In any way you know of. I find people here are more aware of politics and ethics behind big companies and this is what prompted my question but I’m also curious about any other differences.
I’m in Australia and I’ve only used Ebay and AliExpress so far. I find AliExpress has more variety and somewhat cheaper prices but I don’t know why or anything else.
When I first heard about Temu it was always in relation to dodgy products and sex toys so I didn’t pay much attention to it, however lately I keep hearing about people buying regular stuff without issues. Never tried it myself though.
Temu looks SUPER sketchy to me. All of those “down load our app!” and “Just one more for 70% off!” deals and so on. I’ve never been to Temu, found an item, and checked out.
AliExpress and Ebay actually let you BUY things.
I haven’t used Temu to compare, but AliExpress’s website bombards you with about 3 coupon or app popups upon loading it as well. That and the constant combo deals they’re pushing with a browsing UI straight from my nightmares.
Temu uses actual, honest to God, slave work
Stay away from Temu. Also, same with Foxcon that Apple uses. We really have a medieval world we’re living in.
Yep, also Cisco equipment. Yikes.
Honest slave work?
It’s like normal slave work, but they don’t try to hide it.
Depending on what I’m looking for, eBay has been great for finding used CDs, games, and electronics for a lot cheaper than anywhere else. As for the other 2, you’ll just get cheap quality junk that might even be harmful (as with the case of the Australian child who got seriously harmed by a temu product).
Temu is like Wish but turned into an addictive gambling game targeted at children. (IDK if targeted at children is the right word but that’s the vibe it gives me)
Okay so the vibe I’m getting from all comments is that Temu is the shadiest of all and worse than Wish (another site I forgot about, along with Shein)
I shop eBay for legit parts, used stuff, and tires.
The other two are trash.Ali Express = Straight from the Chinese factory town to to you. There are various things to watch out for. Like with electronics components the shops sell the stuff that didn’t pass quality assurance testing for whomever ordered a manufacturing run, and now the factory is selling the rejects via AE shops.
Temu = Ali Express but now with more slavery
EBay = Anyone can do eCommerce but reputation carries enough weight that at least things usually aren’t scams. A lot of it (like many amazon sellers in the US) are just middlemen for AliExpress, Temu, or similar but hopefully they get sniffed out eventually. It’s like it’s not the wild west any more because the railroad came through, but the laws between sheriffs are still real different.
Ahhh so many things screwed up with the fashion industry. Especially with how much cheap clothing overstock is left at stores and how much is discarded so quickly after being purchased.
And it’s all the same crap that’s on Amazon, just without their markup.
I’ve never orderes from AliExpress, but I considered buying from Temu a few times. Every time something popped up in an add that looked good it told me I had to download the app first, and then app kept trying to get me to buy other things instead of what I came there for. This is why now I refuse to buy from any website that makes me download an app to even see what they have for sale.
I’ve never had any issues with eBay, and I’ve used it a bunch.
Ali Express is legit, by the way, I’ve bought a lot of stuff from them over the years, including smartphones and carbon fibre kayak paddles, so some high value items.
My only complaint is the shipping time is a bit of a crapshoot.
I’ve spent at least $5000 on aliexpress over the past few years, maybe more. I’ve never had an issue that wasn’t resolved with a refund or a replacement. They’re pretty reliable and I’d recommend them to anyone. They stock a wide variety of components and parts if you’re building electronics or just general DIY / 3d printing / home stuff.
Temu feels way more sketchy. They try to shove more stuff down your throat, and they even have little mini games where you can try to earn free things. They’re way more about just pushing cheap shit. I tried them once, felt dirty and have never gone back.
For somebody from a country that doesn’t have access to McMaster-Carr, Alibaba and Aliexpress are a fairly cheap and reliable way to get stock material for DIY projects.
I don’t know what local sellers of raw materials are thinking with their pricing. 3x Higher prices for the same shitty aluminum or brass stocks. Get fucked, I’m not made out if money.
