How to ship goods from 1688 to Nigeria, step by step

How to ship goods from 1688 to Nigeria when 1688 does not deliver abroad: the agent's warehouse, consolidation, air or sea to Lagos, and the five costs on the way.

Buying on 1688 is only half the job.

The real question for a Nigerian buyer is: how do you get the goods from a Chinese supplier to Nigeria without losing money between the factory, warehouse, freight company and Customs?

For most 1688 orders, the practical route is:

1688 supplier → warehouse in China → consolidation → air or sea freight → Nigeria → clearing/delivery

Do not assume the supplier will handle this entire journey for you. 1688 was built around China's domestic wholesale market, and ordinary sellers typically expect to deliver to an address inside China. International buyers therefore commonly use a China warehouse, sourcing agent or freight forwarder for the next stage.

Here is how to do it properly.

Step 1: Get your China warehouse address before you order #

Do this before paying the 1688 supplier.

Your freight forwarder, purchasing agent or sourcing partner should give you a receiving address in China.

It may be in Guangzhou, Yiwu, Shenzhen or another logistics hub.

Send that exact address to the supplier.

A typical instruction should include:

• warehouse address
• receiver's name
• Chinese phone number
• your customer or cargo code
• any carton-marking instructions

That cargo code is important.

A warehouse can receive hundreds of cartons every day. If your supplier sends six plain cartons without your identifying mark, the warehouse may have difficulty knowing they belong to you.

Ask your supplier to put your name, customer code or shipment reference clearly on every carton.

Do not wait until the goods are already moving to ask where they should be delivered.

Step 2: Confirm the order before the supplier ships #

A cheap 1688 listing is not enough.

Before payment, confirm exactly what the supplier is sending.

For example:

500 pieces, black, 10,000mAh battery, EU plug, English packaging, logo printed, 20 units per carton.

The more important the order, the more specific you should be.

Confirm:

• product model
• quantity
• colour
• size
• material
• specification
• packaging
• logo or branding
• number of pieces per carton
• production time
• China delivery charge

Also ask for the expected carton dimensions and gross weight.

Why?

Because you need those numbers to estimate international shipping.

A product can look cheap on 1688 and become expensive once you discover it occupies 8 CBM.

If you do not understand CBM yet, read our cost per CBM from China to Nigeria guide.

Step 3: Pay the supplier using a route you understand #

Payment used to be one of the biggest problems for international 1688 buyers.

There are now more formal cross-border payment routes. WorldFirst, for example, currently documents several 1688 payment options for international buyers, including World Pay and WorldFirst Payments.

You may also be using a purchasing agent who pays the supplier on your behalf.

Whichever method you use, know the full cost.

Do not ask only:

“What is your agent fee?”

Ask:

What yuan rate are you using?

What payment fee applies?

What China delivery charge is the supplier adding?

A low service fee with a poor exchange rate can still be an expensive deal.

Our guide to paying a Chinese supplier from Nigeria covers the payment side in detail.

Step 4: Let the supplier deliver to your China warehouse #

Once payment is confirmed and production is complete, the supplier sends the goods domestically to your warehouse.

This is normally a Chinese local shipment.

Ask the supplier for the tracking number.

Do not simply hear “shipped” and assume the warehouse has received it.

There are three different stages:

Supplier says dispatched.

Chinese courier says delivered.

Your warehouse confirms received.

The third one is what matters to you.

When the cartons arrive, ask the warehouse to confirm:

• number of cartons
• visible condition
• gross weight
• CBM
• identifying marks

For an important order, ask for photographs.

If you ordered 12 cartons and the warehouse receives 10, this is the time to solve it.

Not after the goods arrive in Lagos.

Step 5: Check the goods before they leave China #

This is one of the most valuable advantages of using a warehouse or sourcing partner.

China is the cheapest place to discover a mistake.

Suppose you ordered 1,000 black rechargeable lamps.

The supplier sends blue.

If somebody checks before international shipping, the cartons can potentially go back to the supplier.

If nobody checks, you may discover the problem after paying China delivery, international freight, Nigerian clearing and inland delivery.

Now returning them makes little economic sense.

For a simple order, basic warehouse photographs and quantity checks may be enough.

For a large, technical or customised order, consider a proper inspection.

Depending on the product, check:

• quantity
• colour
• model
• dimensions
• material
• logo
• packaging
• electrical specifications
• accessories
• visible defects
• basic function

Our quality inspection in China guide explains when an inspection is worth paying for.

Step 6: Consolidate different 1688 orders #

This is where 1688 becomes particularly useful for Nigerian importers.

You do not have to buy everything from one supplier.

You might buy:

handbags from one seller,

phone accessories from another,

packaging from another,

and display materials from a fourth.

Instead of shipping each order separately to Nigeria, all four suppliers can send their goods to the same warehouse.

The warehouse combines them into one international shipment.

That is consolidation.

It can reduce shipping cost and makes smaller purchases practical.

But do not consolidate blindly.

Batteries, liquids, cosmetics, magnetic products and other sensitive cargo may need different shipping arrangements from ordinary goods.

Tell your forwarder what is inside every carton.

Calling everything “general goods” just to get a cheaper quote can become expensive if the cargo is rejected, delayed or handled incorrectly.

Step 7: Choose air or sea freight #

Now you decide how the goods leave China.

Air freight #

Use air when the shipment is:

• relatively small
• urgent
• high-value
• light enough for the margin to support the freight cost

Air is usually charged by kilogram or chargeable weight.

