Per week earlier than the 11.11 sale, I did a web based ballot with my buddies asking the place they like to buy extra: Lazada or Shopee. The outcomes had been shocking to me as a result of I anticipated the votes to be virtually equally cut up however Shopee bought 80% of the votes.
Personally, I don’t have a choice. I normally search each platforms for the merchandise I’m in search of and purchase the place it’s both cheaper or if I would like it urgently, the place the supply time is quicker. However doing the ballot bought me serious about my on-line purchases and questioning the place do I have a tendency to buy extra.
It seems that I do purchase extra from Shopee. Nevertheless, whereas I’ve purchased extra gadgets in Shopee, I observed that I’ve spent extra on Lazada. Plainly for costly gadgets like that air fryer and HD webcam that I wanted final yr, I have a tendency to purchase in Lazada. However for smaller and cheaper gadgets similar to a cleaning soap dispenser, oximeter, and ring mild, I find yourself shopping for them in Shopee.
This realization piqued my curiosity concerning the two largest on-line buying platforms within the Philippines. Are they merely two variations of the identical factor or have they got important variations? And extra importantly, for the buyer, which one affords the higher buying expertise? I checked and in contrast, and that is what I discovered.
The Firm
Lazada and Shopee each have headquarters in Singapore and primarily function within the Southeast Asian Area. Curiously, Lazada has extra energetic customers within the Philippines however Shopee has extra energetic customers total in Southeast Asia. Nevertheless, Shopee receives round 73 million internet visits, which is nearly twice larger than Lazada’s on-line site visitors.
The recognition of a buying platform has its execs and cons, nevertheless it usually advantages the buyer by attracting many companies to promote by way of them and thus offering extra selections and a wide range of merchandise.
If an organization fails to maintain up with the demand from customers, then that’s when issues and points come up. We’ll point out a few of these later for each platforms.
Person Expertise
A platform or app received’t final lengthy if it’s troublesome to make use of. Tech startups rent consumer expertise engineers to exactly keep away from, or at the least reduce this downside. As for Lazada and Shopee, which one is simpler and fewer complicated to make use of?
Their web sites have the same format and are user-friendly, maybe as a result of on-line market templates have already been optimized by internet designers by way of the years. Procuring and checkout are additionally environment friendly for each web sites. My buddies and I agree although that Lazada’s format appears to be much less cluttered and simpler to the eyes than Shopee’s web site.
Most of our on-line buying expertise in Lazada and Shopee is completed by way of the app. In actual fact, there are mobile-only offers and promos for each apps. And on this side, Lazada has the higher hand which is noticeably quicker and simpler to navigate.
One explicit function that I like in Lazada is that the Assessment part for listings could be simply accessed on the menu that seems on high of the display if you scroll down a bit. For Shopee, you’ll should scroll all the best way all the way down to the part.
This might not be an enormous deal for some, however I’ve had my justifiable share of expertise in receiving low-quality and faux gadgets from each platforms. Thus, the evaluation and suggestions part is now my first go-to part earlier than I even learn by way of the product data and different particulars.
Number of Merchandise
I can solely assume that you could purchase virtually something from each platforms, at the least something that you could legally buy on-line. The 2 giants carry hundreds of thousands of merchandise, which makes it virtually a default for anybody to match listings on each apps to see the place it’s cheaper and quicker in supply.
Lazada has LazMall whereas Shopee has Shopee Mall, the place merchandise from respected shops and types are listed. From my remark, Lazada appears to have extra accredited huge model shops and suppliers, whereas Shopee has extra small suppliers and home-based sellers.
Furthermore, I’ve observed that there are extra wholesalers in Shopee than in Lazada. Moreover, there are a number of second-hand or pre-loved gadgets being offered in Shopee, which is one thing that I’ve but to see in Lazada.
Worth Comparability
The lure of buying on-line will not be solely as a result of it’s handy, however as a result of it’s usually extra reasonably priced than shopping for the merchandise on the mall. And the consensus amongst my buddies is that Shopee affords decrease costs than Lazada.
