✓ Verified May 2026: We re-scored every country using fresh ecommerce, payment, logistics, and income data, prioritizing government, central-bank, payment-scheme, and BIS sources wherever available.
We also rechecked key checkout signals like iDEAL, BLIK, Swish, BNPL, COD, and country-specific payment methods, then added a Country Finder to help you turn the ranking into a focused first test cluster. (See our editorial policy)
- Patryk, Do Dropshipping
Which countries are best for dropshipping in 2026, and which ones should you avoid?
The best countries are not always the biggest ones.
In practice, a good dropshipping market needs four things: buying power, reliable delivery, familiar payment methods, and enough ecommerce demand to make testing worth it.
For this guide, we scored 28 countries across four factors: opportunity, competition, logistics, and payment risk.
The goal is simple: to help you stop targeting “worldwide” and focus on countries where your store has a more realistic chance of converting.
Quick answer: What are the best and worst countries for dropshipping in 2026?
The best countries for dropshipping in 2026 are the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Switzerland, Singapore, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, South Korea, Canada, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Norway, Ireland, Australia, Spain, Poland, and Israel.
Italy narrowly misses the top 20, but it can still be worth testing if you have Italian-language copy, local payment options, and reliable EU or local fulfillment.
The worst countries for a typical cross-border dropshipping setup are Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, China, and Russia. That does not mean they are bad ecommerce markets. Some are huge. The issue is that they can be harder for dropshipping because of COD reliance, payment friction, fraud risk, customs, lower margins, or long delivery times.
Use the Dropshipping Country Finder below to turn that ranking into a focused two-to-four-country test cluster for your own store:
Below, we'll walk through the full ranking, country-by-country notes, preferred payment methods, realistic shipping expectations, countries to avoid, and the scoring method we used.
How we scored each country
Every country in this guide has a dropshipping score out of 40.
That score is made up of four separate 1 to 10 scores. Higher is better:
- Opportunity (1 to 10): Ecommerce market size, spend per capita, and growth potential.
- Competition (1 to 10): How hard it is to stand out. A higher score means the market is less crowded or easier to enter with the right angle.
- Logistics (1 to 10): Realistic delivery speed and carrier reliability. A higher score means it's easier to offer fast domestic or regional fulfillment.
- Payment risk (1 to 10): Card and wallet usage, fraud exposure, and reliance on cash on delivery. A higher score means checkout is usually easier for a small ecommerce store.
Here is how to read the score:
- 30 to 40: Excellent default markets.
- 25 to 29: Solid markets if you have the right niche, language, and checkout setup.
- 20 to 24: Possible, but only with a clear strategy.
- Under 20: Avoid unless you have a specific advantage, such as local fulfillment or local payment processing.
Note: We used official, primary, and specialist industry sources wherever possible, including government statistics offices, central banks, payment-scheme reports, logistics reports, and market-research sources.
GDP per capita figures come from the World Bank. Payment and ecommerce sources are linked throughout the article.
The 20 best countries for dropshipping in 2026: An overview
Before we go in-depth, here's a quick overview of each of the best countries for dropshipping mentioned in this article:
| # | Country | Dropshipping score | Preferred payment |
| 1 | United States | 31/40 | Cards, PayPal, BNPL |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 30/40 | Cards, wallets, open banking |
| 3 | Germany | 30/40 | PayPal, SEPA bank transfer |
| 4 | Japan | 30/40 | Credit cards, konbini cash |
| 5 | Switzerland | 30/40 | TWINT, PostFinance, cards |
| 6 | Singapore | 30/40 | Cards, PayNow, GrabPay |
| 7 | France | 29/40 | Cards, PayPal, BNPL |
| 8 | Netherlands | 29/40 | iDEAL, Klarna, cards |
| 9 | Sweden | 29/40 | Swish, Klarna, cards |
| 10 | Denmark | 29/40 | MobilePay, Dankort, cards |
| 11 | South Korea | 29/40 | Cards, KakaoPay, Naver Pay |
| 12 | Canada | 28/40 | Cards, Interac, BNPL |
| 13 | United Arab Emirates | 28/40 | Cards, Apple Pay, Tabby/Tamara |
| 14 | Saudi Arabia | 28/40 | Mada, STC Pay, Tabby/Tamara |
| 15 | Norway | 28/40 | Vipps, cards, Klarna |
| 16 | Ireland | 28/40 | Cards, PayPal, Revolut |
| 17 | Australia | 27/40 | PayPal, Afterpay, Zip, cards |
| 18 | Spain | 27/40 | Cards, PayPal, Bizum |
| 19 | Poland | 27/40 | BLIK, bank transfer, cards |
| 20 | Israel | 27/40 | Cards, Bit, digital wallets |
Italy comes in just outside the top 20 at 25/40.
The main reason is not the demand, because Italy remains one of the largest ecommerce markets.
The difficulty lies in the fact that delivery performance and checkout preferences are less straightforward than in the top-scoring European markets.
