Express £175 · Full £450 · Visits from £650 · Paid only by you
Chinese Supplier Check
Before you pay a deposit, sign a supply agreement or hand over a mould, find out who is really on the other side, and whether they can make what you need.
Choose how deep to go
Start with the records. Add a visit when the order, the deposit or the tooling is worth it.
Express Check
£175 · 1–2 working days
For a first look before you go further with a supplier.
- Official registration, read in Chinese: legal name, credit code, status, age, owners and business scope
- Court judgments, enforcement cases and the dishonest-defaulter list
- Factory or trading company, as far as the records show
- A plain-English verdict: proceed, check further, or stop
Full Supplier Check
£450 · 3–5 working days
Before you pay a deposit, sign a supply agreement or hand over a mould.
- Everything in the Express Check
- A call to the factory in Mandarin
- Bank details matched to the company, and mould ownership terms checked
- Whether the factory can make your product
- Written report with red, amber and green summary, and a 20-minute call
Site Verification
From £650 · quoted by location
Proof that the business really operates at the address it gives you.
- Everything in the Full Supplier Check
- A visit to the registered and production addresses
- Time-stamped, location-tagged photos of the building, gate, signage and visible activity
- Whether the name, address and scale match what the supplier told you
On-site Factory Visit
From £950 · quoted per visit
For large orders, new tooling or a long-term supplier.
- A visit inside the factory, arranged with the supplier
- Production lines, equipment, quality control, raw materials and capacity
- Meeting with management, and the questions that matter for your product
- Written visit report with photos and, where allowed, video
Site Verification photographs only what can be seen from public places. Visits inside a factory take place with the supplier's agreement. Prices for visits depend on the city and whether the visit can be combined with others.
Report showing court cases or a "dishonest debtor" listing? Read red flags in Chinese court records, explained. Already have an audit report from the supplier? Read what a factory audit in China checks, and what it can't.
If you start with an Express Check and then order the Full Supplier Check for the same company within 30 days, we deduct the £175.
What the Full Supplier Check covers
- Official registration: the Chinese legal name, 18-character Unified Social Credit Code, status, date set up, legal representative, registered capital and business scope, from the national enterprise credit register.
- Factory or trader: whether the business scope and address fit a manufacturer, or a trading company presenting itself as one.
- Owners and related companies: shareholders, changes of control and look-alike companies.
- Courts and enforcement: judgments, enforcement cases and the dishonest-defaulter list.
- A call to the factory in Mandarin: who answers, what they say about capacity, equipment and lead times, and whether it matches their documents.
- Bank details and tooling terms: whether the payee name matches the company, and what the quote or contract says about mould ownership.
- Can they make your product? A view on whether the factory's equipment, capacity, certifications and export experience fit what you are ordering.
What you receive
- A written report in English (Chinese on request), with a red, amber or green summary on page one
- The source behind every finding
- A 20-minute call to talk through the results and next steps
Optional, quoted separately: translation of key documents, and pre-shipment inspections booked with an independent inspection company, with the findings followed up with the factory in Mandarin.
Paid only by you
We are paid by our clients, never by the suppliers we check or recommend. We take no commissions, rebates or fees from factories, and we confirm this in writing in every engagement.
How it works
- Send us the company name, any quote, invoice or certificate you have, and your drawing if relevant.
- We confirm scope and price within one working day. Payment is in advance.
- You receive the report within 3–5 working days.
Reports are based on official records, information from the company and our own enquiries at the time of the check. They are not legal advice, a credit rating or a guarantee of future conduct.
Read more
Paying soon? Supplier changed bank details? · Paying a Hong Kong account? · Is my Alibaba supplier legit?
Free tool: check a Chinese company's credit code in seconds.
Is my Chinese supplier a factory or a trading company? · How to read a Chinese business licence · What supplier checks and factory audits cost
How to verify a Chinese or UK company before you pay or sign: the registers, red flags and payment precautions in our free guide.
Common questions
How do I know if a Chinese supplier is real?
Check its 18-character Unified Social Credit Code on China's national enterprise credit register, then check court and enforcement records, and confirm the bank account is in the same company name. Our Express Check does this in Chinese for £175 and gives a plain-English verdict.
Can you tell if a supplier is a factory or a trading company?
Usually. The registered business scope, address and capital show whether a company is set up to manufacture or only to trade. The Full Supplier Check adds a call to the factory in Mandarin, and Site Verification adds a visit to the address.
How long does a supplier check take?
An Express Check takes 1–2 working days and a Full Supplier Check 3–5 working days. Site visits depend on the city and are scheduled when you order.
Do suppliers pay you?
No. We are paid only by our clients and take no commissions, rebates or fees from factories.
Is a supplier check a guarantee?
No. It reports what official records, the company and our own enquiries show at the time. It reduces risk but cannot guarantee future conduct.
Need to go deeper?
Before a joint venture, distribution deal, acquisition or large contract, our Enhanced Due Diligence (from £2,500) investigates ownership and control, related companies, sanctions and forced-labour risk, court records and reputation. If you need someone managing suppliers in China, see your representative in China.
Have a supplier you're unsure about?
Send us the name and we'll confirm scope and price within one working day.
Request a check