Both AliExpress and Banggood are renowned online marketplaces. Both platforms are Chinese and are meant to sell an assortment of products to international drop shippers, businesses, and individual buyers. Both sites are popular for offering high-quality merchandise at affordable price points.
However, the two market places differ in more than one ways. This makes them suitable for different types of consumers and international buyers. AliExpress is essentially an eCommerce platform where numerous merchants sell an assortment of products.
In contrast to this, Banggood applies a centralized commercial approach whereby all the products are sold by Banggood directly. To help you make the right choice, this guide will enlighten you on the main differences between the Banggood and AliExpress platforms.
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What is AliExpress?
AliExpress is arguably one of the most popular online retail platforms in the world. It is based in China and owned by the Alibaba Group. The platform works much like many other B2C platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy.
It is home to thousands of individual sellers—most of whom are SMBs—that sell different products to consumers across more than 190 countries. A considerable number of individual buyers prefer AliExpress because it offers a broad selection of items at competitive prices.
Others love the site for its comprehensive and secure buyer protection policy as well as the ability to source goods in small quantities. It is such aspects that make this platform rank high among the leading blue-chip brands globally.
◆ Pros
· Allows you to start selling online without having to pay the suppliers upfront
· Products are affordable as most of them are manufactured in China. Additionally, some AliExpress suppliers offer free shipping. .
· AliExpress has multiple suppliers and product options for each product type and category. With such a diversity you will have an easy time choosing the items that meet your specific requirements..
· The site is available in multiple languages, which eliminates the language barrier for international buyers.
◆ Possible Drawbacks
One of the major downsides associated with this marketplace is the awfully slow shipping process. Generally, AliExpress shipping takes between a week and two months, depending on your location.
What is Banggood?
Banggood is essentially an online retail platform that has gained global recognition for delivering high-quality products at comparatively low price points. The platform mainly focuses on business-to-consumer (B2C) and cross-border commerce.
Though headquartered in China, Banggood has a global network of at least 40 warehouses as well as partnerships with the leading logistics companies. Such efforts are meant to facilitate fast and convenient delivery of products to consumers across the world.
Rather than having multiple sellers like AliExpress, Banggood features a centralized direct-to-consumer retail approach. In this regard, products are sold by Banggood and there is only one contact person. The platform offers a range of well-selected and high-quality products for their customers.
◆ Pros
· Banggood offers fast delivery in almost any part of the world. This is made possible by their warehouses that are located in different parts of the globe.
· The platform offers multiple product categories and types to suit different requirements. Their broad range of products include home appliances, mobile phones and accessories, clothing and apparel, watches, and beauty products among other items.
· Banggood offers a simplified dropshipping program. This program makes it comparatively easy for drip shippers to make money online with Banggood as their dropshipping supplier.
◆ Possible Drawbacks
The platform offers just a few payment options for international buyers. In most cases, Banggood buyers are only allowed to pay through PayPal. This is very challenging for customers in the countries that are not supported by PayPal.
Some customers have also expressed their disappointment with the way commissions are calculated on Banggood. A considerable number of consumers feel that the Banggood commission matrix is not fair.
The Main Differences Between Aliexpress vs Banggood
Do you need to buy products for personal use or need to source merchandise for your dropshipping business? In either case, both Banggood and AliExpress are great marketplaces. Even so, each of these marketplaces is unique in its own way.
So, how exactly do the two retail platforms compare?
1. Product Options
The type and range of products offered on AliExpress differs a bit from that offered by the Banggood platform, as discussed below:
◆ AliExpress
AliExpress is much more diverse as compared to Banggood. The platform is home to thousands of merchants and features countless product categories. You can get almost anything on AliExpress, ranging from toys and electronics to books and accessories.
The millions of products listed on this platform are systematically sorted into different categories. Again, each niche product on the platform tends to have multiple suppliers. Despite the diversity, not all AliExpress suppliers are reputable.
Be sure to choose the products and supplier(s) that meet your requirements. In this regard, the AliExpress merchant rating system will come in handy.
