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Beginner's Guide to Replica Lego
Hello and welcome to the other side of the bricks.
This is a starter guide for everyone who wants to buy any types of bricks, building blocks or minifigures from China.
This sub was named after one of the most famous knock off bricks company - Lepin. Lepin is shut down now, but for many people the term "Lepin" means all kind of bricks and sets from chinese companies. There's no unified terms: ko bricks, bootlego, Lepin, alternative bricks etc.
This sub is about all kinds of bricks and building blocks.
In short, about the chinese bricks market:
There are dozens of brick manufacturers in China. The items they produce can be categorized into:
1. Made of Lego-compatible bricks:
Lego replicas (including replicas with modifications)
MOCs (from any sources - freely available, licensed and even taken without permission)
Original sets (for example Enlighten's sub brand Keeppley has the license on Evangelion and Doraemon sets, CADA has the license on Initial D)
Spare parts (including baseplates)
Duplo-like stuff (mostly bricks, plates and figures)
2. Made of Lego-like bricks:
Smaller scale Lego bricks (like Loz)
Not quite Lego-like bricks, but still bricks (like Nano Blocks, Diamond Blocks)
3. Minifigures:
Lego minifigure clones
Custom minifigure clones
Original ones (based on existing series, but ones Lego doesn't have or just really original ones)
Minifigures spare parts
Each cloned set can be produced by several brands.
Brick4.com is your best friend in searching sets, checking differences, browsing reviews with pictures.
But there are also many original sets and MOCs, don't hesitate to use search by name.
What is Lepin? What about other brands
What brands exist nowadays, and what about their quality
What should I know before buying
Where to buy and how to buy
Instructions
What is Lepin? What about other brands?
Skip this if you are not interested in Lepin story. Just remember Lepin does not exist as a brand anymore. Now it operates as KING/Queen/Jack/ZEBRA/Lion King. There are many more companies, some of them existed even before the creation of Lepin.
Lepin was a Chinese manufacturer that appeared around 2016 and continued its activity till 2019. Lepin has produced replicas of more than several hundreds of diffirent Lego sets, as well as some MOCs, Ideas sets that were not produced by Lego and even few original products.
Lepin became pretty popular in these 3 years, mostly because it gave people what they wanted - affordable good quality replicas of retired Lego sets and cheap replicas of current Lego sets. At first it seemed Lego didn't consider Lepin as a threat, seeing them as just another small bootleg company like Sheng Yuan (that existed before Lepin btw) or Decool. But later seeing Lepin's success Lego filed a lawsuit against Lepin and a couple of other bootlego companies.
In 2019 several Lepin officials were arrested and their factory was shut down. Of course it was because of Lego.
After a pause Lepin returned under the name NUOGAO, but very soon they revealed new names - for now brands KING/Queen with subbrands Jack, ZEBRA and Lion King.
Lepin also had sister company XingBao which still exists and from the beginning was focused on original MOCs instead of Lego replicas. So it didn't suffer the shutdown as designs were mostly original and Lego bricks patent has expired (means any company can legally produce Lego compatible bricks).
Other ko companies also had lawsuit filed against them, mostly for using Lego's box design. Btw Lego can't sue someone for IP that doesn't belong to them. For example if Lego Star Wars sets were copied, Disney would have to sue the Chinese companies as SW IP belongs to them.
A lot of companies have some additional names, like Decool (JiSi) and Bela (Leri/Lari).
As said above Lepin is dead, long live the KING. But in general we discuss all kinds of brands here and generally, their quality is impressive and prices are reasonable.
You can check the brand list on Brick4. Brick4 is a catalog of all kind of Lego, knock off and original sets (MOCs as well). If you know any set number you can find all replicas of the set.
Brands: http://brick4.com/brand/list/
Brands that produce sets:
KING/Queen/Jack/ZEBRA/Lion King, Mould King (it's not related to KING, it's a different brand), Sheng Yuan (SY), Sembo, Decool/JISI, LELE, Bela/LERI, Xingbao, Panlos, Super 18K, Enlighten, Winner, Kazi, Ausini, Sluban, DINGGAO, Cobi, CADA and many others.
Brands that produce minifigures:
Pogo(PG), XINH, World Minifigures (WM), LELE, Decool, SY, Kopf, Koruit, KL, DLP and some more.
You can check existing minifigures on https://www.herobloks.com/
It also includes Lego and custom Lego minifigs, don't forget to use filters.
Quality. These days it is really hard to find shitty quality sets.
The brands listed here
are all of quite decent quality. At least 95% of Lego quality, but usually better.
Of course some sets, especially big MOCs that were designed digitally will have assembly issues, sometimes they require some fixing. But the price you pay for it is way lower than if you were using real Lego parts.
There is one brick supplier (OEM) that is considered the best - GoBricks. Some say it's on par with Lego.
What quality-related problems can occur?
Missing pieces (if you miss a few bricks, it's the factory's fault) or missing bags (usually the seller's fault).
Damaged or malformed pieces - most likely damaged or unfinished during the injection molding process.
Incorrectly molded pieces - pieces that have some excessive height, for example.
Of course they don't occur in every set, but you can encounter such problems from time to time. You can contact the seller and ask them to send missing/broken pieces. Alternatively, here is a list of stores that sell separate bricks:
[1]https://www.reddit.com/r/lepin/comments/t85041/where_to_get_alternative_spare_parts/Are Chinese bricks safe?
I would say yes, they are mostly made for the Chinese domestic market, using the same process and materials (ABS) Lego uses.
Besides, we use lots of plastic things everyday, including kitchenware made in China.
In the last couple of years, I haven't heard any cases of lead poisoning or anything else serious from contact with these bricks. They might be a little oily with residue leftovers, but this might happen with Lego bricks too, because the production technology is similar.
After owning ko sets and minifigures for more than 5 years myself, I’m still alive.
How do the bricks age?
From my personal experience, they age normally (I have sets from 2015). Yellowing of white colored pieces is possible - it’s the same as with Lego parts. Just don't expose them to direct sunlight and don't use any aggressive cleaning agents on them.
Other brands also have the lifecycle of their products. Some sets or minifigures might be discontinued.
Use brick4.com to find which brands make it and use their setcodes for searching.
- Brick4.com
is also helpful if you want to take a look at real pictures of the set. If you look up the set info, there might be links to reviews in Chinese - they usually include many photos.
Before asking which brand is best, get an idea about which set you want to buy. A brand’s quality might differ from set to set, and some sets might only be available from a single brand, anyway.
Picking a store depends on your location and user reviews. Some stores do not ship to certain countries, while others might charge crazy delivery fees. Reviews might help to get the idea about customs fees or delivery times.
There are a lot of reviews on this sub. They might help you decide what sets to buy. Use the search function or look for reviews on the item pages on brick4.com.
Usually all types of building blocks are sold without the original box to customers outside of China, because it massively reduces shipping fees. In case you want a boxed version, you have to contact the seller - the box will cost you extra. Generally speaking, the boxes usually aren’t very high quality and aren’t worth the additional money, in my opinion.
Check prices at different stores to learn the average price. Some stores do not include shipping in the item price, while others do.
Minifigures might not be displayed on pictures because of Lego copyright issues, but they are included (if the original set has them). Mocs might not include minifigures. Look for reviews.
Older sets that were released before 2017 didn't have the parts sorted into the bags by building steps, now they usually do. Some still don't, especially MOCs that are sold by some stores as a bunch of spare parts.
