How to find suppliers in China, and check they are real.

How to find suppliers in China

Updated 22 October 2026. Figures are approximate and change with the market, so always ask for a written quote.

Start with a one-page brief

Most problems with a Chinese supplier begin at the request for a quote, not at the factory. If you send "I want a backpack like this, what is the price?", you will get ten prices that cannot be compared.

Before you search, write one page covering:

• What the product is, with reference photos, dimensions and tolerances.
• Materials and finishes, and the quality level you expect.
• Your first order quantity, and the quantities you expect if it goes well.
• Your market (the US, the UK or the EU) and the rules that apply, such as CE marking for the EU.
• Packaging, labelling and the language of the instructions.

Work out your maximum buying price too. Start from your selling price without tax, then subtract freight, duty, marketplace fees and your margin. That number tells you at once which quotes to drop.

Where to look

There is no perfect place. Each channel gives you something different.

Alibaba.com

The best known for buyers outside China. It mixes factories and trading companies. Verification badges show that a supplier paid for membership and passed a review, not that its quality is good. The platform's payment protection covers what you pay through it.

1688.com

China's domestic wholesale market, with lower prices and no English. You need Chinese or someone who has it, plus a forwarding agent to get goods out of the country.

Made-in-China.com and Global Sources

B2B platforms like Alibaba with less volume. Global Sources also runs trade fairs and often reviews its suppliers.

Trade fairs and markets

The Canton Fair in Guangzhou runs twice a year. There are sector fairs in Shenzhen, Shanghai and Hong Kong, and Yiwu's market is built around small goods. Going in person saves a lot of guesswork but is an expensive trip.

Industrial clusters

China makes things in clusters. Shenzhen is electronics, Foshan furniture and ceramics, Dongguan shoes, furniture and garments, Yiwu small goods, Ningbo small appliances and moulds. Searching in the right cluster brings you closer to real factories.

Other buyers

Importers in your niche and online seller communities often share names a search engine will not show. Ask about recent experience, not what worked five years ago.

Factory or trading company?

A trading company (贸易公司) buys from factories and resells to you. That is not bad in itself. Some combine small orders, run quality control and speak your language. The problem is not knowing, because then you pay a margin without realising and cannot talk to the people who make the product.

These signs help tell them apart:

• On the business licence, the scope of business mentions manufacturing and production, or only import, export and trading.
• A catalogue with very different products rarely belongs to one factory.
• On video you can see machines, workers and raw material. An office or a sample room is not a factory.
• When you ask to change a material or a mould, a factory answers precisely. A trading company says it will "check".

If you work with a trading company, make it your decision, with the margin visible.

How to verify a supplier

Spend an hour on each candidate before you ask for samples. It is the best-paid hour in the process.

1. Business licence and credit code. Ask for the company licence (营业执照). It carries an 18-character unified social credit code. Look it up on the national enterprise credit information site (国家企业信用信息公示系统, gsxt.gov.cn) and check the name, registration date, scope, status and any penalties.
2. Bank account. It must be in the name of the company on the licence. If you are asked to pay a person, stop.
3. A live video call from the factory. Ask to see the lines, the warehouse and the product, with the company name visible. Ask for something unplanned, such as pointing the camera at a specific machine, to check it is live.
4. The address. Look it up on a map. A factory in an industrial park is normal. An office in a skyscraper claiming "our own factory" deserves questions.
5. Certificates. If they claim ISO 9001 or others, ask for the number and confirm it with the issuing body. Fake or expired certificates are common.
6. References. Ask who they export to in your region, and whether you can speak to a customer.

How to request quotes and compare them

Send the same brief to five to eight suppliers and ask each for the same details, so you can compare like with like:

• Unit price at quantity tiers (for example 500, 1,000 and 3,000 units).
• Minimum order quantity (MOQ), per model and per colour.
• Sample lead time and production lead time.
• The Incoterm of the price. Compare in FOB: EXW leaves out transport to the port, and DDP hides everything in one number.
• Packaging included and payment terms.
• How long the quote is valid and who pays for the mould or tooling.

The cheapest quote is rarely the best. It often hides a cheaper material, a poorer finish, packaging that is not included or an unrealistic lead time. Ask for a breakdown of materials, labour and packaging, and ask what changed when two factories quote very different prices.

If you use an agent, ask for the original factory quote on its letterhead. It is the only way to know whether the price you are given is the real one or carries an added margin.

Samples you should not skip

Ask the two or three finalists for a pre-production sample. You will pay for it, and many factories credit it against the order. It costs far less than correcting a whole batch.

Judge each sample against a written list: dimensions, materials, finish, colour, smell, packaging and function. Keep a sample signed by both sides as the reference for production. Before the order ships, ask for photos and video of units picked at random from the run.

A good sign is a factory that points out flaws in your design. A bad sign is one that accepts everything and answers in minutes with "no problem".

Payment, contracts and costs

The common structure is 30% when you place the order and 70% before shipping, or 30/40/30 with a middle payment after inspection. Avoid paying 100% up front. Pay by bank transfer to the company's account or through the platform's protected payment.

Put these in the purchase order: the specification, materials and tolerances; the acceptable quality level and what happens if it is exceeded (re-inspection, a discount or rejection); the delivery date and the penalty for delay; and who owns the moulds and designs. If the product is yours, sign an NNN agreement in English and Chinese, and talk to a lawyer about registering your brand in China. This is not legal advice.

Costs beyond the factory price vary by route, so check them with a forwarder before you order. Forwarders publish indicative figures for China to Spain: LCL roughly $45 to $150 per cubic metre, air about $4.4 to $9 per kg airport to airport, a 20-foot container about $2,205 to $3,850 and a 40-foot high cube about $3,420 to $5,675. For the US and the UK, ask for quotes. A third-party inspector day typically costs $200 to $350. Duty depends on the product code and the country you import into, so ask a customs broker, and treat any figure here as a starting point.

Common mistakes

• The price that is too good. A quote 40% below the rest means something has not been said.
• The inflated quote with a "special discount". Compare against the factory's own quote.
• The secret supplier. If you are never told the factory's name, you can never change agent.
• Skipping inspection. A perfect sample and a mediocre production run is a classic. Inspect before the goods ship.
• Copying other brands. Products with someone else's logo can cost you the goods at customs and a claim.
• Ignoring compliance. Check the safety and labelling rules of your market before you order. Our compliance check is a checklist of flags, not a certification.

If you would rather hand the search over, a supplier report gives you three or more vetted suppliers with the factories' own quotes. If you are weighing agents, read how to choose one first.