Which shopping agent is actually cheapest?
We checked 7 agents on 29 September 2026: the real exchange rate, top-up fees, service fees, QC photos and shipping to Poland, the US, Germany and the UK. With numbers, not coupons.
The short answer
SuperbuyAlipay, paid in yuan
then CSSBuy: card at almost the real rateSuperbuyDHL duty-prepaid, 10-15 days
then CSSBuy: ¥246, 7-15 daysSuperbuyDHL duty-prepaid, 10-15 days
then HipoBuy: ¥217, 10-16 daysSuperbuyapparel line, 12-20 days
then Sugargoo: ¥152, 8-13 daysSuperbuyclothing line, 7-14 days
then Sugargoo: ¥360 for anything else
KakoBuyUPS duty-free, ¥471
Sugargooper item, plus 2 of the packed parcel
SuperbuyTrustpilot, 1,030 reviews
then CSSBuy: 4.2 from 720The hidden cost: the exchange rate
Tip: agents that let you pay in yuan (with Alipay, for example) skip their own conversion. Every agent showed the seller's own price for the same test item (¥115). The difference is what your money turns into. That ¥115 cost $17.18 on CSSBuy, $18.59 on KakoBuy and $19.89 on LitBuy. Below: what it really costs to put ¥200 in your account, worth $29.76 at the real rate that day.
| Agent | You pay for ¥200 | Over the real rate | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superbuy Alipay | ¥200, no fee | no fee | you pay in yuan, so Superbuy adds nothing. What you pay in your own money is set by Alipay and your card, not by Superbuy. Worth setting up if you order often |
| CSSBuy card | ≈ $31.4 | +5.6% | fair rate ($1 = ¥6.69) plus its published 4% + $0.35 card fee. PayPal (3% + $0.30) ≈ $31.1 |
| Superbuy Wise / bank transfer | $31.31 | +5.2% | $1 = ¥6.39, plus your own transfer fee. Card: $33.81 (+13.6%) |
| Sugargoo card | $33.40 | +12.2% | fair rate, then a $2.09 service fee and a $1.41 transaction fee. In euros: €29.71 (+13.5%) |
| KakoBuy card | ≈ $33.4 | +12.4% | about $1 = ¥6.19 (8.6% off the real rate) plus a 3.5% card fee. PayPal: 5.2% fee, ≈ $34.0 |
| HipoBuy any | $34.55 | +16.1% | before the payment fee, which HipoBuy only shows at checkout |
 LitBuy any | $34.58 | +16.2% | before the payment fee. The wallet is kept in dollars, the markup comes in when you pay for items |
 CNFans | not measured | product pages and top-up need a login we could not complete |
Shipping a 2 kg parcel
40 x 30 x 15 cm, the cheapest line on each agent that arrives in about 3 weeks, from their own calculators. Dollar amounts at the real rate; your agent's rate adds its markup from the table above.
Poland
| Agent | 2 kg parcel | Delivery | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superbuy cheapest | ¥234.8 ≈ $35 | 10-15 days | Europe DHL duty-prepaid |
| CSSBuy | ¥246 ≈ $37 | 7-15 days | EU tariffless express |
| Sugargoo | ¥257 ≈ $38 | 10-15 days | DHL tax-free express |
| LitBuy | ¥263.45 ≈ $39 | 8-13 days | DPD, plus a ¥24 tariff advance fee |
| KakoBuy | ¥293 ≈ $44 | 7-20 days | Europe tariffless line |
| HipoBuy | ¥303.15 ≈ $45 | 8-12 days | DPD |
| CNFans | ¥358.1 ≈ $53 | 10-17 days | DHL, tax included |
United States
| Agent | 2 kg parcel | Delivery | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superbuy cheapest | ¥228 ≈ $34 | 7-14 days | YunExpress registered air mail, clothing only |
| Sugargoo | ¥360 ≈ $54 | 10-15 days | US fast line |
| LitBuy | ¥379.62 ≈ $56 | 9-18 days | GOFO |
| CSSBuy | ¥458 ≈ $68 | 10-15 days | EMS |
| KakoBuy | ¥471.4 ≈ $70 | 2-6 days | UPS duty-free, the fastest here |
| CNFans | ¥514 ≈ $76 | 5-12 days | EMS |
| HipoBuy | ¥566.88 ≈ $84 | 6-11 days | FedEx |
Germany
| Agent | 2 kg parcel | Delivery | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superbuy cheapest | ¥212.5 ≈ $32 | 10-15 days | Europe DHL duty-prepaid |
| HipoBuy | ¥217.05 ≈ $32 | 10-16 days | DHL |
| Sugargoo | ¥222 ≈ $33 | 10-15 days | DHL tax-free express |
| CSSBuy | ¥260 ≈ $39 | 5-10 days | tariffless express |
| LitBuy | ¥261.44 ≈ $39 | 10-15 days | DHL |
| KakoBuy | ¥279.45 ≈ $42 | 8-12 days | DHL line |
| CNFans | ¥331.7 ≈ $49 | 10-17 days | DHL, tax included |
United Kingdom
| Agent | 2 kg parcel | Delivery | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superbuy cheapest | ¥127 ≈ $19 | 12-20 days | duty-prepaid apparel line |
| Sugargoo | ¥152 ≈ $23 | 8-13 days | UK tax-free |
| KakoBuy | ¥186.8 ≈ $28 | 6-12 days | UK air direct |
| CSSBuy | ¥240 ≈ $36 | 8-15 days | GB express |
| CNFans | ¥241.8 ≈ $36 | 10-17 days | Royal Mail, tax included |
| HipoBuy | ¥251.36 ≈ $37 | 7-13 days | Royal Mail |
| LitBuy | ¥276.98 ≈ $41 | 8-13 days | Royal Mail |
Want it cheaper and can wait? To the US: Sugargoo by sea ¥190 (30-60 days) or HipoBuy USPS ¥325 (11-23 days). To Poland: Superbuy SAL ¥203 (Superbuy lists 30-90 working days).
