China spreadsheet terms, defined

1688

Alibaba's wholesale marketplace for buyers inside China. Listings are often priced per lot rather than per piece. Several agents can order from it; on this site, Kakobuy is the one we build 1688 links for.

Agent (shopping agent)

A China-based service that orders from Chinese marketplaces for you, receives the goods at its warehouse, photographs them and ships them abroad. Kakobuy, Litbuy, Oopbuy and USFans are the agents this sheet links to.

Batch

One factory's production run of an item. Two sellers can offer the same model from different batches, which explains why their photos don't always match.

CBP

U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the federal agency that clears imports into the United States, including personal parcels. It assesses what a shipment owes and can hold one it has questions about.

China spreadsheet

A list of items found on Chinese marketplaces, each with a link that opens it at a shopping agent. It started as shared Google Sheets; sites like this one keep the same idea in a searchable page.

Consolidation

Packing several items from your warehouse storage into a single parcel, so the first-weight charge and the border entry happen once instead of once per item.

DDP / DDU line

Shipping terms. On a DDP (delivered duty paid) line, duties are settled by the shipper and built into the freight price. On a DDU (delivered duty unpaid) line, any duties and fees are collected from you at or before delivery.

De minimis

A value threshold below which an import enters without duties. China parcels lost this treatment in the US in 2025, which is why a US haul can owe duties even when it is small.

Declared value

The value of the parcel's contents as stated on its customs paperwork, set when you submit the parcel. It is your declaration; an understated value is a false statement to customs, not a discount.

Domestic shipping

Shipping within China, from the seller's shop to the agent's warehouse. You pay it together with the item, before any international freight.

Duties

Taxes charged by the importing country on goods coming in, usually worked out from what the goods are and what they are worth. In the US they are assessed by CBP; who pays them and when depends on the shipping line.

Find

An item someone tracked down on a Chinese marketplace and shared with a link. Each row of a China spreadsheet is a find.

Free storage period

The number of days an agent holds your items at no charge while you wait for the rest of a haul.

GL / RL

Green light / red light: shorthand for keeping (GL) or rejecting (RL) an item after looking at its QC photos.

Haul

The set of items shipped to you in one parcel. Also the post or video someone makes when that parcel arrives.

HTS code

The item's classification number in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States. The code largely decides which duty rate applies to the item.

LC (legit check)

Asking other people to judge an item's quality or accuracy from photos. It is an opinion, not an authentication; nothing on a China spreadsheet is authenticated.

QC (quality check) photos

Pictures the agent's warehouse takes of your actual item when it arrives, before it ships. They are your chance to catch the wrong size, the wrong color or a defect while a return is still cheap. Only some finds in this sheet also have QC photos from earlier buyers.

Rehearsal (parcel rehearsal)

A paid trial packing: the agent packs your parcel and reports its weight and dimensions before you choose a line. Worth it on a large or bulky haul.

Seller

The shop on Weidian, Taobao or 1688 that sells the item. The agent places the order with the seller on your behalf.

Service fee

The agent's charge for ordering on your behalf. Depending on the agent, it is a percentage of the item, a flat amount per item, or folded into freight.

Shipping line

One international shipping option an agent offers: a route plus the carriers that run it. Lines to the US differ in price, transit, the goods they accept and whether duties are included.

Taobao

Alibaba's main consumer marketplace in China. Tmall is its section for brand-run stores.

Volumetric weight

A weight worked out from the parcel's length, width and height. Freight is billed on whichever is greater, this or the actual weight, so a large light box can cost more than a small heavy one.

W2C

Where to cop: a post asking for a link to a specific item. A China spreadsheet is basically a collection of answers to them.

Weidian

A Chinese marketplace made up of small independent shops, popular with fashion sellers. Most finds in this sheet are Weidian listings.

Next, the steps in order: how to buy from a China spreadsheet in the US. For the border side, see the US customs guide.