◆ Banggood
Unlike AliExpress, all the products on this platform are sold directly by Banggood. According to Banggood, the site is massive—listing millions of superior-quality products from more than 100,000 reliable suppliers.
Just as is the case with AliExpress, products on Banggood are sorted into categories. The site has about 30 categories in total, including:
· Automobiles & Motorcycles
· Apparel Accessories
· Toys Hobbies and Robot
· Women’s Clothing
· Health, Beauty & Hair
· Home appliance
Specialty products on the Banggood platform include Chinese electronic products like the Xiaomi smartphones, remote-controlled toys, and projectors. As compared to AliExpress, Banggood offers fewer items. Similarly, their range of products is not as diverse as the one on AliExpress.
Nonetheless, this eCommerce retailer is commuted to offering top-quality products from the leading suppliers in China.
2. Pricing
The price of products is a key factor when choosing which eCommerce platform to buy from. Here is how the two sites compare in terms of product pricing:
◆ AliExpress
AliExpress is known for its attractive prices made possible by the partnership the platform has with its sellers. AliExpress sellers have a lower commission rate, and it allows them to significantly drop their prices.
Speaking of money, if you want to get the desired product for a reasonable cost, there is a perfect tool to keep an eye on the price. It’s called Alitools, and it’s available to download as a free extension for your browser.
Alitools works with many retail platforms, so you can compare prices on AliExpress vs Gearbest vs Banggood and others. Click here to download the extension:
◆ Banggood
Well, products on Banggood are comparatively costlier. For instance, a camera that is priced about $188 on AliExpress will cost as much as $267.99 on Banggood. This may not always be the case, but you will find most items to be costlier on Banggood than they are on AliExpress.
3. Shipping Costs and Duration
Shipping costs can play a huge role when you’re choosing between online retail platforms, so it is important to know in advance what they look like.
◆ AliExpress
Luckily, AliExpress often pleases its customers with free shipping. There is also the option to filter out items that have no free shipping. In all other cases, the price will vary a lot. Standard shipping is generally inexpensive, whereas express shipping can take up to 14 working days and is much more expensive.
AliExpress sellers ship products almost instantly. Since no private labeling or customization is required, the items do not need to be changed. They are just stored, waiting for customers to order
◆ Banggood
Depending on the number of orders in the Banggood’s system that need to be processed, it can take up to 2 days for a standard order to be processed. But Banggood sellers usually try to ship items as soon as they can
Shipping costs and delivery times will vary depending on the size of the item, its total weight, and the destination. For instance, to the United States, expedited shipping, as well as Banggood Express, may take approximately 10 to 15 working days.
Banggood roughly takes 10-60 days to deliver products. However, the delivery time depends on the shipping method you choose and the shipping location. In most cases, the default shipping method is Banggood Express, however, if you want fast delivery then you’ve to select another shipping carrier and also you’ve to pay the shipping fee accordingly.
4. Buyer Protection
Shopping online always comes with an increased risk of fraud. Retail platforms have come up with Buyer protection policies to reduce the risk of losing money. Both platforms have policies in place to protect their buyers, as illustrated below:
◆ Banggood
As a Buyer Protection Policy, Banggood offers the following guarantees:
· 3-day DOA guarantee of the product (if your item has come damaged);
· Product warranty (if the item you received does not comply with your order);
· 3-day return window (if you are not satisfied with the item);
· Cancellation policy (if your delivery is significantly delayed, you can contact the seller to cancel your order).
◆ AliExpress
AliExpress has a Buyer Protection Policy, which guarantees to refund your money if your product has not been delivered within the Buyer Protection Period. You can easily contact the seller and apply for a refund for the product.
In general, you can expect to get your money back within 15 working days. Nevertheless, you can always contact AliExpress themselves to resolve the issue.
