AliExpress is one of the biggest business-to-consumer (B2C) online shopping sites in the world.
It has caught the attention of dropshippers all over the world because it has more than 100 million products for sale.
But does AliExpress let dropshipping happen in the first place? If so, where should you start?
Our Ultimate FAQ Guide will show you everything you need to know about dropshipping on AliExpress.
So let’s start right away!
Is Dropshipping Allowed on AliExpress?
Dropshipping is allowed on AliExpress. In fact, it has one of the biggest dropshipping markets you’ll find.
Most of the stores on AliExpress sell items at very low prices, which is why this is the case.
Some of you may already know that the key to running a successful dropshipping business is to find low-cost products.
So not only is dropshipping allowed on AliExpress, but the number of dropshippers on AliExpress is growing every day.
What Is AliExpress Dropshipping?
Finding sellers on AliExpress to fill your orders is all there is to AliExpress dropshipping.
Your AliExpress supplier will pack and ship any orders that customers place on your dropshipping store.
So it’s the same as regular dropshipping, with the only difference being that AliExpress is involved.
How to Set Up an AliExpress Dropshipping Store?
Starting an AliExpress dropshipping store is pretty easy.
Start by doing these things:
Choose a Store Platform
If you have an online store already, you can skip this step. But if you don’t, choose a platform on which you want to build your store as a first step.
Even though there are many choices, most people choose either Shopify or WooCommerce.
To make a decision, you should carefully look at what your business needs are. Both of the above platforms have their own pros and cons, as well as their own free themes and many other features.
But dropshippers often choose Shopify these days, especially since it bought Oberlo, a popular dropshipping platform.
Creating a store is usually not hard, no matter what platform you use. On its website, you can find step-by-step instructions, and if you share some information, it will be ready in less than 30 minutes.
Search for Products
Finding products is probably one of the parts of starting a dropshipping store that takes the most time.
Try to find things
AliExpress makes it easy because there are so many things to choose from. But you can use that to your advantage by looking for high-quality products with low prices.
Even though looking for a product is a long process in and of itself, here are a few tips that can help you narrow down your choices:
Don’t buy fakes or products with no brand name.
Try to find things that ship for free with ePacket.
Sort by products with a rating of 4.5 or higher.
Find products that have been bought a lot.
Dropshipping risky items like health supplements is not a good idea.
Overall, don’t rush this. Carefully look at the different options so you don’t have to do this step again.
Find a Supplier
Now that your website is ready and you’ve chosen a product to sell, there’s one more important thing you need to do: find a supplier.
Find a Provider
Most of the time, this can take a while, and you may have to try a lot of different things before you get it right.
Dropshipping suppliers aren’t usually known for their marketing skills, and it can be even harder to find the right ones on AliExpress because it’s so big.
But you can use some of the information you got when you were looking for products to help you find a supplier.
If you found a product that was very cheap and had good reviews, you should contact the seller to see if they would be interested in a partnership.
But no matter how much something costs, make sure that the supplier you choose has a fast shipping time. This is a very important part of making a dropshipping business work.
In the next part of this guide, we’ll talk more about how to find a supplier on AliExpress.
Add Products to Your Store
Now that everything is set up, you can start adding things to your store.
With modern dropshipping apps like Oberlo and Importify, it’s much easier to add products to the store, and you can even do it automatically to save time.
We really think you should check out these dropshipping tools if you want to make your business run more smoothly and fill orders with just a few clicks.
You could say that every big dropshipping business uses them now without being too much of an exaggeration, so you might as well get used to it from the start.
Cover Product Details
You’re not done yet. Adding product details is one of the most important steps in starting any dropshipping store, and AliExpress is no different.
Since dropshippers don’t have products to take pictures of, you can either ask your seller to take some for you or just use the ones they’ve already put on their store.
Photography of products
Or, if you can take new pictures of good quality, that’s even better.
So, another thing you don’t want to cut corners on is the description of the product.
We think you should hire a pro to do those things because a dropshipping store’s best selling point is its marketing. Usually, that’s also what makes you stand out from the rest.
After that, it’s time to decide on the prices. Keep in mind that you don’t want to go too high until you’ve built up a good reputation in the market.
Congratulations, you are now ready to start dropshipping on AliExpress.
How to Pick a Trustworthy Supplier on AliExpress?
