1688

1688 is Alibaba's domestic wholesale platform, and for cross-border sellers it is often the actual source behind goods listed elsewhere at higher prices.

Prices are typically lower than on export-facing platforms because listings target domestic buyers, though minimum order quantities are real and negotiation happens in Chinese.

Most suppliers ship only within China, so using it from abroad usually means a forwarding agent who consolidates orders and handles export — a step worth planning for rather than discovering at checkout.