Featured purchasing agents, compared on scope, return windows and slow sellers
Basetao, Hipobuy, iTaoBuy, JoyaGoo, LoongBuy and Oopbuy each publish something useful about what a warehouse check leaves to the seller's word.
Featured agents, read against the warnings sellers print
The six agents below are listed in alphabetical order. Each was chosen because it publishes something useful about the gap between a seller's advance warning and a warehouse check. None is placed above the others. All quotes were re-read on 18 October 2026; exchange-rate figures were independently measured in October 2026.
| Agent | Colour and size in the check | Standard photos | Return window | Service fee | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basetao | colour and actual size differences not included | arrival photos | most sellers: 7 days from receipt | calculator lists a service fee; rate not printed | Basetao home page |
| Hipobuy | shade, size error and use effect left out | generally three | 120 hours from Warehoused | free agent service | Hipobuy sign-up |
| iTaoBuy | opt-in; slight colour differences and size errors not part | three to six | 5 days from received | see the costs page | iTaoBuy sign-up |
| JoyaGoo | colour variation and size deviation expressly excluded | three to seven, free | 120 hours from QC completed | free agent service | JoyaGoo home page |
| LoongBuy | colour difference and size deviation generally not included | three to seven | eligible products only | 0 service fee mode | LoongBuy sign-up |
| Oopbuy | same three items left out | generally three | 120 hours from stocked in | no agent service fee | Oopbuy sign-up |
Basetao: seven days from receipt and a blunt line about sellers
Basetao's inspectors look at colour, size, model and version, plus any damage or stains they can see, and its standards page then adds the exclusion quoted on the right: differences in colour and actual size are not part of the check. A second note goes further. Where something cannot be checked, such as the absence of damage, Basetao takes it that you and the seller have agreed.
Its return page leans furthest towards the seller of the six. For most sellers the window is seven days, counted from the parcel's arrival at Basetao; the piece has to be in its original state, and the buyer pays to send it back. On its self-help order page it adds that Basetao will not be held responsible in case of any fraudulent activity on the part of the seller. Free storage is 120 days, the longest here. It suits buyers who want time before shipping and accept that seller disputes are theirs to carry.
Hipobuy: a five-day guarantee with its exclusions spelled out
Hipobuy opens every package and checks quantity, colour, size and other specifications; its notice then keeps three things outside the check: shade differences, small size errors and how a piece performs in use. Regular inspection photos are generally three, and a custom photo costs one yuan each, which makes a measurement or a close-up cheap to ask for.
Its five-day return guarantee runs for 120 hours from the hour after an item shows as Warehoused, needs the seller's agreement, and lists what it does not cover: custom-made items, items whose tags were removed at your request, second-hand goods, underwear and socks, and anything the seller excludes, among others. A return for your own reasons costs the return shipping, the original domestic shipping and a 5 yuan fee. The agent service is free; the exchange rate carried a markup of about 16 percent in October 2026. Open an account at Hipobuy.
iTaoBuy: inspection you opt into, and pre-sale kept apart
iTaoBuy makes product inspection a choice. Select it and the warehouse checks quantity, colour and size, with the note that slight colour differences and size errors are not part of the inspection. Leave it unselected and the warehouse only screens for forbidden items, keeps the original box, and iTaoBuy takes no responsibility for missing products or incorrect colours. For a buyer who reads seller warnings, that box is worth ticking.
Its shopping notes are the clearest on slow sellers: domestic sellers generally ship within three to seven days, buyers follow up from day four, and pre-sale and deposit orders are excluded from that routine. Returns run for five days from the received status, with a 5 yuan fee for returns or exchanges for your own reasons. The exchange-rate markup was about 18 percent in October 2026, the widest of the five agents we have a figure for. Open an account at iTaoBuy.
JoyaGoo: tolerances excluded, and silence read as acceptance
JoyaGoo describes its arrival check as a look at the outside of the piece: colour, size, model, version, damage and stains. Its page then says that differences arising from lighting, display or manufacturing tolerances, including colour variation and size deviation, are expressly excluded. It also carries the same principle as Basetao: where nothing visibly wrong can be confirmed, the goods are deemed accepted as conforming to the seller's description.
JoyaGoo gives three to seven free photos and sells detailed photos for 0.22 US dollars each, up to twenty. Returns run for 120 hours after the status QC completed, with a small fee when the item has no quality issue. Its Chinese help page is the one that names the seller warning directly: Taobao sellers generally ship in three to seven days, made-to-order and pre-sale goods excepted. The markup was about 12 percent in October 2026. Open an account at JoyaGoo.
LoongBuy: the lighting sentence and a vaguer return rule
LoongBuy's inspection article is the most detailed of the six. Eligible items normally receive three to seven standard photos. Its reference table treats several seller-warning situations exactly as the seller would: a colour difference caused by lighting is not a confirmed colour defect, a temporary fold mark is not damage, a minor shade variation within the same colour family is generally outside standard inspection. Its FAQ adds that colour difference, size deviation and internal quality problems are generally not included in the basic scope.
Where LoongBuy is less clear is returns. Its FAQ says some eligible products support a five-day no-reason refund, that the service does not apply to all goods, and that for purchased orders the outcome depends on the seller. The agent describes a 0 service fee mode, and its exchange-rate markup was about 2 percent in October 2026, the narrowest of the five agents we have a figure for. Open an account at LoongBuy.
Oopbuy: the shared notice text and a seller-dependent window
Oopbuy's inspection notice reads almost word for word like Hipobuy's: quantity, colour, size and other label specifications are checked, regular photos are generally three, and the same three exclusions apply. Electronics are checked for appearance only.
Its five-day return and exchange guarantee runs for 120 hours after an item is stocked in, and only where the seller itself promises returns and the piece can still be resold. Storage is free for 90 days and then 10 yuan per 30 days. There is no agent service fee; the markup was about 12 percent in October 2026. Open an account at Oopbuy.
Picking by situation, not by rank
Matched to the way you buy, the six sort themselves out. If you want to look at Y for situation X:
- If colour is your main worry, accept that no agent checks a shade; read LoongBuy's lighting rule to know where the line falls, and lean on the listing photos.
- If you buy fitted trousers or tailored pieces, look at Hipobuy or JoyaGoo, where a measurement or close-up photo costs little.
- If you buy pre-sale pieces often, iTaoBuy and JoyaGoo say outright that pre-sale orders run on their own clock.
- If you need time to fill a parcel, Basetao's 120 free days are the longest of the six.
- If the exchange rate is what you watch, LoongBuy measured narrowest in October 2026 and iTaoBuy widest; Basetao was not measured.
- If you want returns counted from the warehouse receiving the piece, Basetao and Hipobuy both say so; LoongBuy does not give a start point.
Each of these is one situation. None of them makes an agent the right choice for everything, and every agent here loses on at least one point.
