Alibaba is an excellent solution to import products from China – you have access to thousands of suppliers who can produce almost every product that exists.
But what if there are Alibaba alternatives that are better for your business? Alternatives with more high-quality suppliers? Or alternatives with more local suppliers?
In this post, we will introduce you to the top 18 Alibaba alternatives for 2023. Plus, we will also share some valuable information on how to source your products.
Why Should You Buy From Sites Like Alibaba?
Before we look at the best sites like Alibaba, it’s important to understand why you should source products from such marketplaces. Here are the most important benefits:
- Marketplaces allow you to explore thousands of high-quality suppliers
- Sites like Alibaba offer payment protection in case a supplier fails to honor agreements
- Suppliers from China can offer products at a lower price because they have lower wages (only for Chinese marketplaces)
- Chinese manufacturers can deliver large order quantities in a short amount of time
- Nowadays, Chinese manufacturers produce high-quality products
Basically, these are the reasons why sites like Alibaba are so popular and why you should look for suppliers on these platforms.
Why Should You Look at Alibaba Alternatives?
Alibaba is the most popular B2B marketplace to source products from China and offers some significant advantages like Alipay to protect customers. In most cases, Alibaba is the first choice for ecommerce businesses and Amazon Sellers. So, why should you look at alternatives to Alibaba?
Here are the top reasons why you should explore other sites like Alibaba to find the best supplier for your business:
- If you search for products only on Alibaba, you will find the same products as other businesses because everyone searches for products on Alibaba
- You can probably get a better price or quality for a product
- You might want to look for local suppliers to reduce shipping costs
- There is probably a more comprehensive selection of products on another marketplace
These are only the most important reasons why you should check out other sites like Alibaba. Basically, you should look at all alternatives because you don’t want to limit yourself to one marketplace.
The Top Alibaba Alternatives for 2023
GlobalSources
GlobalSources is probably Alibaba’s most significant competitor and works quite similarly. The platform is entirely in English, and you can find manufacturers from all over the world.
However, there’s a difference between Alibaba and Global Sources. On GlobalSources, you can find more real manufacturers instead of so-called “Trading Companies” because the admission procedure is stricter.
You can’t see the prices for all products, so sometimes you have to contact a supplier to get them. Keep in mind that Alibaba’s prices are often incorrect.
DHGate
DHGate not only looks similar to Alibaba, but it also works like Alibaba. On the platform, there are products of all kinds, and the prices are pretty similar to those on Alibaba. You can also contact suppliers and negotiate with them.
Supplier Database
Jungle Scout’s Supplier Database is the absolute best alternative to Alibaba. You can search the database for high-quality manufactures and get valuable insights such as customer volume or confirmed shipments.
You can also manage quotes and generate purchases directly within the Supplier Database.
Definitely check out all features here.
all.biz
all.biz is an online B2B marketplace with lots of suppliers from Europe. The company provides different subdomains for most countries, which makes it easier to navigate through the marketplace. You can also choose between various currencies.
Chinabrands
Chinabrands is also an excellent alternative to Alibaba. Chinabrands offers not only a vast selection of products but also a dropshipping service.
Lightinthebox
Lightinthebox is a B2B marketplace with more than 60,000 products, including electronics, toys, furniture, clothing, and many other things.
Made in China
Made in China exclusively offers products from Asia. You can also contact individual manufacturers and negotiate with them. Compared to other B2B marketplaces, you will find reasonable Minimum-Order-Quantities.
1688
1688 is only available in Chinese and is aimed at the Asian market. However, this should not stop you from contacting one of the manufacturers on 1688.com. Since Asian resellers and manufactors are much more price-sensitive than European ones, they are more price-flexible.
IndiaMART
IndiaMART is one of the largest B2B marketplaces in India. As the Indian supplier market becomes more interesting, especially as an alternative to the Asian market, IndiaMarket is worth a look.
TradeIndia
TradeIndia is another Alibaba alternative from India, and it’s beneficial for businesses related to textile/clothing. If you’re interested in the Indian supplier market, you should also check out TradeIndia.
EC21
A B2B marketplace with mainly Korean suppliers – but there are also suppliers from China or the USA. What’s helpful is that you can filter suppliers by country.
ECPlaza
A South Korean company owns ECPlaza. It’s a B2B Marketplace with suppliers from all over the world.
eWorldTrade
eWorldTrade was founded in 2006 and is based in Dallas, Texas. It’s one of the largest B2B marketplaces for electronic devices.
Quality Trade
Quality Trade is an exclusive B2B marketplace for ISO-certified companies, making it an excellent alternative to Alibaba.
