Aliexpress vs DHGate - Which is better?
COVID-19 pandemic greatly affects the way people live. Their transportation, work, hobbies, occasion, and even their shopping activities are changed. Everything’s changed little by little. Migrating from the normal face-to-face habits into the world where everyone is connected, the internet.
On the internet or what we also call the World Wide Web, we can do a lot of things. Communicate, work, play games, and even shop. A lot of online shopping platforms emerge to provide the citizens of the internet with their shopping needs.
Two of the emerged online shopping sites are AliExpress and DHgate. Those two online shopping sites provide services for your daily shopping needs. They offer different products for beauty, fashion, electronics, home accessories, utility, and many more.
AliExpress and DHgate are both renowned Chinese e-commerce sites which are attracting global buyers these days. If you are wondering which of the two sites is more reliable for small purchases then keep reading this article where we will be talking about the pros and cons of these two websites.
Aliexpress vs DHGate
To begin with it needs to be stated that Chinese wholesale shopping websites like DHgate and AliExpress are totally legitimate shopping sites which are ideal for all your small purchases. Alibaba a famous online retailer from China created AliExpress to reach out to a global audience and challenging big online players like eBay or Amazon.
We have created an article showing the best DHGATE sellers.
About ALIEXPRESS
This multimillion dollar corporation is primarily meant for international buyers who can purchase just about anything or everything on the site. It allows the small Chinese businesses to reach out to a world wide audience. AliExpress has been with the Alibaba Company for years, and it is unquestionable that these two e-commerce websites are one of the most trusted ones from people all over the world. Here is the detailed guide for your wholesale experience with AliExpress.
Type of Supplier
One thing that you would notice with the items sold on AliExpress is their price difference. You would see that even if the items are similar, there is a wide range of the price. The explanation of this occurrence is the type of suppliers available on AliExpress.
There are large-scale factories and small-scale sellers on this website. The large-scale ones can produce items in bulk and are capable of producing more. This is why they generally have a higher price than other similar products.
Small-scale businesses, on the other hand, get their supplies from these big factories, and since they want to expand their businesses online, they sell their items at a relatively lower price. This results in a small profit, but this does not mean that the things they sell are of lower quality than the rest.
Minimum Order Quantity
Just like DHGate, there is no minimum order quantity on AliExpress. So this website is also perfect for people who simply want to shop. If you’re are buying in bulk, make sure to negotiate the price with the seller to get the items at a much lower price.
Communication Medium
Same as DHGate, you can chat with the sellers online or send them e-mails. These suppliers usually respond within 24 hours or even quicker when they are online.
Payment Transactions
We can say that AliExpress has a flexible payment scheme since aside from the regular banking transactions, Paypal and Western Union are also available.
Buyer Protection
Online shipping is very convenient yet risky. You would never know if the items you ordered is of correct quality and number. That is why buyer protection is essential. With AliEixpress, you can get all your money back in 15 days, if your order delivered was not as described or if your order was not delivered within the buyer protection period.
Online shipping is very convenient yet risky. You would never know if the items you ordered is of correct quality and number. That is why buyer protection is essential. With Alixpress, you can get all your money back in 15 days, if your order received was not as it was described by the seller. This also applies when you have not received your package within the Buyer Protection Period.
You can also request a local return if you are residing in Italy. All of their return services are free of charge and is available for 15 days upon the receipt of your package.
read about: Aliexpress Singles Day Guide
About DHGate
DhGate is similar marketplace like Aliexpress and Alibaba, but with one major difference. Here you can find a ton of replicas and fake products.
DHGate kind of in simple form is basically China's eBay it's where you can go and actually instead of purchasing products in bulk. You can actually order them in quantities of one.
DHGate is considered as one of the first and largest online websites that you can find wholesale items in a whole new level. They pride in their innovative platform, allowing business owners to buy directly from high-quality factories at a much lower price. Let us take a look at the detailed review of DHGate.
Check it out!
NEW BUYER BONUS FOR DHGATE
Type of Supplier
DHGate has about 1.4 million suppliers that customers can choose from. This website is perfect for newbies in online selling. Customers can access small to medium-sized suppliers on this website. There is just one thing to remember when selecting suppliers from these small-sized factories. Customers must keep in mind that these small scale businesses also get their supplies from large factories. Hence, it is essential to ask the seller regarding your re-orders because the color, appearance, or size can be different the next time.
Minimum Order Quantity
The great thing about DHGate is that this website has no minimum order requirement, so it is indeed perfect for starters. Customers may buy as little as one or two items from the sellers, but since we are talking about wholesale, DHGate can give you a much lower price when you buy in bulk. You can also bargain with the supplier to get more discounts on your every purchase, especially if you agreed to get most of your supplies from them.
