Factories and traders mixed. Alibaba Group's FY2026 20-F says 1688.com connects "manufacturers and wholesale sellers" to wholesale buyers in China.
What 1688.com is, and who you are buying from
1688.com is Alibaba Group's domestic wholesale marketplace for China: a Chinese-language site where manufacturers and wholesalers sell to business buyers inside China, at domestic prices in RMB. It is not the export marketplace Alibaba.com, although both belong to the same parent company.
Alibaba Group's Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2026 says 1688.com "provides sourcing and online transaction services by connecting manufacturers and wholesale sellers to wholesale buyers in China." Transaction services here means the platform's ordering and payment machinery; sellers are the businesses listing goods; buyers are the businesses purchasing them for resale or production. The filing's own wording settles the verdict: a buyer on 1688.com reaches a mix of factories and wholesale resellers, not factories alone.
Alibaba calls 1688.com "China's largest integrated domestic wholesale marketplace in the twelve months ended March 31, 2026 by net revenue, according to Analysys." That ranking is a company claim citing an industry research firm, not an independent audit. Wikipedia has no standalone English article on 1688.com; the title redirects to the Alibaba Group article, so the 20-F is the primary record.
1688.com and Alibaba.com are different businesses
Alibaba Group reports the two marketplaces in different segments. 1688.com sits in Alibaba China E-commerce Group as "China commerce wholesale." Alibaba.com sits in Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group as "International commerce wholesale." The split reflects who each site is built for.
| 1688.com | Alibaba.com | |
|---|---|---|
| Intended buyer | Wholesale buyers in China | Overseas wholesale buyers |
| Language | Chinese | English |
| Prices | Domestic quotes in RMB | Export quotations |
| Checkout | Alipay; domestic secured transaction | Trade Assurance for on-platform payments |
| Export handling | Not part of the standard transaction | Quoted by the supplier |
| Segment revenue, FY2026 | RMB 26,312 million | RMB 26,439 million |
One consequence is often missed: Alibaba.com's Trade Assurance is an Alibaba.com program. It does not cover 1688.com orders, which use 1688's own domestic secured-transaction mechanism.
How selling and buying on 1688 work
Like Alibaba.com, 1688.com is paid for by sellers. The 20-F says sellers "may purchase a China TrustPass membership for an annual subscription fee to list items on 1688.com, reach customers, provide quotations and transact." China TrustPass is therefore a listing subscription, not a factory certification. Membership is the entry fee; the larger part of the revenue comes from elsewhere. Value-added services and customer management services, the latter being P4P (pay-for-performance) keyword advertising, "contributed the majority of 1688.com's total revenue" in fiscal year 2026. Search placement is partly bought.
For buyers, the 20-F lists AI tools for "smart search, price comparison and product review analyses," rolled out alongside AI listing assistants for sellers in FY2026.
Checkout runs on Alipay. The standard order is a domestic one: sellers quote prices in RMB, frequently ex-works (the buyer collects at the seller's premises) or delivered to an address within China. Shipping to another country is not part of the standard 1688 transaction, and neither are export documents.
How foreign buyers use 1688
Foreign businesses can buy on 1688.com, but the site does not do the export work. Buyers outside China typically use one of three routes:
- A China-based purchasing or forwarding agent who places orders on the buyer's behalf, receives the goods at a warehouse in China, consolidates them and arranges export shipping.
- A cross-border payment tool. WorldFirst's Guidebook for International 1688 Buyers (2025 version) walks through registering a 1688 personal account with a mobile number, verifying it through an Alipay personal account, and paying through WorldFirst's "Cross-border Pay" (跨境宝) in offshore yuan (CNH) under 1688's secured-transaction (担保交易) option.
- Alibaba's English-language cross-border page. The same WorldFirst guide points to global.1688.com as a page of "products for international buyers."
Each route has limits on the record. WorldFirst is an Ant Group–affiliated payments company and its guide is promotional; it covers account setup and payment, not shipping, warehousing or consolidation. The scope, eligibility and country coverage of global.1688.com could not be confirmed from a primary Alibaba source, and the FY2026 20-F does not describe a 1688 overseas-buyer program. Whether English listings exist for all sellers has not been published. The agent route adds a party that holds the buyer's money and goods, and that agent needs the same vetting as a supplier.
Scale, from Alibaba Group's filings
The China commerce wholesale segment, which Alibaba describes as primarily 1688.com, reported the following revenue in its FY2026 20-F:
| Fiscal year (ends 31 March) | Revenue |
|---|---|
| FY2024 | RMB 20,479 million |
| FY2025 | RMB 24,301 million |
| FY2026 | RMB 26,312 million (3,815 million US dollars, as reported) |
That is growth of about 8% in FY2026, computed from the table. Two cautions apply. The segment is "primarily" 1688.com, not exclusively. And the figure is fee and advertising revenue, not transaction volume: it measures what sellers pay Alibaba, not the value of goods sold.
