Zendrop Review – What You Need to Know!

What is Zendrop?

Zendrop was originally named Silk Road but has since had a name change.

Zendrop is a platform built specifically for dropshippers to eliminate many of the issues merchants faced when dropshipping from China. It’s essentially a huge marketplace for entrepreneurs to find low cost products to add to their eCommerce store at a marked-up price.

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Click this link to access Zendrop’s FREE trial. Any additional discounts or promotions Zendrop provides I will also add to this link.

How does Zendrop work?

Zendrop deals directly with suppliers and manufacturers in China to source quality products at the lowest possible prices. Once an order has been placed with Zendrop, they take care of product sourcing, inventory management, packaging, branding and the shipment of products directly to customers.

Generally, when dealing with AliExpress, the product you purchased may have already passed through several middlemen, taking a piece of your pie. If you’ve ever dropshipped from AliExpress, you probably know how unreliable the suppliers can be. They can just stop stocking a product as you are making sales, they can change the quality of a product and not tell you and customer support can be non-existent.

Zendrop vets all its suppliers so you can get the top-tier suppliers without having to sift through all the shady ones. The bad part of Zendrop is they are essentially another middleman you have to pay, however, this middleman may actually end up saving you money. Bad suppliers can end up costing you thousands and coming across such suppliers on AliExpress is inevitable.

Welcome to Zendrop

Zendrop Shipping Times

Where does Zendrop ship from?

Most of the Zendrop products ship from China, they do, however, offer express shipping on their products that are shipped from China. Zendrop also offers US-based suppliers for extra fast shipping.

Zendrop Shipping Prices

• Economy shipping is the cheapest form of shipping and the one I’d recommend staying away from. Prices are a flat rate of $1.50 to the USA and $3 to other countries. Shipping times are considerably longer and the main reason I’d avoid economy shipping is the packaging will come with a Chinese address. This never looks great from a customer’s point of view. There are several countries where this shipping method is the only option, so be sure to check that out beforehand.

• Regular Shipping is your next option and a much better option considering it’s only a little extra. Prices are a flat rate of $2 to the USA and $3.50 to other countries. Shipping times are considerably quicker compared to economy shipping. The shipping labels are created in China using Zendrop’s shipping carriers and the return address will be in your customer’s country. Your customers will be much happier and more trusting of this option.

• Your third option is express shipping. Express shipping is $6 for packages under 450g and $9 for packages over 450g. Even though it’s a bit of a price jump, you have the option of charging your customers extra for express shipping. You can even make a small profit with express shipping.

Zendrop’s Estimated Shipping Times by Country

Country	Standard Shipping Times	Express Shipping Times
Australia	6 – 12 days	Not Available
Austria	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Belgium	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Brazil	25 – 35 days	Not Available
Bulgaria	10 – 20 days	Not Available
Canada	7 – 15 days	5 – 10 days
Croatia	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Cyprus	10 – 30 days	Not Available
Czech Republic	10 – 20 days	Not Available
Denmark	15 – 20 days	Not Available
Estonia	10 – 20 days	Not Available
Finland	7 – 15 days	Not Available
France	6 – 12 days	4 – 11 days
Germany	6 – 12 days	5 – 10 days
Greece	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Hungary	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Ireland	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Italy	7 – 15 days	5 – 10 days
Kuwait	10 – 30 days	Not Available
Latvia	20 – 35 days	Not Available
Lithuania	15 – 30 days	Not Available
Luxembourg	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Malta	20 – 30 days	Not Available
Mexico	12 – 22 days	Not Available
Netherlands	6 – 12 days	Not Available
New Zealand	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Poland	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Portugal	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Romania	10 – 20 days	Not Available
Saudi Arabia	10 – 30 days	Not Available
Slovakia	20 – 35 days	Not Available
Slovenia	7 – 15 days	Not Available
South Africa	10 – 30 days	Not Available
Spain	7 – 15 days	3 – 7 days
Sweden	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Switzerland	7 – 15 days	Not Available
Thailand	10 – 30 days	Not Available
Turkey	10 – 30 days	Not Available
United Arab Emirates	10 – 25 days	Not Available
United Kingdom	5 – 10 days	3 – 9 days
United States	7 – 15 days	5 – 12 days

Is Zendrop Legit?

