on Alibaba. If you do see ads for such products, there’s a 99%+ chance that it’s a scam!
Another product type you have to be VERY careful with is licensed products. These are products that carry some sort of intellectual property on them, such as:
- Disney cartoon characters
- Images of famous people
- Sports team logos
- Olympic logos/themes
- Video/mobile game characters (Angry Birds, Pokémon Go, etc.)
- Automotive industry logos, trademarks (Audi, BMW, etc.)
- And so on!
To produce products with intellectual property designs on them, a manufacturer needs a special license agreement with the IP owner and has to pay fixed or ongoing fees for each item they produce. Most suppliers in China don’t have any such agreements in place, so they basically use these designs WITHOUT the owner’s approval. This is illegal, of course, and purchasing these items can get you in a lot of trouble.
In some cases, large manufacturers will have licensing deals in place, but you should always ask for proof and try to verify it if possible. These will be very rare situations, though, so in general, I recommend you STAY AWAY from any products that involve IP designs when ordering from Alibaba and China in general.
Now, back to Alibaba. The company has actually improved its website and listings significantly in regards to counterfeit and unlicensed products. These days, it’s very hard to find any “branded” items on Alibaba as they have removed most of these listings and suspended the offending advertisers. Years ago, you could do a search for any hot selling product such as consoles, shoes etc. and get hundreds of results full of Alibaba fraudsters. I just tried a similar search and it returned ZERO results.
They now even put up a special message when you make searches like these, warning you that it’s a branded product and you need to be very careful when ordering such items from suppliers on Alibaba.
Anyway, what does any of this have to do with our original topic? Well, the number one rule for how to avoid getting scammed on Alibaba is: STAY AWAY from anything branded! You can only source unbranded goods wholesale from mainland China!
That’s what you want anyway, right? I mean, if you want to source products from China to sell on eBay or Amazon, you will want genuine manufacturers who can supply you with products you can put your brand on, provide custom packaging, etc. There’s only a very small profit in brand-new branded goods for online resellers (in most cases), so it’s not even worth considering if you want to build a profitable business.
Marketplaces are full of sellers offering branded items and because multiple people sell the exact same product, the only differentiator is the PRICE! Whoever offers the lowest price for the item makes the majority of the sales. And trust me, when your competitors deal in tax evasion, grey imports and even stolen goods, you won’t stand a chance competing with them.
Once you eliminate branded goods, you’ll see that it’s actually very difficult to get scammed on Alibaba because most “normal” product suppliers on Alibaba are genuine companies.
And that’s why this is my number one tip for how to not get scammed on Alibaba.
Plus, Alibaba offers a range of tools to help us verify the supplier, use safe payment methods and they cover the whole transaction inside Alibaba’s Trade Assurance platform.
Still, by using the following Alibaba scam-filtering system, you will quickly and efficiently filter out bad suppliers and identify the best of the best! As I said, it’s not enough to simply filter out scams, you also need to avoid bad suppliers as no one wants to deal with defective products, delayed orders, mispacked items, etc.
Without further ado, let’s get straight into the process of finding GOOD suppliers on Alibaba, which will also show you exactly how to avoid scams on Alibaba.
15-Step Alibaba
Scam-Filtering System
This whole system relies on your ability to analyse a supplier’s profile on Alibaba (and outside of it) and to know if a seller on Alibaba is legit. If this is the first time you are using Alibaba’s website, take some time to analyse a few supplier profiles. This will help give you some context for all the information I cover in this post.
Once you become more familiar with the process, you will realise that you can filter out suppliers VERY quickly just by taking a look at their profile. So, there’s a small learning curve involved, but it’s really nothing to be afraid of.
Here are the 15 KEY elements to look at when you evaluate a potential scam on Alibaba.com:
1. Gold Supplier
What is GOLD supplier status on Alibaba? It’s a premium, paid account status for suppliers and it costs several thousand dollars per year. Having this status doesn’t necessarily mean that the supplier is 100% legit, but scammers usually don’t pay for Gold supplier status because they need to change accounts very frequently and this extra cost is simply too much for them.
Scammers usually stick with FREE Alibaba accounts and simply hope that newbies are unaware of this because they don’t understand how Alibaba works.
I personally NEVER deal with any free account suppliers as the concentration of scammers is the highest within this group!
If possible, I always try to stick with Gold suppliers who have at least a three-year track record on the site. Gold supplier status is still the number one thing to look for when searching for reliable suppliers on Alibaba and to avoid scams, especially when used in conjunction with filtering out first-year and second-year suppliers.
To see if a supplier has Gold status or not, you simply go to the product page or supplier profile and look for the number, which also tells you how many years the supplier has had that Gold status. This is the same number you can see in the search results, so if you get a huge list of suppliers for the product you’re searching for, you can identify the most established suppliers right from the search results.
If you see a Gold status supplier in their sixth, seventh or eighth year, it’s a sure sign that it’s an established company. The chances of them being scammers are incredibly slim. Scammer accounts simply don’t last that long. They get caught sooner or later.
There is an Alibaba fraud scam currently going on involving Gold suppliers, though, as scammers sometimes HACK Gold status supplier accounts or buy them from companies that go out of business. This is a very smart tactic because you, as a buyer, could tick all the boxes I cover here, and it could still turn out to be a scam.
So, how can you spot these scammers? In 99% of cases, scammers will use the Gold status supplier accounts they’ve acquired to sell highly popular BRANDED goods, like PlayStations and similar. Remember, I’ve already warned you that Alibaba is NOT the place to look for such items, so if you see these types of offers, you will know immediately that it’s a scam.
Furthermore, when you start communicating with scammers, you will quickly realise that they’re full of s**t! They oversell to you SO HARD by offering incredible deals, like “Buy two PS4 consoles and get one free”. All with FREE delivery, of course. C’mon! It’s way beyond a too-good-to-be-true deal! Plus, they will only use unsecure payment methods, which we’ll cover in more detail later in this post.
2. Verified Supplier
You can select the “Verified Supplier” filter right from the search page, if you want. I don’t do this, though, as not all suppliers are verified, so if you’re dealing with a product that is not very popular, you could filter out many suppliers who could be good, even though they’re not verified.
What does verified supplier mean on Alibaba? “Verified Supplier” means that a third-party inspection company (such as SGS, Bureau Veritas, TUV SUD or others) have carried out an independent inspection of the company. They check and verify things like:
- Company profile certification
- Business scope certification
- Enterprise qualification certification
- Product R&D capability
- Quality assurance capability
- Aftersales service capability
- Associated factory
- Cooperative factory
- Etc.
If the supplier has been verified, you will see the special verified logo on their Alibaba profile, as well as a list of things that have been verified.
Then, you can click on the individual items to get more information or access visual materials on the aspects that have been verified. This is a super powerful and easy way to see if you can trust this Alibaba supplier and if they’re who they say they are.
I have been in the business of importing goods from China for more than 15 years now and I have seen how Alibaba and suppliers on the Alibaba platform have progressed over the years. A decade ago, all we had to go by was the Gold supplier status—that’s it!
Nowadays, we get so much information, pictures, videos, certificates, verification seals, etc. It has never been easier to spot scammers because the good, genuine suppliers have nothing to hide. They know that people have “trust issues” with Alibaba, so they invest their money into Gold supplier membership, verification, panoramic images, videos and everything else!
As soon as you start researching suppliers, not only will you be able to filter OUT scammers and bad suppliers, but you will also be able to filter IN the really professional, established manufacturers from the short-lived trading companies and other middlemen.
So, please use all this additional information to your advantage. Be sure to check out all the verified documents, images, videos, certification and compare suppliers to find the most professional and reliable ones.
Ok, the next part of my filtering system is:
3. Trade Assurance
Trade Assurance is Alibaba’s own platform for placing orders and managing payments. If the supplier accepts Trade Assurance, it’s another great sign that it is a legit Alibaba seller. When orders go through Trade Assurance, IF DONE PROPERLY, you will get protection for your order and you will be able to use safer payment methods, such as a credit card.