We still cover Italy further down as an honorable mention.
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What makes a country good or bad to target when dropshipping?
Before we break down each country, here is what we looked at when scoring them.
If you understand these criteria, you can use the same logic for any market that is not on this list.
Fast, reliable shipping available
The first question is simple:
Can you actually get the product to the customer in a reasonable time?
Years ago, ePacket was the default answer. That is no longer the case.
Most serious dropshippers now use one of three setups:
- AliExpress Standard Shipping with a reliable supplier.
- A US, UK, EU, or regional warehouse partner, such as ShipBob, CJdropshipping, or Supliful.
- Local sourcing when the margins still make sense.
Here are rough delivery-time expectations by market:
- 1 to 3 days: Netherlands, Switzerland, Japan, Singapore, Poland (with InPost lockers), and Denmark.
- 2 to 5 days: US, UK, Germany, France, Canada, Sweden, Norway, UAE, and Saudi Arabia.
- 5 to 14 days: Many LATAM, Southeast Asian, and African markets, when sourced from China or the US.
- 14+ days: Russia, South Africa, many rural areas in India, and Brazil when shipping cross-border.
If you're still sourcing from AliExpress, here's how you can handle long shipping times.
High GDP per capita
GDP per capita is not perfect, but it is a useful signal.
In plain English, it helps you estimate the average customer's buying power.
If you target countries with very low GDP per capita, your products may feel expensive to the average buyer.
That can hurt your conversion rate, even if your ads get cheap clicks.
As a rough rule, we prefer markets with at least $30k GDP per capita.
That is only a starting point. Ireland, Switzerland, Norway, Singapore, and the US all sit well above that level, which gives you more room for higher average order values.
Preferred payment methods your gateway supports
This is the part many “best countries” articles skip.
But it matters a lot.
A Dutch shopper expects iDEAL. A Polish shopper expects BLIK. A German shopper expects PayPal or SEPA. A Swedish shopper expects Swish.
If you only offer credit card checkout in those markets, you may lose buyers right at the payment step.
Shopify Payments, Stripe, Mollie, and local gateways can support many of these payment methods, but you still need to enable the right ones for each country.
That is why we list the preferred payment method for every country below.
If you're advertising your store on Meta, TikTok, or another social platform, social network penetration matters.
It tells you how reachable the audience is on the platforms where most dropshippers test products.
In that older Statista snapshot, the UAE ranked #1 globally, followed by South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore.
We'd treat this as a directional reach signal, not as a live 2026 ranking.
The US and most of Western Europe still have high social reach, which makes them practical markets for Meta and TikTok testing.
Note: If you advertise only with Google Ads, social penetration matters less. Search demand is usually a better signal there.
Large, addressable population
Population is not the top factor, but it does set your scaling ceiling.
A large addressable audience gives you more room to test angles, creatives, and niches before your audience gets tired of seeing the same ads.
That said, smaller high-income countries can still be excellent.
Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, and the UAE do not have huge populations, but they can work well for premium products because buying power is high.
The 20 best countries to target for dropshipping
Now let's look at the detailed breakdown.
For each country, we'll cover the dropshipping score, preferred payment method, realistic delivery window, and the main reason it made the list.
Tip: Before you launch a new campaign, check the country below and make sure your payment method and delivery promise match what local shoppers expect.
1. United States: 31/40
The US is still the default market for many new dropshippers.
US ecommerce sales hit $316.1 billion in Q4 2025, when ecommerce accounted for 18.3% of total retail sales, according to the Census Bureau's Quarterly Retail E-Commerce Report. For full-year 2025, ecommerce sales reached $1.2337 trillion, or 16.4% of total retail sales.
Buying power is high, fulfillment options are strong, and English removes one of the biggest conversion barriers.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 10 | 2 | 10 | 9 |
- Preferred payment: Cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Klarna/Afterpay BNPL. Worldpay reports that BNPL accounted for 6% of US ecommerce value in 2025 and is forecast to grow at 13% annually through 2030.
- Delivery: 2 to 5 days standard, or 1 to 2 days with US fulfillment partners like ShipBob or ShipMonk.
- Key win: US-based fulfillment can close the shipping gap with AliExpress, making delivery speed a strength rather than a weakness.
Pros: Huge ecommerce spend, high buying power, English-speaking customers, and fast shipping options.
Cons: Ads are expensive, and the market is crowded unless you have a clear product angle.
Related article: 12 Best US Dropshipping Suppliers and our full guide to starting a dropshipping business in the US.
2. United Kingdom: 30/40
The UK is one of the most ecommerce-mature markets in the world.
The UK Office for National Statistics reports that online sales accounted for 28.2% of all retail sales in February 2026, while online sales values rose 11.4% year over year.
The UK payment market is also easy for most ecommerce stores to handle.