You might have to buy the instructions from the original creator if the set you bought is a MOC. Message seller for info or visit Rebrickable.
If the set is a replica of Lego set (check Brick4), Lego instructions can be used. You can download Lego instructionshere
Other brands’ instructions might be harder to find.
Customs fees might occur, they depend on your country's laws. The seller may assist you by declaring lower package value, but that won't guarantee you won't be charged.
Do not order “presell” (preorder) sets before they are out. They won't be shipped earlier, prices might change and you don't know when the set is going to be released.
Anything sold supercheap is most likely fraud. Don't be naive, there is self-cost of the set and the delivery fee at least. If it’s too good to be true, it probably isn’t.
There are brands that sell smaller scale but still Lego-like bricks - LOZ, for example. There are also diamond blocks that are even smaller, but they are not Lego-like.
Common FAQ
1) Does a replica of certain Lego set exist? Does anyone make this set?
Check on http://brick4.com website by Lego setcode (or by name if it is MOC). If a replica exists, you'll see clone brands and their set numbers (besides Lego).
You gotta remember that even ko sets have lifecycle and might be discountinued.
Some of discontinued Lepin sets might be still in stock somewhere. Try CreepHybrid storehttps://creephybrid.easy.co/, they have access to suppliers that still have some of retired Lepin sets.
2) What’s the difference between alternative bricks and Lego? Do KO sets come with minifigures?
The sets are usually identical, but some parts might have slightly different molds or colors. This highly depends on the brand and there are really a lot of chinese brick brands.
Minifigures are included if original set had them. If it's a MOC then there might be no minifigures.
Sometimes minifigures are not displayed on pictures because of Lego copyright issues. Also, minifigures can usually be bought separately from minifigure brands.
3) Where can I buy certain set? What is the best place to buy?
None of the brands has an official store (the only exceprtion is CADA). All the brands do dropshipping so you are buying from a reseller, you can't buy from a factory.
There is a list of recommended online stores in current Stores Rating Thread: You can check it (by flair) here. It is also available from the sidebar. If you are using mobile version you can find current stores rating thread here.
There are some factors that can lead to picking certain sellers, like your location for example. Some stores might not ship to your country and some might charge a lot for shipping, some might have a warehouse in your country. You gotta check prices at different sources first. Also customs duties might occur, pick sellers that can declare less value of your package and that provide delivery methods that can lower the chance of customs duties.
In general, people here mostly buy from Loy Chen https://www.yourwobb.com/, Loy can be considered one of the most favourite sellers here.
Check the Stores Rating Thread to see all options: here
4) What's the cheapest option to buy this set? Where is the lowest price?
See p.3 - all these sources, you have to check them to know. Prices of the same set differ so nobody can say right away where the price is lowest. Prices might depend on your location.
I would say that seller should be reliable, but well if you want to save, consider the risk.
The lowest price doesn't guarantee best service quality or fast shipping. You can play a lottery and order cheapest AliExpress option from 90% rating store. AliExpress will protect your deal but you might lose time, because seller forgot to put you several bags for example, etc. But it might be a smooth transaction as well. Risk is on you.
5) What's the quality of a brand or of a set?
Depends on the brand and depends on the set, but generally quality is decent for the price you pay. It's really hard to find crappy sets these days.
GoBricks in considered the best brick supplier, quality about on par with Lego.
Brands by brick suppliers:
https://www.reddit.com/r/astrobricks/comments/ic4vby/brick_brand/and who uses GoBricks:
https://www.yourwobb.com/blogs/news/the-brands-use-gobricks-bricks6) Did anybody buy this set, impressions? How is this set?
Use the search please. There's a high chance someone posted a review here. Also don't forget to check if set was announced recently, in this case there won't be any reviews anywhere.
7) I can’t find a set sold anywhere. Discountinued/Retired/EOL sets.
Firstly, check if you are using correct setcodes for searching. See p.1
Secondly, knockoff sets and minifigures can become retired too. They have lifecycle just like Lego sets.
Lots of minifigures and some stuff by SY (it exists longer than Lepin) as well as old sets from other brands are not produced anymore.
All of Lepin sets are discontinued because company was shutdown. KING/Queen/Jack, etc. (as Lepin's successor) might make a replica of this set in the future. Track your wanted sets on http://brick4.com/.
However, some of discontinued sets might be still in stock on different marketplaces and local stores. Try CreepHybrid store https://creephybrid.easy.co/. They have access to suppliers that still have some of retired sets. You can also browse Taobao, some sellers there might have it, but you'll have to use shippinh agent to order from there.
8) Are lepinworld, lepinland, bricklepin, lepinbricks official stores?
No, Lepin never had any official stores, and KING doesn’t either. KING only does dropshipping, so in any case you will be buying from a reseller. These lepin-something stores are ones of many resellers.
They lie about their officialness and they often do not include shipping fee in the item price, in general buying from them turns out more expensive compared to other stores. They are legit though, but afaik most of users here try to avoid them.
9) Will somebody make this set? Any news about this set? When will be the restock?
Unfortunately we don’t have such information, there’s no representatives of Chinese brands here. Also please do not request sets here and don't ask about the news on sets - nobody can answer this question. You can try ask the sellers about the restock.
10) Never heard of "Weird_brand_name", how is it? Unknown brands.
The number of brands is limited. You can check most of them on Brick4:
http://brick4.com/brand/list/Some sellers on AliExpress sometimes rename well known brands to non existed brands, for exmaple named after their store. If they have a setcode - paste in on brick4 and you'll find the real brand most likely.
LP brand on YourWOBB is the stock of old Lepin sets.
11) How to buy from AliExpress? How to pick an AliExpress seller? Is this seller reliable?
Read our AliExpress buyer’s guide:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TApv0EhSMiZsrqH1xZxDE7LLSGgZPIlAmmiujHfq2U0/12) Where can I buy minifigures?
AliExpress recently forbade selling minifigs due to Lego complaints (Lego holds a patent on minifigs). Buy you can still find a lot of stores that display minifigures heads, though they sell whole minifigures.
Some AliExpress sellers opened their own websites:
https://www.minifiguresmall.com/-> changed to
http://kopftoy.com/(Kopf Store)
http://www.worldminifigs.com/-> changed to
https://www.wmmocbricks.cn/World Minifigures
These are useful to check full minifigure images too. But you can still use AE stores to get minifigures, check sellers rating thread.
13) Where can I buy spare parts?
There is list of stores that sell spares:
https://www.reddit.com/r/lepin/comments/t85041/where_to_get_alternative_spare_parts/14) Where can I find the building instructions?
If set is a replica of a Lego set, then you can download instruction from Lego website. Use http://brick4.com/ to know the set number.
For some MOCs sellers sell only the bricks and you have to buy the instruction from the original creator. Contact the seller for the information.
15) Is it illegal to own or to buy Lepin-like items?
This highly depends on your country laws, but in lots of countries it is not illegal to buy knock off goods for personal use even if you knew they were knock offs.
16) Where can I resell sets I don't need anymore?
Use r/brickswap
AliExpress Guide to Spare Parts
Lots of people ask where they can get alternative spare parts.
You can buy them from web stores and from Aliexpress.
There are different manufacturers, so sometimes you have no idea what parts you are getting, especially when you buy them fom AE.
There is one brick supplier (OEM) that is considered the best - GoBricks. Some say it's on par with Lego. They have website -
https://gobricks.cn/but you'll require a middleman to order from them.
