Choosing a supplier is usually framed as a question of catalogue and price. For a store that wants orders to move without retyping them, there is an earlier question: can the supplier be talked to by software at all? This article is about that question, and about the differences between the suppliers a Posty5 store can connect today. It does not rank them, and it quotes no supplier prices.
What automation needs from a supplier
For orders to flow on their own, a supplier has to offer four things through an API: a catalogue you can search, so products can be imported with their variants and costs; a way to create an order, so the shopper's address and items reach the supplier without copying; a way to pay for that order, usually from a balance you keep with the supplier; and tracking, so the parcel number comes back to your store. A supplier missing one of these can still be used, but that step stays manual.
The three suppliers you can connect
CJdropshipping is a large general catalogue shipped from China and US warehouses. You connect it with an API key, orders are paid from your CJ balance, and it has a sandbox, so a test connection can place orders that are never charged or shipped. BigBuy is a European wholesaler shipping from Spain across Europe. You connect it with an API key, you browse up to three of its categories rather than searching, and creating an order at BigBuy pays for it from your wallet at once. AliExpress is connected by signing in rather than with a key. One basket can become one AliExpress order per seller, there is no sandbox, and payment may need to be finished on AliExpress if your account is not approved to pay automatically. the step-by-step guide.
Your supplier balance is your job
Wherever a supplier takes payment from a balance or a wallet, that account is yours and so is keeping it funded. Posty5 never tops it up, and the shopper's payment never flows into it. If the balance is too low when an order is sent, the order stops with a reason telling you so, and waits for you to top up and try again. See how orders are sent and paid.
Test before you trust
Every connection starts in test mode and on manual sending. With a sandbox — CJdropshipping and BigBuy — a test order goes all the way to the supplier without costing anything. Without one — AliExpress — test mode lets you browse and import but places no order. All three connections are new, and none has yet been proven with a real order from start to finish — so try each one in test mode, then with one small real order, before you rely on it.
One supplier per product
Each supplier can be connected once per store, so it is always clear which account ships a product. A product is linked to one supplier product; one product supplied by two suppliers is not supported. You can still sell products from different suppliers side by side, and an order that mixes them is split into one part per supplier. Read the dropshipping overview.
Start with your store
Suppliers are connected inside a store you already have. Start with the store, then open Suppliers.
Frequently asked questions
Which supplier is best?
This article does not rank suppliers. The right one depends on where your customers are and what you sell; compare the catalogue and the shipping regions.
Can I connect more than one supplier?
Yes, each once per store. An order with products from several suppliers is split into one part per supplier.
Does Posty5 fund my supplier balance?
No. The balance is yours to fund, and the shopper's payment never goes into it.
Can I test a supplier without spending money?
With CJdropshipping and BigBuy, yes — their sandboxes take test orders that are never charged or shipped. AliExpress has no sandbox.
Can one product come from two suppliers?
Not in this release. A product is linked to one supplier product.
