For exports, a portal has to reach buyers abroad. Alibaba.com is built for that: it tells sellers they can reach more than 20 million active buyers in over 190 countries and regions. IndiaMART calls itself India's largest online B2B marketplace, and TradeIndia, one of the oldest, says it helps overseas buyers find Indian manufacturers and exporters.
The low-cost routes come from the government: Trade Connect and your export promotion council. The place most buyers check you before they write is your own website. In October 2026, 75 enquiries reached our herb exporter client through its own site, and 29 of them came from visitors who arrived from ChatGPT.
At a glance
- Widest reach abroad
- Alibaba.com: 20 million+ active buyers, 190+ countries and regions
- Largest in India
- IndiaMART: 28 million unique enquiries in the quarter to December 2025
- Low-cost routes
- Trade Connect and your export promotion council
- Our exporter client
- 75 enquiries through its own site in October 2026
What a B2B portal does for an exporter
A B2B portal is a directory and a marketplace in one. You list your products, buyers search the portal or post what they need, and the portal passes their enquiries to you. Portals earn from suppliers on paid plans. IndiaMART, for example, ended December 2025 with 2,21,000 paying suppliers.
Plans and prices change often, so we leave them out. The question that matters is simpler: how many enquiries in your product category, from the countries you sell to, the portal sent last quarter. Ask for that figure before you pay.
Source: IndiaMART: earnings call for the quarter to 31 December 2025 (transcript, 23 January 2026).
IndiaMART, TradeIndia and Alibaba.com compared
| Portal | How it describes itself | What it reports | Fits an exporter who |
|---|---|---|---|
| IndiaMART | India's largest online B2B marketplace | 28 million unique business enquiries in the quarter to 31 December 2025; 2,21,000 paying suppliers | Also sells within India, and can confirm enquiries from abroad in its category |
| TradeIndia | One of India's largest and oldest B2B marketplaces, run by Infocom Network | 11.4 million+ registered users and 89 million+ enquiries a year; a presence in 10+ countries | Wants Indian and overseas enquiries from one listing |
| Alibaba.com | Reach millions of business buyers globally | 20 million+ active buyers making 280,000+ enquiries a day, from 190+ countries and regions | Sells mainly abroad and can reply within hours across time zones |
| Trade Connect (DGFT) | The government's e-platform for exporters | Help from the Department of Commerce, Indian missions and export promotion councils in one place | Wants government support at little or no cost |
Each figure is the portal's own, read on 6 November 2026: IndiaMART's earnings call for the quarter to 31 December 2025, TradeIndia's about page and Alibaba.com's page for sellers. Portals count users and enquiries in different ways, so compare them within your own category, never on the totals.
Sources: IndiaMART investor relations (read 6 November 2026); IndiaMART: earnings call for the quarter to 31 December 2025 (transcript, 23 January 2026); TradeIndia: About us (read 6 November 2026); Alibaba.com: Sell on Alibaba.com (seller page, read 6 November 2026); DGFT: Trade Connect e-platform, including Source from India.
IndiaMART vs TradeIndia vs Alibaba.com for exports
Start from your buyers. If they are importers abroad, the portal has to show that its buyers in your category are abroad too. Alibaba.com is the one of the three that reports where its buyers are, across more than 190 countries and regions, and TradeIndia says it serves overseas buyers. IndiaMART, which calls itself India's largest online B2B marketplace, often makes sense when you also sell to Indian traders and factories.
Then test one portal at a time. Three months on one paid plan, with every enquiry from it counted, tells you more than any sales call. If the enquiries from a portal rarely turn into a quote, move the money.
Is IndiaMART worth it for an exporter?
It can be, for the Indian side of your business: 28 million unique business enquiries in a quarter is a large market by any measure. For exports, ask IndiaMART how many enquiries in your category came from outside India last quarter, then compare that number with what Alibaba.com and your export promotion council can show for the same product.
The low-cost routes: Trade Connect and your export promotion council
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade runs Trade Connect, which puts help from the Department of Commerce, Indian missions abroad and the export promotion councils in one place. Membership of your council puts you in its directory and on the trade enquiries and fair delegations it runs for your products. Neither replaces a portal, and both cost little. Our article on how to get export orders explains each step in order.
Source: DGFT: Trade Connect e-platform, including Source from India.
Portals and your own website work together
A buyer who finds you on a portal usually looks you up before writing, and your website is the one page where no competitor is listed beside you. It also brings enquiries of its own. In October 2026 our exporter client's site recorded 75 enquiries: 43 by WhatsApp, 19 by email, 12 through the form and 1 by phone. 29 of them came from visitors who arrived from ChatGPT (Google Analytics, 2 to 31 October 2026).
Those enquiries came straight to the exporter, with no portal in between. AI tools name suppliers from pages that say plainly what a company makes, where, and to what standard, so a clear product page helps on Google, in ChatGPT and on every portal profile that links back to it.
How to choose, in four checks
- Where the buyers are. Ask for the share of last quarter's enquiries in your category that came from the countries you sell to.
- Enquiries in your category. A portal's total says little about your product. Ask for your category's figure, and for how many suppliers share it.
- How fast you can reply. Buyers on portals write to several suppliers at once. If you cannot answer the same day, a paid plan mostly helps your competitors.
- Every enquiry counted by source. Give each portal its own WhatsApp number or form field, so after three months you can compare the cost of each real enquiry with what your website brings.
Questions people ask
Which is the best B2B portal for export business in India?
For buyers abroad, Alibaba.com reports buyers in the most countries: more than 20 million active buyers in over 190 countries and regions. Add the low-cost routes, Trade Connect and your export promotion council, and a website of your own where buyers can check you.
Is IndiaMART good for export?
IndiaMART is India's largest online B2B marketplace by its own description. Before paying for a plan for exports, ask how many enquiries in your product category came from outside India last quarter.
IndiaMART vs TradeIndia: which is better?
Both are Indian B2B marketplaces. IndiaMART calls itself India's largest, and TradeIndia says it has a presence in more than 10 countries and helps overseas buyers find Indian exporters. Ask each for the enquiries in your category, and test one at a time.
How can I find foreign buyers for free?
Trade Connect and your export promotion council's directory and trade enquiries cost little or nothing. Visits from Google and AI tools to your own product pages carry no fee for each enquiry either.
Do I need a website if I am already on a B2B portal?
Yes. Buyers who find you on a portal look you up before they write, and your site is where no competitor sits beside you. In October 2026, 75 enquiries reached our herb exporter client through its own website.