Summary:
Yourwobb
Vonado
Webrick
AliExpress
1) Yourwobb Gobricks parts orderAlmost everyone's favourite store has lots of stuff: GoBricks, non GoBricks, power functions, accessories and even stickers.
You can make a GoBricks order using this guide:
https://www.yourwobb.com/blogs/news/the-guide-for-order-gobricks-loose-bricksVonado offers spare parts, but a lot of them are sold in small bulk of 10 pieces. If you need to get single pieces, you can use Webrick (information is in p.3).
https://www.vonado.com/Discount code: VT5
is the store that specializes in spare parts.
They have a toolkit that allows to upload Lego projects in different formats to get parts list and order them:
https://www.webrick.com/toolkitHow to search on AE? Some stores use original Lego part number as reference. But searching by part number can be tricky as other non-related results may appear.
You can limit the search within Blocks category (id 2622) like that:
Looking for part Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Tooth Horizontal, Lego item number is 49668.
https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=2622&SearchText=49668! Remember that aliexpress in different languages might have different Block category ID, you can check it mannually (Pick category -> for kids -> Block toys, you'll see in adress string aliexpress.com/categoty/number where number is the ID you are looking for).
Known AE Stores:
1)MOCparts Store (previosuly known as BigCabbage)
https://aliexpress.com/store/912404637Many of different brick types, BigCabbage store was reliable, newly opened store has very good rating as well.
2) BuildMoc Bouw blokken Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4709027A lot of parts including technic.
3) BuildMoc moc Store
https://buildmoctoy.aliexpress.com/store/2796013A lot of parts including technic.
4) SMARTABLE Official Store
https://smartable.aliexpress.com/store/1595237Regular bricks, technic and even some Duplo.
5) Bricks Club Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/3600018Technic and regular bricks.
6) MOC BRICKS Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/1762758A lot of extra parts for minifigures, trees, flowers and some MOCs.
7) WelLeSi blocks Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4491142Regular bricks, technic, plants and animals.
8) JILE blocks Store
https://jile.aliexpress.com/store/3274017A lot of different parts, including technic.
9) Puzzles & Toys
https://aliexpress.com/store/805596Some technic parts and minifigure accessories.
10) ETFOM Station Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4800199Technic parts mostly, but also display stands.
11) Dan Dan Blocks Store
https://dandanstore.aliexpress.com/store/3701001Techinc parts.
12) Apan Sapio Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4403001Different parts.
13) Marumine Store
https://marumine.aliexpress.com/store/3191011Different parts, including rails and Duplo stuff.
14) KURY Official Store
https://kurytoys.aliexpress.com/store/5629046Regular and techic parts + mini MOCs. Minifigure part including blank minifigures of different colors
15) BB WORLD TOY Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/3630018Lots of technic parts.
16) Building Block Toy House Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/912580490Military themed bricks, minifigures and accessories.
17) MOC Rebrickable Parts Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/911761751Technic and regular parts
18) Created by Legoing MOC Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/5621008Lots of parts including power functions
19) BZB Official Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/911422460Different parts.
Online stores & Where to Buy Lego/Lepin
The only brand that has an official webstore is CADA: https://decadastore.com/
None of the other brands has an official store. You are always buying form a reseller. Webstores either have their own stock or do dropshipping. Any store that claims to be official is lying (except Decadastore). Here's an example.
The correct way to buy is to find a reseller (webstore) in China.
There are several sources to buy from (they all received positive feedback here, check our Seller Ratings threads):
Online stores
Yourwobb: https://www.yourwobb.com/
Second website for King, Leji, etc - replicas that were removed from the main store: https://www.joytoyworld.com/Loltoy: https://loltoy.shop/
Joy: https://joooooy.com/
Barweer: https://www.barweer.com/
Mixed feedback, but has US warehouse.
Store for replicas
Youmko: https://youmko.com/
Doinbby: https://www.doinbby.com/
Has some good feedback. Not related to Barweer apparently.
CreepHybrid: https://creephybrid.easy.co and https://www.reddit.com/r/CreepHybrid/
Retired Lepin sets and rare sets by other brands, but also new ones. Managed by u/magnifizio
Hitian: https://www.hitian.com/
Vonado: https://www.vonado.com/
A lot of MOCs sold as sets of bricks.
JoinToy: https://www.jointoy.com/
Brick Me Up Scottie: https://www.brickmeupscottie.com/) managed by /u/brickmeupscottie
Blue Brixx: https://www.bluebrixx.com/
German store with Chinese sets, but not replicas.
Brickkk: https://www.brickkk.com/
HeroToyz: https://herotoyz.com/
Minifigures Mall: https://www.minifiguresmall.com/
World Minifigs: https://www.wmmocbricks.cn/
Webrick: https://www.webrick.com/
Bricks and spare parts. They have a toolkit that allows to upload Lego projects in different formats to get parts list and order them.
AliExpress.
AliExpress is a huge trading platform. Refer to our AliExpress buyer's guide to learn the basics:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TApv0EhSMiZsrqH1xZxDE7LLSGgZPIlAmmiujHfq2U0/There are plenty of brick sellers out there, some even provide delivery from european warehouses (from Spain or Poland, for example). Check here how to search for sets.
Check the seller ratings thread and reviews before ordering. AliExpress has buyer protection, though some actions might be required for it to work, refer to the AE FAQ above. A list of AE stores with good feedback can be found in Monthly Stores Rating:
https://www.reddit.com/r/lepin/wiki/storesratingthreadThere are couple of more options but they are not that popular:Taobao + shopping agent service. Taobao is a domestic Chinese marketplace (AliExpress is an international version of TaoBao), and sellers usually don’t ship internationally. You have to use a shopping agent service that will forward your items. The final prices are on par with AE, but AE has better buyer protection. TaoBao can be used to obtain some rare or older sets that you can't buy anywhere else.
Ebay prices aren’t that good usually, because on ebay you deal with a reseller that already bought items in China from a Chinese reseller and added extra markup.
! Fake official Lepin-something websites or stores (lepinland, bricklepin, lepinbrick, etc) are lying about being official, often do not include shipping charges in items' prices and tend to be more expensive in the end, but they will ship your orders.
Shady online stores with way too attractive prices that will take your money and will vanish.
HOW:
If buying from AliExpess, read the AliExpress guide:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TApv0EhSMiZsrqH1xZxDE7LLSGgZPIlAmmiujHfq2U0/If buying from an online store, follow some simple rules:
Find your wanted set on
and check which brands make it, check the description if there are differences between them. Browse reviews on the item page, make sure you are checking reviews with the correct set number.
Check reviews on reddit.
Check prices in trustworthy stores.
Pay preferably with PayPal.
Instructions
If the model is replica of Lego set, you can use Lego instructions:
https://www.lego.com/en-us/service/buildinginstructionsIf it's an original set, some instructions might be impossible to find in PDF.
But to your luck there is archive of instructions from different brands made by /u/macstratdb
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1p2EKnpTIfEkzraAhep09Lg6rcSkX0GmOSpare parts & extra bricks
Lots of people ask where they can get alternative spare parts.
You can buy them from web stores and from Aliexpress.There are different manufacturers, so sometimes you have no idea what parts you are getting, especially when you buy them fom AE.
There is one brick supplier (OEM) that is considered the best - GoBricks. Some say it's on par with Lego. They have website - https://gobricks.cn/ but you'll require a middleman to order from them.