Now, if you don’t use it properly, things can still go wrong with a Trade Assurance order, especially when there are differences in opinion about the quality of the items delivered. To minimise problems, you have to be very specific with your order, have all the item specs written down in your order, stick to the payment deadlines, etc. I won’t get into all the details in this article as I have written a separate guide on Trade Assurance here.
Just like with the Verified Supplier filter, you can select the Trade Assurance filter directly on the search page, under the Supplier Types dropdown menu:
Trade Assurance is definitely a good sign of a trustworthy supplier, but you shouldn’t automatically eliminate everyone else. Some perfectly legit suppliers on Alibaba do not use Trade Assurance. Basically, you have to look at it from the perspective of how many suppliers there are for the product you are searching for. If you get TONS of results, then it can be a good idea to only contact suppliers who accept Trade Assurance.
On the other hand, if there are only seven suppliers and three of them don’t use Trade Assurance, I would consider all seven before making any decisions.
4. Transaction History/Level
Transaction history is indicated by the small, orange diamonds next to the supplier name. These are also shown in the search results. Basically, it indicates how much in sales a supplier has done on Alibaba and, obviously, the bigger these numbers are, the better. It is a good indicator that it is a legit company with regular orders.
Of course this is fairly self explanatory – if I see a supplier on Alibaba with hundreds of thousands in sales, then it’s very unlikely they’re a scammer as after a few people complain of a scam then you can trust Alibaba to take the seller off their site.
I wouldn’t rule out any supplier simply because they have no transaction history, though, as only Trade Assurance orders are included and many companies work outside the Trade Assurance platform.
Just keep this filter in mind as an option for extra proof that you’re dealing with an established seller.
5. Ratings & Reviews
This is a relatively new feature on Alibaba, but it is highly welcomed as we can finally see what other buyers think about the supplier and their products.
It’s great that they also list which product the feedback/review was left for and the buyer’s country. I don’t know how much feedback manipulation goes on within this process, but so far it seems quite believable because the review numbers are not that high and, in most cases, they do seem quite honest to me.
It’s probably not that easy to scam the system with fake reviews as these are from genuine orders that go through Alibaba itself, so it would be a lot of hassle to game the system that way.
Anyway, I wouldn’t base any decisions on looking at the reviews alone—unless they’re very bad, of course! If they clearly indicate that the product quality is low, the supplier made mistakes with the order, etc., that’s a good reason to remove that supplier from your shortlist. As time goes by and the number of reviews increase, this will become a much more useful tool for buyers. Again, bad reviews doesn’t necessarily mean they’re an Alibaba fraudster, but it does mean you should keep looking for a reliable and safe supplier!
6. Factory Inspection
This is a SUPERB way of looking behind the curtain and seeing whether the Alibaba profile of the company matches with what they’re actually doing. One of the biggest problems that buyers encounter is separating trading companies from true manufacturers. An inspection report solves this problem as it will be OBVIOUS from the images in the report if it is a factory or trading company.
Trading companies usually don’t do these inspections at all, and if they do, all you will see is an office building or office space with chairs and desks. However, factory inspection reports will show you their manufacturing plant, the tools they use, their warehouse space, etc.
I have already written a guide on how to do Chinese supplier inspection on your own, but it’s great to see that Alibaba has implemented this into their portal and allows suppliers to do this themselves by uploading inspection reports on their profile page.
One thing to look out for on these inspection reports is the DATE of the inspection. If the report is several years old, a lot of things could have changed with the supplier. They could have moved locations or sold the business altogether. Ideally, I would want this report to be no older than one to two years at the most.
Not all suppliers will have them uploaded, so it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are not a good supplier. I have often done inspections on my own, even paying for them if the final supplier I have picked for a product meets all other requirements, offers the best prices, has great sample quality, etc. Again, you can read more about that process in my Inspection Reports blog post.
7. Certificates
Many suppliers will show off scanned certificates for their products (CE, for example), their manufacturing facility (ISO) and other parts of their business. It’s just more proof that you’re dealing with a genuine supplier.
Also, there will be some products that require specific certificates to import goods from China, so be very careful when sourcing such products and always look for companies who have those certificates on hand.
Be warned, though! There are cases where suppliers use fake certificates, so to be 100% sure, you should verify these certificates. Usually, you’ll find the company/organisation name of the certificate issuer on the certificate itself. You can then contact them and ask for verification of that certificate.
Many testing houses even have online testing facilities that allow you to check such certificates for free, instantly, like on SGS’s website, for example.
Once again this is an expense that most scammers simply won’t bother with and an easy filter to help you avoid getting scammed on Alibaba.
8. AliExpress Store
These days, more and more Alibaba companies are opening AliExpress stores where you can shop safely for small MOQs and pay securely via escrow using your credit card. If a supplier has an AliExpress store, check it out. Specifically, check out their feedback as it can tell you a lot about the product quality, how quickly the supplier dispatches goods, etc.
How do you find out if a supplier has an AliExpress store?
Simply go to the supplier’s profile, then click on “Contacts”. Usually, suppliers will put a link to their AliExpress store under the website links option—if they have one, that is.
And you can take this even further. Quite often, just to save myself some time and avoid unnecessary communication, I use a supplier’s AliExpress store to order samples. This way, you can easily check the quality of the product and, if you’re completely happy with everything, place your real wholesale order by contacting the supplier directly through Alibaba or even through AliExpress!
Yes, you can even get significant discounts when buying in true bulk on AliExpress, so if you want to stick with AliExpress and its escrow system, you can simply negotiate a deal with your supplier there. Just keep in mind that it will always be more expensive than dealing with the supplier directly, as AliExpress takes a cut in fees for each transaction.
Again, not all suppliers will have an AliExpress presence, so don’t eliminate any supplier just because they don’t have a store. True manufacturers usually don’t deal with retail customers, so they typically won’t have an AliExpress store. Often, though, they will have a sister trading company that deals with retail customers, so you can always ask the supplier whether their products can also be purchased on AliExpress or not.
In terms of filtering out any scammers, think about it from their point of view – why waste time with small orders on AliExpress? If you can only scam a few people before Alibaba shut you down then of course you’ll go for as high an order value as possible. That’s why an AliExpress store is another easy sign that you’re dealing with a reliable Alibaba supplier.
9. Live Factory Video
If a supplier has a video on their Alibaba profile, check it out! If it’s produced by Alibaba themselves, it’s a sure sign that the company is real and genuine. If not, use it to look for signs that this truly is the same company they claim to be (logo/company name on office walls, factory footage showing production of the goods they’re advertising, trade show footage, etc.).
And this also applies to the images a supplier uses in their profile and product listings. I’m always wary of suppliers who use stock images in their profile or listings. Only one thing crosses my mind: they have nothing to show!
Trading companies are usually the ones who do this. They only have a few office images, stock product images and some mysterious, blurry factory images, so you can’t really understand what is going on there.
My ideal supplier has tons of pictures showing their factory, the entrance to the factory, the reception desk with a logo on it, etc. The more images there are with the factory name or company name showing, the better! These are all great signs that you’ve found a reliable Alibaba supplier that you can trust.
10. Website
If a company owns a proper, standalone website in English, that’s another good sign that you’re dealing with a reputable company. You should also do a “Who Is” database check to find out when the domain name was registered. In this case, the older the better.
But don’t expect world-class website design here! Most Chinese supplier websites are very basic, even old-fashioned, and they load very slowly. This must be something to do with the internet connection speeds in China or their hosting, but it’s okay. In fact, it’s completely normal.
On a side note: even if a company has a decent website, I usually stick to dealing with them through Alibaba. Sometimes, there can be exceptions. For example, sometimes the sales agents on the website’s live chat are much faster to respond than those on Alibaba. This is most likely because they view a website lead as being much higher in value than an Alibaba lead, where they get lots of time wasters.
So, yes, if you need to make contact and the website has live chat, do try to use that option. But mainly this is just another indicator of a genuine long running supplier.
11. Trade Shows
Whether it’s on a company’s Alibaba profile or their website, look for trade show information.
Scammers, in general, DO NOT attend trade shows, so if you see trade shows listed for the up-coming months or past trade show information with pictures, it’s another good sign that you’re dealing with a legitimate business.
