Business-to-business (B2B) marketplaces are platforms that connect industry buyers with retailers. B2B marketplaces are the fastest-growing B2B ecommerce sales channel, generating over $350 billion in sales in 2024.
The big benefit of selling on a B2B marketplace is convenience. List your products on a wholesale platform, reach a ready-made audience of B2B buyers, and generate sales from people who are motivated to buy.
Sounds simple enough, right? Still, there’s a lot to consider when selecting the best B2B marketplace for your brand—from identifying the channels your customers use, to understanding a platform’s integration and payment options.
In this article, we’ll review the 10 best B2B marketplaces to help you scale your B2B sales in 2026 and beyond.
A B2B marketplace is a platform where businesses sell products to other companies. Buyers use B2B marketplaces to outfit their businesses with office supplies, find equipment and materials for manufacturing, or purchase inventory to resell through their own businesses.
Buyers can choose between two types of B2B marketplace platforms:
Most platforms blend different fee models to attract B2B businesses. The common ones include:
B2B marketplaces are the fastest-growing digital sales channel in 2025. Digital Commerce 360 sized the channel at $351 billion in 2024, up 35% from the $260 billion in sales in 2023, and operator investment continues to expand.
For example, Target Plus is forecasting $5 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) within four years, indicating sustained momentum and confirming that marketplace GMV pools continue to grow.
Increasingly, buyers are opting for self-service options when ordering B2B products. In fact, 7 in 10 B2B buyers prefer to place orders online rather than via phone or email, and they span an average of 10 digital and in-person touchpoints before clicking “buy.”
On top of that, a 2024 Forrester-commissioned survey found 73% of buyers expect the same convenient online experience they enjoy in B2C. The self-serve element on marketplaces gives buyers the financial controls their business requires, such as:
| Marketplace | Best for | Pricing |
|---|---|---|
| Faire | Independent retailers and brands (apparel, home decor, beauty, etc.) | 15% commission + $10 on opening orders* |
| Mirakl | Companies wanting to build and grow their own online marketplace | Targets larger companies and does not publish its prices |
| Amazon Business | Sellers looking to reach millions of business customers worldwide | $39.99/month + referral fees (starting from 8%) |
| Alibaba | Brands wanting to reach a massive global network of retailers | Starts at $166/month (billed annually) |
| Novi | Brands focused on clean, transparent, and sustainable CPG products | On request |
| Carro | Independent businesses looking for a wholesale dropshipping marketplace |
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| Global Sources | Connecting international buyers with verified Asian suppliers | Generally free for buyers to access the online platform |
| Made-in-China | Connecting global buyers specifically with verified Chinese suppliers | Free for buyers to access. Costs may apply for premium services. |
| DHgate.com | Chinese manufacturers and wholesalers reaching a global B2B and B2C audience | Platform fee (999 yuan/year) + large deposit (50K–200K yuan) |
| Globy | B2B suppliers and buyers who need built-in cross-border logistics tools | Free registration, free listings, and zero sales fees for suppliers |
Faire is a leading online wholesale marketplace for independent retailers and brands. Hundreds of thousands of independent retailers shop on Faire for apparel, home decor, food and beverages, beauty and wellness products, jewelry, paper and novelty items, kids and baby merchandise, pet products, and more.
Mirakl helps companies start and grow online marketplaces where they can sell products from other sellers without having to buy and store those products themselves.
Mirakl’s technology is used by companies like Airbus, Leroy Merlin, Macy’s, and Toyota Material Handling. The platform is easy to use and reliable, making it popular with large companies that want to grow their marketplace business.
If you want to expand your online store by offering more products from third-party sellers, Mirakl offers a well-regarded, mature solution with responsive support.
Mirakl targets larger companies and doesn’t publish its prices.
Amazon Business is a platform for buyers to purchase items from other businesses.
Mostly used for business-owned purchases (rather than discovering inventory to resell), it’s one of the biggest B2B marketplaces in the world. Amazon Business does over $35 billion in annualized sales and serves eight million business customers worldwide.
Alibaba is one of the world’s largest marketplace platforms. The Alibaba Group holds several B2B marketplace subsidiaries under its umbrella, including Taobao, Tmall, and AliExpress.
Earning over $137.3 billion in its 2025 fiscal year, Alibaba allows B2B brands to reach a wide variety of global retailers looking for everything from large stock orders to bespoke items.