UK Finance's Payment Markets 2025 report says card payments account for 64% of all UK transactions, while mobile wallet usage has reached more than half of the adult population.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 10 | 3 | 9 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Cards, digital wallets, PayPal, BNPL options like Klarna and Clearpay, and open banking.
- Delivery: 2 to 4 days via Royal Mail, Evri, DPD, or local fulfillment.
- Key win: You can reuse much of your US creative and copy with minor changes to spelling, pricing, VAT, and local references.
Pros: High ecommerce spend per capita, English-speaking customers, large population, and mature logistics.
Cons: The market is crowded, and post-Brexit VAT can add complexity if you ship from the EU.
Related article: 13 Best UK Dropshipping Suppliers and our guide on starting a dropshipping business in the UK.
3. Germany: 30/40
Germany is Europe's largest ecommerce economy and one of the best non-English markets for dropshipping.
The German payments market is estimated at $247 billion in 2026 by Mordor Intelligence, while GDP per capita sits around $50.8k.
That combination gives you strong buying power without the same level of dropshipping noise you see in the US.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 9 | 5 | 9 | 7 |
- Preferred payment: PayPal is one of Germany's most important online payment methods. SEPA bank transfer and newer wallets like Wero can also matter. Don't rely on cards alone.
- Delivery: 2 to 3 days via DHL, Hermes, or DPD.
- Key win: A German-language store can target Germany, Austria, and Switzerland if your shipping and tax setup supports it.
- Trust tip: German shoppers care about privacy, return policies, legal pages, and product quality. Treat those as conversion assets, not boring details.
Pros: Large market, high GDP per capita, DACH reach, and less dropshipping saturation than the US or UK.
Cons: German shoppers expect clear policies, good product quality, and local-language support. Cheap-looking AliExpress products can lead to returns quickly.
Related article: Best EU Dropshipping Suppliers and our guide on starting a dropshipping business in Europe.
4. Japan: 30/40
Japan is one of the largest ecommerce markets in the world, with $286 billion in 2025 according to IMARC Group.
Many Western dropshippers ignore it because of the language barrier.
That barrier is also an opportunity.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 9 | 4 | 9 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Credit cards, konbini convenience-store payments, PayPay, Rakuten Pay, and other local wallets.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days domestically via Yamato, Japan Post, or Sagawa. Japanese shoppers expect reliable delivery windows.
- Key win: A Japanese-language store with local fulfillment can stand out in underserved niches where Western sellers don't properly localize.
Pros: Huge market, strong logistics, high product-quality expectations, and less Western dropshipping competition.
Cons: Japanese-language copy and customer support are strongly recommended. Local expectations for service and delivery are high.
5. Switzerland: 30/40
Switzerland is small, but it has very high buying power.
Mordor Intelligence estimates the Swiss ecommerce market at $18.19 billion in 2025, growing to $37.99 billion by 2031 at a 13.08% CAGR.
Payments are also improving. In August 2024, the Swiss National Bank launched domestic instant payments, with more than 60 banks covering around 95% of retail transactions at launch.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 7 | 6 | 9 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: TWINT, PostFinance, and cards.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days via Swiss Post and domestic carriers.
- Key win: Swiss shoppers are more used to premium pricing than shoppers in many lower-income markets, which can help higher-ticket offers.
Pros: Strong buying power, reliable payments, and multilingual selling opportunities.
Cons: Switzerland is not an EU member, so customs and VAT require separate setups. The population is also small.
6. Singapore: 30/40
Singapore punches far above its population size.
SellerCraft's Singapore Digital Retail Outlook puts average annual online spend above US$1,200 per shopper, which is high for Southeast Asia.
English is also widely used in business and retail, so localization is easier than in many nearby markets.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 6 | 10 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Credit cards, PayNow, GrabPay, and digital wallets.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days domestically. Singapore is also a strong APAC logistics hub.
- Key win: A Singapore setup can serve as a testing base for nearby markets, as long as your fulfillment partner supports them.
Pros: High per-capita spend, reliable logistics, English-friendly checkout, and premium-price tolerance.
Cons: The population is small, so it is usually better suited to a focused premium market than to a standalone scaling market.
7. France: 29/40
France is one of Europe's largest ecommerce markets, with a $97 billion ecommerce market in 2026 according to Mordor Intelligence.
The opportunity is real, but French-language copy matters a lot.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 8 | 5 | 8 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Credit/debit cards, PayPal, and BNPL. Mollie's European payment-method research found that 71% of French consumers rank credit and debit cards among their preferred online payment options, with PayPal also widely used.
- Delivery: 2 to 3 days via Colissimo, Chronopost, or Mondial Relay. Pickup points are popular, so offer them if your fulfillment setup supports it.
- Key win: A proper French-language store will usually convert much better than an English-only store in France.
Pros: Large market, strong ecommerce habits, and good fit for fashion, beauty, home, and lifestyle products.
Cons: English-only stores usually underperform. Returns policies and customer service should be clear in French.
8. Netherlands: 29/40
The Netherlands is one of Europe's strongest ecommerce markets for its size.