Alibaba does not publish a count of 1688 sellers or buyers in the material reviewed, and a launch year for 1688.com was not found in a primary source. Figures for either that circulate online should be treated as unsourced.
Risks and common mistakes
- Treating 1688 prices as export prices. They are domestic quotes. They exclude export handling and international freight, and for many listings the invoicing terms a foreign buyer may need. No primary source measures the gap between 1688 and Alibaba.com prices; claims of a fixed percentage difference are unsourced.
- Assuming the seller is the factory. The 20-F says the marketplace includes "manufacturers and wholesale sellers." A low price can belong to a reseller.
- Assuming Trade Assurance applies. It is an Alibaba.com program. 1688 orders use the domestic secured-transaction mechanism instead.
- Ignoring destination-market compliance. Goods made for the Chinese market may not meet US or EU rules on labeling, plugs or chemical limits. Domestic sellers generally do not prepare export documents, certificates of origin or US compliance files such as CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) certificates; the buyer or its agent has to arrange them. That follows from the platform's domestic design; no official statement quantifies it.
- Forgetting duties on small parcels. Alibaba Group's May 2026 risk factors cite the US elimination of duty-free de minimis treatment for low-value goods from China. Parcels consolidated from 1688 purchases pay applicable US duties.
Who 1688 suits, and how it compares
1688.com suits buyers who can work in Chinese or through a capable agent, who want ready stock or standard goods at domestic prices, and who will handle consolidation, export documents and destination-market compliance themselves.
It suits poorly a buyer who needs an English-speaking supplier, an export quotation with delivery terms, or a platform-backed dispute process in English. For that profile, Alibaba.com or Made-in-China.com is the closer match, both built for foreign buyers. For finished goods in single units, AliExpress is the retail channel. For meeting suppliers in person, trade fairs such as the Canton Fair fill a gap no website does.
Whichever channel is used, 1688 does not change the core verification work: confirm the seller's business license and business scope, establish whether it manufactures, and inspect before the goods leave China.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Alibaba and 1688?
Alibaba.com is Alibaba Group's international, English-language wholesale marketplace for overseas buyers; 1688.com is its domestic Chinese wholesale marketplace for buyers in China. Alibaba Group reports them in separate segments in its FY2026 20-F. 1688 prices are domestic RMB quotes without export handling, and Alibaba.com's Trade Assurance does not cover 1688 orders.
Can foreigners buy on 1688?
Yes, with extra steps. WorldFirst's 2025 guide for international 1688 buyers describes a 1688 account registered with a mobile number, verified through an Alipay personal account, and paid through WorldFirst's Cross-border Pay in offshore yuan. Many foreign buyers instead use a China-based purchasing agent, who buys, consolidates and arranges export shipping.
Is 1688 legit?
Yes. 1688.com is owned and operated by Alibaba Group, which reports the business as China commerce wholesale in its SEC filings, with revenue of RMB 26,312 million in fiscal year 2026. As on any marketplace, individual sellers vary, and the platform's domestic secured transaction is not the same as Alibaba.com's Trade Assurance.
Is 1688 in English?
No, the core 1688.com site and seller communication are in Chinese. WorldFirst's 2025 guide points international buyers to global.1688.com as a page of products for international buyers, but its scope and whether English listings exist for all sellers could not be confirmed from a primary Alibaba source. A purchasing agent is the usual workaround for buyers who do not read Chinese.
Are 1688 sellers factories?
Some are. Alibaba Group's FY2026 20-F describes the marketplace as connecting "manufacturers and wholesale sellers" to buyers, so wholesalers and resellers sell alongside factories. Alibaba does not publish the split. A seller's business license and business scope, plus a factory audit, are what establish whether it makes the goods.
Why is 1688 cheaper than Alibaba.com?
Mainly because 1688 prices are domestic quotes for buyers in China. They generally exclude export handling, international freight and the documents a foreign buyer needs, which an agent or the buyer must then add. No primary source measures the price gap, so any fixed percentage difference quoted online is unsourced.
Does Alibaba Trade Assurance cover 1688 orders?
No. Trade Assurance is an Alibaba.com program for orders placed and paid through Alibaba.com. 1688.com uses its own domestic secured-transaction mechanism, paid through Alipay or a cross-border tool such as WorldFirst's Cross-border Pay. The two programs have different rules, and a buyer should read the 1688 terms before paying.