Is Zendrop a scam? This is a question many people have, including myself when I initially heard about it. After looking deep into Zendrop and giving it a go on one of my own dropshipping stores, I now know it’s legit. There are some aspects that can be improved, but I think they have found solutions to many issues around dropshipping from AliExpress.

Zendrop was created by dropshippers to solve a problem many entrepreneurs face whilst dropshipping. This problem was a requirement for a more reliable, automated and sustainable fulfillment system. If you’re concerned about the credibility of Zendrop, just start with the free trial.

Zendrop Product Prices

Generally, product prices on Zendrop will be slightly lower than what is listed on AliExpress. The reason for this is that Zendrop sources products direct from either a supplier or manufacturer without the product passing through several middlemen before you. It’s not uncommon for a supplier to purchase products from a manufacturer and then that supplier purchases it from another supplier. Each one of them is taking a little piece of the pie before you’re purchasing a product with the price jacked up.

Sometimes the price will vary compared to AliExpress and sometimes it will be slightly higher than AliExpress. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is, Zendrop will try to source the best quality version of a specific product even if it costs a little more and the second is due to sales tactics that Chinese suppliers use to give a falsely perceived price.

The video below will help describe their tactics.

I looked for a product on Zendrop, but it was more expensive than AliExpress. What can I do?

Who Should Use Zendrop?

Zendrop is ideal for anyone using AliExpress for dropshipping, especially beginners. It can be complicated for beginners and easy to fall for some of the common mistakes and shady sales tactics used by many AliExpress suppliers. Zendrop essentially simplifies the whole process.

Even sellers who are doing reasonably high volume will benefit from Zendrop. If you’re starting to scale your business and making 30 sales a day of a specific item, being screwed over by a supplier can end up costing you thousands, Zendrop protects dropshippers from this problem.

Many dropshippers doing high volume hire a dropshipping agent in China to take care of certain tasks such as;

• Organizing the most efficient and low-cost shipping.
• Sourcing reputable and reliable suppliers.
• Communicating with suppliers due to the language barrier.
• Negotiating the best possible price for your product.
• Helping to organize your own packaging and branding with your supplier.
• Sort out any disputes you may have with your supplier.

All these tasks are what Zendrop takes care of and therefore, make the need for a dropshipping agent obsolete. Not to mention, finding a trustworthy dropshipping agent can be a very difficult task.

Who Shouldn’t Use Zendrop?

Once your business has scaled up to over 50 sales daily, I’d switch from using Zendrop to buying in bulk and dropshipping from a fulfillment warehouse in your own country, if possible. Zendrop is great in the initial stages to test how far a product can be scaled, but once you reach a high volume of sales, your margins will end up being better purchasing in bulk.

If you’re on a tight budget and you want to go the whole AliExpress route alone, then I say go for it. Zendrop is helpful, although definitely not essential. If you’re a complete beginner with AliExpress and you’re not using Zendrop, it’s worth doing your research on suppliers before commencing business with them.

Currently, Zendrop only integrates with Shopify. If you’re using or prefer a different platform such as, Wix or WooCommerce, Zendrop won’t integrate with them. Hopefully, they’ll rectify this soon as there are many people who are missing out.

Zendrop Features

Thank You Cards

You can design your own thank you cards which can be placed into the packages that are shipped to your customers and customize them with your own image, title, message and address. Simply download a sample of the card so you know how it will look and feel before you send it to your customers.

You’re able to add coupon codes and discounts to hook customers to make future purchases. You can get creative with this feature to help monetize your Shopify store. This is a really powerful tool that can help build your brand and set up repeat business which you are not paying ads for.