However, always try to verify this information on the official trade show website (for example, China’s biggest trade show is called Canton Fair). As you are now aware, some Alibaba fraudsters like to make things up, so you can’t blindly trust everything they say and show. Make an effort to verify all information on your own before you believe it.
12. Google Search &
Global Sources Profile
Do a quick Google search of the company’s name. Quite often, you’ll find links to their profile on other Chinese B2B websites, such as Made-in-China.com or GlobalSources.com.
If the company has a verified profile on Global Sources, the chances of them being a scam are reduced to an absolute minimum because Global Sources takes its verification process very seriously and has extremely stringent requirements for authentication.
So, depending on the number of stars that a supplier has on Global Sources, you can be sure that you’re dealing with a real company.
While you’re doing your due diligence on Google, do another search for “company name + scam”. Usually, this will pull up any forum posts or scam reports associated with that company.
13. Invoice/Bank Details
When you’re already in the negotiation process and receive your first pro-forma invoice, always check the company name, address and bank details. It should be exactly the same as on their Alibaba profile.
NEVER send money to a personal bank account! This is the most common scam played out on Alibaba: the supplier will tell you that they’re having a problem with their business account and will ask you to please send the money to their boss’s account. NEVER do that! Money that goes to a personal bank account is usually money down the drain.
Scammers will also often try to use different companies for receiving money. If the company name on the invoice is different to what you’re dealing with on Alibaba, be very careful. It could be that they have a legitimate sister trading company set up for dealing with international clients, but you definitely need to ask questions and get answers that 100% confirm what they’re saying.
14. Payment Options
If the only payment methods a supplier accepts are Western Union and MoneyGram, run away! I would never even consider dealing with such a supplier. While not all suppliers in China will accept PayPal or use the platform’s Trade Assurance, a bank transfer to a company’s account should be a default payment method that is always available to use.
If they also accept Trade Assurance, a letter of credit or PayPal, even better! But never use a supplier if the only payment options are Western Union or MoneyGram!
The only time that I’m happy to use Western Union is when paying for samples, and that’s only because it’s quicker and cheaper to send small amounts via WU than to do a bank transfer. But even then, I’m also prepared to lose that money if everything goes wrong (I’m talking about small amounts here, always less than $100, usually less than $50).
Nowadays, however, there are very cheap ways to pay for samples and get mid-market exchange rates without going near Western Union or MoneyGram.
With companies like Wise, your money is always converted at the mid-market exchange rate, making them up to eight times cheaper than banks when paying international invoices.
Setting up the payment is simple, too. You sign up for a free account, set up your transfer by entering your supplier’s bank account information, state what currency you’d like to pay them in, and then fund your transfer. The funding options include bank transfer and debit/credit card. Your supplier won’t need to do anything. For them, it’s just like receiving cash into their bank account.
With over five million customers and co-founded by the first employee of Skype, you can be assured that your money is sent securely. However, just like with a normal wire transfer, your money is not protected if your supplier turns out to be fraudulent, so it’s best used when you’re paying a supplier you trust.
You can find out more about TransferWise in my post here.
15. Product Selection
The last filter on my list is product selection. By that, I mean the types of products the supplier has listed on their Alibaba profile.
For scammers, the strategy is simple: they have a limited time to use the account before it gets banned, so they will try to list all kinds of unrelated but very popular products to lure people in quickly. They know that they can’t use brand names in their listing texts and titles (because Alibaba filters them out), but they can still do it by uploading images of branded goods, which are much harder to spot.
It’s not uncommon to see a scammer profile on Alibaba that sells iPhones, Nike’s and PlayStations all under one roof. Again, you already know by now that branded goods on Alibaba mean it’s a 100% SCAM! But you still have to be cautious and do your due diligence, even when you’re searching for unbranded goods.
True manufacturers will usually offer one type of product, cover one product group, or deal with groups of similar products. They won’t offer socks along with electronics. Yes, there are trading companies who do this, and they can be totally legit, but our goal (in most situations) is to find product manufacturers, not trading companies. So, I would recommend staying away from profiles that have all kinds of unrelated products listed.
Another reason to be cautious is that a genuine Alibaba supplier profile could have been hacked. For example, consider a profile that sells gardening hose products. A scammer hacks it and lists a few highly popular products that are in the household goods category (say, TVs and other related products). For them, it’s an easy way to lure people in. They’re using a legit profile, so they can ask for payment via Western Union, MoneyGram or a personal bank account and scam the buyer while hiding behind a legitimate business.
So as a final filter always take a look at what other products the supplier is offering on Alibaba and use that to spot any potential scams.
These situations are very rare, though. If you avoid branded goods and follow my 15-step filter process, the chances of you getting scammed are down to almost zero.
Conclusion
So, how do you feel now about getting scammed on Alibaba? Is Alibaba safe?
After reading through all of the steps in this blog post, I’m sure you’ve come to realise that it’s the people who don’t investigate suppliers or who don’t know much about the platform who get scammed on Alibaba. I mean, we have so many tools and so much information at our disposal.
You have to be very greedy and avoid every red flag and common-sense warning to fall for those scams.
Just stick with this guide and you will avoid 99.99% of scams. There are, of course, many smaller filters you could also use, like watermarked pictures. If a supplier has their own watermarked pictures on their Alibaba product showcase, it’s another good sign that they are a legit supplier because scammers usually don’t have the time or resources to get unique product pictures.
You also have to consider the communication style and how aggressively the supplier is offering incredible deals (offers like: Buy 2, get 3, FREE shipping, etc., which are all clear signs of a scam!). In short, use common sense! If it looks too good to be true, it definitely is!
Sure, you can get unlucky. No one is protected 100% and risk is part of any business, but in general, you’ll stay safe and avoid scams on Alibaba if you follow the advice in this blog post.
Let me quickly remind you once again that there is a difference between getting scammed on Alibaba AND simply getting a bad supplier with low-quality stock or a supplier who is lazy, unresponsive and doesn’t want to hear about your problems after the sale is made. There are good and bad suppliers everywhere, be it China, the UK, Argentina or anywhere else!
That’s why you should always start with a sample order, just to test the product quality and the supplier’s reliability. If you’re happy with the sample order, then you can place your first real order. I recommend you keep your first order to a relatively small amount and increase it gradually. Why? Suppliers often send out a perfect sample. If you place a massive first order and they send you a lower quality product, you’re stuck with a lot of it.
Ideally, you would do a factory inspection before you place your real order if an inspection report is not already available on the supplier’s profile page. This way, you can verify that the supplier is actually what they appear to be and reduce the chances of you getting scammed.
Verification is also important if you want to deal with manufacturers ONLY, as many trading companies advertise themselves as manufacturers when they’re actually just a middleman and don’t have any manufacturing facilities. An inspection report will reveal the truth!
Well, that’s it for today. I really hope you enjoyed my “review of Alibaba” and that this helps you to stay out of trouble and avoid scams on Alibaba! As I said, there are not that many scammers left on the platform at all, but if you avoid branded goods and follow my 15-step process for how to avoid scams on Alibaba, your chances of getting scammed are reduced to an absolute minimum.
To educate yourself more on this topic, please check out my TOP 10 Scams on Alibaba article to familiarise yourself with the telltale behaviours of a typical scammer, which will teach you how to spot scams on Alibaba from a mile off!
If you have any questions, I’m here to help! Please leave your comments below the post and I will personally answer them within 24 hours, Mon-Fri. I’m happy to share my knowledge and 15+ years of experience with anyone who is new to this process and needs help.
Lastly, if you would like to learn more about importing products and building an Amazon FBA business using your own branded goods, check out my Amazon Sharks program:
It’s got 20+ hours of video lessons on how to start a successful Amazon FBA business that take you from A to Z. Branding, importing from China and everything else you need to know is covered in great detail in the course. You will also get my personal support, various bonuses and free updates for life. So definitely check it out here.
Good luck with your importing and stay 100% SCAM-free! 🙂
Hi andrew
i buy some electronic on aliexpress, seller showing in shipping ” via Seller’s Shipping Method” and they provide that site for tracking
http://ws-shipping.com
its looks 100% fake, what happen if that fake site showing after some time, item delivered??
