Are Temu, Shein and AliExpress trustworthy? How to check for yourself
Search for ‘is Temu legit’ and you mostly find opinions. An honest answer starts with a different question: trustworthy in what sense? The platforms are real, but there are facts about product safety, costs and your rights that you will want to know beforehand. This article does not pass judgement on any one platform; it helps you check for yourself.
Not a fake shop, but a large platform under EU supervision
Temu, Shein and AliExpress are large international platforms. The European Commission has designated them as very large online platforms under the Digital Services Act (DSA). This brings extra obligations, for example to assess and reduce the risks of illegal products, and the Commission supervises them directly.
That supervision leads to concrete decisions. On 28 May 2026 the Commission fined Temu 200 million euros because the platform had not properly assessed the risks of illegal products for EU consumers. On 20 July 2026 AliExpress was fined 550 million euros, partly over shortcomings in tackling illegal, unsafe and counterfeit products. On 17 February 2026 the Commission opened formal proceedings against Shein, which include the sale of illegal products. Opening proceedings is not yet a finding that rules were broken.
Temu and AliExpress consider their fines disproportionate, and AliExpress has announced it will challenge its fine before the EU courts. This overview reflects the position in October 2026; decisions and proceedings may change after that.
A fine does not mean every order goes wrong. It does show where the regulator sees the risks: in the safety and authenticity of what you buy.
Product safety: this is where the biggest risk lies
The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) tested 66 toys from AliExpress, Shein, Temu and Wish, among others, in 2025. According to the NVWA, 35 of them posed a serious safety risk, mainly because of small parts and magnets that can come loose. European consumer organisations testing products from Temu and Shein also found many items that did not meet EU safety rules.
The Dutch consumer association Consumentenbond therefore advises against buying toys, electronics and jewellery in particular through these platforms. That applies even more to products children can put in their mouths and to anything you plug into a socket.
Unsure about a product? Check whether it lists a manufacturer or a responsible party in the EU, and compare it with the same type of product from a shop in the EU. A CE mark on a product photo is no proof; anyone can print one.
Watch out for counterfeits too. Branded products at a fraction of the normal price are often not genuine. Counterfeit products can be unsafe, and customs can hold back parcels suspected of containing fakes.
Who are you actually buying from?
On a platform you are not always buying from the platform itself. On AliExpress and Temu, external sellers often sell through the platform. EU rules require online marketplaces to show whether you are buying from a trader. If you buy from a trader, you have the consumer rights that come with that; if you buy from a private individual, those rights usually do not apply.
So check on the product page who the seller is, where they are based and which return rules apply. If something goes wrong, you want to know who to contact: the seller or the platform. Take screenshots of the product page as it was when you ordered.
Reviews on the platform: read them critically
Product pages on large platforms often have thousands of reviews. Check whether a review is really about this variant: sometimes reviews of different colours, sizes or even products are merged. Photos from buyers often say more than stars.
Under EU rules, a platform must state whether and how it checks that reviews come from real buyers. Look up that explanation and read mainly recent reviews with details about quality, fit and delivery time. An average of 4.8 for a product costing a few euros says little if nobody describes what it is like after a few weeks of use.
Costs: VAT and, since July 2026, customs duty
Since July 2021 you pay VAT on almost everything you order from outside the EU; the old exemption for small parcels no longer exists. Since 1 July 2026 the EU has also applied a temporary flat customs duty of 3 euros per type of product in parcels worth up to 150 euros from outside the EU, where the seller pays VAT through the EU Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS). That covers the vast majority of online orders. Five identical T-shirts count as one type of product, a T-shirt and a watch as two. From 1 November 2026 the EU also charges a handling fee of 2 euros per type of product. Platforms and carriers can pass these costs on to you. (These are EU rules; the UK and US have their own import rules.)
So look at the total price at checkout, including VAT, import charges and shipping. If you have to pay extra on delivery, that is part of the price of your purchase too.
Returns and your rights
If a trader sells to consumers in the EU, EU consumer rules apply in principle, such as a 14-day cooling-off period for online purchases and the right to a product that works as you may expect. In practice a lot depends on the returns process: check beforehand which address you must send items back to and who pays the shipping costs.
If you cannot resolve things with the seller, first use the platform’s complaints procedure. If you paid by credit card or through a payment service with buyer protection, you may be able to request a chargeback there. So keep order confirmations, photos and chat messages.
Checklist before you order
This checklist works for any large platform based outside Europe. To check a specific online shop, also use the five steps from our shop check.
- Who is the seller, and are they a trader?
- Are there details of a manufacturer or responsible party?
- No toys, electronics or jewellery whose safety you cannot judge
- Recent reviews with photos of exactly this product variant
- Total price including VAT, customs duty and shipping
- Return address and who pays for returns
- A payment method that lets you claim your money back
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