Content:
- Yourwobb
- Vonado
- Webrick
- AliExpress
1) Yourwobb Gobricks parts order
Almost everyone's favourite store has lots of stuff: GoBricks, non GoBricks, power functions, accessories and even stickers. https://www.yourwobb.com/collections/loose-bricks
You can make a GoBricks order using this guide: https://www.yourwobb.com/blogs/news/the-guide-for-order-gobricks-loose-bricks
2) Vonado
Vonado offers spare parts, but a lot of them are sold in small bulk of 10 pieces. If you need to get single pieces, you can use Webrick (information is in p.3).
Discount code: VT5
3) Webrick
https://www.webrick.com/ is the store that specializes in spare parts.
They have a toolkit that allows to upload Lego projects in different formats to get parts list and order them: https://www.webrick.com/toolkit
4) Aliexpress
How to search on AE? Some stores use original Lego part number as reference. But searching by part number can be tricky as other non-related results may appear.
You can limit the search within Blocks category (id 2622) like that:
Looking for part Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Tooth Horizontal, Lego item number is 49668.
https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=2622&SearchText=49668
! Remember that aliexpress in different languages might have different Block category ID, you can check it mannually (Pick category -> for kids -> Block toys, you'll see in adress string aliexpress.com/categoty/number where number is the ID you are looking for).
Known AE Stores:
1)MOCparts Store (previosuly known as BigCabbage) https://aliexpress.com/store/912404637
Many of different brick types, BigCabbage store was reliable, newly opened store has very good rating as well.
2) BuildMoc Bouw blokken Store https://aliexpress.com/store/4709027
A lot of parts including technic.
3) BuildMoc moc Store https://buildmoctoy.aliexpress.com/store/2796013
A lot of parts including technic.
4) SMARTABLE Official Store https://smartable.aliexpress.com/store/1595237
Regular bricks, technic and even some Duplo.
5) Bricks Club Store https://aliexpress.com/store/3600018
Technic and regular bricks.
6) MOC BRICKS Store https://aliexpress.com/store/1762758
A lot of extra parts for minifigures, trees, flowers and some MOCs.
7) WelLeSi blocks Store https://aliexpress.com/store/4491142
Regular bricks, technic, plants and animals.
8) JILE blocks Store https://jile.aliexpress.com/store/3274017
A lot of different parts, including technic.
9) Puzzles & Toys https://aliexpress.com/store/805596
Some technic parts and minifigure accessories.
10) ETFOM Station Store https://aliexpress.com/store/4800199
Technic parts mostly, but also display stands.
11) Dan Dan Blocks Store https://dandanstore.aliexpress.com/store/3701001
Techinc parts.
12) Apan Sapio Store https://aliexpress.com/store/4403001
Different parts.
13) Marumine Store https://marumine.aliexpress.com/store/3191011
Different parts, including rails and Duplo stuff.
14) KURY Official Store https://kurytoys.aliexpress.com/store/5629046
Regular and techic parts + mini MOCs. Minifigure part including blank minifigures of different colors
15) BB WORLD TOY Store https://aliexpress.com/store/3630018
Lots of technic parts.
16) Building Block Toy House Store https://aliexpress.com/store/912580490
Military themed bricks, minifigures and accessories.
17) MOC Rebrickable Parts Store https://aliexpress.com/store/911761751
Technic and regular parts
18) Created by Legoing MOC Store https://aliexpress.com/store/5621008
Lots of parts including power functions
19) BZB Official Store https://aliexpress.com/store/911422460
Different parts.Guide to Minifigures
Contents:
- Briefly about Chinese minifigures.
- Assortment.
- Brands.
- Quality.
- What should I know before buying?
- Minifigure databases.
- Extra tips about minifigure lookup.
- Where to buy minifigures.
- Minifigure guides.
Briefly about Chinese minifigures:
This is the guide about alternative minifigures that are made by Chinese brands. They usually cost from 1 USD to 2.5 USD per figure (though there are also big figures that cost more than that).
Be aware that some shady online stores try to pass chinese minifigs as custom ones, increasing their price to 5 USD or even more. If you don't want to overpay, use recommended stores and/or AliExpress.
First of all, we are talking about Lego-like chinese minifigures here. Several brands have modified minifigures that do not infringe Lego's minifigure patent thus these brands' minifigures can be sold legally. But such minifigures are not sold individually usually.
Let's separate minifigures that come with sets and the ones that are sold separately. A lot of brands are making sets only, thus minifigures that they put in their sets are impossible to buy outside of the set. For example King brand, you won't be able to buy minifigure from King set separately from the set itself. Some of the brands that produce full sets also make minifigures for single-sale, but there are many brands that only make single figures.
Assortment:
What is produced:
- Replicas of Lego minifigures
- Replicas of custom minifigures
- Original minifigures (based on existing Lego series or just original ones, often based on some movie or anime, etc.)
- Minifigure spare parts
The Chinese minifigure market isn't infinite, not every minifigure gets clones. Brands tend to produce what's popular, but even if a series is popular that doesn't guarantee that all the characters will be made in minifigure form, even if Lego originals exist. More recent minifigures are copied more frequently than old ones.
From what I've seen, Chinese brand prioritize popular series like SW or superheroes over other ones. Sometimes they clone Lego collectible minifigure (CMF) series, but there are not too many civilians figs.
And the most important thing: Minifigures have a lifecycle too. If a certain minifigure was releaseda couple of yeas ago, it might be out of print by now - just like Lego sets go EOL at some point.
Brands.
Active brands:
Pogo, Xinh, World Minifigures (WM), Koruit, KDL, Kopf (all of them are minifigure brands, meaning they are focused on producing minifigures).
Not very active brands:
Shen Yuan, Lele, Decool, Bela (got shutdown)
Some of the oldest brands are Shen Yuan, Bela, Decool, Lele, Pogo and Xinh. They were focused mostly on producing replicas of current Lego minifigures and I don't mean minifigure series only, for example Lego issued series of Batman Movie sets and those brands copied minifigures from these sets. Unfortunately Decool and SY are not really active anymore. Pogo and Xinh have increased their quality massively - just remember that Pogo for example has existed for 5 or 6 years and their older minifigures were not very impressive quality-wise. Besides a lot of old minifigure are out of print, means they are hard or impossible to find.
World Minifigures, Koruit and KDL are next generation brands. They have very detailed minifigures even compared to Lego and they are not limited to mere Lego cloning, they clone custom figures and more importantly, they make their own minifigures based on popular series.
Quality.
Quality highly depends on the year minifigure was produced. For example Pogo started in 2014 and their early minifigures are nowhere near stellar, but the newer ones are better.
Some brands like Koruit make amazing details and molds that Lego does not have. Sometimes Chinese brands do more than Lego, for example they print leg sides or arms, and mold custom pieces.
Quality might be varying, nobody is safe from issues like misaligned or smudged printing. Sometimes it's hard to connect hands and arms or rotate heads/hair of the minifigures.
Just remember how much you are paying for it. Sometimes it is worth it to order some extra minifigs, that way it's likely you'll get a good one.
It's not very common but you might receive a damaged or a missing piece in the packet.
What should I know before buying?
- Minifigures have a lifecycle too, some are out of print by now and are impossible to find.
- Minifigures are often announced before they become available. If you saw new minifigures on some webstore's Instagram, don't rush to check all the stores, they might not even have made it to production. Have some patience.
