Over the past two years, a clear trend has emerged in the cross-border eCommerce space — more and more Chinese sellers are shifting from Amazon and other marketplaces to independent websites.

The reason is simple: stricter platform rules, rising commissions, and frequent account suspensions have made sellers realize — “The traffic isn’t mine, and the brand isn’t mine either.”

According to Zheshang Securities, China’s cross-border independent website market reached 3.4 trillion RMB in 2024, accounting for 35% of the total B2C cross-border market. As third-party platforms like Amazon tighten their policies, Chinese sellers are accelerating their DTC (Direct-to-Consumer) transition to build their own brand assets. 【21st Century Business Herald, 2025】

The rise of independent websites is no longer a trend — it’s a necessity.


But for many beginners, the first challenge comes early: How much does it really cost to build a website? And which platform saves the most money?

Some people build a site for a few hundred RMB and it crashes as soon as it goes live.


Others spend hundreds of dollars a month and still can’t get orders.

The truth is — “cheap” and “cost-effective” are not the same thing.