Mordor Intelligence's Europe ecommerce report identifies the Netherlands as one of the region's fastest-growing ecommerce markets, with strong shopping participation and parcel infrastructure.
The main lesson is simple: you need iDEAL.
Currence reports that iDEAL accounted for 72% of all Dutch online checkouts in 2024, with 1.477 billion transactions and 8.4% year-over-year growth.
If you don't offer it, you're adding friction right where shoppers are ready to buy.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 7 | 6 | 9 | 7 |
- Preferred payment: iDEAL, Klarna, and cards.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days via PostNL or DHL. Next-day delivery is common.
- Key win: Enable iDEAL before running Dutch traffic. It is one of the clearest payment-method requirements in this whole list.
Pros: Strong ecommerce habits, high English literacy, fast logistics, and shoppers who are comfortable buying online.
Cons: The population is small, and Dutch shoppers often compare prices across marketplaces.
9. Sweden: 29/40
Sweden is a mature ecommerce market with strong digital payment habits.
Sveriges Riksbank's Payments Report 2025 shows that mobile payments are growing quickly: 51% of Swedes use a mobile phone to pay in stores when that option is available.
Sweden is also the home of Klarna, so BNPL expectations are normal here.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 7 | 6 | 8 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Swish, Klarna, and cards.
- Delivery: 2 to 3 days via PostNord, Budbee, or Instabox.
- Key win: High English literacy means you can test an English store first, then translate if the market shows traction.
Pros: Premium pricing potential, high English literacy, and mature BNPL behavior.
Cons: The population is small, and shoppers expect a modern, trustworthy store experience.
10. Denmark: 29/40
Denmark has a small population, but strong buying power and good logistics.
It can work especially well for lifestyle, home, design, pet, and premium utility products.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 6 | 9 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: MobilePay, Dankort, Klarna, and cards.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days via PostNord, GLS, or Budbee.
- Key win: MobilePay is a major Nordic checkout rail. Mordor Intelligence reports that Vipps MobilePay controls about 70% of domestic mobile transaction counts in Denmark.
Pros: High spend, reliable logistics, and strong English literacy.
Cons: The market is small, and EU VAT rules matter once your sales pass the relevant thresholds.
11. South Korea: 29/40
South Korea is one of the world's largest ecommerce markets.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada reports that South Korea was the fifth-largest ecommerce retail market in 2024, with US$178.9 billion in ecommerce retail sales.
The catch?
Local expectations are high. Coupang has trained shoppers to expect very fast delivery and polished mobile shopping experiences.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 8 | 4 | 9 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Cards, KakaoPay, Naver Pay, and other local wallets.
- Delivery: Same-day options in major metros, with 1 to 2 days common elsewhere.
- Key win: If you can source Korean-origin products well, that can give you credibility in beauty, fashion, lifestyle, and tech-accessory niches.
Pros: Large mobile-first market, sophisticated buyers, and lower Western dropshipping competition in many categories.
Cons: Korean-language copy is strongly preferred, and shipping speed expectations are strict.
12. Canada: 28/40
Canada is one of the easiest countries to expand to for a US-focused store.
Mordor Intelligence estimates Canada's ecommerce market at US$45.66 billion in 2026. For a government-backed retail view, Statistics Canada reported C$73.7 billion in ecommerce revenue in 2024, up 9.0%.
You get high English literacy, a familiar buyer profile, and French-speaking Quebec as an extra localization opportunity.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 8 | 4 | 8 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Credit/debit cards, Interac e-Transfer, digital wallets, and BNPL. Mordor Intelligence reports that card transactions led Canada's payments market in 2025, while digital wallets are projected to be the fastest-growing payment mode.
- Delivery: 2 to 5 days via Canada Post, UPS, Purolator, or local fulfillment.
- Key win: Canada often works well alongside US campaigns because the language and buyer behavior are similar, but competition can be slightly lower.
Pros: English-speaking market, high buying power, and access to US fulfillment networks.
Cons: Cross-border shipping from the US can trigger duties, and Quebec may require French-language support for better conversion.
Related article: 12 Best Canadian Dropshipping Suppliers and our guide on starting a dropshipping business in Canada.
13. United Arab Emirates: 28/40
The UAE is attractive for premium ecommerce because of its strong social reach, buying power, and logistics.
BNPL is also growing quickly. Mordor Intelligence estimates the UAE BNPL market at US$4.25 billion in 2025, growing to US$11.49 billion by 2031.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 7 |
- Preferred payment: Credit cards, Apple Pay, Tabby, and Tamara.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days via Aramex, DHL, and local couriers.
- Key win: The UAE is well-suited to high-ticket dropshipping because buyers are more comfortable with premium products when the offer feels trustworthy.
Pros: High social reach, strong premium spend, fast delivery, and good fit for lifestyle and luxury-positioned products.
Cons: The population is small, and Arabic-language creatives can outperform English for broader targeting.