Once again, the size of AliExpress alone makes it difficult to find a supplier there. However, as a general rule you need to keep the following factors in your mind:
Positive Feedback
There are a lot of sellers on AliExpress, so it’s easy to feel lost. So the best way to cut down on your choices is to sort them by a certain rating.
Usually, we’d tell you to only buy from sellers with an average rating of 4.5.
It’s also a good idea to look at the individual reviews. Even if there are only a few bad reviews, you should read them to figure out what might have gone wrong.
Reviews Having said that, don’t let just a couple of bad reviews change your mind.
Competitor Prices
One of the most important parts of a dropshipping business is to find cheap products to sell.
So, take advantage of AliExpress’s size and don’t choose the first supplier you find. Instead, look at the competition and choose the best one.
Even though it might take a little more work, it’s worth it in the long run, especially when you start making money.
Product Authenticity
Don’t do business with a supplier who sells fakes and copies.
Not only does that make it more likely that you’ll be scammed, but they’re probably also getting their products from someone else.
If you want to become a brand, you need to start selling products with your name on them. So, look for suppliers who know how important it is to sell branded, high-quality products.
Supplier Responsiveness
This is another step where you have to try things out and see what works. You could do one of two things to figure out how responsive a supplier is. The first is, of course, to look at their reviews.
And the second is to turn yourself into a customer. Before you decide to do business with them, talk to them through the messages.
If you think they could be a good business partner, move on to the next step and buy something from their store.
Sellers Guarantee
Running a dropshipping business has its risks, and even if your supplier sends a bad product, you will have to deal with the consequences.
But if you have a seller guarantee, you can at least make up for the money you lose.
Most of the time, sellers back up their products with a guarantee because they believe in what they’re selling. So this can help you decide who on AliExpress you can trust.
Why Would Customers Buy from Your Store Instead of Directly Buying from AliExpress?
It makes sense to wonder what makes your store different. Why would a customer order from your store when they can get the same thing for less on AliExpress?
Some of the reasons are as follows:
Effective Marketing Strategy
Marketing is the single most important part of running a successful dropshipping business.
Remember how important it was for you to upload good photos of your products? The reason is this.
Online Marketing
First of all, suppliers aren’t usually known for their marketing skills, which is another reason why their products are so cheap.
So, if you want to market your store, you should not leave any stone unturned.
After all, the whole race is about which store ranks higher and gets noticed. This means that you have to offer great customer service and pay professionals to write your product descriptions.
Lack of Knowledge
Even though AliExpress is so big, not many people know that you can buy things there for so cheap.
People tend to feel more comfortable ordering from platforms they know more about.
AliExpress is one of the largest e-commerce sites, but Chinese sellers still make up most of its market.
So, people who want to buy things often go to online stores on Shopify or other platforms.
And let’s not forget that it’s not easy to find what you’re looking for in the sea of choices.
Because of this, even people who know about AliExpress don’t always order directly from it.
Poor Past Experiences
We’ve all had bad experiences with online platforms in the past, and AliExpress could be on that list.
If a buyer has a bad experience, it can leave a bad taste in their mouth and make them not want to use the platform again.
It’s also not too surprising, since AliExpress has thousands of sellers and you’re likely to have bad experiences from time to time. This is a big reason why people may not order directly from AliExpress.
People also often buy things on the spur of the moment.
If an ad for something they want pops up on their screens, there’s a good chance they’ll place an order right away instead of looking for a better price somewhere else.
How to Grow Your AliExpress Dropshipping Business?
Your AliExpress dropshipping business can grow in a number of ways, but one of the most obvious is through good marketing.
We won’t get into the details of marketing, but it’s important to know how having a reliable supplier on your side can help your business grow.
Analysis
If you think you’ve found a supplier that does great work, it’s time to improve your business relationship with them.
Once you’ve shown them what you and your business can do, you can ask for their Skype, WhatsApp, or WeChat username.
Add them to one of the platforms and then talk to them about whether or not you can add custom invoices and your logo to the products.
This will help you grow your brand as a whole and give you an edge over your competitors.
Why Should You Consider AliExpress Dropshipping?
G2 says that there are more than 370 platforms for online business. So it’s clear that this is a very competitive field.
But what is it about AliExpress dropshipping that makes it different enough for you to think about it?
Here are a few reasons why:
Easy to Start
We’ve already talked about how easy it is to get started with AliExpress dropshipping. Also, the process is even easier if you already have a dropshipping store.
With platforms like Oberlo, importing products from AliExpress to your Shopify store is easier than ever.