Hi Rajiv,
Just wait 2-3 weeks, if product doesn’t show up, simply open a dispute in Ali Express and if seller can’t provide real tracking info, you’ll get your money back.
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi Andrew, you say all stuff from mainland China will all be fakes and not original/branded items? Im looking into creating a gaming products business and looking into sourcing PS4’s on Alibaba.
I have a supplier here that has PS4’s in Bangkok Thailand, they are verified and have been Gold certified for 4 years now! They are also A&V checked and have been in business since 2007.
Would just like to know what you think? You seem to be the right man to ask?
Regards,
Elliot K.
Hi Elliot,
I think it’s still too risky….
What payment methods do they accept?
Andrew
I was curious about the example you provided, so I searched myself. “Baby Einstein” did show up.
http://alibaba.com/product-detail/einstein-26-collection-series-mom-s_60183704179.html?spm=a2700.7724838.102.12.kl6dQY
yes, these are 100 % FAKE DVDs!
Andrew
i use the aliexpress sister site and its excellent but there are more good sellers than bad ones on it. always get a refund if the seller dosent answer or send items. out of 10 orders i recieved 7 which isnt bad. some sellers will list in stock but will cancel orders as not in stock but still list as in stock which is strange
I’ve been buying a lot on Aliexpress, more than 40 times. So far I’m happy with every purchased I made (4.5/5 Stars). My advise is you must read product descriptions carefully. Compare your choice with similar product from other seller. Read the review. Communicate with the seller about specific information (Product size, quantity, choice of shipping company etc). If sellers don’t reply your message, don’t order from them, find another seller. If you suspect the price is too low, you can check seller’s website. If everything in this seller’s website is too good to be true, leave the seller. Shop in another place. Refund process and complain are easy. Seller really care for their reputation here. So, what do you expect from Aliexpress? Basic principle is apply: You got what you pay for apply here. Some products here maybe are not as you expected. But trust me, some products are extremely good.
100% agree on everything you say Ray!
There are people who want PREMIUM quality for 1/10th of the price, people who don’t bother reading or doing research. For them – everyone is a scammer!
But I can also say that if you do your research properly and order from trusted suppliers, Ali Express is a great way to buy goods in small MOQs.
Thanks again,
Andrew
This is a excellent write-up. I am in the processing of placing an order with a company listed on Alibaba. The name of the company is Zhejiang Holip Electronics Co., Ltd. They are claiming to sell me a name brand TV (Sony). Payment method is bank transfer or Western Union. Shipping DHL within 24 hours after payment received. Have you had any dealings with this company?
Hi Scott,
Branded TV from Alibaba – sounds 99% scam!
Do you have a link to their Alibaba profile?
Andrew
Hello! I stumbled upon this article while doing some research, I am in the process of ordering from an alibaba supplier, and everything is good, but they only accept western union, or bank transfer. They are a 6 year gold member, and have an onsite check, as well as a trade assurance crest, please tell me if this is safe to deal with. I have looked at their alibaba profile and everything seems fine, pictures of the factory has their logos … etc if there is anything else I can do please help, and thank you for this great article!
Hi Tony,
Have you ordered samples from them?
Andrew
this is their online shop
http://sunwinknitwear.en.alibaba.com/company_profile.html
I tried to buy a product at Aliexpress using my credit card. The amount was around $30. My credit card bank accepted the charge (pending). Yet, I got an email from Aliexpress saying that there were some security concern and my order was cancelled. They wanted me to provide a copy of pictured ID and a bank statement for a proof. I didn’t send them any as I couldn’t understand the reason for that and didn’t want to expose too much information about myself. I did many purchases on the Internet like Amazon, aireline tickets etc. and never before had any such requirements. Any explanation?
Menachem
Hi Menachem,
This is a very common procedure when buying on Ali Express. They do this to minimise buyers/scammers who use stolen credit cards or simply do un-reasonable charge-backs. If you want to order from Ali Express, you’ll have to verify your account. If this sounds too risky for you, then you should avoid it altogether.
Thanks,
Andrew
Thanks for this your blog,
Its obvious some of this scams are perpetuated by employee of reputable companies, but i believe with your advice, one can ensure a great amount of safety to importation.
Please do you know cheap but reliable shipping means, one that might take a little long time to get delivered, because its obvious i cant afford the ‘express…’
Thanks
Hi Jeff,
Shipping is covered in this guide:
http://andrewminalto.com/how-to-import-products-from-china/
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi , i just get communicated with a seller at alibaba.com..He offered me the SAMASUNG S6 mobile phone with an extremely low cost price in contrast to my calculations..Also promised me about an promo such as 2+1 S6 ( as a gift ) or 5+3..Told me that these phones are 100% original and not copied or fake..The seller is not chinese but american and as i read the company is situated at California U.S…So , here comes the question is this seller truly reliable and trustable on what he promised to me or the phones are fake and i gonna get chaeted and the phones are not going to work???Thank you…!!!
Marios, what do you think?
Of course it’s a 100% SCAM!!!! Without a doubt! RUN AWAY!!!
No wholesaler in the World gives 2+1 or 5+3 deals on latest, hottest branded mobile phones. It’s a classic SCAM!
Andrew
Hi,
I am in process of buying a mini laser cutting machine. After reading your article, everything seems all well and good with the company. Most of the points you raised up where checked and seems to satisfy one’s buyer. My only problem is about the person I am dealing with. He use an email of his own, that is, ***@126.com, which is not the company’s official email. We also comunicated using skype, still not the official alibaba site. To say everything, when I asked why skype and not the official site, someone send a message from the official site claiming that it is him, but with a different name/nick name. You send in your article that …When you’re already in the negotiation process and receive your first proforma invoice, always check the company address, name & bank details. It should be exactly the same as on their Alibaba profile….. My question is, where can I find this information about the company’s bank accounts?
The person in contact has suggested escrow payment, but still, how can I know that this is not a scam but the real company’s bank account?
Thanks and regards
Does this supplier has Trade Assurance coverage?
If it does, you’re pretty safe doing transaction under Trade Assurance terms. Read more about it here:
http://andrewminalto.com/alibaba-trade-assurance/
Thanks,
Andrew
placed an order and on product page states 2 days processing and 3-7 days for delivery Shenzhen Blueocean Industry Co., Ltd. Store No.1711979
just after i place order 2 different ones seller reply’s with a fake UPS tracking number
2nd order seller responds with a fake DHL tracking number
it’s been 2 weeks since i placed first order and still no proof of shipment should i now contact my cc company i paid with debit mastercard
Hi Randy,
Was it on Ali Express?
Also, what do you mean by FAKE tracking number?
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi Andrew,
Thanks for all the feedback it really gave me some good insight of the company… I don’t have much experience in buying online but I’ve found a shop that looks “promising”
Can you tell me if this website looks the same “promising” to you as well?
http://goo.gl/DHvTMN
I was on about buying some bracelets like those and sell them on ebay in the UK.
Can you please give me some tips and some advice?
If it works I would make sure that I’ll send you some bracelets as well in return.
Thanks, Kris
Hi Kris,
Supplier looks ok to me!
You need to order few samples first and then see how it goes.
Thanks,
Andrew
Thanks for really quick reply (for the second time today).
I spoken to them and they do accept paypal as well so reading through your website I am quite convinced that they are the real deal… but never knows… I will need to do like you said and order a few samples then see how it goes but after that it should be fine with the supplier issue…
All I will need then is your guide how to set up a proper ebay shop, as I believe it does teach you a few things, as well as shows your some good templates…
Might be a looking at a great start here!
Good to hear that Kris! 🙂
Andrew
wrong post agant: http://viyajewelry.en.alibaba.com/
Is this one good to you?
I just found this post online searching for some knowledge about scams of Alibaba.
Any help will be appreciated:
http://logoforyou.en.alibaba.com/company_profile.html#top-nav-bar
Yep, they look ok to me at first glance.
Andrew
Hi! I am not a reseller… but I have found a few items on alibaba that are selling single items or single sets of items. I’m looking for a reception desk for my daycare center. But the prices seem extremly low compared to other reception desks I’ve found online. But all of them seem extremley cheap… I know how to avoid being scammed when it comes to payment, but are these normal prices?
