How to start dropshipping if you don't have a website

While it's better to have your own website for a dropshipping business, you can start earning without one.

Perhaps you don't feel confident with creating a website, it certainly is a lot of initial effort, especially without hiring a web designer or developer to assist.

You may want to test the waters of dropshipping before committing to the task of getting your website up and running.

The easiest way to sell without owning a website is to use someone else's. This is a prime example of not reinventing the wheel.

There are online marketplaces that have been around for years and have established themselves with a large number of loyal customers.

It makes sense to let these marketplaces do the hard work for you in terms of advertising and attracting customers.

All you have to do is make sure your product listings are well written, informative, and optimised to convert into sales.

What is an e-commerce marketplace?

Before we dive in, let's define what a marketplace is. According to Forbes:

"An online marketplace is a website or app that facilitates shopping from many different sources.

The operator of the marketplace does not own any inventory, their business is to present other people’s inventory to a user and facilitate a transaction."

Which are the most popular marketplaces?

Data from Statista, April 2021, shows that the most popular online marketplaces at this time were:

1. Amazon

2. eBay

3. Mercado Libre

4. Rakuten

5. AliExpress

6. Shopee

7. Walmart

8. Etsy

9. Taobao

10. Pinduoduo

So, now that's clear, here are 5 of our top marketplaces to sell online.

Amazon

Amazon is the largest e-commerce marketplace globally. In June 2021, Amazon.com had over 2.7 billion website visits, as reported by Statista.

• It is legal to dropship on Amazon
• Sellers must follow Amazon's dropshipping policy
• Amazon marketplace is available in 19 countries: United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Australia, India, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Sweden, Poland

eBay

One of the global leaders as an e-commerce platform, eBay was the second-most visited marketplace in 2021, according to Statista.

• It is legal to dropship on eBay
• eBay's dropshipping policy requires that products are fulfilled directly from a wholesale supplier
• There are over 190 eBay markets and 150 million buyers around the world
• The top sellers on eBay in 2020 were predominantly in the United States (31%) and the United Kingdom (29%). Germany and China follow closely behind.

Mercado Libre

Mercado Libre is the largest e-commerce marketplace in South America. It comes third on the list of the most visited marketplace globally, as shown in the graph sourced from Statista above.

• Dropshipping is legal on Mercado Libre
• The platform operates in 18 countries with its biggest market in Brazil
• Retail e-commerce sales are expected to reach $160 billion USD by 2025
• Find information about dropshipping on the Mercado Libre sellers page

Kaufland

A German hypermarket chain, Kaufland purchased online marketplace Real.de in 2021. Kaufland is owned by Schwarz Gruppe, who also own Lidl.

In March 2021, Kaufland launched its e-commerce marketplace, which integrated Real.de, to offer over 25 million products.

• Germany is the fifth largest e-commerce market in the world
• It's legal to dropship on Kaufland.de
• Find more information about dropshipping at the Kaufland Seller University
• The number of monthly online visitors increased from 30 million in October 2021 to over 50 million in December 2021, as reported by SimilarWeb.

Walmart

A huge player in the United States, Walmart increased sales by 79% in 2021.

Some analysts predict that Walmart could overtake Amazon in online retail sales, as Jungle Scout reported it was growing five times faster than Amazon in October 2021.

• Dropshipping on Walmart is legal
• Your dropshipping business must be in the United States
• Check Walmart's section about third-party sellers
• The number of monthly online visitors ranges from 400 to over 600 million, according to SimilarWeb's data from 2021
• Walmart holds 7.1% of the e-commerce market share in the United States as of 2021

That rounds up some of the best ways to make money from dropshipping without setting up your own website. Of course, we recommend selling from your own domain name to maximise your profits.