Archive – Oberlo Review

Written as a ghostwriter for a private client. The original publication is no longer available. Shared for portfolio purposes only.

10 March 2021

Oberlo Review

Oberlo has been making waves in recent years as the go-to software for dropshippers looking to up their game and make importing products, processing orders, and otherwise managing their business more streamlined and easier than ever before.

But while Oberlo and its famous Chrome extension has been making waves in the e-commerce business world, why is this dropshipping app so successful?

In our Oberlo review, we’re going to look at some of the key features that makes Oberlo such as popular tool for dropshipping entrepreneurs worldwide, and how you can use Oberlo to take your dropshipping business to the next level.

What is Oberlo? 

Oberlo is a dropshipping app that provides full integration with Shopify and AliExpress, making it easier for dropshippers to find products, add them to a Shopify store, and ship them directly to customers. With some fully automated features and plenty of customization options, Oberlo makes it easy to manage your dropshipping business and keep your customers happy.  

But Oberlo isn’t just a Shopify app, it’s also a really useful resource for dropshipping store owners thanks to the multitude of blogs, vlogs, online courses, and learning guides to help you improve your business model, learn how dropshipping works, and much more. Their customer support team is also top-notch, with 24/7 customer support to help you with any questions you might have about running your online store.

Founded in 2015 by a group of friends, Oberlo is a hugely popular choice in the Shopify app store. Over 100 million products have been sold using the Oberlo app, and the Oberlo Chrome extension makes it easy to find products directly in AliExpress, add products to your Shopify store, and fulfil orders. There’s also plenty of product customization available with Oberlo, allowing you to alter the product description, image, and even pricing. https://www.oberlo.com/dropshipping

Oberlo is available completely free of charge on the basic plan, with subscriptions increasing up to $79.90 per month, so it’s simple to find the perfect level of support and features for your budget and the number of orders you’re likely to fulfil each month. We’ll provide more details on the pricing late in this Oberlo review.

Oberlo drop shipping key features

Oberlo is packed full of special features that make it easier to import products directly from AliExpress into your Shopify store. The Chrome extension makes this even more effortless, and can be downloaded easily even if you only use the free Oberlo plan.

Below, we’re going to look at some of the top features that makes Oberlo dropshipping quicker and easier. These are all included on the free plan, but you can get even more benefits from one of the paid subscriptions (we’ll look at this in more detail later in this Oberlo review).

Easy to import products from AliExpress

Although Oberlo isn’t an eCommerce platform itself, it’s an invaluable link between your online store and suppliers. Oberlo works specifically with AliExpress, and allows users to import products directly from the AliExpress database to sell in your Shopify store with just a few clicks.

Customize product details

Once you’ve added products to your import list, Oberlo allows plenty of product customization. With Oberlo, you can easily import products from AliExpress then adjust the details to suit the tone of voice and image of your online store. This can include altering the product description and title to better suit SEO requirements or just match the tone of your store, and you can even add or amend the images of the item (particularly beneficial if you’ve received a number of products to test yourself – real user images always aid sales).

Automated inventory updates

Another massive benefit of the Oberlo app is that even the starter plan includes automated inventory updates for your online store. This means you don’t need to worry about updating or checking inventory reports, and your customers will never order an item that’s out of stock.

In addition to automated inventory updates, Oberlo offers the ability to bulk update your product prices. This could be increasing the prices to match supply and demand, or reducing them for a set time – for example, during a sale or other promotion.

If you upgrade from the Oberlo starter plan, you can also benefit from sales and shipment tracking. This provides your customers (and you) with detailed shipping times and the ability to monitor the packages as they make their way from supplier to buyer.

Plus, in the Basic and Pro plan, Oberlo features an innovative costs dashboard, which lets you track your sales and profits in one convenient location.

Optimized for a global audience

Oberlo features multiple currencies, multiple currencies, and worldwide shipping to enable you to buy and sell products anywhere in the world. Currently, Oberlo is available in English, French, Italian, German, and Portuguese languages.