Fees, QC photos and reviews
| Agent | Service fee | Free QC photos | Free storage | Trustpilot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KakoBuy | 0 | yes, number not stated | 100 days | 4.2 (299 reviews) |
| Superbuy | 0 on Taobao, Weidian, 1688 | 3 (6 on Weidian) | 90 days | 4.5 (1,030) |
| Sugargoo | 0, plus ¥8 packing per parcel | 5 per item + 2 of the parcel | 100 days | 3.4 (641) |
| CNFans | 0, plus ¥25 per parcel in the shipping quote | 3 to 5 | 60 days | 4.1 (13,293) |
| CSSBuy | unclear: help pages say 3% to 10% by VIP level | 3 to 5 | 90 days | 4.2 (720) |
| LitBuy | unclear: help page says free, the terms say 8% | 3 | 90 days | score hidden by Trustpilot (585 reviews) |
| HipoBuy | unclear: help page says free, the terms say 8% | 3 | 90 days | score hidden by Trustpilot (750 reviews) |
What the sign-up coupons really are
- KakoBuy: Advertises "$410" (¥3,000). The only pack with published rules (September) is ¥1,300, shipping only, and most coupons need a shipping bill of ¥300 to ¥2,000.
- Sugargoo: ¥800 in 14 coupons, shipping only, one per parcel, valid 90 days, most need ¥300 to ¥700 of shipping.
- Superbuy: ¥560 in 13 coupons, shipping only, one per parcel, valid 30 to 90 days.
- LitBuy / HipoBuy: Their pages show several different numbers ("$450", ¥1,000, $165). The real rules only show after sign-up.
- CNFans / CSSBuy: No sign-up pack advertised right now.
Make an account
Superbuy · CSSBuy · Sugargoo · KakoBuy · LitBuy · HipoBuy · CNFans
Already have one? Every product on GRAILS has buttons for all of these agents. Convert any link or compare shipping for your own parcel.
Questions
Which shopping agent is the cheapest?
It depends on where you live and how you pay. On the day we checked, Superbuy took Alipay in yuan with no fee, CSSBuy had the fairest exchange rate for cards, Superbuy had the cheapest fast shipping to Poland, Germany and the UK, and Superbuy's clothing line was cheapest to the US. LitBuy and HipoBuy added about 16% on the exchange rate.
Do agents charge different prices for the same item?
Not in yuan: every agent showed the seller's own price for the same test item (¥115). The difference comes when your money is converted: the same ¥115 cost $17.18 on CSSBuy, $18.59 on KakoBuy and $19.89 on LitBuy.
Is KakoBuy cheaper than LitBuy?
On the exchange rate, yes: KakoBuy adds about 8.6%, LitBuy about 16%. On fast shipping to Poland LitBuy was a little cheaper (¥263 plus a ¥24 fee against ¥293). KakoBuy has no service fee and the fastest US line.
Are the big sign-up coupon packs real?
They exist, but they are shipping coupons: one per parcel, and most need a shipping bill of a few hundred yuan. Think of them as a discount on a few parcels, not free money.
Does GRAILS get paid by these agents?
Yes, by some of them: KakoBuy, LitBuy, HipoBuy and Sugargoo pay us a commission when you sign up or order through our links. We compared them anyway, and several of them lose in the tables above.
How we checked
Fees from each agent's help center, shipping from each agent's own calculator (anonymous, no login), exchange rates from product pages and from logged-in top-up screens, stopped before paying. The real rate is the market rate that day (open.er-api.com). CNFans and OrientDig did not let us see their top-up screens. AllChinaBuy is left out: its site has been down since at least 17 September 2026 after a hacker attack.