Temu vs. Shein: Which One for Dropshipping in 2025?

The popularity of both Temu and Shein has skyrocketed due to their trendy and affordable products.

As a result, they're also receiving increasingly more interest from dropshippers.

Both platforms offer relatively fast shipping, which can make them attractive for dropshipping.

Unfortunately, neither platform is ideal for dropshipping since they don’t offer dedicated programs for it.

But don’t disregard them yet, as they can still be helpful for your situation.

Keep reading to learn more!

Temu vs. Shein: Overview

For a quick overview of the differences between Temu and Shein, we have created the following comparison table:

Temu		Shein
Pros	Cons	Pros	Cons
A broad range of products	Lacking dropshipping integrations	A broad range of fashion products	Lacks a proper dropshipping program
Free shipping on most products	Can't re-use available images	Trendy fashion products available	Shipping fee for orders under $10
Trendy products	Doesn't officially support dropshipping	VIP program to get discounts on products	Relatively slow shipping process
Free returns for all countries	The refund process can be slow		The refund process can be slow
	Branded packaging on products		Branded packaging on products

Temu is the best choice for you if:

• You want the lowest product prices.
• You want a solid return policy.
• You don't mind Temu's branded packages.
• You want to find winning products for your dropshipping store.

Shein is the best choice for you if:

• You want to find trendy fashion products.
• You want to access the constantly updating product catalog.
• You want to take advantage of affordable pricing.
• You don't mind Shein's branded packages.
• You want to take advantage of discounted prices through Shein's VIP program.

What is Temu?

Temu is an online retail platform that offers products in various categories, including fashion, home accessories, clothing, and electronics:

It was launched just in 2022 by the Chinese ecommerce giant PDD Holdings and has quickly become one of the most popular online shopping platforms.

Most Temu products are available at extremely low prices and come with free shipping.

Pros of Temu

• Cheap product prices. Temu offers some of the lowest prices you can find on any shopping platform.
• Wide product catalog. Temu's product catalog is estimated to contain over a million items.
• Trendy products. Most of Temu's products are highly trendy and what most dropshippers call winning products.
• Free returns for all countries. Temu provides free returns for all major countries, a benefit for dropshippers who often handle high return volumes.
• Good return policy. Temu allows you to return products within 90 days, which is longer than what Shein offers.

Cons of Temu

• Lacking integrations. Temu doesn't integrate with many third-party tools that help dropshippers automate order fulfillment.
• Image restrictions. You can't reuse the images on Temu's product pages. You need to order product samples and take your own photos.
• No official support for dropshipping. Temu has stated that it does not officially support dropshipping.
• Slow refund process. Although Temu has a generous return policy, the refund process can take up to 30 days, which is relatively slow.

What is Shein?

Shein is a fashion retail company founded in 2008, making it significantly older than Temu. While Shein offers products in all categories, it is mainly known for its fast-fashion products:

Over the years, Shein has grown into one of the most popular online retailers in the fast-fashion industry.

Pros of Shein

• Cheap product prices. Shein's products are affordable, which gives you more room to set higher margins.
• Trendy fashion products. Shein is renowned for its constantly changing lineup of trendy fashion items.
• Free returns for many countries. Although Shein’s return policy isn’t free for all countries, it does cover major ones like Germany, France, and Spain.
• VIP program. Shein has a free membership program at four different levels. As a dropshipper, frequent orders can qualify you for discounts.

Cons of Shein

• Branded packaging. Like with Temu, Shein products come with branded packaging. Customers will be aware that you're dropshipping from Shein, affecting your store's reputation.
• Slow shipping. Shein’s shipping times are slower compared to dropshipping suppliers with warehouses in different regions. Orders are shipped and delivered within 10-14 days.
• No dedicated dropshipping program. Shein doesn't have a dropshipping program and lacks integrations with third-party tools for dropshipping.

Temu vs. Shein: How are their business models different?

Both Temu and Shein are popular online shopping platforms known for their affordable and trendy products.

Temu offers products in various categories, while Shein mainly focuses on fashion products.

If you plan to sell using Temu or Shein, you must know that both companies include their branding in the product packages. Since neither platform officially supports dropshipping, removing the branded packages is not possible.

Plus, both companies include their names on the invoice.

Winner: Draw

Temu vs. Shein: Which one offers more products?

Temu doesn't publicly mention the number of products in its catalog, but it's estimated to be around a million. The majority of the products are highly trendy and popular.

Looking into the product category of Temu, the products are categorized into the following:

As you can see, the categories vary a lot, and you can find dozens of products for each.