14. Saudi Arabia: 28/40
Saudi Arabia is one of the most important ecommerce markets in the Middle East.
Mordor Intelligence estimates Saudi Arabia's ecommerce market at $31 billion in 2026 and 34% of total MENA ecommerce.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
- Preferred payment: Mada cards, STC Pay, Apple Pay, Tabby, and Tamara.
- Delivery: 2 to 4 days via SMSA, Aramex, Naqel, and local couriers.
- Key win: Vision 2030 has pushed investment into digital payments and logistics, which makes the market more ecommerce-friendly than it used to be.
Pros: Large regional spend, growing digital payments, strong BNPL adoption, and a young population.
Cons: Arabic-language stores and customer support are strongly preferred. Service expectations are rising as the market matures.
15. Norway: 28/40
Norway has one of the highest GDP per capita figures in the world, at around $89.2k.
That makes it a strong market for premium products, despite the small population.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Vipps, cards, and Klarna.
- Delivery: 2 to 3 days via Posten, Bring, or PostNord.
- Key win: Higher buying power gives you more room to invest in quality products and premium positioning.
Pros: Strong spending power, high English literacy, and reliable logistics.
Cons: Norway is not in the EU, so VAT and customs are separate from your EU setup. The population is also small.
16. Ireland: 28/40
Ireland has a very high GDP per capita of around $99.2k and is a natural extension of a UK-focused store.
It is English-speaking, part of the EU, and easy to test whether your fulfillment can handle Ireland.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 5 | 9 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Cards, PayPal, and Revolut.
- Delivery: 2 to 3 days via An Post, DPD, or Fastway.
- Key win: Ireland can be a useful backup audience when UK CPMs rise, especially if your product already works with English-speaking buyers.
Pros: Very high buying power, English-speaking customers, and standard EU VAT/OSS flows.
Cons: The population is small, and many UK sellers already include Ireland in their campaigns.
17. Australia: 27/40
Australia is a strong English-speaking market with high ecommerce adoption and familiar buying behavior.
Mordor Intelligence estimates Australia's ecommerce market at US$51.22 billion in 2026.
Australia Post's 2024 Inside Australian Online Shopping report found that 9.5 million Australian households shopped online, showing how normal online buying has become across the country.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 8 | 5 | 6 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: PayPal, Afterpay, Zip, and cards.
- Delivery: 3 to 5 days via Australia Post, StarTrack, Aramex, or local fulfillment.
- Key win: Afterpay can help higher-AOV products, especially if your offer is above $100 and still feels affordable in installments.
Pros: English-speaking, active on social platforms, strong ecommerce habits, and lower-priced ad inventory than in the US in many niches.
Cons: Shipping from China or the US can take longer, and customers are less patient with slow delivery than they used to be.
Related article: 12 Best Australian Dropshipping Suppliers and our guide on starting a dropshipping business in Australia.
18. Spain: 27/40
Spain's ecommerce market is growing quickly.
The CNMC reported €25.752 billion in ecommerce turnover in Q1 2025, followed by €28.346 billion in Q2 2025.
That means Spain recorded more than €54 billion in ecommerce turnover in the first half of 2025 alone.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
- Preferred payment: Cards, PayPal, Bizum, and emerging BNPL options.
- Delivery: 2 to 4 days via SEUR, Correos, or MRW.
- Key win: A Spanish-language store can serve as a useful base for testing in Spain, then expanding into selected LATAM markets if your fulfillment supports it.
Pros: Lower competition than Germany or France, lower CPMs in many niches, and Bizum support can reduce checkout friction.
Cons: English-only stores usually underperform. Spain's national statistics office found that 14.7% of the population aged 16 or over speaks English, so Spanish-language copy is the safer default.
19. Poland: 27/40
Poland is one of the most interesting ecommerce markets in Central Europe.
Mordor Intelligence estimates Poland's ecommerce market at $27 billion in 2026, with a 7.6% CAGR.
The main checkout lesson is BLIK.
The National Bank of Poland's 2024 public attitudes survey found that BLIK is the preferred online payment method for 68% of Polish shoppers, ahead of quick bank transfer at 64% and cards at 43%.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 6 |
- Preferred payment: BLIK, quick bank transfer, and cards.
- Delivery: 1 to 2 days via InPost lockers, DPD, or DHL.
- Key win: InPost's locker network is one of the best parcel experiences in Europe. Locker delivery can be cheaper and more convenient than home delivery.
Pros: Fast growth, strong parcel-locker logistics, and less competition from Western dropshippers.
Cons: If you don't offer BLIK, you'll likely lose many Polish shoppers at checkout. A Polish-language store will also convert much better.
20. Israel: 27/40
Israel is small, but it has high spending power and tech-savvy shoppers.
Trade.gov reports that ecommerce revenue is estimated to grow from $7.55 billion in 2023 to $11.83 billion in 2027.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
- Preferred payment: Cards, Bit, and digital wallets.