Hi Sarah,
It’s really not worth buying just one such desk from China – when you add shipping, customs clearance fees, taxes, it will become a VERY expensive desk. So just don’t do it.
Andrew
Hi,
I read your blog and it sounds interesting because but I don’t think it is enough to protect you from being scammed. In my experience, I did follow the majority of the steps you listed above. The supplier I approached after 6 months of research was a Gold Supplier for 8 years, had a website, videos, verified by Alibaba, and on their website they had picture testimonials from previous customers. So I eventually felt comfortable enough to order a food forming machine from them, which was obviously unbranded. The problem was they sent me a broken and rusted machine. Food and rust do not go together. So first problem, they didn’t make the machine with food grade material; therefore, quality of the machine was zero and not appropriate for food use. Second, the machine itself was not working with many broken parts. Third, they sent a Chinese manual instead of an English one. I got in contact with them immediately after receiving their pile of rust. I sent pictures and videos. They told me to go clean the rust myself and to look online for an English manual. So I contacted Alibaba to launch a complaint. They asked me for invoice, receipts, and history of communication. After sending all that, they told me that they won’t do anything about it because I supposedly communicated with the supplier offline, which is untrue. Prior to speaking with any supplier, I downloaded Trade Manager (Alibaba’s chatting application) and that’s how we exchanged info and made the order. My shock came with what Alibaba did after that. After submitting the formal complaint, my Trade Manager account which had the history of communication between me and the supplier was completely erased. If you know anything about servers, you will know that they can access that information, alter it or delete it. You can read my review of Zhengzhou Holyphant Food Machinery CO.,LTD http://www.dbph.net on Site Jabber. I also have pictures there as well. There is more to Alibaba than what meets the eye. The same way you try to out smart thieves, they will find ways to go around that process to get to your money. Remember, they do this for a living. As a conclusion to my experience, I know that we all look and like to save money which is why so many are drawn to “platforms” like Alibaba, but at the end of the day, you have to realize that you are more likely to suffer a scam than to get a real bargain. Buy from a local manufacturer even if you have to pay more, at least you will help someone in your country to keep their business going.
Thanks for sharing your experience with us Hajer.
Yes, there’s always that risk that you’ll receive a defective item, damaged item etc. etc. This is business and there are always risks we can’t 100% eliminate. (one thing you can do though is get pre-shipment inspection done which almost eliminates problems you’re describing).
Andrew
I had an issue with a supplier. I ordered a bundle of product. Half was correct, the other half was random.
I contacted customer service and showed evidence.
After nearly 2 months, customer service ruled in favor of the seller not the buyer … the seller provided no evidence, I provided all the evidence.
I will certainly never be dealing with alibaba or aliexpress ever again. Customer service is not in their right mind … clearly!
Hi Robert,
Did you try sorting out your order issues with supplier first?
As I always do that if something goes wrong and as money has not been released yet to seller, they’re quick to fix any issues..
Hi Andrew,
Thank you for sharing great tips. It’s very helpful and actually made me think 10x if I should continue my transaction with a certain seller.
Can I have your opinion about my situation?
I’m planning to buy worth $150 of dollhouse with this seller http://www.aliexpress.com/store/631937 and the seller offers a lot of options for shipping but I’m planning to use the deal right now on free shipping to my country. I’ve read in my local forum that they also used free shipping when they ordered from Aliexpress and it was successful but with different seller and items. It will take a lot of time but it’s fine with me since I’m not in a hurry.
What do you think about the store and the seller? The seller offers a lot of options for payment but I’ll be using Western Union since my debit card has a problem right now.
It’s stated that I should send it to:
Company Name – Alipay Singapore E Commerce
Company Code – Alipay SG
Country – Singapore
I read here http://service.alibaba.com/buyer/faq_detail/13886869.htm that Payment should be made to Alipay Singapore E Commerce and not to the seller. They I think when the payment is made, Alipay will inform the seller so the seller can ship it.
I looked at their feedback and they’re active and a lot of people with Silver and Gold accounts bought something from them. They also got a lot of good feedback and 5 stars. I think they haven’t had tried shipping to my country that’s why I asked the seller if there’s someone from my country bought something from them and can they give me the link of what he/she bought but they haven’t replied yet.
Sometimes I think they’re legit and I want to continue my transaction but sometimes I’m not sure. I tried researching some Aliexpress reviews but some are negative and some are positive. I’m really torn right now. I don’t know what should I do.
Hope you’ll reply soon
Thank you
That seller looks ok to me and doll house really is not a high risk item 🙂
So I think you’ll be just fine.
Andrew
The branded products does it include products like iPhone samsung and sk on?
Yes, of course.
ALIBABA.COM /ALIEXPRESS.COM THE “WORLDS LARGEST CRIMINAL ORGANISATION”
Hat’s off to JACK YUN MA the founder of Alibaba.com/Aliexpress.com these two companies form the “PROTECTION SHIELD” which allows sellers all over the world to scam anyone and everyone who buys products for their websites, with no one able to anything about it at all.
1. If you have a problem with an item you bought you can email the seller, BUT there is no guarantee that the seller will email back and if you are lucky enough to get a reply back he will not help you. (nothing you can do)
2. You can try to contact “Customer Service”, but you are most likely to get through to a robot chat system. Sometimes on (Alibaba ONLY) you might be lucky and get a live chat with a Human BUT of course this will not resolve anything at all they will just take you round and round in small circles and you will get nowhere.(nothing you can do)
3. There are ABSOLUTELY NO EMAIL addresses for any of these companies, so this method of contact is out the window. (nothing you can do)
4. You CAN NOT report a problem to the Police as they do not want to know
5. You CAN NOT get your government to look into it because they can not do anything because china has different law’s
6. It is most unlikely that you would find a Solicitor who would be willing to take on a case of this type and if you did there are suggestions on the internet that Solicitors fee’s for such a case would be well over $2000.00
7. If you’re purchase was on Aliexpress and you get a HUMAN customer service rep on Alibaba as soon as you give them your order number or mention Aliexpress they will pass you over to Aliexpress customer service quicker that yu are able to blink and yes you’ve guessed nothing will be done.
The website should be renamed to Alibaba and the on-line thieves
The only safe advice regarding these companies is
STAY WELL AWAY DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FORM ANY OF THESE WEBSITES
Hi Alfred,
I was just wondering how I personally and millions of other people and businesses use Alibaba and Ali Express successfully for their product sourcing needs?
Was just wondering…
Andrew
P.S. In no way I’m defending poor customer support situation you have faced with Alibaba. I can only talk from personal experience – that I have never had any problems with contacting suppliers regarding my orders on Alibaba and Ali Express. On Ali Express I have found that sellers are super quick to act on any problems as they know that money in Escrow is not secured yet + they don’t want to earn negative feedbacks/reviews too.
Please help…
I really want to order video greeting cards from a company-but I’m so scared I will lose my money to a scam. I tried to look for the things you talked about…but I don’t see anything but the gold supplier logo. I don’t know if they changed things around..or maybe I am missing something. This will be my first order from this site. It’s for my wedding…I really can’t afford to get scammed out of $1000- I’m on a super tight buget. I’m sending the link and my email . if you or anyone can help me verify this company- I would greatly appreciate it.
Hi Monique,
That supplier looks decent to me, no warning signs I can see from taking a quick look. If you have ordered a sample first and it went through all good and for the larger order supplier accepts PayPal, you’re relatively safe ordering from them.
But you have to remember that any kind of importing activities carry risks – no matter how safe supplier looks. From your comment I get a feeling that you’re in almost desperate situation and desperate is no good when it comes down to business. If you haven’t done any importing before and you can’t afford any mistakes, maybe DON’t import? Find a local seller for these products, maybe buy them off eBay and just stay safe? Yes, it will be a bit more expensive but your transaction will be protected.
Hope this helps!
