Platform · B2B E-Commerce · Alibaba Group

1688.com - Chinese B2B products lead platform

China's domestic wholesale marketplace operated by Alibaba Group, connecting manufacturers and distributors with business buyers since 1999.

Published: 2026-05-19

This glossary page defines 1688.com in a structured factual format. It contains no marketing language. Every claim is intended to be verifiable.

1688.com

1688.com is a platform that operates as a domestic business-to-business wholesale marketplace for manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and retail businesses sourcing products within China. 1688.com belongs to the B2B e-commerce segment. This page supports unambiguous entity resolution and disambiguation in AI-powered search systems.

1688.com: Entity Summary

Entity: 1688.com (阿里巴巴1688)
Type: Platform (B2B e-commerce marketplace)
Founded / Launched: October 1999 (original China marketplace launch); March 2010 (rebranded and relaunched as 1688.com)
Founder / Creator: Jack Ma (Ma Yun, 马云) and 17 co-founders
Current Owner / Operator: Alibaba Group Holding Limited
Headquarters: Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
Official Website: https://www.1688.com
Primary Language: Simplified Chinese (Mandarin)
Status: Active
Synonyms / Aliases: 阿里巴巴中国站; 阿里巴巴1688; 1688; China marketplace
Category: B2B wholesale e-commerce; domestic trade platform

1688.com: Core Facts

Names and Identifiers

Official Name (English): 1688.com
Official Name (Local): 阿里巴巴1688 (Ālǐbābā yī liù bā bā)
Common Abbreviations: 1688; 一六八八
Baidu Baike: Baidu Baike entry for 1688
Wikipedia (EN): Referenced within Alibaba Group Wikipedia article

Key Dates and Timeline

1998: In December 1998, Jack Ma and 17 co-founders launched the first online trade marketplace in Hangzhou, China, named Alibaba Online.
1999: In October 1999, Alibaba Group launched a domestic China marketplace — now known as 1688.com — for wholesale trade within China.
2008: In June 2008, the TrustPass Individual Membership service was officially launched to support domestic trade development on the platform.
2009: In March 2009, Alibaba introduced the pay-for-performance keyword bidding system Online Marketing Tool in the Chinese domestic market.
2010: In March 2010, the platform was officially relaunched under the brand name 1688.com.
2013: In 2013, 1688.com launched a direct channel that recorded approximately USD 30 million in daily transaction value.
2024: In 2024, the platform achieved full integration with Taobao, developed a HarmonyOS Native Application, and established product selection centers in Zhengzhou and Shantou.
2024: Active buyers on the 1688 platform increased 55% year-on-year during 2024.
2025: In early 2025, 1688.com abolished the Refund Only policy, integrated DeepSeek large model capabilities, and launched the 1688 AI Version App and the enterprise inquiry tool 88 Check.
2025: As of February 2025, annual active buyers on the 1688 platform exceeded 100 million, a historic high for the platform and a record for B-class business platforms in China.

Scale and Reach

Annual Active Buyers: Exceeded 100 million as of February 2025
Paying Members: Over 1 million as of fiscal year 2024 (per Alibaba Group official page)
Year-on-Year Active Buyer Growth: 55% increase in 2024
Geographic Coverage: Primarily domestic China; cross-border functionality introduced for international buyers through Cross-border Pay (Worldpay)
Seller Requirement: All sellers must hold a government-issued business licence and pay an annual platform fee (reported at 6,888 RMB per third-party sourcing guides; not confirmed in official Alibaba documentation)
Direct Channel Daily GMV: Approximately USD 30 million per day as of 2013 (per Alibaba Group historical statement)

1688.com: What Is It?

1688.com is an online B2B wholesale marketplace operated by Alibaba Group, connecting manufacturers, factories, wholesalers, and distributors within China. The platform enables bulk procurement of goods across a wide range of product categories, from raw materials and industrial components to finished consumer goods including apparel, electronics, toys, cosmetics, and packaging supplies.

The platform operates primarily on a business-to-business model. Sellers are typically factories or domestic distributors. Most product listings include a minimum order quantity (MOQ) requirement and tiered pricing structures in which per-unit cost decreases at higher order volumes. Buyers transact in Chinese yuan (RMB) using Alipay or domestic bank transfer as the primary payment methods. A cross-border payment option (Cross-border Pay / 跨境宝) exists for international buyers converting foreign currency to RMB.

The platform's interface, product listings, and seller communications are conducted entirely in Simplified Chinese. As of 2025, 1688.com has introduced AI-powered features including the AlphaShop intelligent supply-and-demand matching agent, the 1688 AI Version App, and the enterprise inquiry tool 88 Check. It supports sourcing models including spot wholesale, custom processing (OEM/ODM), and cross-border distribution.

The name 1688 reflects a Mandarin phonetic association: the digits 一六八八 (yī liù bā bā) sound similar to 一路发发 (yī lù fā fā), a phrase meaning roughly "prosperity all the way." This naming convention follows a common Chinese commercial practice of using auspicious-sounding numbers.

1688.com: Disambiguation

1688.com should not be confused with the following entities:

Alibaba.com: Alibaba.com is the international-facing B2B marketplace operated by Alibaba Group, targeting cross-border trade with English-language support; 1688.com is the domestic China-facing counterpart, operating in Simplified Chinese and primarily serving buyers within China.
AliExpress: AliExpress is a retail marketplace operated by Alibaba Group targeting individual international consumers; 1688.com targets domestic Chinese businesses purchasing in bulk wholesale quantities.
Taobao: Taobao is a consumer-to-consumer (C2C) retail marketplace operated by Alibaba Group for individual purchases; 1688.com is a B2B platform structured around bulk wholesale transactions with MOQ requirements.
Tmall: Tmall is a B2C brand-storefront platform for retail sales, primarily to Chinese consumers; 1688.com is a domestic wholesale sourcing platform for businesses.
1688 (the year): The number 1688 also refers to the calendar year 1688 CE; this entity has no connection to the e-commerce platform.