- Delivery: 2 to 4 days via Israel Post and local couriers.
- Key win: Israel has stronger ecommerce potential than its population size suggests, thanks to favorable payment behavior and buying power.
Pros: High spending per capita, strong card usage, and tech-savvy buyers.
Cons: The population is small, and Hebrew-language copy can improve conversion.
Honorable mention: Italy: 25/40
Italy is still a large ecommerce market, but it narrowly misses the top 20.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada projects Italy's ecommerce retail market to reach US$64.1 billion by 2028.
The challenge is that Italy has more regional variability than the highest-scoring European markets, and cash-linked checkout behavior has not fully disappeared.
Stripe notes that payment upon delivery still accounts for 11% of online transactions in Italy, even though traditional cash-to-courier COD has declined sharply.
| Opportunity | Competition | Logistics | Payment |
| 7 | 5 | 7 | 6 |
Italy can still work if you have an Italian-language store, reliable domestic or EU fulfillment, and a checkout setup that matches local payment habits.
The worst countries for dropshipping: 8 to avoid or approach with extra strategy
These are the worst countries for dropshipping in 2026, at least for a typical small cross-border store.
That doesn't mean nobody can sell there.
Brazil and Mexico, for example, can work with local fulfillment and payment rails. But they're not easy markets for a basic AliExpress-style setup.
Every market below scores under 25/40 because one or more key pieces are hard to solve: payments, delivery, buying power, fraud risk, or platform access.
| Country | Score | Main reason to avoid |
| Indonesia | 18/40 | High scam exposure, COD abuse, and weak buying power for typical cross-border dropshipping |
| India | 19/40 | COD-heavy checkout, high refusal rates, low GDP per capita, and thin margins |
| Vietnam | 19/40 | COD-heavy checkout, uneven logistics outside metros, and low conversion economics |
| Brazil | 21/40 | Customs, currency volatility, and delivery distance. Viable mainly with local fulfillment |
| Mexico | 21/40 | Cash-influenced payments, local checkout rails, and fulfillment complexity |
| South Africa | 15/40 | Limited major gateway access, more payout friction, and long overseas shipping times |
| China | 24/40 | Buyers already shop Taobao, JD, Pinduoduo, and AliExpress directly |
| Russia | 15/40 | Payment sanctions, limited Western gateway access, and long delivery times |
1. Indonesia: 18/40
Indonesia has a large population and a rapidly growing ecommerce scene.
For dropshippers, the problem is risk.
The GSMA ASEAN Consumer Scam Report 2025 found that 44% of Indonesian consumers encountered an online scam in the past year, with 23% to 26% losing money.
Earlier industry research by the ASEAN Post also showed high exposure to flagged transactions in the region.
COD abuse is also a problem. One common pattern is called “order fiktif,” where fake orders are placed to waste courier time or disrupt sellers.
Combined with a GDP per capita of around $4.3k, Indonesia is a high-risk market for most cross-border dropshippers.
2. India: 19/40
India's population is enormous, and ad clicks can be cheap.
But cheap clicks don't help if the conversion economics are weak.
Indian brokerage Upstox notes that return-to-origin rates are roughly 20% to 30% for COD orders, compared with 2% to 3% for prepaid orders.
Financial Express reported a similar pattern, citing nearly 26% COD returns versus less than 2% for prepaid orders.
That creates three problems for dropshippers:
- COD can add costs and refusal risk.
- Average order values are usually much lower than in Western markets.
- Margins can disappear quickly once returns, refusals, and support are included.
Related article: The 11 Best Dropshipping Suppliers in India
3. Vietnam: 19/40
Vietnam is growing quickly, but it shares many of the same problems as Indonesia and India for dropshippers.
The biggest issue is payment friction.
TGM Research's Vietnam Ecommerce Insights 2025 found that cash on delivery remains the most preferred payment method for online purchases, followed by bank transfers and credit cards.
Logistics can also be uneven outside major cities.
So you may see cheap ad clicks, but low conversion rates and higher fulfillment friction can eat through your budget quickly.
4. Brazil: 21/40 (approach with caution)
Brazil is not a bad ecommerce market.
Actually, demand is huge, and Pix is a real bright spot.
The Bank for International Settlements' 2024 paper on Pix shows that Pix transactions cost merchants around 0.22% of transaction value, compared with roughly 2.2% for credit cards and 1.1% for debit cards.
The problem is everything around that: customs, currency volatility, taxes, and delivery distance from overseas suppliers.
Brazil is much more realistic if you have:
- Local fulfillment in Brazil.
- Pix, Boleto, and local card processing at checkout.
- A Portuguese-language store and customer support.
5. Mexico: 21/40 (approach with caution)
Mexico is Latin America's second-largest ecommerce market and continues to grow quickly.
Mordor Intelligence estimates Mexico's ecommerce market at US$52.58 billion in 2025, growing to US$62.16 billion in 2026.