Thomas Net
Thomas Net has been serving the needs of B2B buyers for 120 years now. On the platform, you can find manufacturers, resellers and service companies such as marketing agencies.
Europages
Europages is not a B2B marketplace but rather a business directory. It lists companies from Europe. The website is available in any language.
SoloStocks
SoloStocks is the leading online sales portal for businesses in Spain and has a strong international presence, especially in Latin America.
China.cn
China.cn is a B2B marketplace with only Chinese suppliers. It’s nearly the same as 1688.com, but you can also view the site in English.
Conclusion
Alibaba might be the most popular B2B marketplace. However, there are lots of alternatives to Alibaba that can provide more value to your business.
Here’s a summary of the best Alibaba alternatives for 2023:
- GlobalSources
- DHGate
- Supplier Database
- all.biz
- Chinabrands
- Lightinthebox
- Made in China
- 1688
- IndiaMart
- TradeIndia
- EC21
- ECPlaza
- eWorldTrade
- QualityTrade
- ThomasNet
- Europages
- Solostocks
- China.cn
Frequently Asked Questions
Finding the best suppliers on Alibaba isn’t easy. However, there’s a tool called Helium 10 Chrome Extension that can help you with it.
You can also do product research with it, and check the demand and competition of products.
If you know what product you want to source, you can search for that product on Amazon.
Let’s say you want to source a garlic press. Type “garlic press” into the Amazon search bar…
Once the Amazon search results appear, start the Helium 10 Chrome Extension.
This is where the fun starts. Click on “Find Suppliers on Alibaba” to display the search results for the same keyword on Alibaba.
You can then narrow down the search results by setting some filters…
This is the best way to find a suitable supplier on Alibaba.
Use this 50% discount to try Helium 10 for one month or sign up for free. If you sign up for free, you’ll have limited uses. After you’ve signed up, head over to Black Box:
Then, set all the parameters to find high demand and low competition products. Here are some parameters that can indicate high demand and low competition:
- Revenue: High revenue implies high-demand
- Reviews: Few reviews means low competition
- Sales Year Over Year: High growth indicates a trend product
- Number of Images: Low number of images indicates low competition
You can enter your desired values into the Helium 10 Black Box and the tool will show you all products with these values. You can then sort the list according to your preferences:
If you want to sell on Amazon, you need to source products… and Alibaba is the largest online marketplace to find professional suppliers.
There are some benefits of Alibaba, which include:
- Ability to source private label products
- Lower manufacturing costs
- Increased control over product packaging
- Lower Minimum Order Quantities
- A wide range of suppliers
- One-stop-shop
There are lots of reasons why you should source your products in China:
- Wages are lower
- Materials are cheap
- Lower compliance
- Expansive supplier base
- Excellent product quality
- Manufactures deal with the buyer directly
- Low Minimum Order Quantities
There might be a few reasons why you want to use another option instead of Alibaba:
- There are lots of middle men on Alibaba, who usually offer higher prices than the real manufacturer
- Some trading companies or manufacturers may provide a low quality
- A lot of businesses source their products on Alibaba, so it will be hard for you to differentiate your product from the other ones
- If you rely on Alibaba, you’ll never find other reliable (perhaps better) suppliers who are not on Alibaba
Here are some Indian equivalents of Alibaba:
- TradeIndia
- Indiamart
- ExportersIndia
- Wholesalebox
- MilMila
- E-IndiaWholesale
- Tradeford
Yes. Alibaba also offers Trade Assurance.
When you’re searching for suppliers on Alibaba, you need to look for suppliers who offer Trade Assurance. You can easily find them by looking for the Trade Assurance symbol.
Keep in mind that Trade Assurance is only enforced when you pay online via Alibaba.com.
If there’s an issue with your order, you can request a refund within 30 days of product delivery.
Here’s a video about Alibaba Trade Assurance which you should check out.
One cannot claim that one of the marketplaces is better. Alibaba is a Business-to-Business marketplace. AliExpress is mainly a Business-to-Customer marketplace. Thus, Alibaba is more suited for businesses and AliExpress is more suited for private customers.
Alibaba is not a wholesaler. Alibaba.com is just a platform on which many different wholesalers can offer their products. There are also other wholesalers that do not offer their products on Alibaba.
The best opportunity to find suppliers outside of China is to go to local trade fairs. You can visit trade fairs in the US, the European Union or in India.
No. There are primarily manufacturers from India on Alibaba, but there are also manufacturers from other countries like India. Here’s a blog post from Alibaba that describes how to find Indian Suppliers on Alibaba.
