AliExpress gained a lot of popularity in the past years, making it one of the top visited sites in a lot of countries. According to alexa.com, AliExpress is currently #45 (while ebay is #48) on the list of the top global sites. Still, there are lots of people who did not hear about the site or have never ordered from there, either being hesitant to order from an unfamiliar, foreign platform or simply not knowing how to do it. To help break the first ground, we decided to create this tutorial, offering a step-by-step instruction from opening an account to ordering your first product from AliExpress.
In order to make a purchase, you will need to create an account which is very straightforward. Weâll show you how:
On the homepage, hover over âJoinâ in the upper right corner and click the âJoin Freeâ button. . Or just click here.
2. Click on âRegisterâ and enter your email address and your password.
You will see a welcome message and youâll also receive an email from AliExpress asking to confirm your email address – please follow the link in the email to confirm.
Access coupons
When you sign up for AliExpress, you automatically receive a âNew User Couponâ which is valid for a whole month. Navigate to your profile in the upper right corner and click on âMy Couponsâ.
You will see something similar to this:
As you can see, I received a coupon of $3 for orders of $4 or more. To learn more about coupons, follow the link in the upper right corner that says âLearn all about couponsâ.
To find more coupons from different sellers, visit the Coupon Center.
Find products
Now, letâs look for a product to show you what to look out for while shopping on AliExpress. Youâll see a search box at the top of each site which you can use to type in the product youâre looking for (which is a white T-shirt in our case). After hitting enter, youâll be presented with the search results. By default, the sorting method will be âBest Matchâ but I would recommend to sort by the number of orders to see the best-selling products first.
You will see the amount of orders and the average rating (on a scale of 1-5) for each product. Click on the product you like most and letâs take a look at the product page itself.
Product pictures Look through additional images of the product to get a better understanding of how it looks from different angles.
Colors / Variations If a product is being offered in different variations, hereâs where you can select the one you like. For clothing itâs usually the color but it can be just any variation of the product. E.g. when looking for phone cases, this is usually the place where you select the make and model of your phone. Usually, the price will change depending on the color / model you select but only within the range that is shown above.
Size This is where you select your size. One thing youâll have to learn if you plan on buying clothing from AliExpress is that quite often sizes donât correspond to the sizes youâre used to buying in your country. A size Medium in Asia isnât the same as a size Medium in the US – but sellers are quite good in helping you choose the right fit. You can click on âSize Infoâ right next to the available sizes to check the Size Chart or an instruction on how to measure your body. Often sellers also put a table in the product description which converts Asian sizes to the ones in the EU or US.
Shipping cost This will show you the cheapest shipping method – click on it to see what other shipping methods are available and how much they cost. If you need a faster dispatch youâll have to pay more, otherwise be patient. Luckily, a lot of products offer free shipping.
Shipping duration An estimated delivery date will show here, depending on the shipping method you selected. Be aware that this is just a rough estimate and it can very well take a lot longer.
The next thing to take a look at is the product description.
Overview The overview will usually contain more details on the product: additional product pictures, size charts, real-life pictures from their customers, other recommended products and so on. Many sellers use auto-translate services to translate their texts into English and other languages so donât mind if you encounter bad grammar or wrong spelling.
Customer Reviews Reviews are very helpful to see what other people think about the product after receiving and testing it. Many reviewers also attach photos so you can see what the product looks like in real life compared to the product pictures the seller used. Itâs especially helpful for clothing as people will mention if that piece is running small or large. Just one small tip: since reviews are also being auto-translated youâll sometimes have a hard time trying to understand the gibberish so try ticking the box on the top that says âOnly from your countryâ and try disabling the translation – this will only show original reviews. Obviously this will only work if there are lots of reviews so thatâs another reason to sort search results by Orders to see the best-selling items first.
Specifications My recommendation is to always check this section which will show you additional details on the product. Especially when buying clothing itâs important to see the material itâs made of. If the title says the item is made of cotton, check the specifications to make sure it really is. Iâve seen cases where the product title claimed the product to be of cotton while the specs said something like â15% cotton, 85% polyesterâ which obviously changes the picture.
Buy product
If you like the product and decided to buy it, select the color/model you like, choose your size and hit that red âBuy Nowâ button. You can also add it to your cart and continue shopping if you like and then pay all products together. After clicking on âBuy Nowâ, youâll be asked to fill in some details:
Shipping information If youâre ordering for the first time, youâll be asked to provide your full name, phone number and your address. Check the âSet as defaultâ button to save this information to your profile so you donât have to enter it every time you order.
Payment methods Select a payment method youâd like to use and put in your information, e.g. credit card number. You can tick the âSave this cardâ box here as well so you donât need to enter your payment details each time you buy. Please note that AliExpress may charge a fee depending on the payment method you select. Currently, the fee for using PayPal is $0.80 while there are no fees for using a credit card. AliExpress will warn you if a fee is due so donât worry about any hidden costs.
Order review This is a quick overview of the item(s) youâre purchasing – you can double check that youâve selected the right color, size and shipping method. You can also leave a message for the seller here.
Order summary If you have a coupon youâd like to use (donât forget about the New User Coupon), this is the place where you can select it. If you have a Promo Code, put it in the box below and hit âApplyâ. It will update the price to reflect the price reduction if youâre using a coupon or promo code.
