I was extremely hesitant to use CJ Dropshipping initially as I had mainly used AliExpress up to that point and couldn’t understand how another platform could compete with AliExpress when it came to dropshipping.
Although CJ is far from perfect, I came to realize that in some situations it’s superior to AliExpress and is worth considering, especially for beginners who are concerned about how to dropship without the common flaws associated with dropshipping.
Table of contents
What is CJ Dropshipping and AliExpress?
CJ Dropshipping is a team of agents who are connected directly to suppliers and manufacturers. This way, CJ’s team decides the products they deem suitable for their platform as opposed to AliExpress which has anything and everything.
AliExpress is essentially a marketplace for vendors to list and sell their products and is therefore not vetted for quality. Finding reliable suppliers and quality products can be hit and miss but there are ways to increase your chances of success.
If you need some more info on CJ, I suggest you read my article How does CJ Dropshipping work?
Check out CJ’s home page here or download the CJ Shopify app here.
Who Has Better Dropshipping Features?
CJ dropshipping and AliExpress are commonly compared because at first glance their platforms look similar but they are very different in how they function.
CJ dropshipping is better for beginners as it is an all-in-one solution for dropshipping and is far more vetted in terms of product quality and supplier reliability. AliExpress is a huge marketplace for vendors to sell their products which makes it better for product research.
Below is a table to help you decide which aspects of each platform are important for you.
| Features | CJ Dropshipping | AliExpress | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Product Range | 400,000 | 2.5 billion | AliExpress wins easily, however, CJ has sourcing requests for products they don’t stock. |
| Product Price | CJ works with manufacturers and trading companies. | AliExpress prices often pass through many suppliers before being listed to consumers. | Although prices differ, overall CJ prices are lower. |
| Shipping | CJ has their own shipping lines, CJPacket. | AliExpress’ best shipping methods are ePacket and AliExpress Standard Shipping. | AliExpress wins on price, although shipping times can be long. CJ shipping is better value. |
| Payment Methods | CJ offers 9 of the most popular payment methods. | Each vendor on AliExpress will have different payment methods. | CJ wins since some AliExpress suppliers may not support your preferred payment methods. |
| Worldwide Warehouses | CJ claims to have 25 warehouses worldwide. | AliExpress has several warehouses worldwide. | CJ win as you can have products shipped from China to any of their warehouses for free. |
| Reliability | CJ chooses the suppliers and products for their platform. | AliExpress accepts any suppliers and products to be listed on their platform. | It’s far more likely you’ll be able to find reliable suppliers to work with on CJ. |
| Features | CJ’s features are Print on Demand, custom branding, private inventory and auto fulfillment. | AliExpress’ best features are the Dropship Center, bulk orders and US warehouse shipping. | CJ wins this easily as they have heaps of helpful features that really can help your business succeed. |
Choosing the better platform for dropshipping depends on individual needs. Both have pros and cons, but unless product variety is your top priority, it’s hard to recommend AliExpress.
CJ offers over 400,000 products, far fewer than AliExpress’s 2.5 billion. However, CJ allows you to submit sourcing requests if a product isn’t available in its warehouses, giving it an edge in flexibility.
Who Has Cheaper Product Pricing?
Most of the information online I read on websites and forums claims CJ prices are always lower than AliExpress. From my experience, I have found the prices are sometimes a little lower on CJ, however, I have also found the prices to be slightly higher than AliExpress occasionally.
Often the prices on AliExpress are listed as cheaper than CJ Dropshipping but this can be misleading. CJ will have the total dropshipping price including shipping listed on the price, whereas many AliExpress suppliers will have the shipping cost hidden low on the product page.
You also want to make sure you take shipping times into consideration when comparing prices. If AliExpress’ price is $1 cheaper but will take an extra week to arrive to the customer, CJ may be the better option. Faster shipping times will result in more repeat business and less customer service.
For more info, I have an article on CJ’s shipping times and cost.
When dealing with CJ, they are the only middleman between you and the manufacturer. They are based in China and deal directly with manufacturers, build relationships and purchase inventory in bulk enabling lower prices for dropshippers.
With AliExpress, you’re often purchasing from a supplier who may just be someone working from home who has brought the goods from another supplier. It is hard to buy direct from manufacturers on AliExpress as it’s essentially a huge marketplace of vendors competing with one another.
For this reason, the prices are often more expensive on AliExpress but occasionally they can be cheaper if you shop around. If they are cheaper on AliExpress, is it still worth it given the unreliability of the platform?
Who has the Better Products to Dropship?
CJ currently has over 400,000 products listed on their marketplace for you to start dropshipping today. This number is constantly growing as CJ adds products on a daily basis.
When it comes to product selection, AliExpress is the clear winner and CJ is not even close behind them. The advantage CJ has is they personally pick all their products prior to accepting them on their platform. This means you’re far more likely to find quality products that people actually want to buy.
AliExpress has everything you can think of no matter if people want the product or not. It’s a waste of CJ’s time to add products to their marketplace if the product has no demand from consumers, making it far more likely you’ll find quality products to dropship.
For my overall opinion of the quality, I recommend you read my article on AliExpress Product Quality – What’s it Really Like?
Check out CJ’s top 100 selling products.
Who’s the Winner AliExpress or CJ Dropshipping?
CJ is without a doubt a safer bet in terms of avoiding being screwed over by suppliers. Although, if you want an endless amount of products to search for, then AliExpress is the better option.
Personally, I like to use AliExpress more for product research and less for dropshipping. The AliExpress Dropship Center is another great tool I use for finding trending products.
CJ is a better option for dropshipping because it is designed specifically for dropshippers in mind. AliExpress on the other hand was built for consumers which is why it’s very problematic for dropshipping long-term.
With AliExpress you have;
- Slow shipping times
- A large percentage of the products are low quality
- Unreliable suppliers
- Very little choice in terms of branding options
- Limited features to increase the customer experience
- Scaling is a very risky choice
With dropshipping from CJ, these problems are either gone or reduced. In my opinion, CJ is a better option for dropshipping if they can source your product.
Check out CJ’s home page here or download the CJ Shopify app here.
Leave a Reply