When importing products, you can currently only do this in USD, however, you can sell products in any currency by adjusting the settings in your Shopify store.

Monitor the progress of your Shopify store with Google Analytics

Not only does Oberlo make it easy to add products to your online store, but it also helps you run your e commerce dropshipping business more effectively thanks to its partnership with Google Analytics. With this feature, you can collect User Acquisition Data and User Behaviour Data to improve your business and figure out what’s working for you and your customers.

How to use Oberlo

Oberlo has been carefully designed to be easy to use, with a friendly interface and straightforward controls that make it simple to get started.

Once you’ve picked the right payment plan for your eCommerce business model, you can browse the Oberlo marketplace, find products for your online store, add items to your import list, customize descriptions, fulfil orders, and ship products quickly and easily using the Oberlo app.

In addition, Oberlo offers a free Chrome extension that’s quick and easy to download and makes using Oberlo even more straightforward as you can search for products from AliExpress’s website and add them to your import list with one click.

Signing up

Creating an account with Oberlo is incredibly quick and easy. Simply head to the Oberlo dropshipping homepage and hit “Become a member.”

From here, you’ll be asked to fill in your email address and create a password, then hit “join Oberlo free” to sign up for a free trial of the Oberlo features and services.

Alternatively, you can also get started using Oberlo directly via your Shopify store. To do this, log into Shopify, then navigate to the “Products” section. From here, click “more actions” followed by “find more products to sell” to add the Oberlo app to Shopify stores and allow the system to create an account for you.

Remember, a single Oberlo account cannot work with multiple Shopify stores, so if you’re running more than one online business, you’ll need a separate Oberlo account for each.

Connecting to Shopify

If you create your Oberlo account via the Shopify app store, then the integration with Shopify will be automatic. If you sign up via Oberlo’s website, however, you will need to linke your account to Shopify.

To do this, head to the Oberlo Amin page and click “create or connect a store.” From here, a pop-up will load, asking for the URL of your online store.

If you don’t have an online store yet, rather than entering a URL in the box, you’ll need to click “start your free trial of Shopify.” This will take you to the Shopify stores website, where you can flow through their sign-up process to get your online business up and running.

Once you’ve got your store ready, navigate back to the Oberlo website and enter the URL to continue.

At this time, Oberlo only works with Shopify stores, so you can’t use it to find products to sell on any other eCommerce platform. That said, Oberlo allows integration with other platforms via the Shopify stores Buy Button sales channel, which enables customers to buy items from your store without leaving an alternative website. https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/online-sales-channels/buy-button

Finding products to sell

Once you’ve created your Oberlo account and connected it to Shopify, it’s time to find products you want to sell! With Oberlo, you can search for products using the Oberlo marketplace and use the search function to narrow down the products you want by entering a product type or category. app.oberlo.com/explore

You can also install the Oberlo Chrome extension to import items directly from AliExpress. With this Oberlo app, all you need to do is look out for the blue icon on your Chrome web browser to see when you’re on a page containing items that can be added to your import list. In just a few clicks, you can add items to your Shopify store ready for selling.

Bestsellers

If you need a little inspiration for your dropshipping business, Oberlo allows users to also browse their bestsellers categories. This makes it easy for store owners to find trending and best selling products for their own Shopify stores.

You can even sign up to the Oberlo newsletter to receive popular product updates in your inbox on a regular basis, so you never need to worry about missing out on the latest customer trends.

Connecting with suppliers

The Oberlo marketplace features three types of suppliers: Oberlo suppliers, Verified suppliers, and AliExpress suppliers:

Oberlo Suppliers

These suppliers have been thoroughly checked and vetted by Oberlo to ensure they’re “legit.” This includes Oberlo checking the operations, warehouses, and business documents of the suppliers so you don’t end up with faulty products, excessive shipping times, complicated order fulfilment, or unhappy customers.