The challenge for dropshippers is not demand. It is checkout and fulfillment.
Mexico remains cash-influenced, and local payment rails like Mercado Pago and cash-linked options are still important for reaching mainstream buyers.
Mexico is much more realistic if you can integrate Mercado Pago, localize the store in Spanish, and work with a fulfillment partner that understands local delivery.
6. South Africa: 15/40
South Africa is difficult for cross-border dropshippers for three reasons:
- Payment gateways. South African sellers can't use Shopify Payments, and Stripe does not list South Africa as a supported country. PayPal withdrawals are handled through FNB, which adds friction compared with markets where payouts are simpler.
- Shipping. Standard overseas shipping can take 20 to 40 days, which is hard to sell against local ecommerce stores.
- Spend. Online spending per person is lower than in the top markets on this list, leaving you less room for product costs, shipping, and ads.
That does not mean dropshipping in South Africa is impossible. It means you need a local-first setup, not a simple China-to-customer setup.
Related article: Dropshipping in South Africa: Is it possible in 2026?
7. China: 24/40
China has one of the largest ecommerce markets in the world.
But that does not make it a good market for a typical dropshipper to sell into.
Chinese shoppers already buy directly from Taobao, JD.com, Pinduoduo, Douyin Shop, and AliExpress.
TMO Group reports that Taobao, Pinduoduo, and JD.com each have hundreds of millions of monthly active users, which makes generic imported-product resale extremely hard to differentiate.
If you try to resell an AliExpress product with a markup, many shoppers will recognize the product or find a cheaper local alternative.
Access for foreign sellers to Chinese platforms and ad channels can also be more complicated than in Western markets.
If you're interested in the opposite direction, selling Western or premium products into China, read our guide to reverse dropshipping.
8. Russia: 15/40
Russia is a very difficult market for most cross-border dropshippers in 2026.
The biggest blocker is payments.
Stripe says it does not support users located in Russia, and PayPal suspended services in Russia after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Delivery times from China or Western suppliers can also run 30+ days.
On top of that, AliExpress has long had a large user base in Russia, so shoppers are used to buying directly at source-level prices.
Can you start dropshipping worldwide?
You might be wondering:
“Can I just target worldwide and let Meta or Google figure it out?”
Technically, yes.
Practically, it's usually a poor use of ad spend.
Different countries react differently to the same product, price, language, shipping promise, and payment setup.
Worldwide campaigns often push the budget toward the cheapest clicks, and those clicks may come from countries with poor conversion rates or difficult fulfillment.
A better starting point is to pick two to four countries from our top 20, group them by language and shipping capability, and test with a tighter audience.
If it works, expand one country at a time.
If you still want to go wide, here's our deeper guide to worldwide dropshipping with the pros and cons.
How do you include and exclude countries when advertising on Facebook?
Once you know which countries you want to test, setting them up in Meta Ads is fairly straightforward.
Go to Ad Set → Audience → Locations.
Set the dropdown to Include, then type each country you want to target.
To exclude a country, switch to Exclude and add that country instead.
Tip: Choose the location option that targets people living in the selected location only, where available. Avoid options that include people who have recently been in the location, because tourists and business travelers are less likely to be useful buyers for a dropshipping store.
For a deeper walkthrough, check out our Meta Ads for ecommerce beginner's guide. We also cover the 13 most common Facebook Ad mistakes we see new dropshippers make.
Conclusion
You now have a ranked list of the 20 best countries for dropshipping, along with eight markets that are much harder to approach.
More importantly, you know the four things that decide whether a country is worth testing: opportunity, competition, logistics, and payment risk.
If you're just starting, we wouldn't try to target everywhere at once.
Start with one of these groups instead:
- English-speaking default: US, UK, Canada, and Australia.
- Lower competition with strong buying power: Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway.
- Emerging premium: UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore.
- Underserved but harder: Japan and South Korea, if you can handle local language and logistics properly.
Final verdict: The US still has the highest ceiling for most stores, but Germany may be a better first serious test if you want high buying power, strong logistics, and less competition than the US or UK. Just make sure you offer PayPal, properly localize the store, and avoid low-quality products.
Good luck choosing your first markets!
Turn this guide into an AI checklist
Click your favorite AI tool below to get a short summary and step-by-step checklist based on this article.Prefer ChatGPT? Open this guide in ChatGPT with a pre-filled prompt (most readers start here).
Getting started with dropshipping in 2026
So, are you ready to get started with dropshipping? Or maybe you've already started and are looking for your next steps?
If so, we suggest reading our complete Shopify dropshipping guide.
It is a long article, but it walks you through the full process of building a Shopify dropshipping store in 2026. Think of it as a free dropshipping course in article form.
Just remember: dropshipping takes testing, patience, and consistent improvement. Keep learning from the data and improve one step at a time.
