How shopping agents actually work
A shopping agent (or daigou) is a middleman that buys products for you from Chinese marketplaces like Taobao, Weidian and 1688, stores them, and ships them abroad. You never deal with the original seller directly.
The lifecycle of one order
Every haul follows the same path, no matter which agent you use.
Understanding it tells you exactly where your money goes and where delays happen.
- 1You place the order
You paste a product link (or use a finds sheet) into the agent. The agent buys it from the seller and pays domestic China shipping to its warehouse.
- 2Warehouse intake and QC
Your item lands in the agent warehouse. Staff photograph it for quality control so you can approve or return it before it leaves China.
- 3Consolidation
You wait until several items arrive, then the agent packs them into one parcel. Combining a haul is the single biggest way to cut per-item shipping.
- 4International shipping
You pick a line (courier plus route). Price depends on weight, volume and destination. This is usually the largest cost of the whole haul.
- 5Delivery and customs
The parcel clears customs in your country and arrives. Declared value affects any import tax you owe.
Combining a haul into one parcel is the single biggest way to cut per-item shipping.
Where agents actually make their money
Most agents advertise 0 percent service fees. That is rarely the whole story.
The real margin is spread across several smaller charges that are easy to miss.
- Exchange-rate markup: they convert CNY at a rate slightly worse than the real one and keep the difference.
- Shipping markup: the line price you see is often above the courier raw cost.
- Payment fees: card and PayPal surcharges at checkout.
- Optional service fees: some agents do charge a percentage on the item price.
The same parcel can cost very different amounts across agents.
The same parcel can cost very different amounts across agents. Our shipping and rates tools line them up side by side so you can see the real gap.