Verified Suppliers

Verified suppliers are also investigated by the Oberlo support team, and these are the cream of the crop. Not only do Verified suppliers have their operations, warehouses, and documents checked by Oberlo, but they also need to have a proven track record of successfully selling products. In numbers, a vendor must have processed a minimum of 1,000 orders, have an on-time delivery rating of at least 95%, and have under 2% dispute rates.

Verified suppliers are identifiable on the Oberlo marketplace by a “verified” badge and orange tick next to their listings.

AliExpress Suppliers

In addition to shopping on the Oberlo marketplace, dropshipping business owners can also find products to sell directly via AliExpress. These vendors aren’t checked by Oberlo, so you’ll need to do your own research and due diligence to ensure any seller is legit and reliable when importing products from AliExpress directly. Make sure to check customer reviews and shipping information before adding products from any AliExpress suppliers.

Importing products

When browsing the Oberlo marketplace, you’ll notice every product has a green “add to import list” button, both on the main page and in the product description. Clicking this button will make the product ready for importing and customization.

With the Oberlo starter plan, you can import and fulfil 500 orders per month, free of charge. If you exceed these limits, Oberlo will still work, but you’ll need to complete the order fulfilment yourself. The pro plan is the most expensive option when it comes to Oberlo pricing, costing $29.90 per month, and provides a product limit of 30,000 orders per month. The pro plan also includes extra benefits above and beyond what’s available on the basic plan, with functions such as shipment tracking, multiple staff accounts for successful eCommerce business owners, and many more perks that we’ll look at later in this Oberlo review.

Using Oberlo Chrome Extension

As part of our Oberlo reviews series, we’ve written another post dedicated to the extension for this dropshipping app. Oberlo’s extension for Chrome is a really beneficial tool that’s available on all Oberlo pricing plans and is really simple to download and use.

Once you’ve downloaded the extension, you can import products from the AliExpress website directly. The extension icon will turn blue when you’re on a page with usable products, and there will be a blue “add to Oberlo” button to click on.

Setting prices

Once you’ve found the items you want to sell and have added them to your import list, Oberlo allows you to easily customize products and set your prices. To do this manually, simply head to the import page and click on the “Variants” tab. Here, you’ll be able to see the default prices for each item and manually adjust these.

You can also adjust Oberlo pricing in bulk from this tab by clicking the “change all prices” button. From here, you can set a new value for all products, or enter a multiplier (particularly handy if you’re having a 30%-off sale, for example).

Managing orders

Oberlo doesn’t just leave your e commerce business after you’ve imported your items into your online stores, but it will also be there to aid you with continuing customer support, including order fulfilment and management.

Firstly, when a customer places an order, it will appear as unfulfilled on the Oberlo “Orders” page. Next to the product will be an orange “order products” button. Click to order the items from the supplier. Oberlo will complete the product and shipping information automatically.

Sometimes, when using Oberlo, you might see an order marked as fulfilled but without a tracking code, this either means that a shipping label has been created but the product hasn’t been sent yet, or that the order was marked as fulfilled on Shopify but not placed with the supplier.

If you upgrade from the basic plan, Oberlo can also aid with bulk order fulfilment. This allows you to order multiple products for different customers in one go. Again, Oberlo will complete all the shipping and product information for you, so all you need to do is enter your payment information. In the pro plan, Oberlo also provides shipment tracking for your dropshipping products, which ensures you and your customers know exactly where the order fulfilment is at all times.

Cancelling orders

If a customer wishes to change product or cancel their order, Oberlo makes this quick and easy. Simply head to your Shopify store and navigate to the order page. From here, click on the “more” link on the dropdown menu, then click “cancel order fulfilment” or “void label” to cancel the order. This will automatically update Oberlo, too.