Shopify Dropshipping: A 20-Step Guide to Starting Your Store
And here are the articles we suggest reading next:
- The 17 Best Free Dropshipping Courses
- 23 Most Successful Shopify Dropshipping Store Examples
- Dropshipping Startup Checklist: 10 Things to Do Before Starting
- How to Find Winning Dropshipping Products (13 Research Methods)
And if you haven't created a Shopify account yet, you can click here to get a free 3-day trial + 3 months for $1 each!
Want to learn more about dropshipping?
Ready to move your dropshipping store to the next level? Check out the articles below:
- Top 11 Fastest Dropshipping Suppliers (Quick Delivery)
- 15 Low-Competition Niches That Could Be Profitable in 2026
- ImportYeti Review: Find Any Online Store's Suppliers (2026)
Plus, don't forget to check out our in-depth guide on how to start dropshipping here.
16 Comments
thank you. this is really helpful to get an idea that what country should I target. If you can write what products should sell to different countries also helpful. Again thank you
Hi Apsara,
I’m glad to hear that this article has helped you with picking a country to target 😊
In terms of writing what products you should sell to which countries, you shouldn’t worry about that in my opinion. I think that most products can be sold in any of the best countries on this list because there will always be people who are interested in the specific niche of your product!
If you are still looking for some product examples, I recommend checking out one of these articles:
What Is a Winning Dropshipping Product? (+ Examples)
16 Winning Dropshipping Product Examples
10 Black Friday Product Examples To Sell Online
Hopefully, these will inspire you and give you some amazing product ideas!
Let me know if you have any other questions. Good luck with everything!
– Patryk
Hi Patryk,
Great article, thanks a lot.
One question popped up in my mind though (notice I don’t have proper data but just common sense driven I guess): do you consider E-commerce markets like the one from The Netherlands and Italy for instance to be less target-able so to not make it to your top 10 list?
I thought them to be stronger markets than Israel or even the UA Emirates…
Hi Nuno,
Amazing to hear that you liked the article!
I fully understand the question that popped up in your mind. The Netherlands and Italy are indeed two other very good countries to target as a dropshipper. If I had made a list of the 15 best countries to target as a dropshipper, they would probably both be included as well!
The reason why I listed the UAE above countries like The Netherlands or Italy, is because the ecommerce market is growing exponentially in the UAE. So, while the market strength might be quite similar to The Netherlands or Italy at the moment, the UAE market will probably grow more in the coming years. Not only that, but the UAE also has the highest social network penetration in the world, and English is widely spoken there.
I also included Israel in the top 10 list, because once again the ecommerce market is growing exponentially, and they spend so much more on ecommerce purchases than The Netherlands or Italy (even more than the Germans😉), as I talked about in the article.
Thank you for leaving a comment and have a great rest of your day!
– Patryk
Thanks for the helpful info. Just a quick little note, though… It’s “Israelis”, not “Israelians” 🙂
Hi Rotem,
Thank you very much for letting us know about this! I have just updated the article to fix the spelling mistake 😊
Good luck with everything!
– Patryk
Great article.
Although i have one question is it safe totarget european countries counsidered the tva law that they imposed on the 1st of july ??
Hi Amine,
We are glad to hear you liked the article.
It’s definitely still safe to target European countries right now. I’m not quite sure what you mean with “tva law”, but I’m assuming you are talking about the new VAT rules that went in on the 1st of July 2021. One of the biggest changes is the removal of VAT exemption when importing products below a value of EUR 22 into Europe. In other words, all goods imported into the EU will now be subjected to VAT. However, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t target European countries anymore!
If you have any more questions, don’t hesitate to ask them 😊
Have a great rest of your day!
– Patryk
I wanted to say that this was a great article, it help me to understand alot more about dropshipping. Please create more articles like this we need all the help we can get. Great job.
Hi Richard,
Thanks a lot for your awesome comment! We really appreciate it 😊
If you like our work, you can subscribe to our email newsletter using the sign-up box at the end of every article. That way, you will never miss our latest and greatest articles!
Have a great day!
– Patryk
Hi, Thank you I’ve learned the most valuable dropshipping courses here for free than anywhere else. Keep it up
Hi Aliceran,
That’s amazing to hear! It’s always great to learn something new, especially if it helps you with your dropshipping business.
Good luck with everything!
– Patryk
This was by far the best article on dropshipping I have read in a while. Please keep up the good work Patryk! Thanks a lot
Hi Joe,
Thank you too for your awesome comment! That’s awesome to hear 🙌
Have a great day!
– Patryk
Hello Patryk,
Thanks for this article. What would be your advice on top 3 dropshippers to consider for the UAE pls?
Regards,
Paul
Hello Paul,
Thank you for your comment! Unfortunately, we didn’t write an article yet on the top dropshipping suppliers for the UAE, but it’s definitely on our to-do list!
I would advise looking at suppliers like Syncee or CJdropshipping, as they tend to have warehouses in many locations worldwide. You could also consider using a dropshipping agent to achieve some faster shipping times.
Have a great rest of your day!
– Patryk