How to Find Dropshipping Suppliers on AliExpress? (2024)

When I first started my dropshipping store, I wanted to make sure that I partnered with the best possible AliExpress suppliers.

You probably have the same feeling.

So, follow me step by step to see how to find the best dropshipping suppliers on AliExpress!

Quick Answer: How to find dropshipping suppliers on AliExpress?

To find the best dropshipping suppliers on AliExpress, start by sorting the product search results by the number of orders.

Next, check the suppliers' profiles, looking at their ratings, shipping options, and guarantees. Lastly, message the supplier to check their responsiveness.

Finding AliExpress dropshipping suppliers (step-by-step)

Here are the seven steps for finding the best AliExpress dropshipping suppliers possible!

Note: Before you start this process, you must know what product you want to sell. If you don't know that yet, take a look at this article first!

Step 1. Sorting the product search results

The search for the best AliExpress supplier starts with typing in the product you want.

After that, sort by the number of orders rather than the "Best Match".

This will show the products with the most amount of orders first:

Why?

Because high-order numbers usually mean that the product is popular and that the supplier has a good track record.

Step 2. Exploring AliExpress suppliers

The next step is to click on the first few products that are comparable to what you're searching for.

The goal is to find AliExpress suppliers who have more than 95% positive feedback.

This is the first supplier (that had the most amount of orders):

As you can see, this supplier has 93.5% positive feedback. That's below the 95% range.

It seems that in their feedback, the buyers often note that the sold items don’t fully match their description, that there are some communication issues, and the shipping speed is not quite satisfactory.

A different supplier I found on the results page has 95.7% positive feedback!

This means that buyers are mostly happy with everything:

Another thing to look out for is the "Choice" badges.

AliExpress Choice was released around February 2023 and highlights the best-value products on the platform. These products also offer free shipping, free returns, delivery guarantees, and even more affordable prices.

One more quick tip is that you can also use a tool like Dropshipping Copilot to find competitively-priced and reliable AliExpress suppliers:

Step 3. Inspect the product reviews

The next step is to read the customer's reviews about the product to better understand what exactly is good and bad about it:

Pay special attention to the reviews that contain pictures.

By looking at the picture reviews, you can roughly evaluate the quality of the product and understand whether the buyers' claims are fair

Sometimes people get annoyed by some tiny details that are not really relevant.

But sometimes, several different customers point out the same difficulties they had, and you need to be aware of that.

For example, if many people in the reviews write that the product had a slightly different color than in the product image, you need to take that into account.

Step 4. Check the shipping time

On the product page, you can look at the available shipping options to check whether the seller can ship your order to your target country.

To do so, you can use the section on the right-hand side to fill in a shipping address and check the shipping options:

It's not only important that the seller ships to the country you're targeting, but that they also provide reliable and fast shipping methods.

Here are the things you should watch out for:

• Does the supplier offer multiple shipping options? If so, don't always pick the cheapest or the free one. A paid shipping option can provide better value.
• Check the data. As you can see for the shipping option above, 87.9% of this supplier's orders arrive within 14 days, which is quite good.
• Does the supplier offer compensation for late deliveries? For the product above, you'll get a $1 coupon for late deliveries.
• Does the shipping option have tracking information? This is a non-negotiable for dropshipping. Without the ability to track the package (from China), you will get lots of nervous customers asking where their package is.

Step 5. Look at their guarantees

If you followed the steps above, you most likely found the best AliExpress dropshipping supplier already, but it doesn't hurt to follow these next steps just to be sure.

One thing to look at is the seller's guarantees.

For example, an AliExpress supplier can offer guarantees like:

• A refund if the package is lost, damaged, or not delivered within 30 days.
• Free returns

I had one supplier who just kept claiming the products were on their way as normal, even though it had been more than 30 days. Plus, the last time the tracking information was updated was a month prior.

AliExpress was on my side in all my disputes in these cases, and I had my money back in no time:

If you're interested in learning more about the AliExpress disputes, I suggest clicking here.

Step 6. Messaging the AliExpress supplier

There are a few reasons why you should message your potential supplier.

First of all, you can see how active they are. If you get a dispute claim from your customer, you'll want your supplier to react fast as well, right?

Secondly, you can ask them if they accept dropshipping and what they do with returns.

Wondering how to deal with returns when dropshipping from China? Then don't forget to check out our other article here as well!

A good tip is that messaging the AliExpress sellers always takes some time, so you can find more than one good supplier and send the same message to all of them at the same time.

Then all you have to do is compare answers and reaction time; maybe some don't even reply to you.

But what questions should you ask these suppliers?