Returns & Refunds

Sadly, returns and refunds are a part of life, and something every business owner will have to deal with from time to time. That said, make sure you check the terms and conditions carefully so you don’t end up out of pocket!

As per the Oberlo terms and conditions, returns are not accepted by Oberlo suppliers. However, they will issue refunds in any of the following situations:

• The wrong item was received (things like the wrong size, color, or model apply here).
• The package was damaged on arrival.
• The item was extremely poor quality.
• The order went missing and never arrived.
• The estimated shipping times are exceeded.

With the first three situations, evidence will need to be provided by the customer to prove their entitlement for a refund.

If you’re dropshipping directly from AliExpress, it’s important to read the Buyer Protection Policy for your rights to returns and refunds. Generally, this policy states that if products are substantially different from the description and/or not delivered on time, then the customer will be entitled to a refund. https://sale.aliexpress.com/__pc/BhQPgEWPNM.htm?spm=2114.11010108.1000001.2.650c649bwhzxQv

Oberlo review: customer service

Now you know how to use Oberlo, it’s time to look at their customer service team to make sure you can get in touch whenever you need further assistance.

Oberlo doesn’t have a telephone line and deals entirely online. While this is suitable for most eCommerce business owners, some might prefer to have a phone number they can call to go through their options.

That said, they do have a Live Chat feature with agents available 24/7 to aid in your dropshipping ventures, and a detailed Help Centre that contains pretty much all the information you could possibly need. The support team is also contactable via email at hello@oberlo.com, although the live chat is a far swifter method for accessing support.

When we tried contacting the Oberlo customer service team, we found the live chat bot to be surprisingly helpful and knowledgeable, even if it did take a little longer than we might have liked to receive a response.

Checking other Oberlo reviews, it seems customers have had an overwhelmingly positive experience speaking with the service team, which is quite impressive for such a rapidly growing business.

How much does it cost to use Oberlo?

As we’ve briefly mentioned in our Oberlo review, the services offered by this app vary depending on your budget and the size of your business. The starter plan is totally free, and includes many of the tools you need to get started in your dropshipping venture.

It’s important to note that these prices do not include other dropshipping costs, like your Shopify fees, domain charges, or any marketing / social media expenses.

1. Starter Plan – Free

The starter plan is a great way to get started with Oberlo without any expensive commitments. It’s perfect for beginner drop shipping businesses and includes all the main Oberlo features including automatic order fulfillment, sales reports, and the Oberlo extension for Chrome web-browsers.

With the Oberlo starter plan, you’ll receive loads of great dropshipping benefits, including:

• Import up to 500 products per month.
• Up to 50 orders pet month.
• Daily product syncing.
• One-click order fulfilment.
• Automatic inventory updating
• Automatic importing of AliExpress tracking numbers.
• Automatic pricing updates and mark-ups.
• Change product supplier with one click.
• Sales and profit reports.
• Dispute management features.
• Oberlo Chrome browser extension.
• 2 digital courses with LevelUp.
• Full access to Oberlo eBooks, guides, emails, and blogs.

2. Basic Plan – $29.90 per month

The basic plan includes all the perks of the starter plan, plus the ability to sell up to 10,000 products in your Shopify store. It also includes a selection of other benefits above and beyond the free trial, including:

• Everything from the starter plan.
• Up to 10,000 products.
• Up to 500 orders per month.
• Variant mapping.
• Automated product pricing.
• Product statistics.
• Bulk order features.
• Real-time order and shipping monitoring.
• Membership to the Oberlo affiliate program.
• Unlimited access to the Oberlo learning resources.
• Coaching and “Real Talks” with Oberlo advisors.

3. Pro Plan – $79.90 per month

The pro plan is most suitable for larger online dropshipping stores and permits unlimited orders per month. It’s designed for businesses that are ready to scale, and also offers the ability to set your staff up with their own user accounts.