Novi is a new B2B marketplace that differentiates itself by focusing on clean, transparent products. The platform verifies marketing claims, formula ownership, and sustainable packing so you can sell to B2B customers that value the same things you do.
Carro is a newer wholesale dropshipping marketplace geared toward independent businesses. More than 70,000 brands currently list 500,000 products on the platform. Popular categories include handmade goods like accessories, jewelry, and stationery.
Brands list their catalogs on Carro, where retailers can select and integrate products into their online storefronts. When an end-consumer makes a purchase from a retailer, the brand fulfills the order on the retailer’s behalf.
Global Sources is a Hong Kong-based B2B company connecting international buyers with Asian suppliers since 1971. The platform links buyers and verified suppliers through online marketplaces, trade shows, and publications.
Accessing the Global Sources online platform is generally free for buyers. Costs may come from attending trade shows, using premium services, or transaction fees, depending on supplier agreements.
Made-in-China is a major B2B ecommerce platform run by Focus Technology Co., Ltd. that connects global buyers with Chinese suppliers across many industries.
The platform offers products in 27 categories, from manufacturing machinery to consumer electronics and textiles, meeting a wide range of sourcing needs.
While basic access to Made-in-China is free for buyers, additional services like Premium Membership and transaction processing through STS may include extra costs.
DHgate.com is a leading Chinese B2B and B2C cross-border ecommerce marketplace. With over 34 million live listings, DHgate offers products across many categories for both consumer and business needs.
The platform connects international buyers with Chinese manufacturers and wholesalers, selling a wide range of products including electronics, apparel, and health and beauty items. Based in Beijing, DHgate has expanded globally with offices in the USA and UK.
Globy is a global B2B marketplace that connects suppliers and buyers, helping them plan cross-border shipments with built-in logistics tools. Sellers can list products for wholesale discovery, while buyers can browse a catalog and engage with suppliers directly. Globy makes money from value-added services like promotion programs, logistics solutions, and featured listings.
Globy benefits
Considerations
Pricing
As B2B continues its transition to online, the marketplace model is thriving. Some 14% of all B2B sales take place on marketplaces, according to the 2024 B2B Marketplace 750 Report.
Let’s take a look at why so many B2B transactions happen through an online marketplace:
The decision-making process for B2B sales differs from business-to-consumer sales. Business buyers need to know they’ll produce a return on their investment (ROI) when purchasing from you. Through its existing reputation, a marketplace can reassure customers that their shopping experience will be safe and trustworthy, making it easier to convert buyers through the platform.
According to a new survey of 103 B2B buyers, marketplaces have experienced significant growth, with 59% of B2B buyers conducting over a quarter of their purchases on online marketplaces.
Instead of finding and onboarding new B2B customers manually, upload your inventory to those marketplaces to showcase products where customers are actively looking for them.
Major B2B marketplaces like Amazon Business and Faire have an existing international presence. Use their network, experience, and connections—and sell your products to international buyers—by selling via these marketplaces.
Thinking of opening a new product to B2B buyers? Quickly test and validate the idea by listing it for sale on a marketplace. Immediate orders indicate it’s worth investing more resources into expansion.
Beyond a listing service, B2B marketplaces offer fulfillment, payment processing, and reverse logistics. Using these features may reduce your operational costs and free up time, which you can invest in other activities such as strengthening B2B customer relationships.
B2B marketplaces offer undeniable advantages to businesses looking to reach buyers at scale. But before setting up shop, consider these disadvantages to marketplace selling:
B2B marketplaces take many tasks off your plate—but they charge for the luxury. Many platforms charge for payment processing, sponsored listings that appear higher in searches, and commissions for introducing you to buyers. These fees can eat into tight B2B profit margins.
From policies restricting the types of products you can upload to the payment terms you can accept, you’re at the mercy of a marketplace’s rules when selling through their platform. Go against these rules and risk having your profile blocked.
While some B2B marketplaces have functionality to brand your storefront and email your customers, options for retention strategies on marketplaces are limited.
It’s hard to build—and, most importantly, maintain—strong relationships with your B2B customers. Those relationships are the foundation that most profitable B2B ecommerce businesses thrive on.
Marketplaces act as powerful intermediaries, and this relationship comes with trade-offs. The platform’s rules are designed to keep transactions, data, and customer relationships on-platform, which can limit your direct interactions with sellers.
Sellers are explicitly prohibited from circumventing the sales process or diverting you to another website. You also get extremely limited access to data, and platform rules can always override your ability to negotiate prices.