Communication Medium
Currently, there are two safe ways to deal with your suppliers. These are chatting through the DHGate website, or e-mailing the seller. In these communication platforms, you are secured that DHGate records all your interactions with your suppliers. In this way, in case any mishap occurs, or you need to file a dispute, DHGate can collect pieces of evidence quickly.
Payment Transaction Methods
DHGate has a lot of payment methods from customers all around the globe. Most of it depends on which country you are from, so paying would never be a hassle for you. Alternatively, they also collect payments through Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Moneybookers, etc.
AliExpress vs. DHgate products
When it comes to shopping online, we always look for a great price with great quality. With that being said, we examined some of the products of both AliExpress and DHgate to compare their price and check the quality of the products by checking the customers’ satisfaction.
Wireless Headphones
We browsed both DHgate and AliExpress to look for wireless headphones that would cost around 25 to 30 dollars. We ended up finding this Baseus D02 Pro. We examined the price and service quality of this product on both online shopping platforms and here is what we get.
Prices and Offers
On DHgate, a Baseus D02 Pro costs $40.39 but with a 30% discount, you can get this product for only $28.27. Aside from the 30% discount on purchasing one item you can still get far greater discounts if you buy 2 or more of this item.
The lowest offer that you may get with Baseus D02 Pro on DHgate is $21.52 and that would only be possible if you will buy 500 pieces or more of this product. You can also apply for a coupon worth $2 if you are new in DHgate. Meaning you can get this product for only $26.27 if you are a new shopper in DHgate.
While on AliExpress, we saw the same product that costs $49.99, but with a 46% discount you can get this product for only $26.99. That would be $1.28 less than the offer that you can get from DHgate. Plus the fact that you can also get a coupon worth $3.50 as a new shopper in AliExpress. Applying it may bring down the price of Baseus D02 Pro to $23.49.
Quality
Let us talk about the quality of service that was provided by the Phgate store in DHgate. The store was not able to sell this brand new item but we checked the store's credentials to check how they perform with their other products and services.
The store was still able to get an average of 4.6 stars for the legitimacy of items. 4.5 stars for their communication, 4.2 stars for delivery, and 4.6 stars for shipping. Having this rating might please buyers to buy their items even if the item is brand new or not.
While on AliExpress, the Baseus Official Flagship store was able to sell 5599 orders with 2320 of its consumers creating a review. Where 2111 of the reviews got a satisfactory rating of 5 stars. Many of them say that the quality of the product is good when it is delivered to them. They say that the sound was great even when you put it in the highest volume. It does not make any extraneous sound.
Review
Looking at the quality, even though the DHgate store Phgate was not able to sell the item. It still shows in the store rating that they are performing and doing their best to provide quality products and services to their customers. On the other hand, with 91% positive reviews, the AliExpress store Baseus Official Flagship was able to show that they are doing their part as a store or a seller to provide great quality products and services.
Wireless Earphones
We searched across DHgate and AliExpress to look for wireless earphones that would cost around 10 to 25 dollars. We ended up finding the Lenovo XT90 wireless earphone on both DHgate and AliExpress. We examined the price and service quality and here is what we get.
Prices and Offers
On DHgate, we saw a Lenovo XT90 wireless earphone that costs $18.19 but with a 30% discount, you can get it for only $12.72. Aside from the 30% discount that you can get when you purchase one item, you can also get a discount if you purchase 2 or more of the item. The lowest offer that you may get with Lenovo XT90 on DHgate is $9.07 and that would only be possible if you will buy 200 pieces or more of this product. You can also get a $2 coupon if you are a new shopper in DHgate. You can apply that coupon on your purchase making your $12.72 item into $10.72.
While on AliExpress, we saw the same product that costs $25.80 but with a 53% discount you can get this item for only $12.13. Aside from the discount you can also get a $3.50 coupon if you are a new shopper in AliExpress. You can apply the coupon on your purchase making you $12.13 item into $8.63.
Quality
Based on the reviews, the Lenovo XT90 wireless earphone that was sold by PHgate under DHgate, provides quality audio and great battery charging and discharge. Making the product to be fast charging and long lasting when it comes to usage. While the product that was sold by Mr. Global store under AliExpress contains the same comments from the customers. The sound quality and battery life is good. With that being said, both stores from DHgate and AliExpress provide quality products.
Review
Looking at the quality, 88% of the consumers that gave a review to the DHgate store were fully satisfied. On the other hand, 76% of AliExpress consumers that gave a review were fully satisfied with the store performance.