- A lot of brands sell minifigures in sets (usually in sets of 8 or 6). They usually belong to the same series but that's not the rule. If there are only some minfigures you are not interested in, your best bet is single sale minifigures.
- Originally minifigures are packed in small boxes, each one has its own box. But it's the same as with the sets, the boxes get removed to save on shipping and to avoid copyright issues. So it's pretty hard to find boxed minifigs online.
- Every minifigure is usually packed individually in a transparent packet. In most cases minifigures come with a plate (depends on the brand) to stand on and an extra hand.
- Usually minifigure sets have their own set number and every minifigure in the set has its own code. But not every seller uses them.
- There were several waves of minifigure sale bans on AliExpress which lead to different tricks with minifigures displaying (most likely to avoid being detected by image search). For now the most common way to display is either minifigure head, torso or both.
- Fitting a hand in an arm might be tricky. Use a bar piece for it. Insert the bar into the hand and push the hand in, slowly swaying it from side to side and back.
- Spare hands from one brand might not fit well in the arms of another brand. It might be too tight or too loose. Same is true about arm-to-torso and head-to-torso connections.
- Sometimes it can be challenging to detach the head from the torso or the hair from the head. So try to connect them with the right angles from the start.
- Some minifigures come with capes that might be smelly or folded. You can simply wash it with soap and let it dry.
- If a minifigure is dirty you can try to clean it with micellar water (it's a makeup remover) and wash with regular water after.
- If there are paint smudges you can try to remove them with nail polish remover. Be very careful as it dissolves plastic, so be quick and don't overdo.
- Custom minifigures by own order/design? Nope, never heard of it.
Minifigure databases.
There's no db like brick4 but for minifigures. You'll have to check different sources.
So where to look up the minifigures:
(1) On the website: https://www.herobloks.com/
It's a fan-made minifigure database, it includes Lego, custom minifigures and clone brands (Chinese minifigures).
Depending on what you are looking for you might need different filter types. By default it contains Lego and custom minifigures, if you are looking for clone brands, uncheck it and uncheck hide duplicates.
Also it's a good idea to learn which brands are custom (I mean the ones that are usually making expensive stuff) and should not be taken into consideration while browsing replicas.
(2) Going through catalogs by a brand. There are several setlists by Downtheblocks, where you can look up existing minifigures, the first minifigures are usually the oldest (just remember that).
Xinh: https://downtheblocks.wordpress.com/xinh-minifigure-set-list-database/
Koruit and KDL: https://downtheblocks.wordpress.com/koruit-minifigure-set-list-database/
World Minifigures: https://downtheblocks.wordpress.com/wm-minifigure-set-list-database/
Pogo: https://downtheblocks.wordpress.com/pogo-minifigure-set-list-database/
(3). Some minifigure sets are shown on brick4.com (which is the biggest sets database):
Xinh, Koruit, KDL, WM (this one is problematic as there are plenty of unrelated results).
(4) Check stores directly. Since AE stores are using mostly head/torso pics instead of full minifiure, the easiet way is to use external stores that display full minifigures:
https://www.wmmocbricks.cn/ (requires registration to look at the assortment)
http://kopftoy.com/
Some AE sellers might give you access to minifigures catalogues by request.
Extra tips for minifigure lookup:
Pretty much your only way to find minifigures you want is to check all sources above - allthough some tips might help in your search.
If your minifigure is a Lego clone, you can use Google picture search to learn the original minifigure code, which might help you to look it up on https://www.herobloks.com/. You just paste the original code, pick the minifigure and scroll down for "Other versions of this minifigures".
You can also learn the original code if you look up the set that contains the minifigure on bricklink and browse the inventory to get the minifigure code.
The same applies if you have alt bricks number -> go to herobloks and look up for this minifigure.
What we really need to know is the release year of a clone minifigure. Is it older than 3 years? If the answer is yes, then it's highly likely it'll be pretty problematic to find.
You can also look for certain characters on brick4. Though it's hard to find a specific character as they all are listed in Chinese, we can try to use google translate to translate the name and then do a google search to make sure we got the right name. For example it worked with Orochimaru. Got the translation 大蛇丸 that seems to be correct and search on brick4 now works: http://brick4.com/search/set/?s=%E5%A4%A7%E8%9B%87%E4%B8%B8
For civilians look for "City minifigures" or "City minifigs" on AliExpress.
Where to buy minifigures:
1) Look at recommended brick stores in the starter guide, some of them sell minifigures.
2) Second option is AliExpress.
Aliexpress minifigure sellers are being pursued by Lego so they have to hide the images. You'll see heads only or torsos only. You either have to check the websites below to learn how sets look or request catalogs from these sellers. Also not all of them use minifigure codes which makes it much harder to find specific figures (since image search is not working).
I suggest to add several AE stores with good assortment and rating to favorites and check new items they add.
3) The third option are webstores below
So far there are 2 web stores from ex-AliExpress minifigure sellers and to be honest they were good some time ago, but are not the best options these days as they have tricky payment methods. Their assortment is not exclusive, at least new branded minifigs (WM and Kopf brand) can be found on AliExpress from other sellers.
Kopf Store: http://kopftoy.com/ (previous store removed all the minifigures from it and is closed now (most likely caught by Lego).
World Minifigures store: https://www.wmmocbricks.cn/ their previous site was shutdown and their Paypal account was suspended.
4) Warning! Do not overpay for alt. minifigures
Be aware that ko minifigures sometimes are sold on different websites that claim these are customs minifigs, which is not true. Of course custom minifigs exist, but they are made from real Lego minifigs usually, that's why the real custom minifigs are expensive.
And some shady resellers try to sell Chinese minifigures as custom minifigures for a much higher price. You can find them on Ebay or Etsy, for example. The real price of Chinese minifigs is about 1-1.5 USD. The price of a fake custom minifigures is about 4-5 USD which is too little for a custom Lego fig and too much for a ko minifigure.
Where to get Alternative Spare Parts
Lots of people ask where they can get alternative spare parts.
You can buy them from web stores and from Aliexpress.
There are different manufacturers, so sometimes you have no idea what parts you are getting, especially when you buy them fom AE.
There is one brick supplier (OEM) that is considered the best - GoBricks. Some say it's on par with Lego. They have website https://gobricks.cn/ but you'll require a middleman to order from them.
Contents:
- Yourwobb
- Vonado
- Webrick
- AliExpress
Almost everyone's favourite store has lots of stuff: GoBricks, non GoBricks, power functions, accessories and even stickers.https://www.yourwobb.com/collections/loose-bricks
You can make a GoBricks order using this guide:https://www.yourwobb.com/blogs/news/the-guide-for-order-gobricks-loose-bricks
Vonado offers spare parts, but a lot of them are sold in small bulk of 10 pieces. If you need to get single pieces, you can use Webrick (information is in p.3).
They have a toolkit that allows to upload Lego projects in different formats to get parts list and order them: https://www.webrick.com/toolkit
How to search on AE? Some stores use original Lego part number as reference. But searching by part number can be tricky as other non-related results may appear.
You can limit the search within Blocks category (id 2622) like that:
Looking for part Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Tooth Horizontal, Lego item number is 49668.
https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=2622&SearchText=49668
Remember that AliExpress is in different languages might have different Block category ID, you can check it manually (Pick category -> for kids -> Block toys, you'll see in address string aliexpress.com/category/number where number is the ID you are looking for).
