I have a question

[nosetoons]

I don't know whether or not if these types of questions are allowed but...

For anyone who has purchased an item from China or any other state, what was your experience? I'm asking because there are a few items I want to get that are cheaper in China than there is here, but I'm not 100% sure whether or not I should take the risk.

[soh.maryl]

Entirely up to you.  You do know that you have eBay's Money Back Guarantee if anything goes wrong, right?  

[pjcdn2005]

I haven't but based on what I've read, people have had varied experiences. Just like in North America, some sellers there are good, some not. I wouldn't buy any name brand items or electronics directly from there as those often tend to be cheaply made or counterfeit.

There is a money back guarantee if the product is defective or the wrong item was sent but it can be more difficult to set up a return from an overseas seller.

Make sure that you read some of the feedback that the seller has recently received before you make a purchase.  I probably wouldn't buy from an overseas seller that had less than a 98% feedback rating.

[nosetoons]

I know. I recently got a refund due to the failure of the USPS delivering a Wii MotionPlus adapter.

[nosetoons]

I usually go for sellers with 95% or over feedback. But I will keep that in mind.

[mtgraves7984]

I don't purchase from China, but have bought from several US states. Agreed that China purchases seem risky.

[lamber9347]

I have purchased dozens of items from China and Japan. All of them are miniatures, which I cannot find for the same price in the states. I don't worry because of the MBG and they are all small amounts with low weight/size, which keeps the shipping lower. All of them have arrived as described over the years, never had any issues with any of them. I think it depends on what the item you are interested actually is vs whether there is risk involved. I would not purchase electronics or anything expensive from such a distance. Best of luck to you....

[12345jamesstamps]

I bought stuff from China without a problem. The problem is returning something with a problem.

I bought Apple products for my iPhone from China that actually were the real stuff. So much cheaper than buying in the states. Don't buy something if you feel you want to return it. It will be a real headache. 

Plus, make sure it is real, real and not a knock off...check feedback..feedback before you buy from anyone from China. Postage from China to USA is so cheap which is what is nice. What is not nice is trying to return something to China which can be a weekly paycheck...figure of speech.

[stainlessenginecovers]

What is the item and value? The answer would depend on that. 

[kensgiftshop]

I bought a couple items from China about 10 years ago and you know the old saying, you get what you paid for.

[nosetoons]

Another use stated not to buy electronics from China. I think it's clear to stick to US for those.

[nosetoons]

I haven't returned an item, but yikes on that part 😬.

[nosetoons]

I've been seeing USB drives from China as cheap as $1.99 or something.

[mudshark61369]

@nosetoons,

"I've been seeing USB drives from China as cheap as $1.99 or something".

Buying any item from any seller whose prices are very low is asking to get scammed. 

I strongly suggest being very careful about buying from China based sellers. Yes, there are some good ones but as a group they are the biggest cause of people having issues on this site. Some have previously suggested not buying from sellers with less than a certain percentage, you said yours is 95% or better.  Any high volume seller with a 95% rating should be avoided like the plague. Never go by a feedback percentage alone.  Check their feedback profile page and click on the numbers of neutral and negatives they have received, to read only those comments.

As a newer member you may find that chinese sellers will try to stall you past the point of being able to file a dispute, they will offer to send replacement item say there is a problem etc.. Do not accept that as a solution. 

  If you open a dispute they may tell you you have to close it before they can issue a refund. Some may tell you to leave a positive feedback in order to get a refund.  If you have opened a dispute and a seller asks you to do either of those things immediately ask ebay to step in, and leave a negative feedback sayind what they did.  Never close a dispute or leave a feedback until you have a refund. 

[tinsoldierunderground]

As others have stated, it all depends on what you're buying... I've bought a good amount of Chinese militaria on here for my collection, and only had one issue over the years.  Others have had horrible experiences buying goods in various other categories.  My rule is if a seller is rated below 99%, I'll buy somewhere else in most cases.

But here again, it pays to read the feedback left for a seller.  Many sellers get 'dinged' in feedback because a buyer had unrealistic expectations, and posted negative FB without giving the seller a chance to make things right.