Having this number means that at some point DHgate store was able to provide much more quality service than AliExpress. But both having more than 4.5 stars means both of the stores are reliable and are doing their best to provide great service to quality to their consumers.
Check on
Wireless Earbuds on Aliexpress
Top Fake AirPods 3 & AirPods Pro Clone on Aliexpress (Reviewed on Dec 2021)
Other Differences between AliExpress and DHgate
Shipping
Since the pandemic, shipping fees are there since most of us do online shopping, especially when we order food. Shipping is an alternate expense for your transportation budget. You might want to look at it if you are purchasing online since you might be paying more for the shipping than the cost of what you will buy online. With that being said, let us go ahead and see if online shopping platforms can help us save money through shipping fees or not.
Dhgate provides free shipping and low-cost shipping depending on the country you live in with up to 3 weeks of delivery time depending on your country and location. Also, ordering or shipping is not for every country. It is either the supplier or the shipping company that does not cover your country.
While AliExpress provides free shipping and low-cost shipping with AliExpress Standard Shipping. The availability and cost of the shipping with AliExpress Standard Shipping depend on the country you live in. Shipping time may take up to 2 months depending on your country. If you would like to expedite your shipping time to 1 to 3 weeks, then you can take the DHL carrier shipping service. However, it would cost you $100 to $300 depending on your country.
Buyer Protection
As a buyer, we need to find assurance when we are buying online. You will never know what you might get inside the box since you only bought the item online. It is like an expected mystery box. Online shopping platforms do not want you to experience this. That is why they created some policies to protect consumers from wicked sellers. Dhgate provides “Returns and Refund Guarantees” service to its customers. The “Returns and Refund Guarantees” is a promise provided by the seller of DHgate for every product sold under DHgate.com. If the bought product(s) are not as described or possess any quality issues the customer will receive assistance from the seller in resolving any issues the customer has with the item(s).
DHgate will also offer additional assistance if the seller is not cooperative. On the other hand, AliExpress provides a “Money Back Guarantee” service to its customers. AliExpress promises your money back if the item you received from the seller is not as described or if your item is not delivered within the Buyer Protection period.
You can get a refund 15 days after the claim process finishes. This guarantee is in addition to and does not limit your statutory rights as a consumer, as granted by all mandatory laws and regulations applicable in your country of residence.
Both the websites are really cheap
Products on these websites are usually really cheap since the customers get to purchase directly from the manufacturers which in turn vastly reduces the selling price. Moreover, the production cost in China is comparatively lesser than the other countries which is why you get to avail fantastic prices on sites like AliExpress or Dhgate.
Is DHgate the Aliexpress Alternative?
You will find counterfeit items on both the websites
While shopping from either of these websites you will often encounter extremely cheap items which are either fake or semi fake. As you surely know by now, China is a hotbed for duplicate production and DHgate and AliExpress are no exception. On both the platforms one can find all sorts of counterfeit items ranging from fake electronics, fake apparels, fake cosmetics etc. However teams behind Aliexpress are very strict these days as you won't be able to find much of replica, fake or semi fake items on the portal. As a subsidiary of Alibaba, they aim to fight off FAKEs.
You might be interested in: Why is there NO NBA, NFL or Soccer Jersey for sale on Aliexpress
The real danger in both the websites is Fraudsters
The one thing you need to keep in mind before making a purchase on any of these websites is that the sellers often vary in terms of credibility and service standard. Most of these scam sellers are going to lure you with a price which would sound too good to be true. This is why you need to check a few other websites and ascertain the going rate of the item you want to purchase to ensure that the price on AliExpress or DHgate isn’t extremely low. Moreover, as a customer, you are always encouraged to conduct a thorough research on the seller before you hit the buy button. Make sure to take a look at the feedback score and customer reviews to get a clear picture.
Wrapping it up
AliExpress and DHgate are not much different when it comes to company credibility. Both of these websites have prominent Chinese suppliers and sellers who are doing a thriving foreign trade. Surely there are a few fraud sellers mixed with the majority of authentic sellers so it always recommended that you do your research before buying.
One major problem of both these e-commerce sites is that none of them have any real control over the quality of the product suppliers which is why you sometimes end up buying cheap imitations.
While making a purchase from any of these websites always make sure buy from the RIGHT sellers.
Here are the list of some of the BEST SELLING ITEMS ON DHGate.
Best Selling Samsung Note Series Replicas
Also read:
Aliexpress vs Taobao: Which is CHEAPER?
Top DHGate Sellers 2020 | Best Trusted Stores you can buy from
28 Best Selling Trending Products on Aliexpress 2020