Temu also has sections like 'Best Sellers,' '5-Star Rated,' and 'New Arrivals.'

If you go to the 'Best Sellers' category, you can filter the products by the catalog and time, such as within the last seven days:

Overall, Temu offers lots of products in different categories, and they're easy to navigate.

In comparison, Shein is estimated to have around 600,000 products, which is fewer than what Temu offers.

The products are mostly related to fashion, which can be seen on the home page:

Some of Shein's product categories include women’s clothing, beauty and health, jewelry, and accessories, among others.

Here are all the categories listed:

However, unlike Temu, Shein does not have categories like 'Best Sellers' or '5-Star Rated,' which can make finding winning products more challenging.

Both Temu and Shein have high-quality product images. However, we don't recommend using them for reselling due to potential legal issues.

While Shein doesn’t explicitly state that reusing images is prohibited, Temu does.

To avoid complications, it's a good idea to order product samples and take your own product images.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs. Shein: Which one offers lower prices and more discounts?

Both Temu and Shein are known for their low prices. To illustrate the difference, let’s compare similar products available on each platform.

To give you an example, we found a similar kitchen sink rack on both Temu and Shein.

Here is the product on Temu:

As you can see, the product is priced at $3.95, and the standard shipping is free for all customers.

We found this almost identical product on Shein:

As you can see, the product is priced at $2.48, which is cheaper than Temu offers.

However, the shipping cost is $4.50, meaning the total cost is higher than that of Temu. Shein adds shipping costs to all orders that are under $10.

This comparison shows that Temu is generally cheaper with low-priced products since you don't need to pay for shipping.

On the other hand, if your purchase exceeds $10, Shein may end up being the more affordable option since shipping is free for larger orders.

When it comes to clothing, Shein typically has lower prices.

Both platforms offer discount programs. Shein has a VIP program that provides member-exclusive promotions.

Temu offers first-time customer deals and other discounts to incentivize new customers. However, it doesn't offer a longer-term loyalty program, which Shein does.

Winner: Draw

Temu vs. Shein: What are their dropshipping features?

Both Temu and Shein lack dropshipping programs that would assist dropshippers in setting up their stores for success.

Temu has publicly stated that it doesn't support dropshipping, as shown below:

Shein doesn't explicitly prohibit dropshipping, but they don't offer any tools for it.

Despite this, it is possible to dropship from Shein.

Both platforms lack robust integrations with third-party tools, like DSers and Spocket, which help with automated order processing, ecommerce platform integration, and inventory management.

However, one app, Importify, supports both Temu and Shein:

Importify allows you to import products from these platforms to your Shopify store.

If your business needs a dropshipping program, AliExpress might be a better option. It publicly supports dropshipping and offers integrations with order processing tools.

Winner: Draw

Temu vs. Shein: Which one is more user-friendly?

Both Temu and Shein are easy to navigate, thanks to their intuitive interfaces.

Shein's homepage focuses primarily on showcasing fashion products and categories, with fewer flash deals than Temu.

Here is a section from Shein's homepage:

Temu, on the other hand, focuses more on displaying deals on its website and brings in gamification elements, like spinning wheels and daily check-ins.

Winner: Draw

Temu vs. Shein: Which offers the best suppliers?

There is a clear difference between Temu and Shein when it comes to suppliers.

When you look at Temu product pages, you quickly realize that most of the sellers are suppliers that are listing their products on Temu:

The Temu suppliers have ratings, which you can see if you click on their company pages:

You can also scroll through each supplier's best-selling products.

Compared to Shein, the company manufactures most of the products.

You might sometimes notice a supplier name on a product page, though, like here:

Most Shein product pages say 'Sold by Shein,' which indicates they manufacture the product.

Although Shein has some suppliers on its platform, they don't offer dedicated pages for them.

For example, Temu shows ratings for suppliers, the products they sell, and reviews customers have left.

Shein misses this feature, which makes it harder to compare different products and suppliers.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs. Shein: Who has a better shipping policy?

Both Temu and Shein provide customers with estimated shipping processing and delivery times.

While they are generally faster than AliExpress, they can't compete with suppliers with warehouses on multiple continents.

Temu provides two shipping options:

• Standard Shipping: Delivery takes six to 20 days and is free on all orders.
• Express Shipping: Delivery takes between four and 11 days, with a fee of $12.90 per order. Express shipping is free for orders over $129.

Temu also provides a $5 compensation if your order is delayed.

On top of the two shipping options, some Temu sellers keep products in local warehouses, which helps reduce delivery times.