Known AE Stores:
1) MOCparts Store (previosuly known as BigCabbage)
https://aliexpress.com/store/912404637
Many of different brick types, BigCabbage store was reliable, newly opened store has very good rating as well.
2) BuildMoc Bouw blokken Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4709027
A lot of parts including technic.
3) BuildMoc moc Store
https://buildmoctoy.aliexpress.com/store/2796013
A lot of parts including technic.
4) SMARTABLE Official Store
https://smartable.aliexpress.com/store/1595237
Regular bricks, technic and even some Duplo.
5) Bricks Club Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/3600018
Technic and regular bricks.
6) MOC BRICKS Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/1762758
A lot of extra parts for minifigures, trees, flowers and some MOCs.
7) WelLeSi blocks Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4491142
Regular bricks, technic, plants and animals.
8) JILE blocks Store
https://jile.aliexpress.com/store/3274017
A lot of different parts, including technic.
9) Puzzles & Toys
https://aliexpress.com/store/805596
Some technic parts and minifigure accessories.
10) ETFOM Station Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4800199
Technic parts mostly, but also display stands.
11) Dan Dan Blocks Store
https://dandanstore.aliexpress.com/store/3701001
Techinc parts.
12) Apan Sapio Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/4403001
Different parts.
13) Marumine Store
https://marumine.aliexpress.com/store/3191011
Different parts, including rails and Duplo stuff.
14) KURY Official Store
https://kurytoys.aliexpress.com/store/5629046
Regular and techic parts + mini MOCs. Minifigure part including blank minifigures of different colors
15) BB WORLD TOY Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/3630018
Lots of technic parts.
16) Building Block Toy House Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/912580490
Military themed bricks, minifigures and accessories.
17) MOC Rebrickable Parts Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/911761751
Technic and regular parts
18) Created by Legoing MOC Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/5621008
Lots of parts including power functions
19) BZB Official Store
https://aliexpress.com/store/911422460
Different parts.
How to Buy Building Blocks on AliExpress
Step 2 - Searching for the set and for the seller
Step 3 - Placing an order
Step 4 - Processing
Step 5 - Delivery
Step 6 - Unpacking
Step 7 - Assembly and protection time
Step 8 - Disputes
Good day to you! Are you new to AliExpress and want to buy some building blocks?
This guide can help you with that. Register on https://www.aliexpress.com/ in case you haven’t registered yet.
Now to the bricks!
Step 1 - The Set
You want to buy a replica of a particular set? Then you should learn if this set was copied by Chinese brands. You require a Lego setcode (https://brickset.com/ or https://www.bricklink.com/ can help) or at least a name (if it is a MOC), though a MOC number might also work.
Search by setcode/name on http://brick4.com/. For example, if you want to get a replica of Lego 60197 Passenger Train, try searching: http://brick4.com/search/set/?s=60197
If there’s no replica there will be only Lego. But in our case we have several results:
KING/QUEEN (also Jack, Lion King, Zebra) used to be known as Lepin. Their piece count is usually higher than Lego’s - the theory was that this happens because the companies count differently (Lego says a minifigure is 1 piece, KING/QUEEN counts every part of a minifigure separately), but we’re pretty sure now that the Chinese brands just make up a random number.
Warnings: Some manufacturers are really creative, they add some extra stuff to original build or modify some parts. Luckily http://brick4.com/ has info on that. If you’ll see some text in the item description, use online translators to check the info.
Step 2 - Searching for the set and for the seller
After you know the set number, it is time to search AliExpress and to pick a seller who has what you want.
For example we are going for Queen 82087 (If you are okay with any brand, try to search by Lego setcode). Some stores provide delivery from European warehouses (Spain, Poland, etc). You may limit the search by picking “Ship from” and wanted country if the filter is available for you.
Some sellers avoid using brand names these days, instead they use just the setcodes. Better to search for 82087 (instead of Queen 82087):
There are some irrelevant results. We can avoid them - limit the search to a specific category. For bricks category ID is 2622 (for english AliExpress version, if you use a different language check category ID yourself - go to categories, for children and then building blocks - you’ll see that address string looks like aliexpress.com/category/cat_number - use it).
By default it searches everywhere (catId=0):
Now type 2262 instead of 0 in your browser’s address bar. Now it shows results from the Block category only:
Learn the average price (with delivery). Some delivery methods may be way too expensive for some countries, check that delivery is either free, or relatively cheap compared to the set price. In case of disputes (when order is received, but damaged for example) compensation is calculated based on the set price. The shipping fee might not be reimbursed in a dispute.
The average price of our example set is about $70. One of the results is certainly overpriced.
In older version of AliExpress you could see sellers’ rating in the search menu and there was a filter allowing to show higher rated sellers first. But this is gone, the only option is to browse through the stores to check the rating.
From past experiences rating should be:
- above 97% if the store sells bricks related stuff only.
above 95% if the store sells bricks along with other items (like regular toys).
Bricks have pretty good quality in general so quality of product doesn't affect store rating (if the store sells bricks only). Low rating in this case indicaties seller-related issues like bad communication, fake shipping, missing bags, etc.
If the store sells bricks and other products, the quality of other products can affect the store’s rating, so it will be lower.
Pay attention to the time the store was created. If it is a relatively new store - a couple of months old, it might haven’t received enough feedback to display the real rating. If the store exists for a year or more - rating usually shows the real score.
Check the feedback tab of the AliExpress store you picked. If there's bad feedback from customers, they most likely described what was wrong. If there are too many complaints recently - avoid this seller. You can also notice the amount of feedback for 1, 3 and 6 month - in other words it displays how many deals the store had.
Extra way of searching:
AliExpress mobile app has an image search function, you can take a photo or upload a picture of the set you are looking for, it will show you the result. If all sellers use some generic image, it will be easy to find similar sets. This could work well with some obscure sets or items - when sellers don’t use setcode.
You can still use the keywords, popular ones are Legoed, Lepining and such.
You can also search for Duplo sets as Duploed.
Warnings:
Regarding discounts.
1) AliExpress sellers have discounts all year long - it’s just a marketing trick to create the impression that you found a really nice deal. In the example above, you can see that the discount doesn’t guarantee a thing - the discounted item was still the most expensive.
Bricks sellers on AE often do not have any discounts.
2) Some stores used to sell different brands in the same product listing: "Lele Lepin", "Lele Bela SY", etc.
They are avoiding brand names these days. If you want a set from a certain brand, make sure there aren’t too many setcodes - should be Lego and/or one chinese brand.
So about our example set, if the store sells “Toy train child toy 60197 11001 82087” you might get either Queen or LERI brand.
3) Never go for sets marked as "presell" or "preorder", wait until they are out. Presell price usually is higher, while the “actual” price drops. Presell has no time advantages, sellers will ask to extend processing time, i.e. the set will be shipped when it's out, in other words when you will be able to order it normally.
The Presell might be written on images and in product description, and almost always assumes you'll extend processing time.
4) Surprisingly not all knockoff sets are significantly cheaper than originals. Check prices before ordering something, maybe you can add a couple of bucks and order an original.
Minifigures?
Want to buy separately sold minifigures?
Unfortunately it is forbidden to sell minifigures on AliExpress now. You can find some leftovers, but sooner or later these stores will be shut down.
So far I know 2 websites from ex-AliExpress sellers:
https://www.minifiguresmall.com/ (Kopf Store) confirmed
http://www.worldminifigs.com/ (supposedly World Minifigures store)
If you know more please add a comment on the Discussion page.
