No real answers in the off-topic toys section other then bootlegs are sold there. Nothing about experiences with it.

Has anyone bought anything through AliExpress? Is it safe or to be avoided at all cost? Experiences?

 

have bought from them before. similar to ebay. no concerns thus far.

 

there dispute process stinks...nothing you can really do about that though.

 

Aliexpress is a sales portal like eBay - it depends on the seller you buy from. I have had several transactions without problems. I've had to dispute one (non-TF) transaction that wasn't too much trouble.

The main thing is don't buy anything if you're really picky. You're shipping from China, sometimes from sellers who do not communicate in English very well. If you want returns or part swaps or anything like that, you might find it to be way more hassle than it's worth. Some sellers pack things very well, others don't, and you'll wait a long time to get a package and communicate back and forth.

And finally, they don't accept Paypal, credit card only. I typically use prepaid cards for it.

 

Uncle Billy is the only seller that I purchase from on a regular basis (never had a problem with him, and the few instances I've had to contact him, he responds quicker than expected). Other than that, most of my experience has been good, BUT you REALLY need to pay attention to buyer feedback. One seller ended up giving me a tracking number that was good up till it left HK. No tracking after that, and after two months and having them extend the time limit for the item three times (and the seller trying to get half of the money for something they apparently never sent, according to numerous other buyer feedback posted after I had made the initial purchase), I finally got my money back. So as "breaux man" stated above, the dispute process kind'a blows, but it's great as long as you stick to reputable sellers.

 

I've used them several times but usually Smartlulup as my supplier

 

As others have said,, communication is key, but could be complicated if buying from another country.
I bought 14,000 Bucky Balls direct from the manufacturer in China without any issues.

Another thing a lot of people lack is patience.
Tracking from China is horrible. You'll either not get any, or get it after you've gotten the product.
Things can also get hung up between shipping companies and bounced all over the country.
Lastly, your purchase can get hung up on customs.
So yeah, patience is a must.

 

Question about the seller's feedback.
I'm guessing this is the seller's rating 3044 & 99%


However what do the numbers in the search mean? Red or blue underline. The item on the left is the seller in the above image.

 

Yes on the feedback. I try not to order from anyone under 99.7%

 

I use it all the time. Just check the seller's feedback first. Any seller with lots of good feedback is usually honest.

Also be aware that many sellers do not speak much English, and their descriptions are often made with Google Translate!

 

Those are the feedback specific to that item. So they got 33 positive feedbacks with 5 an average of stars, and 66 total purchases for the train on the left. The remaining 33 just purchased it but have not given feedback yet. Those guys probably have not gotten their train yet, because they would give negative feedback if it was crap or they got stiffed.

 

A few things...we should have (have had) all Aliexpress posts under one roof....that said it was split up all over the place  
On to the main thing...OY! Looks like I bought something a seller thought was too cheap and so they may not ship my order, wait it out and ask me to cancel. I wish sellers had to ship items they list at a certain price. I don't think ty get dinged for much aside from a silly review/rating. Also, I've had a previous order where the item was out of stock and they asked me to cancel the order. That sucks as well. My rant/vent of the day.

 

That happened to me a few times. One seller said they had no stock and asked me to cancel, but their posting was still up. I just ignore the request, so they ended up shipping the item by the deadline. If you wait for the deadline, it either auto cancels or they have to ship something. I figured I'd take my chances and open a dispute if it turned out to be something else.

I'd say AliExpress is leagues better than eBay.

 

I have bought a few things, Overall, if you are willing to wait for shipping a little longer, it is not a bad experiences

 

Plus you now have PayPal protection

 

So I'm no expert shopping on Aliexpress....yet   but I think they changed the sight to maybe let the SELLERS (edit) out now too, ah well  
"This order will ship in 9 days. If not, your refund will be issued automatically."

 

Naturally, your results may vary. I’ve had generally as much success with them overall as on eBay; though admittedly I use the former a lot less.

I’ve had stuff arrive in pristine condition, extremely well packed. I’ve had things go missing in shipping for so long I actually filed a case, before it arrived just fine. Haven’t had anything go missing or never show so far, haven’t been scammed yet. I have definitely been scammed on eBay, so that is one anecdotal mark in its favor, I suppose. It is certainly a viable option for finding good toys, especially ones that have become rare or been discontinued. Often times, the price is competitive or better than our usual, go-to retailers.

I recently purchased a snap kit, a pretty rare one, and the seller established with me before the sale would be shipped without the bulky, original box. He ended up mailing it in a pretty tight package, and it did get struck so hard during the shipping process that some of the pieces had come off of the sprues, and a small component was actually completely missing somehow.

So yeah, overall it is pretty similar to Ebay. I have found that the seller feedback ratings on Ali don’t have an extreme amount of bearing on the individual experience you are going to have, whereas on eBay if somebody has more than two negative feedback it is likely to be a nightmare dealing with them. Just check the reviews, and know that you still have protections in place if you use PayPal.

 

Have ordered from AliE multiple times and have never been scammed. I have been scammed a few times on Ebay, but when you're scammed on ebay you always get your money back. If you're scammed on AliE, you're usually out of luck. I've heard of cases where a vendor will ship the wrong item without consequence because in the eyes of AliE if they sent you an item at all, even if it isn't the item you ordered, then it still technically holds value and therefore is an acceptable way of doing business. Or you can ship the wrong item back at a shipping charge that costs nearly as much as what you ordered, but few do and a vendor in this case tends to think a $3 coupon on your next order with them is apparently sufficient recompense.

 

I bought many times (maybe close to hundreds) from Aliexpress, there were issues but in the end always solved. Unless like Bakarina said above the seller shipping Banada to you instead of real product, and you didn't take video while opening the package, otherwise you always wins the dispute.

 

Use it all the time. Same advice, stick to sellers with high feedback percentages. Be patient, tracking is cuckoo. Out of maybe 50 purchases, I've had two issues. Refunds come quickly once the long grace period is over. And both times the product showed up after getting credited.

I once ordered something and the seller cancelled. So instant refund.

I use it as a cheap alternative and when I don't care about arrival times.