The pro plan includes all the benefits from the basic and starter plans, plus:

• Everything from the starter plan.
• Everything from the basic plan.
• Up to 30,000 products.
• Unlimited orders per month.
• Multiple staff accounts.
• Order fulfilment monitoring.
• CAPTCHA solver software.
• Full access to Oberlo training, learning, and coaching resources.

Oberlo Review: Pros & Cons

The different price plans and ability to access Oberlo services makes it easy to tailor your account depending on your dropshipping needs and the size of your business. The main downsides are generally considered to be that Oberlo only works with Shopify and AliExpress, but seeing as these are the most popular online store / supplier options for dropshippers, this will be a minor con for most users.

Oberlo Review: Pros

• Includes a 30-day free trial and a free starter plan that can last indefinitely.
• Simultaneous integration with Shopify.
• Quick and secure product imports.
• Plenty of options to find the products you want to sell.
• Modern dashboard and user-friendly interface.
• High quality app with a convenient extension for Chrome.
• Automated order fulfilment.
• Daily product syncing.
• Ability to scale.
• Loads of learning resources, video tutorials, and even access to online courses and coaching.
• Easy product customization.
• Find and change product suppliers based on quality and shipping times.
• Locate best selling products and stay on top of market trends.
• Excellent customer service team.
• ePacket filters allows you to find the fastest suppliers and shipping times.

Oberlo Review: Cons

• Not compatible with other eCommerce platform providers: Shopify stores only.
• You can only import products from AliExpress (even when using the internal marketplace).
• “Bestsellers” category can increase competition and make it harder for your business to stand out.
• Some products are restricted by Oberlo, however the Ts&Cs can be unclear on what or why.

Oberlo Review: FAQs

Does Oberlo really work?

Naturally, when we came to write this Oberlo review, we thought it was essential to sign up for a free trial and give this service a try! We found that Oberlo really is as easy to use as everyone says, and that the entire interface has a sensible layout and simple, obvious commands (which isn’t always the case when it comes to dropshipping hacks!).

The extension for Chrome is also incredibly intuitive and takes literally seconds to learn, even if you’re not familiar with AliExpress. Plus, with so many learning resources and guides at our fingertips, there was virtually no reason to contact the customer service team as we simply had no questions.

Does Oberlo have good products?

With Oberlo, you can find products you want to sell on via the internal marketplace or directly on the AliExpress website. Although it would be nice to see Oberlo work with more suppliers, AliExpress has a huge catalogue of sellers and products, so chances are you’ll be able to find the perfect items for your store.

It’s worth looking for Oberlo Verified suppliers when finding products for your store. These suppliers must show a proven track record for providing high-quality items with low (under 2%) disputes and a minimum 95% delivery time rating. These suppliers have also had their warehouses, documents, and processes investigated by Oberlo, so they are the most trustworthy option.

Who can use Oberlo?

Oberlo can be used by anyone, anywhere. The system and app is currently available in six languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, and German.

You can only import items in USD with Oberlo, however, you can sell items in any currency by adjusting your settings with Shopify. Oberlo will still be able to handle the order fulfilment and pricing updates.

Oberlo Review: Final Thoughts

Overall, we think Oberlo is probably the best dropshipping tool we’ve come across. The ability to start on a free price plan and upgrade the system as you scale is invaluable for beginner and more advanced dropshippers alike, and we were impressed that the most useful features aren’t reserved for the expensive plans.

Although we wouldn’t mind more options than just importing AliExpress products to a Shopify store, as these are the most popular options for the majority of dropshippers, the tool is still incredibly beneficial and offers a multitude of perks that more than makes up for restrictive eCommerce platform uses.

We loved that Oberlo is ready to ship worldwide (even if this isn’t something we use frequently), and the addition of Google Analytics makes it straightforward to monitor the progress of your business right from the offset.

The interface and usability is the best around, and almost every task really can be completed in just a few clicks… Making Oberlo our absolute favourite dropshipping tool ever.