1. Start with a normal Alibaba or 1688 search
BuyerPilot works inside the marketplace research process. Search for the product you need and review the listings normally. The extension adds selection controls so you can keep only the products that are relevant to your specification, material, style or sourcing requirement. Excluding poor matches before ranking matters because a supplier comparison is only useful when the underlying products are genuinely comparable.
2. Select the listings you actually want to compare
Choose the product cards that deserve further research instead of scanning every result on the page. If several selected products belong to the same seller, BuyerPilot can consolidate them into one supplier record before the final ranking. This prevents one seller with many similar listings from occupying several positions in the shortlist simply because it published more product pages.
3. Enter the quantity you intend to source
Alibaba and 1688 listings can show multiple quantity-price tiers. BuyerPilot uses the quantity entered by the user to evaluate the applicable marketplace price rather than assuming the lowest headline number represents the intended order. Final quotations, packaging charges, shipping, duties and negotiated commercial terms still need to be confirmed directly with the supplier.
4. Scan available supplier evidence
The extension gathers the marketplace information available for the selected products and sellers. Depending on the marketplace and page, this can include price, seller ratings, years on platform, repeat-purchase or reorder signals, business type, merchant or verification status, product activity and source links. Alibaba and 1688 expose different fields, so BuyerPilot keeps their extraction and interpretation workflows separate.
5. Review the ranked supplier shortlist
BuyerPilot returns a structured ranking with the supplier evidence available during the scan. Score Confidence helps show when the ranking was built from complete versus limited data. The shortlist is a research aid, not a guarantee that a supplier is legitimate or suitable. Before ordering, buyers should still confirm samples, specifications, certifications, production capability, lead time, payment terms and other commercial requirements.
6. Continue the research or export on eligible plans
From the ranked panel you can open supplier or product sources and continue your checks. Pro and Founder Lifetime plans can export the supplier comparison to CSV for use in Excel or Google Sheets. This is useful when you want a permanent sourcing record, need to compare quotations later, or want to share the shortlist with a colleague.