Is AliExpress Legitimate and Safe for Shoppers?

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You’ve likely heard about AliExpress and the great deals you can get on the site. But what exactly is AliExpress? Is AliExpress legitimate, and will you be safe shopping on the site? Read on to learn about the company, how it works to keep you safe and what you can do to protect yourself while using the shopping platform to score exciting, affordable finds.

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What Is AliExpress?

AliExpress is an e-commerce platform that connects worldwide shoppers with sellers in China and other areas of the world. It’s part of the Alibaba Group, which is headquartered in China. AliExpress was founded in 2010 and is most popular with shoppers in the U.S., Spain, France and Brazil.

You can find shoes, apparel, jewelry, beauty care products, home décor and holiday decorations, electronics, toys and more on AliExpress. Many products sell at much lower prices than you’d typically find at other retailers. You can shop directly from the website or use its mobile app. 

Why Is AliExpress So Low-Cost?

Many of the manufacturers and distributors selling on AliExpress are located in China. Although the cost of labor in China has risen in recent years, it’s still much lower than labor costs in the U.S. and many European countries, so goods purchased from China are often significantly less expensive than those manufactured in the U.S. 

Many sellers on AliExpress offer free or low-cost shipping, which helps to keep overall prices low. Thanks to an agreement between the U.S. Postal Service and China’s postal carrier, Chinese sellers can often ship packages to the U.S. for less than it costs U.S. shippers to send packages locally. Of course, getting your purchases from across the globe might take a little longer unless you pay for expedited shipping.

Is AliExpress Legitimate?

AliExpress is a legitimate site that has been operating for over a decade. However, it’s important to keep in mind that it’s a marketplace platform connecting buyers and sellers, not a direct seller itself. So, while AliExpress is the real thing, it can’t guarantee that every seller on its site is reputable.

AliExpress’ Safety Measures

Given the inherent risk of shopping online through third-party sellers, AliExpress has implemented safety measures to protect customers, including a data protection policy, buyer protection and payment handling. Read on to learn about each of these safety measures.

Data Protection Policy

If you’re worried about how AliExpress uses your data, you can read its data privacy policy on the company website. Its policy adheres to international standards, which includes the GDPR, which is the European Union’s strict set of data privacy regulations.

Payment Handling

When you shop on AliExpress, you don’t have to worry about sharing your credit card or other financial information with third-party sellers. If you pay with a credit or debit card, AliExpress keeps your payment information safe. The payments are processed directly by Alibaba or one of its affiliates. Some sellers also accept digital wallets like PayPal and Google Pay, which prevent the seller from seeing your payment information.

Buyer Protection

AliExpress offers Buyer Protection on most goods, with some exclusions like perishable items, personalized products and used items. The Buyer Protection policy allows you to get a refund if an item you purchased doesn’t arrive, differs from the seller’s description or arrives damaged.

How To Protect Yourself

There are a few ways you can increase your safety while shopping on AliExpress. Here are some steps you can take.

Create a Strong Password

As with any online account, creating a strong password can help protect your AliExpress account to keep your personal and financial information safe from hackers. Some tips for creating a strong password include:

• Longer is better. Try to make it at least 12 characters.
• Don’t use real words or names.
• Use a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters.

Carefully Read the Listings

When shopping, don’t just go by the product image. Be sure to fully read the listing so you’ll know what to expect when purchasing an item. You can find details like the actual product size, the materials used and more. This will help you avoid unpleasant surprises like receiving a wall hanging that’s only a fraction of the size it looked in the picture. 

While in the listing, check how long the seller has been operating on AliExpress. You can do this by hovering over the shop’s name in the top left of the listing. Although the length of operation isn’t a guarantee of quality or reliability, in general, shops that have been around for a while are more likely to be legit than those that just started up and have only sold a few items so far. They’ve at least withstood the test of time. 

Check the Ratings and Reviews

One of the best ways to learn about a seller and its products is to see what other customers are saying. You can quickly get information by hovering over the shop’s name. This will show you how customers have rated the seller on its communication, shipping speed and how closely its items match their descriptions. 

For more detailed information, scroll down in the listing to read customer reviews. Reading reviews will help you learn more about the shop and how satisfied customers are with its products.

Takeaways

AliExpress is a legitimate marketplace connecting online shoppers with global sellers. As with all online shopping, there are some risks to shopping on AliExpress, like receiving low-quality products or having your information stolen by hackers.

AliExpress has security measures in place, like a data protection policy that complies with international standards, keeping your payment information secure and a Buyer Protection policy that allows you to get a a refund for missing, damaged, or fraudulent items. You can help keep yourself safe by creating a strong password for your account, reading product listings thoroughly and checking seller reviews and ratings.

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