Now, hit that âPlace Orderâ button. Youâll get a confirmation that your order has been placed and now the only thing left is waiting for the product to arrive!
How to Buy from AliExpress
AliExpress gained a lot of popularity in the past years, making it one of the top visited sites in a lot of countries. According to alexa.com, AliExpress is currently #45 (while ebay is #48) on the list of the top global sites. Still, there are lots of people who did not hear about the site or have never ordered from there, either being hesitant to order from an unfamiliar, foreign platform or simply not knowing how to do it. To help break the first ground, we decided to create this tutorial, offering a step-by-step instruction from opening an account to ordering your first product from AliExpress.
How to safely order from AliExpress
Create your account
In order to make a purchase, you will need to create an account which is very straightforward. Weâll show you how:
2. Click on âRegisterâ and enter your email address and your password.
You will see a welcome message and youâll also receive an email from AliExpress asking to confirm your email address – please follow the link in the email to confirm.
Access coupons
When you sign up for AliExpress, you automatically receive a âNew User Couponâ which is valid for a whole month. Navigate to your profile in the upper right corner and click on âMy Couponsâ.
You will see something similar to this:
As you can see, I received a coupon of $3 for orders of $4 or more. To learn more about coupons, follow the link in the upper right corner that says âLearn all about couponsâ.
To find more coupons from different sellers, visit the Coupon Center.
Find products
Now, letâs look for a product to show you what to look out for while shopping on AliExpress. Youâll see a search box at the top of each site which you can use to type in the product youâre looking for (which is a white T-shirt in our case). After hitting enter, youâll be presented with the search results. By default, the sorting method will be âBest Matchâ but I would recommend to sort by the number of orders to see the best-selling products first.
You will see the amount of orders and the average rating (on a scale of 1-5) for each product. Click on the product you like most and letâs take a look at the product page itself.
Look through additional images of the product to get a better understanding of how it looks from different angles.
If a product is being offered in different variations, hereâs where you can select the one you like. For clothing itâs usually the color but it can be just any variation of the product. E.g. when looking for phone cases, this is usually the place where you select the make and model of your phone. Usually, the price will change depending on the color / model you select but only within the range that is shown above.
This is where you select your size. One thing youâll have to learn if you plan on buying clothing from AliExpress is that quite often sizes donât correspond to the sizes youâre used to buying in your country. A size Medium in Asia isnât the same as a size Medium in the US – but sellers are quite good in helping you choose the right fit. You can click on âSize Infoâ right next to the available sizes to check the Size Chart or an instruction on how to measure your body. Often sellers also put a table in the product description which converts Asian sizes to the ones in the EU or US.
This will show you the cheapest shipping method – click on it to see what other shipping methods are available and how much they cost. If you need a faster dispatch youâll have to pay more, otherwise be patient. Luckily, a lot of products offer free shipping.
An estimated delivery date will show here, depending on the shipping method you selected. Be aware that this is just a rough estimate and it can very well take a lot longer.
The next thing to take a look at is the product description.
The overview will usually contain more details on the product: additional product pictures, size charts, real-life pictures from their customers, other recommended products and so on. Many sellers use auto-translate services to translate their texts into English and other languages so donât mind if you encounter bad grammar or wrong spelling.
Reviews are very helpful to see what other people think about the product after receiving and testing it. Many reviewers also attach photos so you can see what the product looks like in real life compared to the product pictures the seller used. Itâs especially helpful for clothing as people will mention if that piece is running small or large. Just one small tip: since reviews are also being auto-translated youâll sometimes have a hard time trying to understand the gibberish so try ticking the box on the top that says âOnly from your countryâ and try disabling the translation – this will only show original reviews. Obviously this will only work if there are lots of reviews so thatâs another reason to sort search results by Orders to see the best-selling items first.
My recommendation is to always check this section which will show you additional details on the product. Especially when buying clothing itâs important to see the material itâs made of. If the title says the item is made of cotton, check the specifications to make sure it really is. Iâve seen cases where the product title claimed the product to be of cotton while the specs said something like â15% cotton, 85% polyesterâ which obviously changes the picture.
Buy product
If you like the product and decided to buy it, select the color/model you like, choose your size and hit that red âBuy Nowâ button. You can also add it to your cart and continue shopping if you like and then pay all products together.
After clicking on âBuy Nowâ, youâll be asked to fill in some details:
If youâre ordering for the first time, youâll be asked to provide your full name, phone number and your address. Check the âSet as defaultâ button to save this information to your profile so you donât have to enter it every time you order.
Select a payment method youâd like to use and put in your information, e.g. credit card number. You can tick the âSave this cardâ box here as well so you donât need to enter your payment details each time you buy. Please note that AliExpress may charge a fee depending on the payment method you select. Currently, the fee for using PayPal is $0.80 while there are no fees for using a credit card. AliExpress will warn you if a fee is due so donât worry about any hidden costs.
This is a quick overview of the item(s) youâre purchasing – you can double check that youâve selected the right color, size and shipping method. You can also leave a message for the seller here.
If you have a coupon youâd like to use (donât forget about the New User Coupon), this is the place where you can select it. If you have a Promo Code, put it in the box below and hit âApplyâ. It will update the price to reflect the price reduction if youâre using a coupon or promo code.
Now, hit that âPlace Orderâ button. Youâll get a confirmation that your order has been placed and now the only thing left is waiting for the product to arrive!