Thanks,
Andrew
Help on vetting out a supplier — ABIDA INTERNATIONAL on ALIBABA –2 Year Gold Supplier with verified address and phone number . I have been chatting with the owner of the Company or business . I need help he says they have warehouses in US, EUROPE & MIDDLE EAST but the company is HQ in India .
They only accept Western Union & Money Gram . But the funny thing is that he is telling me to send the funds for Sample order through western union to a person ( Nigerian by Name) in Cairo , Egypt where he says they have their Financial Department . There are too many red flags with this supplier , the Proforma invoice he sent me has all the details about the company .
I am sourcing NVIDIA TESLA K40 & K80 and TITAN Z cards for some IT projects we deploying at the moment .
Any comment or idea ?
Hi Jimmy,
The company itself actually may be legit, they have a website here: http://www.abidarugs.co.in
BUT they sell RUGS and similar products not video cards projectors and other electronics!
It could be that their Alibaba account was hacked or they sold it off to someone or an employee is playing a trick here. Either way it’s a 100% SCAM! Don’t send any money to them, period.
If WU & MG is the only payment method they accept, there’s no doubt about the fact that they will scam you. Not talking about your “bright” idea of importing branded electronics from Alibaba! 🙂
Check out this guide for more info on Alibaba scams:
http://andrewminalto.com/top-10-alibaba-scams/
Hope this helps!
Thanks,
Andrew
That’s a complete lie! I trust aliexpress as the seller doesn’t receive the payment until you have received your goods, but AliBaba on the other hand.. Complete scam! I recently got scammed on there for £437, I pid for the items and the sellers has refused to send them, I reported it to AliBaba and they said they couldn’t do anything, they said the company was hacked by a third party! Absolute ridiculous!! Complete scam, anyone know if there’s any way I can get my money back? Any procedures I can take?
http://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/I-s-u-z-u-Trooper_60159270908.html
I s u z u Trooper 3.0 4JX1 Diesel Fuel Injector 8971925963
i need 4 injectors for my 4jx1 engined 4×4 , they look real in the box item on ad , claim to be genuine and real, would they be genuine izuzu parts or copies ? i only want genuine parts.
how would i tell before purchasing, would they in fact even admit to them being copies ?
seller -taian zhongdi trading company , [china mainland] verified, with 2 years icon.
the supplier supports trade assurance [icon]
onsite check, for legality [icon]
payments – t/t,western union, moneygram
76.6 response rate
on there website they claim to be a 2 year gold supplier, this i cant find on the items actual advertisement ?
Hi Mark,
It’s very hard to say whatever they sell genuine parts or not. Or say most of them are genuine or some not. They do have an Ali Express store though with some good feedbacks:
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/214865
So it would be safer for you to order through there and if it turns out that they sell fakes/copies, you can always return them and get your money back via Escrow system.
Thanks,
Andrew
I was just scammed out of $978. by a place masquerading as HH Music. I want the Yamaha Keyboard line and just got to anxious so thought I would try it. First time! 3 out of 4 companies were real. They let this scammer talk to you via chat room! It is complicated to try to report it to Alibaba too. I don’t even think my complaint got through to them! Don’t buy any keyboards like Yamaha or Korg with this guy. I reported them to the FBI and to Western Union but I am sure they have many emails and names to scam with.
He made me a deal and came back with a big lie that he needed $700. more. However these Chinese companies came through for me which are: Nobson, China Joy Keyboards, and HStart Company. They are all legite and give great service but their product is cheap and not up to the caliber of Korg and Yamaha keyboards. So don’t get burned like I did and stay away from these sites. Better to deal another way, not through Allibaba for sure!
Hi Bob,
Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
The number 1 rule when buying from China is – DON’T even look @ branded products! Your example is exactly that – trying to buy branded keyboards from Alibaba suppliers. It can’t be done so don’t even look at sites like Alibaba for buying branded keyboards.
Andrew
Branded products question. Someone makes those items like the site you showed to avoid having branded products. Someone needs to make them. What are the chances that a particular company does really make a given branded item? I’m looking at elecronic components and some companies have in their catalogs pictures of similar items they made with a company logo on it and that company design. Am I thinking correctly or am I way off in my thoughts? What say you?
Chances are high but not guaranteed of course.
I have dealt with many factories that DO MAKE branded goods for well know companies in the same niche. This is totally normal and nothing to worry about really. As long as you’re not stealing anything, don’t use logos, patented technology etc., you’re fine.
Thanks
Andrew
I’m trying to fully understand the “…can’t get branded from China suppliers…” comment made.
Are you saying…
I can buy the same parts as Sanyo to use in my electronics?
However, I can’t/ shouldn’t buy a completed fully operable Sanyo device?
I can’t take an Intel chip and call it a Charlie chip?
However, can take a generic chip and call it a Charlie chip?
The use of Sanyo / Intel is strictly for example reasons.
Gracias
yes, sort of.
Question is whatever you can get your hand son exact same parts as say Sanyo uses. But of they’re un-branded parts, yes you can most likely get them from China.
And yes, you can take generic/un-branded chip and call it Charlie chip.
Thanks,
Andrew
I am a newbie to online sales, yet not new to brick and mortor business. I’ve just begun my research which I like to do as thoroughly as possible. Add to that, that I don’t trust any human what so ever. I have sent some contacts requesting samples, and i’m willing to buy very small lots for starters. So when I order a case, about the size of two six packs, of electronic hardware (small things) from main land China and they quote me $250 for the case plus $50.00 shipping to “my door ” as I always ask (how much to get it to my door) where does Customs Duties and taxes come into play and will there be “hidden” surprises before I get my goods?
My biggest downfall is total lack of trust (I’m still buying and selling in USA) and very detailed research make me slow to decide. I do decide however, fools rush in, is my motto. Thanks
Hi Charlie,
Are you based in the USA?
Yes, I am.
Hello Andrew,
Yes, USA. Just noticed after my inquiries that you’re in the UK…cool. I’m a newbie and like taking baby steps when it comes to any investment of any kind. If I may…
When a manufacturer has many varieties of item of interest what is considered a reasonable sample amount? One. One of 1/2 dozen varieties?
Where is a good source for truthful knowledge about starting, establishing, and maintaining a business relationship with foreign suppliers and ALL that is involved and expected with purchasing and receiving goods for use/ resale in the United States? Including all the costs to get it to my business. And how to find out before I order what I’m going to pay at Customs Duties and Tax, etc. Did I mentioned I was OCD detailed? :-)) Thank you… (12 inches of snow last two days here, how’s by you 🙂
Hi Charlie,
Usually sample means one piece from each product you’re interested in. If they’re very cheap/small items, you can ask for 2-3 pieces for each item.
To find out what import duty you’ll have to pay, use this online calculator:
http://www.dutycalculator.com
The procedure in USA will be pretty much same as in UK, with the only difference that you don’t have VAT to pay.
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi. Just wanted to share my experience in hopes that it will help readers avoid making a mistake I almost made. The supplier is Kids Market Co., LTD and I found them though Alibaba. They claim to be selling brand-name baby cloth diapers that are supposedly manufactured in US. I reached out to the US manufacturer, and they confirm that part of their manufacturing is still done in China, but that they are moving all of it to US.
Anyways, after receiving a very low price quote from this distributor I requested a sample of a product to verify it is in fact legit. The guy I was dealing with, Erick Nurdin, very rudely told me they don’t do samples because it’s a well-known brand and I can just go see it at a store in US. Well, duh, but how do I know that’s what he’s actually selling. Oh, by the way, this guy kept misspelling his first name in each e-mail I received from him. Red flag.
I then agreed to a small order and placed it with him telling him prior to placing it that I would like to pay either through Alibaba’s Escrow or AliPay. No objections were given until the order was actually placed.
I received a proforma with a request to do a bank transfer directly. Are you counting red flags? I finally called the guy out asking if there was a reason he refused to accept third party payment form. He got very rude and that was the last I heard from him. I’m glad I didn’t loose out on $1,600, so thanks Andrew for writing this post. It helped big time.
Thanks for sharing this with us Kate!
It’s a classic scammers approach and I’m so glad you did not proceed with the payment.
Andrew
Hello Everyone!