Step 3 - Placing an order
Your item is in the cart already. Now it's time to learn a few tricks to save money and about the specifics of Chinese e-commerce.
Firstly, discounts. Literally almost every seller has discounts, all year long. That's a psychological trick, people love to buy stuff with discounts so it's how sellers try to attract buyers.
Those discounts are ticking, like "oh only 10 hours left". So when the time's over, the seller should renew the discount, but not everyone does this on time, so watch out, you can accidentally overpay.
Always learn the average item price to know how much the item should cost. And remember that not all sellers play the "discount game".
Also, make sure the set you are ordering is not "Presell".
The number of AliExpress sales has increased, sometimes there are sales almost every month or two. But be aware, a lot of sellers raise prices during sales. So the only way to save is to use promocodes or coupons. There are plenty of websites that post promocodes, but use them in incognito mode, because they usually post reflinks (read warning below to learn).
Secondly, app discount. Some items have higher discounts if you place an order via the AliExpress app. Usually it's an additional 1%. There are also coins available in the app, they might give you an extra discount.
Thirdly, sometimes there are discounts that sellers can provide in social networks, for example. Those are made via a keyword code. In such orders sellers should manually change the price. You have to leave the discount code in the notes of your order, place the order without paying (click other payment methods, order and close the page) and wait till the seller adjusts the price (notification email will arrive), then pay with your usual method.
Finally, you may wanna use cashback services to save money. There are different services for different countries so I can't advise you to use anything specific. Search for services from your country and how to use them. That's an extra 2-4% (depends on your country) of the order sum (discounted sum actually if you use other discounts). Some services even allow you to use cashback services if you make the purchase via AliExpress app.
If you have a message for the seller (like some wishes about the item color or maybe discount code) you should leave it in the order notes.
Warnings:
Cashback troubles. Your cashback might be stolen. This requires a bit explanation:
How do cashback services work?
AliExpress has an affiliation/referral program, which means partners (or affiliates) promote AliExpress goods, attract new customers or motivate old customers to order goods. And if goods they promoted are sold, AliExpress pays them a reward - usually some percent of goods' price.
How do they promote? They use a link - affiliation link. These links are usually very long strings of text that contain info on the affiliate - they help AE identify affiliates.
Of course buyers won't just use such links out of blue, so cashback services share the reward with buyers.
So normally you register at a cashback service, click their link, purchase goods. When you receive goods and the reward is processed, you'll get your share.
What are the issues?
There's no issue if you use an affiliation link from your cashback service, because they will pay you back. But there are plenty of websites or users that will try to give you their affiliation links, but in this case, they won't share with you.
Make sure you don’t click s.click.aliexpress.com links - these are 100% trap. There also might exist links like a.aliexpress.com - these are made via the AliExpress mobile app. They’re link shorteners and usually harmless, but sometimes they might also contain a reference link if somebody has shortened an affiliation link.
If you click this kind of link (affiliate/reference), you’ll see how long the text in your browser’s address bar is - it contains affiliation info. After you click it, AliExpress website address will change to best.aliexpress.com and you’ll have to clear all the cookies and cache related to AliExpress to get rid of it. Best.aliexpress.com is related to cashback, key point who will receive it - you or another person.
So if you are using a cashback service yourself, the address might change to best.aliexpress.com when you activate your cashback link, but it should return to normal after purchase. But I recommend using a different browser for purchases with cashback.
I read so far there are browser extensions for checking prices on AliExpress that steal your cashback and cookies data. Also “best” version reduces the amount of search results limiting it to the goods that participate in the affiliation program or sometimes it puts goods that participate in the affiliation program higher in search results than the other ones.
Just make sure you don’t click s.click.aliexpress.com links or click them in incognito browser mode - copy clean link to the item and paste it in normal browser mode.
Clear all data and cookies related to AliExpress if you are redirected to best.aliexpress.com all the time or delete suspicious extensions (like price checker).
Who can give you bad links:
Websites - like ones that offer coupons and promocodes. They earn on that, but don’t share.
Users - s.click.aliexpress.com links are 100% affiliation links - use incognito mode. a.aliexpress.com links might also be just a shortened affiliation link - also open them in incognito mode.
Browser extensions - like price checkers or others. If you see they redirect you at best AliExpress version - delete them and clean cookies and data.
Step 4 - Processing
After the order is placed and paid, the seller will start to pack your order. Often, sellers don't have items in stock right now, they get them from factories/warehouses and it takes a couple of days for them to ship it to you. There is a time limit called "processing time", which you can check up in your order details. If sellers fail to send your order in that period, the order will be closed and you'll get a full refund. In case of ordering “presell” sets (which is not a good idea) sellers will ask you to extend processing time, you can do it in your order. See warnings for additional info.
The order is considered shipped when the seller registers a tracking number for your order in AliExpress’ system (you'll receive notification email). However, there's a warning that tracking may take several days to start.
If the tracking hasn't started in 10 days after shipping, message your seller for information.
Warnings:
1) Cancelling orders is a tricky thing. If you haven't paid yet, you can cancel it easily. Never leave unpaid orders, if you're not going to pay, just cancel it. Or your buyer rating will drop which can affect disputes in a bad way.
If you paid for an order, it can only be cancelled after the seller confirms the cancellation as well. It's a seller protection feature. Sellers don't like to lose orders. They'll let you cancel only if not much time has passed (they didn't start to pack your order). Sellers won't accept most cancellation reasons and have you pick either "I don't need this order" or "Other", because the other ones negatively impact the seller’s reputation in the system. If they've started to process your order, there's no way they'll let you cancel. So only place an order and pay when you are really sure about it.
2) Sellers have limited time for processing, however they have several tricks.
First one is shipping delay or fake tracking number. They give you a tracking number that doesn't have a package behind it yet or is just a fake tracking number. Considering the warning that tracking starts up to 10 days, there are restrictions in opening disputes. You can open a dispute only when 10 days have passed since the "shipping" (receiving tracking number). Seller will have plenty of additional time to ship your order before you can start doing anything.
Sellers can change the tracking number later, but it will be visible in order history.
I do not recommend opening a dispute because of tracking information absence right away (after 10 days). It'll be safer to wait for the remaining buyer protection time to run out. Unfortunately dispute escalation takes some time. The seller may ship the order for real while the dispute is being escalated. Valid tracking info will make your dispute reason ("No tracking info") invalid, so the dispute team may reject it and close the dispute. And you can only open 1 dispute per order (more correct: 1 closed dispute per order, so please check the Dispute section for more information). So if the item arrives damaged or with missing parts, you won't be able to request a refund if your dispute was closed before. That's why I'm afraid to open disputes if tracking info is unavailable.
Step 5 - Delivery
Your order has a maximum delivery time, also called "buyer protection" (protection time). There's a guaranteed delivery time. If the order is not delivered within the guaranteed delivery time, you can request a refund. However that doesn't mean that you'll get your order for free, the seller most likely will turn the parcel back (though you may be lucky) as well as AliExpress dispute team may offer you to wait some more time.
The buyer protection time can be extended, but only the seller can extend it. You can request an extension from the order options (seller can confirm and extend it). Maximum buyer protection time is 120 days total and cannot be extended more (can be different for different countries afaik). Each time seller extends the delivery date, you'll receive a notification email (by default).
