Kakobuy fees, QC and shipping: the rules that outlast every festival
Promotions end. These rules run all year, live in help articles with no visible dates, and each has a timer. We list them with the day we last read them.
What you actually pay: the cost breakdown
The help centre states the formula: total cost equals item cost plus international shipping plus customs charges. Item cost means the product price plus the seller's domestic delivery to the warehouse. International shipping depends on weight, method and destination. The help page lists a declaration-related charge, generally RMB 8.00 per parcel depending on the line; that is not a complete statement of destination taxes or duties. There is no agent service fee; value-added services such as extra photos, reinforced packing or vacuum packing are optional and priced separately.
A separate help article lists a packaging consumables fee of ¥8. Whether that is the same ¥8 or a second charge is not explained; we list them apart and do not add them up. Promotions change only parts of this stack: item discounts touch item cost, while subsidies and freight coupons touch international shipping.
Currency conversion and the hidden markup
Prices on Chinese marketplaces are in yuan. Kakobuy shows a converted figure in your display currency, and when you top up by PayPal or card, the money is converted to US dollars. The help article says the rate is adjusted to the latest rate published by the Bank of China, and gives the PayPal handling charge as 3.5% plus US$0.30. The separate PayPal article says 2.9% plus US$0.30, and a checkout screenshot in it shows amount times 0.03 plus 0.01. The official text therefore conflicts: 3.5% or 2.9% plus US$0.30. The screenshot is an older interface example, not a third current rate. Confirm the actual itemised checkout charge.
Independent measurement on 8 October 2026 found the rate applied at checkout to be about 8.5% above the mid-market rate. On a ¥1,000 order that difference is larger than most festival coupons. This is a historical measurement, not a fixed current markup. Compare the actual debit and yuan credit against a reference rate from the same time.
What to do with that: compare totals in your own currency, on the same day, and treat percentage coupons as discounts on a marked-up base.
What QC covers, and what it does not
Kakobuy's quality check, the QC stage, covers appearance: model, style and size. Garments, bags, suitcases and shoes are opened; items in sealed packaging or with sealing strips are not, and only their packaging is checked. For household appliances, digital products and other electronics there is no check of authenticity, function or quality. Inspection is free. Extra personalised photos cost 2 yuan each, taken within 24 hours.
The official site does not publish how many free photos you get per item. That is a gap worth knowing about before you rely on photos alone for an expensive piece.
How to check QC photos inside the 120 hours
Photos appear under User Center, Warehouse. Open them on the day the item checks in, because the return clock is already running.
- Match the variant. Colour name and size label against what you ordered.
- Measure what you can. If a tape measure is in shot, compare against the seller's chart; ask for a measured photo if not.
- Look at the details that differ between batches: stitching on logos, print alignment, sole shape, hardware colour.
- Check tags and packaging if you plan to return, since tags-removed items are excluded from the guarantee.
- Decide inside 120 hours. Even within that window, eligibility, seller terms and exclusions matter; after it, ask support whether the seller will accept a request.
Shipping lines, customs and the line description
The estimator lists every line for a destination and weight, with price, transit time and a description. For a 1,000 g UK parcel on 10 October 2026 the cheapest lines were a UK dedicated line at $15.76 (7 to 19 days) and a UK air freight direct line at $17.47 (6 to 12 days); the list ran up to express services above $60. Prices move daily; this is one dated sample.
Read the description column before price. It states whether the line clears customs commercially, whether taxes are included, whether batteries or liquids are allowed, whether volumetric weight applies (length times width times height divided by 8,000 on several lines), and whether there is any return service if delivery fails. Customs terms in a dated notice and the description of the line you pick should agree. When they do not, the line description is the one that applies to your parcel.
Storage days and the other standing clocks
The storage article is one of the oldest in the help centre, dated 30 June 2020 in the help system, and still current. Normal parcels get 100 days from the "in storage" status, with a reminder email after 90 days; abnormal parcels, where the order was not submitted or logistics information is incomplete, get 60 days from "Signed for". After that, goods are treated as abandoned and destroyed. Perishable shelf life is not covered.
| Clock | Length and start | Where it is written | Last read |
|---|---|---|---|
| Return or exchange request | 120 hours from "Stocked in" | Help id 51 | 2026-10-10 |
| Free storage, normal parcels | 100 days from "in storage"; email at day 90 | Help id 1 | 2026-10-10 |
| Free storage, abnormal parcels | 60 days from "Signed for" | Help id 1 | 2026-10-10 |
| Storage extension | 10 yuan per order per 30 days (was 20 yuan per 100 days in June 2026) | Help id 120 | 2026-10-10 |
| Refund of a top-up | Request only after 2 days from the top-up | Help id 104 | 2026-10-10 |
| Order review | Historical tutorial example: 3 to 5 working hours; actual review varies | Tutorial page | 2026-10-10 |
Return fees by month, a rule dated 2018
The first return or exchange each calendar month is free of the service fee for all users except Prime members. After that the fee rises with the number of requests in the month, in yuan per time, on a table the article says has applied since 20 September 2018. Shipping to and from the seller is charged on top, unless the fault is the seller's or the courier's.
That gives this table a clear date, which is rare among standing rules. It also shows that the operator can date a rule when it wants to. We would like every help article to do the same.
Your next check
Separate rules from estimates
Check the live debit before topping up, the item’s actual in-storage timestamp before waiting and the packed parcel measurements before comparing freight. Read the return exclusions and selected route conditions alongside any promotion.