I would like to start my adventure with import, and now I looking for good sellers ofcomputer components. I have found some good offers on Alibaba.com service, and I affraid a little bit about transaction. Is this safe and if anyone can tell me if I should try to buy something from these users? Looks good, but I don’t know is this safe… Here are their offers:
uk108520687.trustpass.alibaba.com/product/50012291245-0/BUY_2_GET_1_free_Free_Shipping_Hot_price_for_NVIDIA_GeForce_GTX_980_4GB_Video_Card_with_700W_Power_Supply.html
alibaba.com/product-detail/For-New-ASUS-G751JY-DH72X-17_50012366497.html
alibaba.com/product-detail/Original-Sales-For-New-ASUS-ROG_50011921058.html
alibaba.com/product-detail/Original-Sales-For-New-ASUS-ROG_50011862218.html
Thank You very much for any information.
Best Regards!
Dawid,
Did you actually read this post?
Those suppliers you link to – they’re 100% SCAMS, selling branded products with un-verified accounts.
STAY AWAY!
Andrew
Thank You very much. I am on the start in this. I have found also verified sellers by Alibaba, but I thing it’s also scam…
Regards!
Hi Andrew,
I’m looking at doing business with Ningbo TOPCOM Lighting Co., Ltd on Alibaba and just looking for your opinion on them as I will be making a payment via PayPal soon and they will be shipping via DHL DDU. I understand that means I will be paying DHL for duty and taxes? Do you know if using a broker would be cheaper as I’m sure DHL will mark up? Lastly, in your experience what is the best shipping method other than by Sea?
Thanks for any info you can provide.
John
Hi John,
Yes, that means you’ll pay DHL for duty and taxes. No, they don’t add any mark-up on these, don’t worry. They just charge an admin fee, just like any other courier company, Royal Mail or broker. It’s usually £10-£20 and is actually cheaper what you would get doing it via a specialised customs broker company.
There’s nothing cheaper than sea freight I’m afraid… If goods are valuable, not that heavy and you need them quickly, you can also use air freight which is more expensive than sea freight, cheaper than courier and arrives in 5-10 business days.
Thanks,
Andrew
Thanks for your quick response Andrew.
Much appreciated!
John
You’re welcome John! 🙂
Hi Andrew,
I am talking to a wholesaler located in the UK and want to order two pallets of red bull energy drink and have it shipped to Houston Tx USA. He said I can pay with PayPal but I wanted to ask if there is any reason PayPal would not reimburse me my money if I don’t receive shipment?
Thanks
Matt
Hi Matt,
Thanks for your comment.
Did you find that supplier on Alibaba? if so, that’s very suspicious…
As for PayPal – there’s buyer protection with some rules you need to follow to get covered:
https://www.paypal.com/lv/webapps/mpp/paypal-safety-and-security
But it’s subject to PayPal’s review of course (if you open a case). Good thing with PayPal payments is that IF you fund the payment using your credit card, in worst case scenario you can simply do a charge back with our credit card company.
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi Andrew.
I came across your blog post and loved the amount of helpful info you shared. The more I read about how to spot a potential scam on Alibaba, the more confused I get about the current supplier I’m working with.
You mentioned in your post that if a product is brand name, it is most likely a fake. But then in some of your replies you also state that many brand names are manufactured in China. I’m currently in the talks with an agent/distributor of a brand name baby product located in Singapore. The brand name is American, but even they admit that they source Chinese manufacturers to produce some of the products for them.
The supplier refuses to send a sample, even though I offered to pay full retail and shipping. Their excuse is their product is well-known, authentic, comes with a certificate of authenticity, etc, etc, and therefore I can “look at the sample” at any reputable store.
They are an unverified supplier on Alibaba, but looks like they’ve been registered with them for 3 years. When doing simple Google search of company name, it always comes back with multiple results with the same address and contact information.
Anyways, I placed an order with them hoping I would be able to take adventage of Alibaba’s Escrow service, but instead the guy emailed me invoice proforma asking to do a T/T transfer. When I questioned it, his explanation was that I first pay it, then he uploads the invoice through Alibaba to make it official. Makes no sense. Wouldn’t he create the invoice through Alibaba first so the payment is actually secure?
What are your thoughts? My total with him is over $1,500 and it’s my entire sum I have to play with, so if he gets my money and runs, that would be the end of the road for me.
I’ve done business with couple of suppliers from Alibaba before, and we actually did it offline, using PayPal, for a similar amount of money, and it worked out fine, but something about this supplier just doesn’t sit well with me.
Thanks in advance for your advice.
Kate.
Hi Kate,
Thanks for your comment.
I really hope you didn’t send the money off yet? RUN AWAY from that supplier!
Free Alibaba profile, branded goods, refusing to send samples, T/T payment – its all screaming SCAM to me! Stay away from them.
Yes, many goods are manufactured in China BUT that doesn’t mean you can buy them directly from factories just like that. far from it. Branded goods are only distributed via official channels where brand owner controls pricing and other terms. You can’t just go to a factory in China and order two pallets of iPhones, it’s not how it works.
I’m very glad that you posted this comment and I hope that I saved you $1500.
You can send my cut over any time you want! 🙂
Thanks,
Andrew
Thanks, Andrew.
You did actually save me $1,500 🙂
I came back and posted an update along with info of the supplier so if anyone googles them they can read my experience and hopefully avoid them.
Thanks again!
Kate.
Great to hear that Kate! 🙂
A good rule that my momma taught me… “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is”
It applies to importing from China for all 110%! 🙂
So, I have been in contact with a few sellers to find some tiaras and wands. So one of them “Shelly Topstar” calls me “Dear Fluffy”. Now, nowhere in my registration is the name Fluffy. This is actually the NICKNAME ON MY CPU!!!!!! How on earth could she have known that? Can they hack me from my IP address?? Please, I need some help here, I am freaking out now because up until last night, I didn’t have McAfee installed. I do now, and the PC turned up clean, but how in the world did she know Fluffy. Please any advice?
Hi Steph,
Not sure, maybe you used live chat and it used your PC name? or sending some files you may send that info over.
Hard to know without knowing your full history with each supplier. But I can’t see any way they could hack your computer, and why would they do it?
Alibaba is a SCAM <— That first sentence should have been: 'Alibaba is a SCAM'
Not having it in quotes makes it seem like you are saying Alibaba is a SCAM, then after reading further, and re-reading the first paragraph, it then becomes clear what you meant.
Grammar matters, man.
Grammar police.
Thanks Tom, well spotted! 🙂
Andrew
Hi Andrew
First of all thanks for your 10 filtering steps I’m just lucky I did some research on alibaba before buying. I say this because I went on and seen all these amazing deals and I told myself this is too good to be tru and in most cases they are so I went and started searching and found this page I read about 2 to 3 hours of all these blogs and helped me put more thought and how to find scammer and I’m looking at buying paracord and I would like your wisdom and advice on this very much so if u wouldn’t mind taking a look at this for me I think there legit but I would like your insight on this Please and thank you this is the company name http://nanjing-chongfu.en.ywsp.com this is one of there website but as this is my first time on alibaba I would really like to know as much as u know if this is legit thx.
Hi Marc,
Is it same company as this one? http://efivs.en.alibaba.com
if so, they look legit to me.
Just stay away from any products that carry BRAND LOGOS on them, like this one:
http://efivs.en.alibaba.com/product/60110105833-221963623/metal_paracord_shoelace_charm_with_nfl_epoxy_Stickers.html
Thanks,
Andrew
Thx Andrew Ya I figured that I wasn’t gonna buy any cuz I seen the pics of hockey teams so Ya but thx again I will go and order my samples now thx again Andrew appreciate u doing for ppl like us who don’t know anything and u open our eyes thank you take care.
No worries, you’re welcome Marc! 🙂
[…] Alibaba Scam Exposed […]
Hi,
Regarding the payment to suppliers, as long as they have paypal, is it considered secured? I am about to make a sample purchase and the company does not have aliexpress i think. I have asked them and they did not answer me, and the company is in its 5th year in Alibaba. Please advise.
Thank you.
