AliExpress lists and LitBuy: what the sheet really is and when buying direct is the cleaner route

A retailer that ships itself

AliExpress belongs to Alibaba Group, the same group that owns Taobao, Tmall and 1688, but it works differently. It is an international retail marketplace: sellers list goods for overseas buyers and the parcel travels to you from the seller. LitBuy buys from China's domestic marketplaces and states that it cannot purchase from cross-border shopping platforms. An AliExpress link therefore has no LitBuy code. You buy on AliExpress and pay at its checkout.

The Taobao and 1688 rows describe general behaviour, not LitBuy data. The Taobao page and the 1688 page cover the codes and a worked bill for each.

Same owner, different service: AliExpress sells to you, LitBuy buys for you.

What an AliExpress spreadsheet usually is

Search volume for the term is small by this site's standards, about 1,000 global monthly searches in our keyword file, against 17,300 for DHgate. What turns up behind it is mixed. Some files are finds lists, one product link per row with a price and a category. Some are trackers where a buyer logs each order, the seller, the price paid, the dispatch date and the tracking number. Some are templates for sellers who use AliExpress as a supplier and need a margin calculation. Only the first kind has any overlap with a LitBuy sheet, and only if the products also exist on a Chinese domestic marketplace.

• Finds list: open each link at AliExpress; no LitBuy step.
• Order tracker: add a column for delivery window and a returns deadline.
• Seller margin sheet: not a buyer's tool; ignore it for a personal haul.

If you want a tracker with weights and euro formulas, the LitBuy spreadsheet template is the nearest equivalent, and you can drop the LitBuy-specific columns.

Decide which of the three kinds you hold before you look for a conversion.

Where one LitBuy parcel beats several

The comparison that does help is not AliExpress against LitBuy; it is one parcel against many. Suppose a sheet mixes retailer rows with three Chinese-only items, hypothetically ¥70, ¥85 and ¥110, assumed 0.5 kg each. LitBuy's estimator displayed €38.75 ($43.53) towards a 2,000 g parcel to Germany using LIT-Economy-DHL-DE, our 19 October 2026 reading, which covers the assumed 1.5 kg in one parcel, and €16.81 ($18.89) for 500 g. The €2 handling fee applies per parcel submitted after 25 October 2026.

Combining saves €15.68 here. That is the one structural advantage an agent has over a retailer that ships each seller's order separately, though we do not know how AliExpress groups orders, and we did not read its shipping prices. The shipping cost page holds the quotes behind this sum.

Consolidation is where LitBuy earns its place, and only for items a retailer does not stock.

VAT and duty: direct against LitBuy's tax-free lines

In Germany 19% import VAT applies from the first euro, and small IOSS parcels worth up to €150 have carried a temporary flat €3 duty per tariff category since 1 July 2026. On LitBuy's tax-free EU lines, LitBuy pays duty and VAT and charges a flat €3 per parcel, shown in the estimator as ¥24, and the €2 fee from 25 October 2026. On a direct AliExpress order, look at the order summary for tax lines and keep the invoice. France applies 20% VAT under the same EU rules.

In the UK, sellers collect VAT at checkout on goods up to £135, while dearer goods meet VAT and duty at the border plus carrier handling fees. In the US, the $800 duty-free threshold ended for all countries on 29 August 2025, so postal and courier parcels now face duty, whatever the route. Customs can detain trademark-infringing goods in any market. Our customs page explains what to do with a notice.

The tax rules follow the border, not the website you ordered from.

The same Chinese-only parcel in other countries

If the Chinese-only rows are headed to France, the US or the UK, the one-parcel logic holds, but the numbers differ. These are the cheapest tax-free lines we read on 19 October 2026, list prices before any promotion. The assumed 1.5 kg of the example falls between the 1 kg and 2 kg columns, so the 2 kg figure is the ceiling.

The EU €2 handling fee applies to German and French parcels submitted after 25 October 2026 and not to the US or UK lines. Our Berlin page and the other city pages repeat these tables with local customs notes.

Every destination has a weight band, so check the quote before you split a parcel.

Keeping a mixed sheet honest

1. Give every row a platform label: AliExpress, Taobao, Weidian, 1688.
2. For AliExpress rows, record the delivered price and the delivery window shown at checkout.
3. For Chinese-only rows, rebuild the link with our link converter and add an assumed weight.
4. Total the two groups separately, then compare each with the other route where a twin exists.

The marketplace hub shows how every other source reaches, or does not reach, LitBuy. For the Chinese-only rows without a LitBuy account, the WhatsApp QR on our contact page opens a buying service that states one delivered price, shows photos before dispatch and charges per order.

Two groups, two totals, one honest comparison.

AliExpress questions from LitBuy buyers

Can LitBuy purchase from AliExpress?

No. LitBuy's how-to guide says it cannot purchase from cross-border shopping platforms, and AliExpress already sells and ships abroad itself. Order on AliExpress and use its checkout. If an item also exists on Taobao, which belongs to the same Alibaba Group, that Taobao link goes into LitBuy as code 1, usually with a different seller and price.

What is an AliExpress spreadsheet, usually?

Mostly one of three things: a finds list of product links, a tracker where buyers log orders, prices and delivery dates, or a seller-side sheet that calculates margin. Our keyword file shows about 1,000 global monthly searches for the term. None of these is a LitBuy sheet; if you need a LitBuy version, our template has the extra weight and storage columns.

Is a LitBuy parcel cheaper than AliExpress shipping?

We cannot say, because we did not read AliExpress's prices. LitBuy's estimator displayed €24.12 ($27.10) towards a 1,000 g parcel to Germany on 19 October 2026, plus a €2 fee after 25 October. Compare that with the delivered price per item at AliExpress's checkout, and remember a retailer parcel and a warehouse parcel are different services.

Why would anyone combine AliExpress and LitBuy rows?

Because some products exist only on Chinese domestic marketplaces. Those rows need LitBuy; the AliExpress rows do not. Keeping both in one sheet is fine if every row has a platform label. Then you can total the retailer orders separately from the one LitBuy parcel, rather than guessing a blended shipping figure.

Does an AliExpress spreadsheet need a link converter?

Not for AliExpress rows, because you open each link on AliExpress itself. A converter helps only with Taobao, Weidian, 1688 or JD rows, where the number in the original link becomes the number after litbuy.com/product/ and a code of 0, 1, 2 or 3. If your sheet has both kinds, convert only the Chinese marketplace rows and leave the rest alone.

How does VAT work on a direct AliExpress order to Germany?

German import VAT is 19% from the first euro, and a temporary €3 duty per tariff category applies to small IOSS parcels worth up to €150 since 1 July 2026. Whether AliExpress collects VAT at checkout depends on the order, and we did not read its rules. Check the order summary and keep the invoice. The UK collects VAT at the point of sale up to £135.