Shopee has a Lowest Worth Assured function, which lives as much as its identify. And true to its fame of being an “on-line Divisoria”, I’ve seen folks haggle with sellers by way of the chat part.
Nevertheless, I believe the most important purpose why Shopee listings find yourself cheaper is due to the Shopee cash, which can be utilized like money as in comparison with Lazada’s cash which might solely be used to get vouchers and reductions. This was the explanation why I made an effort to frequently play throughout their Reside Quiz reveals and win Shopee cash.
Moreover, on the subject of gross sales and promos, it’s arduous to match which one has higher offers, nevertheless it’s notable to say that Shopee has been giving lots of free transport affords because the pandemic began.
Fee Choices
Each platforms have an in-store e-wallet, which you’ll be able to high up by way of numerous strategies. Additionally they each supply Money-On-Supply and Gcash as fee choices. As of writing, solely Shopee accepts Cash.ph as a fee methodology, whereas solely Lazada accepts JCB and American Specific credit score and debit playing cards. In the meantime, you need to use Mastercard and Visa playing cards on each websites however for Shopee, that is restricted to Most popular and Shopee Mall outlets.
However, Shopee affords extra fee strategies than Lazada, which incorporates paying by way of on-line banking (BPI, Unionbank, and so forth.), remittance and fee facilities (Bayad Middle, Palawan Pawnshop, and so forth.), over-the-counter financial institution deposits (BPI, Metrobank, and so forth.), and even by way of Google Play.
However, one benefit of Lazada over Shopee is the provision of installment fee plans, which even non-credit cardholders can reap the benefits of with the assistance of Billease, Cashalo, and different digital credit score platforms. A buddy talked about that this installment function is the explanation why he may purchase costly home equipment and devices by way of Lazada.
Supply and Delivery
I dwell in Metro Manila, and from expertise, there isn’t a lot distinction in supply occasions between the 2 platforms. However buddies primarily based in different elements of the nation say that their Lazada orders arrive earlier most often, particularly for worldwide deliveries.
One much less apparent distinction between the 2 is that Lazada has a logistics infrastructure arrange. They’ve wholly-owned warehouses and success facilities across the nation, which could clarify why their supply occasions are shorter and extra dependable.
Nevertheless, having that logistics infrastructure could possibly be the explanation why Lazada’s transport charges are usually larger than Shopee’s. Furthermore, Lazada has fewer transport choices as in comparison with Shopee, so there’s much less seemingly that you simply’ll get the very best supply fee out there.
Basically, if you’d like your merchandise to reach quicker and also you don’t thoughts paying a bit of bit extra for transport, then order from Lazada. If you wish to pay much less transport charges and also you don’t thoughts ready a couple of further days, then Shopee is your first selection.
Purchaser Safety and Buyer Service
Final however positively not least is purchaser’s safety and buyer assist.
There’s Shopee Assure that gives safety for consumers in opposition to fraudulent sellers. In the meantime, Lazada has Fee Safety, which covers unauthorized transactions. On this regard, I like Shopee Assure higher.
Each platforms have order monitoring. Nevertheless, it’s simpler with Lazada as a result of its on-site monitoring software supplies fast, real-time, and detailed standing from its supply service and logistics companions. In Shopee, you’d should go to the third-party courier’s web site to test the place your gadgets are.
Lazada and Shopee present 24/7 buyer assist however from expertise, it’s more durable to return gadgets purchased from Shopee and you have to pay for the return price in all circumstances. Returning or getting refunds from Lazada has been simpler and quicker for me. Moreover, Lazada affords free returns for some gadgets, particularly home equipment and devices.
Closing Ideas
I hope this comparability between the 2 largest buying apps within the Philippines has helped you in your spending selections.
I don’t assume there’s any clear winner between the 2. And that’s why I store in each. However for gadgets which can be lower than P1,000, I usually purchase in Shopee. For costlier gadgets and people which I urgently want, I buy them from Lazada.
One ultimate tip for these pondering of shopping for one thing on-line. Test if the model or firm has its personal on-line retailer. As a result of it’s all the time a lot better to purchase straight from them on their web site.