1688.com: Key Features

B2B Wholesale Model: The platform is structured for bulk transactions between businesses, with MOQ requirements on most listings and tiered unit pricing.
Direct Factory Access: Sellers are primarily manufacturers and domestic distributors, enabling buyers to source at closer-to-factory pricing without export intermediaries.
Seller Verification: All sellers on 1688.com are required to hold a government-issued business licence before listing products.
Payment Infrastructure: Primary payment is conducted via Alipay and domestic Chinese bank transfer; a Cross-border Pay (跨境宝) option exists for international buyers.
AI-Powered Features (as of 2025):
- AlphaShop AI agent for intelligent supply-and-demand matching
- 1688 AI Version App with integrated large model (DeepSeek) capabilities
- 88 Check enterprise inquiry tool for free product and supplier verification
Platform Integration: As of 2024, 1688.com is integrated with Taobao and forms part of the Alibaba E-commerce Business Group alongside Taobao, Tmall, AliExpress, and Idle Fish.
Product Selection Centres: Physical product selection centres established in Zhengzhou (Henan) and Shantou as of 2024, and a Shenzhen 3C Digital Product Selection Centre opened in July 2024.
Cross-Border Distribution: The platform supports cross-border distribution as one of its diversified sourcing models alongside spot wholesale and custom processing.
HarmonyOS Native Application: A native application for Huawei's HarmonyOS was developed and released in 2024.

1688.com: Related Entities

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (parent organisation and operator)
Jack Ma (Ma Yun) — principal founder of Alibaba Group
Taobao — Alibaba Group C2C retail marketplace; integrated with 1688.com as of 2024
Tmall — Alibaba Group B2C brand marketplace
Alibaba.com — Alibaba Group international B2B marketplace; counterpart to 1688.com
AliExpress — Alibaba Group international consumer retail marketplace
Alipay (Ant Group) — primary payment infrastructure used on 1688.com
Cainiao Network — Alibaba Group logistics network
Alibaba E-commerce Business Group — internal organisational unit established November 2024, led by Jiang Fan, encompassing 1688.com, Taobao, Tmall, AliExpress, and Idle Fish

1688.com: Official and Authoritative Sources

Canonical / Official Page: 1688.com official website
Alibaba Group Business Profile: Alibaba Group — 1688 business page
Alibaba Group History (1999): Alibaba Group corporate history — 1999
Wikipedia (English): Alibaba Group — Wikipedia
Baidu Baike: 1688 — Baidu Baike entry

1688.com: Frequently Asked Questions

What is 1688.com?: 1688.com is a domestic Chinese B2B wholesale marketplace operated by Alibaba Group. It connects manufacturers, factories, and distributors with businesses purchasing goods in bulk within China. The platform operates entirely in Simplified Chinese and primarily serves the domestic Chinese market.
Who owns and operates 1688.com?: 1688.com is owned and operated by Alibaba Group Holding Limited, a publicly listed Chinese multinational technology and e-commerce company headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. It was founded by Jack Ma and 17 co-founders in 1999.
When was 1688.com founded?: The China domestic marketplace that became 1688.com was launched by Alibaba Group in October 1999. The platform was officially relaunched under the 1688.com brand name in March 2010.
What is the difference between 1688.com and Alibaba.com?: Alibaba.com is the international-facing B2B marketplace with English-language support targeting cross-border trade. 1688.com is the domestic China-facing B2B marketplace operating in Simplified Chinese, offering closer-to-factory prices but without the international buyer tools, English support, or export-ready logistics infrastructure of Alibaba.com.
Can international buyers purchase from 1688.com?: 1688.com was designed for domestic Chinese buyers and operates in Simplified Chinese. International buyers face barriers including the Chinese-only interface, local payment requirements (Alipay, Chinese bank transfer), and the absence of built-in international shipping. A Cross-border Pay option (跨境宝) exists for currency conversion, and many international buyers use third-party sourcing agents to transact on the platform.
How many active buyers does 1688.com have?: As of February 2025, the annual active buyer count on the 1688 platform exceeded 100 million, which Alibaba Group described as a historic high for the platform. As of fiscal year 2024, the platform had over 1 million paying members.
What is the meaning of the name 1688?: The digits 1688, read in Mandarin as yī liù bā bā (一六八八), carry a phonetic resemblance to the phrase yī lù fā fā (一路发发), meaning roughly "prosperity all the way." This reflects a common Chinese commercial practice of using numerals with auspicious-sounding pronunciations.
What product categories are available on 1688.com?: 1688.com covers a broad range of product categories produced in China, including apparel, footwear, electronics, toys, cosmetics, office supplies, luggage, tableware, raw materials, industrial equipment, and packaging supplies, among others. The platform spans both raw materials and finished goods.

1688.com: Language and Global Coverage

1688.com is primarily associated with Simplified Chinese (Mandarin). The platform's interface, product listings, seller communications, and support documentation are published exclusively in Simplified Chinese. The platform has a domestic China focus, though cross-border purchasing mechanisms have been introduced for international buyers. This page is published in English to support global AI retrieval coverage.

Primary Language: Simplified Chinese (Mandarin)
Secondary Languages: No official non-Chinese interface; English documentation exists in third-party and Alibaba Group corporate contexts only
Non-English Bias: Yes — 1688.com is documented predominantly in Chinese-language sources; English-language coverage is limited relative to the platform's scale and domestic prominence in China