Buying guides
1688 dropshipping
Last updated
Published by 1688 Sourcing Agent · Review method
Key takeaways
- Confirm the supplier or fulfilment provider can send individual orders with the required packaging, tracking and return process.
- Buying stock into a warehouse creates inventory risk even when customer orders ship one by one.
- Model the complete per-order cost and test the actual route before advertising a delivery promise.
A 1688 listing is not proof of an international dropshipping service. Ask whether the supplier can send individual orders to your destination with the packaging, tracking and returns process you need.
Warehouse fulfilment is another option: receive goods in China and dispatch customer orders from there. If you buy stock first, you carry inventory risk even if the parcels ship one by one.
Turn this guide into a buying request
Keep this page as context. Add what you know; review everything before sending. No purchase is made at this step.
Continue to request →-
Confirm whether dispatch is from supplier stock or stock you must purchase in advance.
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Ask which countries, products and parcel sizes the route accepts, including any battery or liquid conditions.
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Check packaging, invoices, branding, return address and the tracking shown to the customer.
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Get order cut-offs and estimated handling, transit and customs time separately. Do not advertise a guaranteed date unless the actual service supports it.
In this guide
Test the fulfilment promise
- Confirm whether dispatch is from supplier stock or stock you must purchase in advance.
- Ask which countries, products and parcel sizes the route accepts, including any battery or liquid conditions.
- Check packaging, invoices, branding, return address and the tracking shown to the customer.
- Get order cut-offs and estimated handling, transit and customs time separately. Do not advertise a guaranteed date unless the actual service supports it.
- Place a representative test order through the complete route before offering that service to customers.
Calculate the cost per fulfilled order
Include the allocated product and China freight cost, receiving, storage, pick-and-pack, packaging, payment fees, international freight, customs and final delivery. Add only documented return or replacement costs; do not invent a default defect rate.
A low wholesale unit price can be outweighed by individual parcel costs. Compare shipping stock to a local fulfilment location and buying locally, especially for bulky low-value goods.
Write down the exception process
- Who confirms available stock before you accept the customer order?
- Who pays when the wrong variant is picked or a parcel is refused?
- What evidence is needed for damage or non-delivery, and by what deadline?
- Where can the customer return the goods and who pays the postage?
- How will you communicate a delay or unavailable product without relying on an unverified supplier promise?
Questions and answers
Common questions
- Does 1688 offer one universal dropshipping workflow?
- Do not assume a platform-wide service from a listing. Confirm the supplier, fulfilment provider and route for the actual order.
- Can I use custom packaging?
- Request the minimum quantity, artwork approval, unit cost, storage and packing scope. Confirm that required product labels and protective packaging are retained.
Your next step
Have a link you want checked?
Send a 1688 or Taobao product link and you get back the specification in English, the supplier check, and the landed cost to your country before you commit to anything.
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