It works well for things such as samples, fashion accessories, small electronics, replacement stock and products where speed matters.

Our shipping cost from China to Nigeria per kg explains how those rates work.

Sea freight #

Sea becomes more attractive when the goods are bulky or heavy.

For smaller traders, this often means groupage: your cartons share a container with goods belonging to other customers.

You normally pay according to CBM.

Sea freight is slower, but it can make the difference between a product having a workable Nigerian selling price and being too expensive to compete.

For planning, read how many days shipping from China to Nigeria takes.

The mistake: choosing freight only by the cheapest rate #

You ask three agents:

Agent A: ₦X per kg.

Agent B: slightly more.

Agent C: cheapest.

You choose C.

Then the goods arrive and another bill appears.

The problem is that you compared one number rather than the whole service.

Before shipping, ask:

Does your price include clearing?

Does it include Nigerian Customs charges?

Does it include warehouse handling?

Does it include delivery to Lagos only or my actual city?

Are there destination charges?

What happens if Customs changes the assessment?

What happens if cargo is delayed?

A cheap freight quote and a cheap final shipment are not always the same thing.

Our shipping companies from China to Nigeria guide explains how to compare forwarders properly.

What does it actually cost to ship 1688 goods to Nigeria? #

There are several costs between the 1688 screen and your shop.

Think of them separately.

1. Product cost

What you pay the 1688 supplier.

2. China domestic delivery

The cost of moving the goods from the supplier to your warehouse.

Some suppliers offer free domestic shipping. Others do not.

3. Buying or payment cost

This may include an agent commission, payment fee or currency conversion cost.

4. Warehouse and consolidation

Receiving, checking, repacking or combining shipments may attract charges depending on your provider.

5. International freight

Air per kilogram or sea by CBM/container.

Then there may still be Nigerian Customs, clearing and final delivery, depending on the service you purchased.

This is why a product costing ₦3,000 in China is not a ₦3,000 product in Nigeria.

The figure that matters is your landed cost.

Use our landed cost from China to Nigeria guide before deciding what quantity to order.

Check Nigerian import requirements before shipping #

Do this before the cartons leave China.

Not after.

A 1688 supplier may be perfectly legitimate and the product may sell freely in China, but that tells you nothing about Nigerian import requirements.

Depending on the product, you may need to think about:

• SONCAP
• NAFDAC
• NCC approvals
• Form M
• Customs classification
• labelling
• prohibited or restricted imports

The expensive mistake is paying for the goods first and asking about Nigerian regulation later.

Sometimes a certificate or document has to come from the manufacturer.

If the container has already sailed, your options become much worse.

Start with our product certificate guide and Nigeria prohibited imports guide.

Should you use door-to-door shipping from 1688 to Nigeria? #

For a beginner, door-to-door can be convenient.

One company coordinates the China warehouse, international freight, Nigerian clearance and delivery or collection.

But door to door is not a magic phrase.

Ask exactly what the quoted price includes.

Does “door” mean:

your house?

their Lagos warehouse?

a pickup office?

your shop in Aba?

your warehouse in Kano?

And is duty included?

Get the answer before payment.

The words matter less than the written scope of service.

A practical example #

Suppose you buy 300 handbags from three different 1688 suppliers.

Supplier A sends 100 pieces to your Guangzhou warehouse.

Supplier B sends another 100.

Supplier C sends the final 100.

Your warehouse receives the cartons, checks the quantities and combines them.

The complete shipment measures 2.5 CBM.

Now you can ask your forwarder for a sea-freight quote based on the actual 2.5 CBM, rather than guessing before the goods arrive.

You confirm the shipping charge and what it includes.

The consolidated cargo leaves China.

It arrives in Nigeria, goes through the agreed clearing process and is delivered or released for collection.

That is the basic 1688-to-Nigeria chain.

The supplier does not need to understand Nigerian shipping.

Your logistics arrangement connects the two sides.

How to ship from 1688 to Nigeria without unnecessary surprises #

Before placing the order, make sure you can answer these questions:

Where is my China warehouse?

How will I pay the supplier?

How will I confirm what reached the warehouse?

Who checks the goods?

Am I shipping by air or sea?

What is the final weight or CBM?

What exactly does the freight quote include?

Does the product need Nigerian certification?

Who clears it when it arrives?

Where in Nigeria does the quoted service actually end?

If you cannot answer one of those questions, solve it before increasing the order.

Where ChinaBridge fits in #

Most problems with 1688 shipping do not begin on the ship.

They begin earlier:

the wrong supplier,

the wrong specification,

the wrong warehouse information,

poor inspection,

a misunderstood freight quote,

or a product that should have been checked for Nigerian requirements before payment.

If you already have a 1688 link, supplier or product photo, ChinaBridge Global can help you work through the China-to-Nigeria side of the transaction.

Send the product link, quantity, specification and Nigerian destination.

The aim is to establish the route and likely costs before the goods start moving, not after something has gone wrong.

If you are still choosing products, start with our 1688 guide for Nigerian buyers.

If you already have the goods ready in China, compare your freight options using our shipping from China to Nigeria guide.

And if you are not yet sure the supplier is safe to pay, check them first with our Chinese supplier verification guide.

First published 22 Sep 2026. Last checked 22 Sep 2026 by The ChinaBridge desk. Something here out of date? Tell us in the comments and we will fix it.