Deciding to launch a new B2B operation is no small feat. Prepare for launch and improve the chances of success with these B2B marketplace best practices.
With B2B on Shopify, you’ll benefit from a single ecommerce back end that powers every B2B sales channel. One of the biggest time-savers is a real-time inventory management system that ensures you’ll never sell out-of-stock products to B2B marketplace buyers.
Zac van Manen, digital growth manager at BA Creative, says, “Some merchants manage different B2C and B2B inventory, so ensuring that these two points of reference are kept separate and up to date can be tricky.
“Good ERP integrations make this much easier, especially for B2B merchants, but there are considerations to make about which products are sold to which customers—and what this means for your logistics and fulfillment teams.”
Alongside ERP integrations, check that your B2B ecommerce platform offers analytics to track data across all sales channels. Shopify allows customers to create company profiles for stakeholders to sign in and view past orders, make new ones, and generate invoices—all without interrupting your sales team.
“B2B on Shopify allows us to leverage technology to streamline and automate our wholesale processes,” says Andy Knox of automotive brand Van Compass. “We can maintain a high level of focus on retail consumers.”
One way that B2B customers differ from B2C is a greater demand for expert knowledge from the brands they buy from. Meeting that demand can become tricky when you’re working with a large number of SKUs across multiple channels.
Easily manage a distributed product catalog with a product information management (PIM) system. This software keeps data consistent across wholesale marketplaces and your B2B online storefront by storing and syncing the following information:
Apps like Jasper PIM integrate with your Shopify store to syndicate new inventory across each B2B marketplace you’re operating on. These workflows ensure B2B customers encounter accurate information, regardless of where they place their order.
You’ve done the hard task of converting a B2B marketplace prospect into a customer. Next, you’ll need to deliver those products to buyers as quickly and accurately as possible.
Fulfilling B2B orders is vastly different from direct to consumer, because buyers make much larger orders than the average consumer. Instead of shipping a single unit to a customer, you’re shipping items in bulk—sometimes more than 100 units—through a B2B marketplace transaction.
To handle B2B order fulfillment at scale, partner with a third-party logistics (3PL) provider such as:
Check whether your chosen B2B marketplace offers a fulfillment service. Amazon Business, for example, offers Fulfilled by Amazon.
The advantage of using a third-party distribution network is that you can lean on its supply chain. From international warehouses to advanced fulfillment technologies, you’ll get products to your B2B customers faster. Meeting delivery expectations is critical for B2B customer retention.
There’s no doubt that marketplaces are a valuable sales channel for B2B organizations. Reach millions of buyers in your industry who are already using wholesale marketplaces to source inventory for their own businesses.
Make your B2B marketplace operation a success with Shopify’s B2B platform. Manage inventory, product information, and sales analytics from one dashboard, regardless of where you’re selling.
A B2B marketplace is a website platform that lets businesses list products for sale and buy wholesale products. B2B marketplaces may include features such as payment processing, product search filters, and order fulfillment services.
Alibaba is widely considered the most popular B2B marketplace globally, with millions of buyers and suppliers from over 190 countries. It dominates the market with its extensive product range, verification systems, and comprehensive trade services. Amazon Business and Faire are major players, but Alibaba maintains the largest global market share and transaction volume.
The four main types of B2B markets are:
Each market has distinct buying behaviors, with producers focusing on production inputs, resellers on retail-ready products, governments on structured procurement processes, and institutions on specialized goods and services. These different market types require tailored approaches for successful B2B marketplace strategies.
B2B marketplaces typically generate revenue through subscription fees, transaction fees, and listing or advertising charges. Many platforms use a tiered membership model, offering basic services for free while charging for premium features, enhanced visibility, or advanced selling tools. Some marketplaces also earn through value-added services like payment processing, logistics solutions, or trade financing, creating multiple revenue streams beyond the core marketplace functionality.
Shopify has a suite of B2B tools that allow businesses to sell directly to other businesses through an online store. Features include the ability to set up customer-specific catalogs and payment terms, and accept international currencies—as well as the ability to link multiple customers and locations under a single company profile.
B2C marketplaces such as Amazon and Etsy cater to individual customers who purchase for personal use. B2B marketplaces are platforms where businesses sell to other businesses, typically in large quantities at discounted prices. Unlike B2C platforms, B2B marketplaces often require customers to be approved before they can view listings.