Even if you don’t have a store yet, you can still get started by reading our guide, How to Start a Dropshipping Business in 9 Easy Steps.
Highly Profitable
AliExpress is an online marketplace that is based in China. Some of you may already know that retail prices in China are among the lowest in the world.
We wouldn’t get into the details of why the items there are so cheap, but they can help you make more money.
On top of that, if you buy in large quantities, you can save even more money.
So it’s not surprising that a lot of dropshippers like to get their products from China, and AliExpress in particular.
Endless Variety
No matter what you can think of, it’s likely that someone is already selling it on AliExpress. So it’s not a stretch to say that AliExpress has a huge selection.
This gives dropshippers more freedom to come up with new business ideas and find trendy but unusual products.
Even though finding products can still take a long time, AliExpress’s millions of options make it much easier to build your business.
No Hidden Fee
You only need to pay a small amount to get your store up and running, and then you’re good to go!
You don’t have to worry if you don’t have thousands of dollars to spend because you don’t have to pay anything to work with the sellers.
Low Financial Investment
Getting involved with sellers on AliExpress is free, so you can try out different products without spending a lot of money.
Low investment of money
Some sellers will even let you try a sample for free if they think you could bring them more business.
What Is AliExpress Dropshipping Center?
AliExpress made a tool called the AliExpress dropshipping center. Even though its popularity is still growing, it can be a big help in getting your dropshipping business off the ground and getting the word out.
The AliExpress dropshipping center makes it much easier to look for products and compare them. It also helps you find reliable sellers who might be hard to find otherwise. The best part is that you don’t have to pay anything to use it.
The tool is updated regularly, and each time, new and better features are added.
Some of the most important things about the AliExpress dropshipping center are:
Product Research Tool
The product research tool is one of the tools you can find in the AliExpress dropshipping center.
Inside of that, you can find three more tools. Yes, it’s confusing, but let’s just say it has a lot of tools for finding products.
Hot Selling Products
The first one talks about the products that are selling well right now. As the name suggests, it helps you find products that are popular and, in short, give you ideas for your dropshipping store quickly.
You can either look at all the products that are popular right now or sort them by a certain niche. It also has extra filters that let you sort things by price and delivery time.
Search by Image
Then you’ll see a tool that lets you search for products by image.
This one is also pretty cool because you can upload an image of any product and the tool will look in the AliExpress database for other products that look like the one you uploaded.
This tool can help if you don’t know what a product is called but you have a picture of it.
Sponsored Products
This is the last tool for researching products, and to be honest, it’s not as interesting as the other two.
It basically shows sponsored products on AliExpress, or products from sellers who have paid AliExpress to promote their listings.
This tool might be helpful if you want to find out more about your competitors. It can help you see which stores are spending big bucks to catch more attention.
But that’s pretty much the only thing we can see it being used in.
Product Analysis Tool
With this tool, it’s easier than ever to learn more about the different AliExpress products you’re interested in.
Just type in the URL of the product you want to analyze and let the tool do the rest.
After a while, your screen will show you both textual and graphical information about the product.
The information also includes the product’s “sales volume,” but we think that instead of showing the actual volume, it just shows a range from 0 to 100, with the higher number showing how popular the product is.
This tool is similar to Google Trends in how it works. AliExpress probably gets these results by looking at things like reviews and tracking information.
Overall, both of the tools in the AliExpress dropshipping center are quite powerful, and if used correctly, they can give dropshippers an edge.
Integrating AliExpress Dropshipping with Other Platforms
You can automate and add AliExpress products to other platforms with the help of different tools. Here’s how it works:
Dropshipping from AliExpress to Shopify
It’s very easy to add items from AliExpress to your Shopify store.
You only have to use Oberlo. It will take care of almost everything, from importing to shipping orders.
Dropshipping from AliExpress to WooCommerce
Oberlo doesn’t work with WooCommerce because it’s a platform that Shopify bought.
So, for WooCommerce, you can just use Importify instead.
It works the same way as Oberlo and is also easy to use.
Final Thoughts
Dropshippers have no doubt that AliExpress is a gold mine just waiting to be found.
Because there is so much to choose from and the prices are so low, you can make a crazy amount of money with a small investment.
So, we hope that after reading this guide, you know everything you need to know to start dropshipping on AliExpress.
And if you’re looking for even cheaper alternatives, we can buy products from 1688 and Taobao for our customers and help them get an even better deal! Contact us right away.