Auto Fulfillment

This feature is one of the big selling points of Zendrop. In the past, fulfilling orders could be a long tedious process, especially if you are selling high volume. Most dropshippers would have to pay a virtual assistant hundreds of dollars a week just to fulfill orders. Now the whole process can be fully automated if you choose. You literally click on the auto-fulfill orders button and once an order is made, Zendrop fulfills the order for you.

Tracking

Tracking your shipment is an automated process. Once Zendrop receives the tracking information from their Chinese supplier, it will be automatically reflected on your account. Your customer will also receive their tracking number through Shopify’s API.

Product Sourcing

Product sourcing is a very unique feature that I don’t think is on any other platform that I’m aware of as yet. If Zendrop does not have a product which you want to sell from AliExpress, you can input the data from that product into Zendrop and Zendrop will then do all the work to source and automate the whole process.

You can start selling the specific product straight away and Zendrop will give you a quote once a sale is made, which is generally around the price that AliExpress advertises it as. This essentially makes nearly anything available on AliExpress also available on Zendrop.

Custom Packaging & Private Labeling

Branding is hugely important when it comes to selling products, especially from China where the products have a reputation for being low quality. Custom packaging and private labeling are available but only when you order a MOQ (minimum order quantity). Once you send information to Zendrop they can contact their fulfillment team for a quote.

Zendrop Pricing

Zendrop has the free option which is fine to use in the early stages if you just want to check out how it all works. Realistically, you’ll want to pay for the Pro plan which is $49 a month or $499 for the year if you want to take full advantage of the platform.

The free plan does have some great features which I wouldn’t expect to find on the free version, it does however, miss out on a couple of the key features though. On the free plan, you can only make 50 orders per month which is less than 2 a day. So if you want to take your business seriously and actually scale your Shopify store, you’ll need to upgrade quickly.

If you’re undecided on which eCommerce platform you will choose, I have a complete guide to help your decision.

On the Pro plan you’ll have access to auto fulfillment, thank you cards, express shipping, a catalog of US products and Zendrop Academy. They do have a 7-day free option where if you decide it isn’t for you, you can still pull out.

Zendrop Returns

This is one of the first things I check up on with any of these platforms. Returns is one of the worst parts of the dropshipping business model because you are liable and it can cost you money for something that is completely out of your hands. I’m happy to say that Zendrop handles this the right way.

If a product takes more than 5 days past the estimated shipping time, you receive a refund, but only once there is proof you have already refunded your customer.

If a product is damaged or defective, Zendrop will offer you a full refund or replacement once there is proof the product is damaged with a photo or video.

If a product is lost or stolen in transit, Zendrop will work with you to make a judgment call on how to handle the situation.

This really does make things much easier on you as most of the time when a customer wants a refund on a product, good luck sorting that out with a Chinese supplier. Most of the time you’ll end up absorbing the cost of the item.

Zendrop Alternatives & Competitors

Zendrop Vs USAdrop

What’s the Difference?

USAdrop is a similar platform to Zendrop as they source their products from China and have the ability to source products they do not already stock.

The big advantage USAdrop has is they have a USA-based warehouse drop shippers can use to ship products from for fast shipping. This means any products that are currently stored in their warehouse can be shipped to consumers in 2 – 5 days.

Features

Zendrop has more features in terms of private labeling options, bundles and the Zendrop academy. it really is up to each user whether these extra features are more important than having a USA-based warehouse to utilize.

Pricing

Zendrop has two plans which cost $49 per month and $79 per month. USAdrop has more affordable plans which cost $19.99 and $30.99 per month. Both platforms have a free plan but are both limited and you will need to upgrade at some point.

When it comes to product pricing, USAdrop has lower cost items to dropship overall. However, these costs will vary and it’s always best to check first.

Zendrop Vs CJ Dropshipping

What’s the Difference?