Well, we collected the 14 best questions to ask in the article I've linked below:

14 Questions to Help You Find Awesome Dropshipping Suppliers

I suggest you check it out after you finish this article so you know what questions to ask your potential dropshipping suppliers.

Keeping contact with your supplier is also good for your profit margins later on. When you're getting consistent sales, you can ask them for a discount.

Step 7. Ensuring the quality of the products is good

Now that you have found a supplier, or maybe even more than one, it's time to ensure that the quality of the product you want to dropship from that supplier is good.

Some people suggest ordering the product even before you start selling it in your store.

But I think differently, because what if the products you ordered look good, but you can't get them to sell?

What I do is I carefully follow these steps above to find the best AliExpress dropshipping supplier possible for that product. Especially the step where you need to look at the product reviews – that one is really important.

You will ask your self while reading the reviews, are these people happy with their purchase, or did something go wrong?

The best reviews are reviews with pictures. These pictures give you an idea of the product quality.

But when you start getting sales for that product, I suggest ordering it for yourself first before you start scaling.

This way you can see how long the delivery actually takes, the quality of the product, and also the packaging used for shipping.

Bonus: When the product feels good, and you decide to keep it in your store and scale it, you don't have to throw it away; you can use that product to make your own pictures and videos for advertising!

An even better option is to order the same product from 3-5 different suppliers and then compare them. Maybe a different supplier offers much better quality and price.

Tools to find even better AliExpress suppliers

You've learned how to manually find and evaluate suppliers on AliExpress.

But did you know there are tools that can make this process even easier?

One of the best tools out there is the DSers Supplier Optimizer.

DSers is a powerful tool designed to easily fulfill your dropshipping orders with AliExpress.

However, you can also use it to access the DSers Supplier Optimizer, which lets you search for products and instantly compare multiple suppliers:

It provides a clear comparison of prices, ratings, shipping times, and more. This way, you can easily see which supplier offers the best deal!

To start using DSers Supplier Optimizer, simply sign up for a DSers account and link it to your AliExpress account.

An alternative tool is one we've mentioned earlier, Dropshipping Copilot! You can read our review of how it works here.

Why is finding the best AliExpress suppliers important?

Do you want to make the best dropshipping store possible?

Well then, you first have to understand how to carefully pick the best AliExpress suppliers for your dropshipping store.

Let me ask you this question: Do you want the person who handles the production of your products and the shipment to your customers to be reliable?

Most people who start with dropshipping pick their suppliers based on price. They go to AliExpress, sort by price, and pick the lowest one.

Because this will make you rich, right?

Wrong.

Although this may work for you in the short term, it will definitely haunt you in the long term.

What if your supplier doesn’t respond to your messages asking where the package for your customer is? What if your supplier cannot keep up when you’re getting hundreds of orders each day?

If you follow the steps below, you will find the best AliExpress supplier for your dropshipping store—even if you're a beginner!

FAQs about AliExpress dropshipping suppliers

Below you will find the most common questions people have when working with dropshipping suppliers on AliExpress:

Summary

Before we go to the conclusion, we've created a quick summary of this article for you, so you can easily remember it:

• Finding reliable suppliers on AliExpress is important for high-quality products and fast shipping.
• Begin by sorting product search results by the number of orders.
• Explore the AliExpress supplier by checking their profile, overall rating, customer feedback, history, and certifications.
• Inspect product reviews, especially those with pictures, to gauge the quality and customer satisfaction.
• Check the shipping time by reviewing available shipping options.
• Look at the supplier’s guarantees, such as refunds for lost or damaged packages and free returns.
• Message potential suppliers to evaluate their responsiveness.
• Ensure product quality by considering ordering samples.
• Use tools like DSers Supplier Optimizer to make finding and comparing AliExpress suppliers easier.

Conclusion

So, there you have it: every step to finding the best AliExpress suppliers for your dropshipping store!

Suppliers are like your business partners. They can make or break your business, so please pick them carefully.

Even though it may seem easy to pick the cheapest supplier, you now know that it could end up being the complete opposite.

You will thank yourself in the future if you take the time now to select your suppliers.

If you have any other steps you take before selecting a supplier, or if you have any questions, let me know by commenting below or contacting me directly by pressing the "Contact Us" button at the top!

Want to learn more about AliExpress?

Ready to move your knowledge about AliExpress to the next level? Check out the articles below:

• AliExpress Agents: Should You Use Them? (Pros and Cons)
• 13 Real Reasons Why Everything on AliExpress Is So Cheap
• How to Find Great Dropshipping Suppliers on Alibaba in 2024

Plus, don't forget to check out our in-depth guide on how AliExpress works here.