For example, the below product page showcases that the product will be shipped from a local warehouse:

Shein provides similar shipping options:

• Standard shipping. Delivery takes 10-12 days. It is free for orders over $9.90; for orders under $9.90, there is a $3.99 shipping fee.
• Express shipping. Delivery takes 8-10 days, with a fee of $12.90. Orders over $139 receive free express shipping.

While Temu compensates late shipments with credit, Shein offers 500 SHEIN points as compensation.

Temu offers free shipping regardless of the order price, which makes it a winner amongst the two.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs. Shein: Who has a better return policy?

A good return policy is vital for dropshippers. When comparing the return policies of Temu and Shein, Temu offers more generous options.

Temu's return policy is as follows:

• You can return items within 90 days of purchase.
• Once you start a return request, the items must be sent back within 14 days to be eligible for a refund.
• The first return per order is free, but any additional returns will have a $7.99 shipping fee.
• If your order is delayed, Temu provides compensation with a $5 credit for standard shipping or $13 for express shipping.

Shein's return policy is as follows:

• Depending on the country, you can return items within 35 or 45 days of the purchase date.
• The first return label is often free; additional returns will come with a €4.50 shipping fee.
• Some countries, such as Finland, Latvia, and Slovenia, are responsible for paying the return fee entirely themselves.

Even though Temu is a winner in this comparison, neither platform offers ideal return policies for dropshippers.

One idea is to apply a higher margin to your products to offset potential costs from returns.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs. Shein: Who has better customer support?

Both Temu and Shein offer live chat and email support for customers.

The main difference is that Temu provides 24/7 live chat support, while Shein only offers live chat during business days and at limited hours.

You can access Temu’s customer support through the 'Support' tab on the homepage:

Both platforms also offer support centers where customers can find information themselves.

Despite both companies offering customer support, they can still be hit or miss.

For example, Temu often redirects you to a chatbot that may be unable to help with your problems.

Winner: Temu

Summary

Before we go, we've created a quick summary of this article for you so you can easily remember it:

• Temu offers a more extensive and diverse product range. While focusing mostly on fashion, Shein has an advantage in that niche. Shein also has products in other categories, like home appliances.
• Temu doesn't charge for standard shipping, but Shein does if the product price is under $10. Many Temu products are more expensive than Shein's, but the free shipping makes Temu worth it. If you're eligible for free shipping, Shein can be more affordable.
• Both Temu and Shein lack dropshipping tools and integrations. Both platforms don't offer any tools dropshippers can use to dropship products from their platform.
• Most of Temu's products are sold by different suppliers, and Temu doesn't manufacture most of them. Conversely, Shein manufactures most of its products, although some private suppliers are available.
• Both Temu and Shein offer return policies, although they're not ideal for dropshippers. Returning products to China can end up being expensive and time-consuming.

Other dropshipping companies

Temu and Shein are both well-known companies in the direct-to-consumer space, but they're not the best options for dropshipping.

In fact, alternative solutions like AliExpress are much better suited for dropshipping since they support dropshipping, offer tools for it (AliExpress Dropshipping Center), and have no minimum order quantity.

If you're interested in AliExpress dropshipping, check out our guide:

• AliExpress Dropshipping: A 20-Step Getting Started Guide

If you're turned off by AliExpress' often slow shipping times, you can try dropshipping suppliers, such as CJDropshipping, Spocket, and Syncee.

All of these have warehouses on many continents and offer fast shipping times.

If you want to see how different dropshipping suppliers stack up against each other, we have written comparisons of them here:

• DSers vs. AliDropship
• CJdropshipping vs. SaleHoo
• Syncee vs. Spocket
• DSers vs. Spocket
• Printful vs. Printify

Conclusion

That wraps up our comparison of Temu and Shein for dropshipping!

To conclude, both platforms technically support dropshipping but are not ideal.

Temu has publicly mentioned that it doesn't support dropshipping. While Shein hasn't mentioned this, they don't offer any tools or integrations to support dropshippers.

Plus, both company's packages come as branded packages to customers, which may be a turn-off for them.

Temu and Shein are great for product research, but we recommend alternative dropshipping platforms like AliExpress, Modalyst, Spocket, Syncee, and DSers.

Good luck with your journey!

Want to learn more about dropshipping?

Ready to move your dropshipping store to the next level? Check out the articles below:

• How to Create a Dropshipping Store With AI (9 Best Tools)
• 15 AliExpress Alternatives for Dropshipping (Fast Shipping)
• 11 Surprising Reasons Why Everything on Temu Is So Cheap

Plus, don’t forget to check out our in-depth guide on how to start dropshipping here!