CJ Dropshipping and Zendrop are similar in many ways. Both platforms were created out of necessity due to the unreliability of AliExpress suppliers. AliExpress is a marketplace of Chinese suppliers who all list their own products on the platform. All the products on CJ Dropshipping and Zendrop are listed by their own team. The main difference between CJ Dropshipping and Zendrop is product pricing and the various features they both offer.

Features

CJ Dropshipping offers a fulfillment service in certain countries that allow you to have your products stored in their warehouse and shipped to your customers from the warehouse for fast shipping. This is an option when you start doing high volume.

Zendrop has more features when it comes to branding your products with thank you cards, packaging and private labeling. Zendrop also has a product sourcing feature which is helpful if you’re looking for a product to sell that Zendrop doesn’t offer on their marketplace.

Pricing

CJ Dropshipping wins this one comfortably as it’s free to use. As these platforms are middlemen between you and the suppliers, they will have a slight markup on the products. It’s worth checking out product prices before assuming CJ Dropshipping is the cheaper option. If the price of a product is lower on Zendrop, it may work out more profitable to pay the monthly fee and get the product at a lower price.

Zendrop vs Spocket

What’s the Difference?

Spocket and Zendrop are both huge marketplaces for dropshippers to list and sell their products. They completely differ in the suppliers they work with and the products they offer. Zendrop exclusively deals with Chinese suppliers whereas Spocket focuses its business on suppliers from the US and Europe. This generally means Spocket products are of higher quality and the shipping will be much faster if your customer base is in the US and Europe. You won’t, however, get the same low prices you’ll get with Zendrop.

Features

Spocket offers many of the same features Zendrop does, including; sample orders, shipping tracking and branded invoicing from some of their suppliers. Zendrop has more in the way of overall branding for your products and has auto fulfillment.

Pricing

Both platforms have a free version but once you start making some sales you’ll need to upgrade. Spocket’s Pro plan at $29 a month for the yearly option is the best value for beginners, which is similar to Zendrop’s pricing.

For more information, I have a full review of Spocket to help you decide if it’s worth the money. Another option is Salehoo which has a dropship option as well as a supplier directory.

Zendrop Pros and Cons

Pros

• Huge range of products.
• If they don’t have the product you need, they have the ability to product source it.
• Zendrop uses only reputable and reliable suppliers.
• Any disputes with your supplier are taken care of by Zendrop.
• Very fair and reasonable returns and refund policy.
• They have a free option plan you can use to decide if it’s worthwhile before joining.
• Some really great features include the ability to create a brand around your store.
• Express shipping and tracking information are available.
• The whole process including adding products and order fulfillment is reasonably automated which will save you a lot of time.
• Zendrop sources the products directly from a supplier or manufacturer without the product going through multiple middlemen, ensuring you get the best price.
• 24/7 email support and live chat available.

Cons

• $33 a month for the Pro plan is a reasonable price for the year, but $49 is a little steep if you just want to pay month to month.
• Some of the best features are only available on the Pro plan.
• Currently only integrates with Shopify so if you’re using another platform you’re out of luck.
• Custom packaging and private labeling are only available when you order a MOQ.

Summary

Zendrop is definitely not essential but it does solve many of the problems associated with AliExpress. If money is tight and you want to learn all the ins and outs of AliExpress alone, then do your research about AliExpress and tread carefully. If not, Zendrop is a great option. Once you start making some serious sales, it can be risky to trust a Chinese supplier to not make a mistake with your orders which could end up costing you thousands.

Zendrop is ideal for dropshipping beginners if you can afford the $33 a month. It simplifies the whole process, reduces the risk, helps automate things and enables branding options that will help add credibility to your store. If these are problems you’re encountering or are concerned about encountering, Zendrop is worth checking out.

I was a little confused when I first started dropshipping on AliExpress and a platform like Zendrop would have been a huge help. I think Zendrop is perfect in the beginning stages when you are trying to find profitable products. Once you reach a high volume of sales, I think you’re better off not using Zendrop. Instead, purchase in bulk and use fulfillment warehouses in your own country to ship products. Zendrop is ideal to use as more of a testing phase until you find that winning product.

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