HIOBuy Open Platform

HIOBuy is an official authorized technology partner of Taobao, 1688, and Weidian. We connect Chinese supply sources to your platform with a unified API — not just product data, but the full path from catalog sync to automated purchasing and (optionally) international delivery.

What HIOBuy provides

Unlike generic marketplace scrapers or read-only data feeds, HIOBuy is built around end-to-end fulfillment. Your integration should drive real transactions on your storefront and through our procurement APIs.

Diagram (HIOBuy connects Chinese sources to your platform: product sync, order receiving, auto purchasing, and status sync)

HIOBuy sits between Chinese marketplaces and your business — syncing products, receiving orders, auto-purchasing, and pushing status back to your dashboard.

Capability	What it means for you
Product sync	Search, detail, image search, SKU/stock/price from 1688, Taobao, Weidian via /v1/products/*
Order receiving	Your backend sends customer orders to HIOBuy when a sale happens on your site
Auto purchasing	HIOBuy places the corresponding order on the source marketplace via /v1/orders/*
Status sync	Purchase progress, domestic logistics, and (in warehouse mode) international tracking flow back to your systems — see Webhooks
International fulfillment	Optional: inbound warehouse parcels shipped overseas via /v1/fulfillment/* (warehouse mode only)

How we differ from other APIs

• Official channel access — authorized partner integrations, not unofficial scraping.
• Transaction-oriented — product APIs exist to support sourcing and checkout; procurement APIs complete the purchase loop.
• Unified standard responses — one schema across 1688, Taobao, and Weidian; see Response format.
• Optional full-stack fulfillment — self mode for buyers who manage their own logistics; warehouse mode when HIOBuy should store and ship internationally.

Acceptable use & quotas {#acceptable-use}

API access is not unlimited. Quotas and rate limits are tied to your commercial agreement and expected transaction volume (GMV) through the platform.

HIOBuy is intended for integrations where product discovery leads to real orders — customers buy on your site, and your backend calls /v1/orders/* to procure. Applications that only consume product search/detail without meaningful purchase activity, or that bypass HIOBuy for procurement while using our catalog APIs, are not supported and may be suspended after review.

Technical rate-limit headers and error codes are documented under Rate limits. Commercial terms are agreed during onboarding — not repeated in individual endpoint pages.

Integration flows {#integration-flows}

Choose a fulfillment mode in the developer portal when you authorize your app. The product API path is similar; procurement and international shipping differ.

Self fulfillment — you operate procurement

Best when you already have marketplace accounts and handle warehousing yourself.

1. Product sync — 1688 / Taobao / Weidian → HIOBuy Gateway: search, detail, images, SKU, stock
2. Display — HIOBuy Gateway → Your storefront
3. Customer order — Your customer → Your website
4. Procurement — Your backend → HIOBuy Gateway: POST /v1/orders/preview → create → pay
5. Auto-purchase — HIOBuy Gateway → Marketplace (your OAuth)
6. Status return — Marketplace → HIOBuy Gateway: purchase & domestic logistics
7. Dashboard sync — HIOBuy Gateway → Your dashboard

International shipping (/v1/fulfillment/*) is not available in self mode. You handle overseas delivery yourself.

HIOBuy warehouse fulfillment — end-to-end

One warehouse code binds all channels; HIOBuy procures, stores, and ships internationally.

1. Product APIs — still call marketplaces directly (low latency)
2. Product sync — to your customer-facing site
3. Customer order — on your website
4. Procurement — POST /v1/orders/* (forwarded to HIOBuy warehouse)
5. Auto-purchase — HIOBuy warehouse → Marketplace with managed tokens
6. Inbound — goods arrive; parcel_nos in order detail
7. International — freight/estimate → preview → create → pay
8. Delivery — trace via /v1/fulfillment/shipments/logistics/trace

Procurement and international APIs route through HIOBuy. Product APIs stay direct to platforms for speed.

Mode comparison

	Self fulfillment	HIOBuy warehouse
Channel tokens	You manage OAuth per channel	One warehouse code binds all channels
/v1/products/*	Gateway → marketplace	Gateway → marketplace (direct, low latency)
/v1/orders/*	Gateway → marketplace (your tokens)	Gateway → HIOBuy warehouse API
/v1/fulfillment/*	Not available	International shipping + balance

How to become a developer {#become-a-developer}

1. Register with your company, website, and use case (e.g. purchasing agent, cross-border store).
2. Verify your email address.
3. Sign in and create an App in the developer portal — describe your integration and expected traffic.
4. Wait for HIOBuy review. We approve apps that align with transaction-based sourcing; you will receive quota and channel access accordingly.
5. After approval: authorize channels (self OAuth or warehouse code), then create an API key under API Keys.
6. Integrate: product detail → customer checkout → procurement preview/create → pay → status webhooks. In warehouse mode, add international shipment flow.

Need a warehouse developer code? Contact HIOBuy operations after your app is approved for warehouse fulfillment.

API reference map

Base URL: https://api.hiobuy.com/v1

Area	Prefix	Docs
Products	/v1/products/*	Products
Procurement	/v1/orders/*	Procurement orders
Fulfillment	/v1/fulfillment/*	Shipments & balance

Two order types — do not mix: procurement (/v1/orders/*) buys from Chinese sellers into a domestic warehouse; international shipment (/v1/fulfillment/shipments/*) sends inbound parcels overseas.

Recommended reading order {#reading-order}

1. Become a developer — register, app approval, API key
2. Authentication + Portal authorization
3. Products → Procurement orders
4. Optional: Fulfillment (warehouse mode)
5. Errors & Rate limits when hardening production

Public API scope {#public-api-scope}

This documentation describes the supported Public API surface. Some paths may appear in openapi.json  for internal or deprecated use (e.g. legacy /v1/shipments, refund routes) — if an endpoint is not listed here, treat it as unavailable.

Technical conventions {#technical-conventions}

• Auth: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY — Authentication
• Product language in JSON body — Languages
• Prices: CNY yuan on products, fen on orders and shipments
• response_format: "standard" (default) or "upstream" — Response format

OpenAPI spec: api.hiobuy.com/openapi.json 

Published documentation: hiobuy.com/api-docs