When 5 days of buyer protection will be left, you'll receive notification email, then it will be repeated when 3 and 1 days will be left. If your parcel is still on the way, you can request delivery date extension via button in order options.
You can track your orders here:
https://global.cainiao.com/ - that's the tracking service Aliexpress uses
http://www.17track.net/en - another service that can read different delivery companies' tracking info.
Or use the website that the seller points out in your order information.
Warning:
1) Do not accept the package if it's badly damaged or if it looks like it was opened already (unless you know customs have opened it).
2) You may need to pay customs fees depending on your country laws. Those are taxes and sellers are not responsible for them.
So if your country has customs fees, you can ask the seller to reduce the declared price of the parcel (in the order notes), although they usually do it anyway.
3) Always keep track of your delivery time. After it runs out, the order closes automatically. There will be 15 days left to open a dispute. If those 15 days will run out as well, you won't be able to return your money via AliExpress anymore. The last resort is chargeback operation performed via your bank (read the dispute section for more info).
Step 6 - Unpacking
When you've received your package you can get a solid proof in case something is wrong. If you have doubts about content or the items are very expensive, Film the unboxing video: show the parcel from all sides - as a proof it wasn't opened, also show your tracking number and name with address. Open it and show all the contents - minifigures, packets, whatever you've bought (the parcel should be always visible, means you didn't toss anything). If you spotted damaged pieces - show them.
While unpacking (and filming) a set with numbered packets, show each packet number on camera and better write them down on a paper (should be always visible on the video). It'll be the best proof if something is missing.
However be aware that sellers may repack some parts in ziplock bags, so you may receive unnumbered packets or packets with a handwritten number.
Step 7 - Assembly and protection time
When the Aliexpress system reads tracking status "Delivered", the protection timer will be reduced to 10 days (in case it had more than 10 days left) and you'll receive a notification email about that.
When your protection time ends, the order closes automatically (you can also confirm "goods delivered" manually and close order this way, but don't rush, better check everything).
After the order is closed, you will have 15 days to open a dispute in case anything was wrong.
It's a good idea to sort parts (if there’s no assembling sequence), or at least check the number of bags (before confirming "Goods received" to get some extra time to check quality and quantity).
Sort your parts and compare it to the bricklink set inventory (if the set is Lego copy), knockoff instructions almost never have part catalogues. You can download the Lego manual from the Lego website and check inventory there, although Bricklink is usually a more reliable source.
Sometimes, knockoff sets may differ from originals a bit.
Step 8 - Disputes
In case of missing parts or whole packets, you can open a dispute. Missing part in a sealed bag is the factory's fault. Missing bag in a parcel - probably the seller’s fault.
However, you should try to resolve the situation with your seller first before opening a dispute. Message your seller and ask what is possible to do, if they can send you missing parts, etc. But all refunds are always made via dispute, do not accept paypal refunds if you've bought it via AliExpress. Couple of years ago sellers used PayPal refund fraud: they paid you for “Goods are Services”, then waited when you close dispute on AliExpress and did the refund on their PayPal payment, because they did not receive any goods or services from you. You couldn’t start another dispute on AliExpress and the seller saved their money.
When you open a dispute, you should provide proof - videos or photos and a correct description of your problem (as I remember photos size limit is 2 MB and videos take an eternity to upload, also they do not accept videos from external sources). The description should be short and simple (use as simple language as possible so there won’t be interpretation difficulties after translation), but you should always point out all minuses and how they spoil your experience, for example:
I've received my package. But I'm missing several parts, also some pieces were deformed (see the photo/video). I cannot continue building without those parts/Those parts can't be used as they are damaged.
Please refund me/resend the missing pieces.
At first only you and the seller participate in disputes. In this period dishonest sellers may try to trick you, by telling lies, asking to cancel the dispute, promising to send a new package if this one doesn't arrive, etc (see Warnings). If your seller is of that kind, just wait for dispute escalation. You can check the approximate timer on the dispute page.
When your dispute escalates, the AliExpress dispute team will review your and the seller's proof and may ask for additional information. After that they'll make a decision. From personal experience the higher buyer’s rating is, the more AliExpress’ mediators will lean to the buyer’s side.
I recommend opening disputes via website, not the mobile app. AliExpress mobile app isn’t very convenient to use, especially for disputes.
Warning:
1) Never change the dispute reason, especially if the seller asked to change it so he'll refund you immediately! Always point out real reasons, because pointing out fake reasons is a violation of AliExpress rules. The seller can complain about you and win the dispute.
2) If you want to link your conversation with the seller as a proof, make a screenshot and upload it as dispute proof, otherwise your messages won't be read by the dispute team.
3) If the dispute hasn’t been escalated, you can cancel (not “accept offer”!) it and reopen later (in case something changed for example). But remember about protection time. By the time you cancel it, make sure there's still time left (unfortunately you can't check protection timer while dispute is active so check emails - when 5 days of buyer protection remains, you'll get a notification email about that - check it and count days), otherwise order will be closed immediately after cancellation (though you'll still have 15 days to open a dispute).
Never accept a seller's offer until you are sure it is good (sometimes it's empty, 0$ refund, or requires you to send back the package, which is very expensive), because after you accept it, the dispute will be closed and you won't be able to open a new one.
Btw if you have several reasons to open a dispute, choose the most significant one, but describe all the problems.
4) Never threaten the seller or promise good/bad feedback if he'll agree/won't agree with your conditions. Dispute team won't approve it. Behave correctly, even if the seller pretends to be a fool and provokes you. Conversation screenshot will be your proof.
5) If the dispute ends and the seller wins, you still will have about 5 days to complain about the result. Make sure to link all proofs and describe why you are sure the decision was unfair towards you.
You also can try to perform a chargeback operation via your bank. Remember that this procedure is provided by Visa or Mastercard, not the bank, so the bank can't reject it, they must accept your claim (complain to Visa/Mastercard if they don't). If the chargeback is successful, your AliExpress account will be banned most likely so it's really the last resort.
6) Never agree with a seller insisting on resending the package to you. Firstly, the buyer protection remains the same, which is problematic if you live far from China and if the previous package was lost by the time majority of protection has passed (120 days max). Besides you'll have no idea what exactly he'll send to you, and the dispute will be closed when he'll give you a new tracking number, so you won't be able to check the new parcel.
Always go for a refund and then reorder, ideally from a different store.
7) There's a transaction snapshot in order details. The snapshot is a copy of the item page at the moment you placed the order. This may be helpful to prove that you didn’t receive what was specified in the item description at the time of ordering.
8) Sending items back is usually very expensive, in some countries it may cost even more than the item itself, especially if it was a big set. So when you open a dispute, make sure to pick "Refund only".
So, in short - you can only have 1 closed dispute per order. If it's closed you can't reopen it or make a new one, so open it smartly. "Closed" means some solution was found: refund or rejection of your claims - depends on the case.
First stage of the dispute is negotiations with the seller. If you can't come to a solution on your own, AliExpress’ dispute team will join the process some time later to help you resolve it. When Ali mediators step in it's called "Dispute Escalation"
But while the dispute is not escalated, you can cancel and reopen it later (you can do it several times). The keyword is "Cancel", and it's not "Accept offer" (this will close your dispute).
Hope this helps. If you have questions left, ask them. Or if you see any mistakes, contact me. Thanks!
This guide is written by me (/u/B4tsie) with help of nerdfriend (/u/nerdfriend).