Hi Benjamin,
Yes, PayPal usually means that they will deliver (they have no choice as with PayPal you can always get your money back if goods are not delivered). When paying with PayPal though, make sure you fund the transaction with your CREDIT card (not debit or bank account) so that in worst case of scenario, you can get money back via your credit card company/bank.
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi Andrew,
Oh shucks. I only have a debit card tied to Paypal. And I do not own a credit card. Is there any other way? Because the supplier is giving me an email to purchase the sample.
Thank you.
Just pay with your debit card through PayPal and hope for best!
usually, if Chinese supplier takes PayPal, chances of getting scammed are very slim.
Hi Andrew,
Thank you very much for your reply. I will go right ahead. If I am scammed, oh well, every business has risks, I have followed your steps as close as I can, so yeah. I do hope its not a scam as it involves pretty little cash, around USD50, so in my currency is roughly MYR150. Lol. Anyway, again, thank you very much for assisting all of us in your site. Truly grateful for your help. 😉
Cheers.
You’re welcome Benjamin! 😉
Dear friends.
Be careful…
I used Aliexpress for a couple of cheap items.
Everything went ok!
When I ordered an expensive one – a tablet from the seller “xing hui”, that cost 91,81 euros (Pipo P9 3G Tablet PC RK3288 Quad Core 1.8GHz 10.1 inch IPS Retina 1920×1200 2GB RAM 32GB ROM Android 4.4 GPS HDMI 8.0MP Camera, Properties: P9 3G n Smart Case + Black) the item never came.
I have sent the company seven emails, attaching all the details with the scam seller “xing hui” and no one from the company answered.
When something like that happened to the other e-shop I use (Mininthebox) the guys from there were fast and they re-sent the item.
DO NOT buy from Aliexpress…!!!!!
Hi Petros,
Why did you not raise a dispute/case in Escrow?
All payments in Ali Express are protected by Escrow so if you don’t receive goods, you can get your money back from the Escrow.
Thanks,
Andrew
hi i am looking at some products from a seller on alibaba, but they are in pakistan.
for some reason the escrow service isnt available to pakistan, what do you suggest?
i have bought alot of things in the past from ali express and have been happy. the shipping takes a while but that isnt really the sellers fault at all .
only want to order a few samples but the shipping is 100 dollars so i dont want to be sending 150 dollars through western union or anything, i dont know what other payment methods are available since pay pal also dosent service pakistan.
what do you suggest?
Hi Brie,
is it a FREE member or Gold Member?
Hello Andrew!
Thank you so much for your post! I recently got acquainted with Alibaba.com as I was searching for an online store of gerbera plants. A free member seemingly match the product I am looking for. If I would push through with the transaction, I would pay $550 for the minimum quantity of order through Paypal, money gram or western union. I feel very nervous about this so I research on the internet about scams, before booking an order. Then I found your post about free member suppliers!
What can you say about this supplier? Do you think I should push through with the order? The company’s name is Exotic Garden and Seeds.
Your response would be really helpful! Thanks a lot!
I don’t know anything about that particular company BUT I would NEVER deal with a FREE Alibaba member/supplier! I only deal with Gold suppliers, ideally 3rd year+.
It’s simply too risky to deal with free members there.
Thanks,
Andrew
[…] found your article on 10 steps to follow when importing goods using Alibaba’s marketplace very helpful. I will definitely incorporate these steps into my due diligence process before […]
[…] scams! It is that serious, yes. I already debunked the myth that Alibaba itself is a scam in my Alibaba Scams EXPOSED article BUT today I want to talk specifically about the most common scammer tricks and schemes you can run […]
http://salonequipment.en.alibaba.com/
Can you check this company please. I am trying to do +10k transaction with them.
mike
Hi Mike,
I personally wouldn’t deal with a 1 year Gold supplier, it is too risky…
There are many other suppliers in this market who are 3rd year + Gold Suppliers on Alibaba.
Thanks,
Andrew
Hi Andrew,
I don’t know if it is by luck or design that I stumbled on your posts which changed my game today for the better. I attempted buying Nokia 1520 and 1020 phones from shenzhen electronic company in china mainland. I requested to order a total of five and was to be given 3 phones in addition as a bonus. He sent me a mail yesterday that payment is by western union only. I was just about finalizing the deal and sending the money today when I stumbled on these your eye opening posts. How lucky I’ve been!
I can’t thank you enough. Keep educating please
Best regards
Pam.
Lucky indeed Pam! 🙂
You would never see your money again, not talking about those phones.
Branded goods CAN’T be sourced from Mainland China!
Andrew
Greetings Andrew. I am so grateful to have stumbled upon this post. I am an inventor and have been trying to purchase a sample on Alibaba of a specific biodegradable nylon mesh. I need this material in order to make my prototype. I have contacted what appears to be the only 2 suppliers listed regarding what the present cost is per meter and how am I supposed to know the shipping cost? That area is left blank for the buyer ???? I noticed there are go between agents (as in US to China) who provide a ‘free” service (you pay them the sample cost) when purchasing a product on Alibaba. I want this to be simple and believe it should be am I missing something here?
Hi Carrie,
You simply contact those suppliers and ask them for a quote/invoice on total cost including material + shipping fee. This is much simpler than to organise shipping on your own, especially if your order is small and can be sent via courier company.
Thanks,
Andrew
hy Andrew
I senn a 2 years gold supliar branded iphones with good price he also send me his id
but jus want me to pay with western union what you think can I trust on them
this the link
http://pl1011689575.trustpass.alibaba.com/
What do you think? 🙂
Of course it’s a SCAM!!!
A UK based company selling iPhones 6 and take only Western Union as a payment method?
C’mon!
Great blog Andrew, and your description of Alibaba is spot on. You’ve obviously got extensive experience of trading from China.
I’m actually based in Hong Kong and work with factories all the time working on industrial products.
Alibaba is a great tool for sourcing from China but as in any profitable business you have to do the due diligence, work your rocks off and always use common sense. Trading and international business is not easy and entails hard work. If you think you can get a nice Apple phone from China for a 50% discount off retail with a click of a button; then you’re being unrealistic and will be set up to be scammed. I don’t condone the fraud and corruption in China but they are preying on the buyer’s greed or vulnerability.
Over here it’s down to personal relationships so get to know your seller, lay down some ground rules and don’t pay any amount of money till you’ve either seen a person, factory, or sample. Networking at the local fairs in Hong Kong and Guangzhou are a great place to start. If that’s not possible then make sure you lay a small order first and get a sample in your hand a least; pictures of product, factory and packaging also helps.
Never pay in wired cash unless it’s a small amount for a sample but any good supplier will ship it for free but buyer pays for shipment via courier ie the big three DHL, Fedex & UPS.
I was expecting another blame Alibaba whine but your comments were objective and constructive.
Will come back again soon – Happy Importing..
Thanks Evan for your comment!
Be careful with Alibaba, to complain about anything will lead to nowhere, Alibaba is more interested in protecting its vedors then serving customers. Filing a valid claim/complaint will NOT be handled professionally by ALIBABA.
Be warned.
Alibaba Scammer
Fraudulent Seller Shahid Meeran
This company is known as GP Meeran Industries or Meeran Wears. The owner is Shahid Meeran and the sales manager is Ehtisham Malik or Ehtisham Ul Haq. I spoke with them on Alibaba over several weeks about the purchase of OEM custom designed t-shirts. We spoke about fabric, pricing, details, lead time etc. After this time I began to trust this company and proceeded to send payment through WU on August 25. For about a month after payment was sent, they were responsive saying floods were causing delay in shipment and making various excuses why product hadn’t been shipped. After that the emailing stopped completely. They ignored all emails for the next couple months after. I ordered 100 custom t-shirts and they were never made nor sent. I have had their main account suspended, GP Meeran Industries. Beware of this company and if you see any account relating to this company or names please report them.
They also sell kart racing garments and accessories, blank sweatshirts, full sublimation clothing, blank t-shirts, sports wear, sports jackets, hoodies and more.
Telephone – 92-300-9613007
Fax – 92-52-3224007
Address : Air Port Road P.O Kapoorwali
51310
Sialkot, Punjab
Pakistan
Thanks for sharing this with us Shane!
Andrew