Difference Between Oberlo and Spocket

Oberlo is opposed to the attachment of a custom invoice from vendors, that specifies the store’s name, logo, and contact details. Spocket allows sellers to include all these particulars as well as a customized note to the customers.

This improves the chances of curating a distinctive brand image for the seller.

Key Takeaways

1. Oberlo is a dropshipping platform that connects online stores with suppliers and automates the order fulfilment process.
2. Spocket is a dropshipping platform that connects online stores with US and EU-based suppliers.
3. Oberlo is ideal for beginners and small-scale businesses, while Spocket suits established businesses and those looking for high-quality products.

Oberlo vs Spocket

The difference between Oberlo and Spocket is that Oberlo does not allow suppliers to attach their customized invoices with their packages, while Spocket allows vendors to attach their customized invoices with their respective packages. Branding is an important element of building a strong and loyal customer base. Spocket aids suppliers create such branding distinctions with custom invoices.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Oberlo	Spocket
Custom Invoices	Oberlo does not allow the vendor to send customized and branded invoices with the delivery.	Spocket allows the vendor to send customized and branded invoices with the delivery.
Price of Plans	Oberlo’s basic paid plans are less affordable than the basic plans offered by Spocket.	Spocket’s basic paid plans are more affordable than the elementary plans offered by Oberlo.
Supporting Platforms	Oberlo only supports Shopify. It cannot be used with WooCommerce.	Spocket supports both WooCommerce and Shopify.
Delivery Speed	Deliveries are slower. Some packages may take 30 days to be delivered.	Deliveries are much faster. The packages usually arrive within 2-5 of shipping.
Product Sourcing	Most products on Oberlo are sourced from China.	Products are sourced from Europe and America.
Quality Assurance	Quality of the products may be inferior to the ones sold on Spocket.	Superior quality is assured by Spocket as the vendors are thoroughly vetted.
Customer Support	Good customer support.	Excellent customer support.

What is Oberlo?

Oberlo is a Louisiana-based company that was established in 2015. It was bought by Shopify in 2017 for a total of $15 million. Oberlo is one of the leading names in the dropshipping business. It allows customers to import products from the Chinese retail giant, AliExpress.

As the shipping distance can be fairly extensive, especially for customers in Europe and North America, the shipments take quite some time to be delivered.

Oberlo has created a three-tier system to categorize its vendors- AliExpress Suppliers, Oberlo Suppliers, and the Oberlo Verified suppliers. The two latter tiers offer better quality products and also ensure on-time delivery.

However, a problem with Oberlo is that since it operates as an in-house platform for Shopify, it cannot be used with other e-commerce platforms like WooCommerce. Moreover, it does not allow custom invoices, thus, hampering the brand creation agenda of suppliers.

What is Spocket?

Established in 2017, the Vancouver-based company Spocket has gained a lot of recognition among customers for its dropshipping facilities. Spocket caters to a global clientele by supporting operations on both Shopify as well as WooCommerce.

Currently, Spocket caters to an extensive list of clients comprising of over 20,000 entrepreneurs dispersed across 5 continents.

Spocket is renowned for its quality products imported from Europe and America. All sellers are handpicked and thoroughly vetted before they can use the platform.

This is followed by a round of product testing, where the Spocket team orders products from the suppliers to test their quality. This ensures superior quality products at an effectively lucrative price point.

Spocket also offers convenient and swift shipping of products. Usually, Spocket packages are delivered within 2-5 days. An added benefit of the platform is that it allows suppliers to sell products closest to the customer’s location.

Moreover, the branding features available with Spocket are truly unmatched by its market competitors.

Main Differences Between Oberlo and Spocket

1. The main difference between Oberlo and Spocket is that the latter offers better branding opportunities than the former. Spocket allows vendors to send branded invoices to customers, while Oberlo does not offer this feature. If a seller wants to create a distinctive brand image through custom invoices, Spocket is the most befitting option. For branding purposes, Oberlo is not the correct choice.
2. Spocket offers more economical paid plans than Oberlo. Spocket’s plans start from the lower end of the pricing spectrum and are more affordable than the basic plans offered by Oberlo.
3. Oberlo and Spocket also differ in terms of the platforms each supports. While Spocket can be operated on Shopify as well as WooCommerce, Oberlo can only operate on Shopify. Hence, an active Shopify account will be needed to use Oberlo, while you can use Spocket with either of the e-commerce platforms.
4. The two also differ in terms of product sourcing. Oberlo sources the bulk of its products from China, while Spocket sources most of its products from Europe and America.
5. Spocket is renowned for its fast delivery services. Oberlo is also a fast dropshipping option but it is comparatively slower than Spocket.
6. The quality of products offered by Spocket is superior to those offered by Oberlo. As all potential suppliers are thoroughly vetted before joining the platform as sellers, high-quality products are guaranteed by Spocket.
7. The customer service provided by Spocket is generally held in high esteem by customers. Oberlo also provides good customer service, but it falls a little behind Spocket in this category.

References

1. https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3271972.3271993