5. Supported Payment Methods
Both platforms support multiple payment options, allowing their buyers to pay using whichever method they find to be more convenient. However, each supports different payment options, which vary from one location to another, as discussed below:
◆ Banggood
Banggood offers more than 40 different secure payment methods, from Cash on Delivery to Credit Card, your payment is safe, secure and convenient. They offer you international to local payment options, and even supports multi-currency transactions.
The acceptable payment methods on Banggood vary from one country to another. Unlike AliExpress, Banggood supports cash on delivery but only for Southeast Asian or Middle East countries such as Bahrain, Indonesia, Kuwait, Malaysia, Oman, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam
Other accepted payment methods include:
· The GB pay wallet
· PayPal
· Visa and MasterCard
· Webmoney
· Dotpay
· Qiwi
· sofort
· iDeal
◆ AliExpress
Since it mainly sells to international consumers, AliExpress accepts numerous payment methods and currencies, which vary from one country to another. Here are some of the payment options you can use to buy from an AliExpress supplier:
· Major Credit and Debit Cards like MasterCard, American Express, Visa, and Maestro
· Several prepaid and virtual cards
· PayPal
· Bank Transfer
· Alipay Balance and Qiwi Wallet
· Western Union
· Cash payments through Syvaony, Euroset, and Russian Post
· SMS Payment (only in Russia) through Beeline, MTC, TELE2, and MegaFon
· AliExpress Pocket and Discover Cards
· Other Payment Options: DOKU, Webmoney, Sofort Banking, Pago, Mercado, and Ticket, among others.
6. Customer Support
Both platforms have customer protection policies in place in order to have resolutions provided in a timely manner. They also offer varying levels of customer service through different communication channels as follows:
◆ AliExpress
AliExpress has a live chat facility on the website but does not offer direct phone support. The company’s website also has a dispute resolution service to report suppliers or request a refund. Their system also allows you to raise a dispute with the seller of the product for various reasons be it a damaged shipment or one that is delayed.
These tickets will be stored in your account under the refunds/disputes page and updates you with a response from the seller in real-time. Typically AliExpress’s support system is ideal but the only drawback is that at times the sellers do not respond in time leaving you to run around for answers.
You can reach out to the seller directly by tapping Contact Seller that’s located on every product related page at any given time of the transaction, from searching for a product to after-sales queries about the product
◆ Banggood
Similarly, Banggood features a detailed guarantee and returns policy. They have a 7 day dead on arrival guarantee for items that are damaged and not working. Here upon returning the product within 7 days the customer service team can have a full refund processed.
A 30 day no reason return policy just in case you’re not satisfied with your product. A 180 days return or exchange of the product if the quality has been compromised. These are just a few of Banggood’s many refund/returns policies.
Banggood customer service can be reached from their contact us page within the app/website. You can reach out to them for pre-sales queries all the way until you receive the product and are unhappy. Their recommended mode of communication will be via email and they guarantee a response within the first 24 hours of the complaint being raised.
7. Target Market
Banggood and AliExpress use different approaches to their business. Each platform offers the best conditions for a group of target customers.
◆ Banggood
In case you only work with customers, Banggood’s affiliate marketing may be an ideal program for you. With the help of it, you get a commission whenever someone you refer places an order. It is not as complicated as dropshipping because you only promote links and banners and send the customer to buy on the Banggood’s website.
◆ AliExpress
AliExpress is designed for the B2C segment. However, it is also popular among small businesses that place products on the platform. By the by, an entrepreneur can have quite profitable wholesale offers.
Final Verdict
Both Banggood and AliExpress are remarkable eCommerce marketplaces for drop shippers and individual buyers alike. To choose the right platform for your needs, you first need to understand how the two compare to each other.
With AliExpress, you will need to choose among hundreds of sellers for your product niche. As such, you should expect varying results when it comes to delivery time, product quality, pricing, and accuracy. This being the case, finding the right product(s) and supplier on AliExpress is often a daunting task.
To avoid costly mistakes, you should consider ordering through reputable AliExpress sourcing and fulfillment agents. Banggood products, on the other hand, are costlier. However, Banggood offers shorter delivery times and consistent product quality.
