Dropshipping as a business model is gaining rapid popularity, with more and more avenues for dropshipping cropping up. While dropshippers were previously restricted to only certain platforms like Shopify or AliExpress, now, they have many more dropshipping platforms available to choose. One such platform is dropshipping on Walmart.
What is Walmart dropshipping ? What are the advantages and challenges that come along with Walmart dropshipping? What is Walmart’s DVS program? Read ahead to find out the answers to all of these questions. We will also walk you through a step-by-step guide on how to start dropshipping on Walmart and more!
Preview the passage:
What is Walmart Dropshipping?
Walmart Dropshipping: Advantages
Walmart Dropshipping: Challenges
What is A Walmart Drop Ship Vendors (DSV)?
What is Walmart Dropshipping Automation?
How to Dropship on Walmart? (Step by Step)
Step 1: Create a Walmart Marketplace Account
Step 2: Complete the Onboarding Process
Step 3: Find Dropshipping Suppliers to Partner With
Step 4: List Your Dropshipping Products on Walmart Marketplace
5 Best Suppliers for Walmart Dropshipping
Best Products Category to Dropship on Walmart
Requirements you must Satisfy Dropshipping on Walmart
Walmart Dropshipping: Best Practices to Win the Competition
Is Dropshipping on Walmart profitable?
How to dropship from Walmart to Amazon?
How to Dropship from Walmart to eBay?
Get started to Dropship on Walmart
FAQs on Walmart Dropshipping
What is Walmart Dropshipping?
Walmart dropshipping is the process of dropshipping with Walmart as your supplier and all of Walmart’s already existing customer base as your potential customers. It is selling different products from Walmart on a separate marketplace or an online store you have built.
There are three main ways you can start dropshipping on Walmart:
- Become a Walmart drop ship vendor (DSV)
- Dropship products from Walmart onto other platforms and marketplaces
- Sell products from other dropshipping suppliers on Walmart’s platform.
All of these options come with their own advantages, which we will discuss further in the article.
Walmart Dropshipping: The Advantages
Walmart is a huge name in the United States, and there aren’t many other retail stores that can compete with the sheer size and scale of the company. As such, dropshipping through Walmart has some incredible advantages that up-and-coming dropshippers simply can’t pass up on.
Let’s take a look at some of the main advantages you can gain through Walmart dropshipping:
1. Little to No Upfront Costs
As you may be aware, dropshipping requires very little or sometimes no upfront costs at all. This minimal investment is a huge advantage for dropshippers that are just starting out and are looking to make large profit margins. If you start dropshipping on Walmart, you don’t need to pay any kind of setup fee, monthly fee, or even subscription fee.
You also don’t need to consider holding an inventory and the associated risks if your products don’t sell. There are also no costs for warehousing and delivery since Walmart handles all of that for you. So, if you are just starting out as a dropshipper, Walmart dropshipping can allow you to do so without needing any capital to invest in your dropshipping business.
2. An Already Existing Customer Base
Walmart has an already existing customer base made up of millions of Americans. One of the biggest challenges dropshippers face is finding customers and dealing with their competition. With Walmart dropshipping, you would already have a large customer base to sell products to.
As of 2023, Walmart has about 37 million customers every single day and up to 230 million customers per week. Walmart generated an incredible revenue of $573 billion in 2023 from worldwide sales. So, if you are a new dropshipper with few leads on potential customers, then Walmart’s global reach can be a huge asset to you.
3. Ease of Use
Dropshipping with Walmart also offers you convenience. Dropshipping via Walmart is easy since the platform is so optimized for dropshipping that signing up and getting started is a simple process.
Walmart helps dropshippers optimize their product listings and achieve high organic traffic. The platform also gives successful product dropshippers automatic boosts on their website.
Then, the entire dropshipping process, including shipping products to customers, is entirely automated. This means that you don’t need to worry about sourcing products, getting them to customers on time, handling returns, or running quality checks.
Walmart handles all of this for you. This ease of use ultimately allows you more time and energy to focus on expanding your dropshipping business and building your brand.
Walmart Dropshipping: The Challenges
Of course, with every good thing, there are a few challenges that you have to put up with. The same is true for Walmart dropshipping. Here are some of the challenges you might come across when trying to start to dropship with Walmart:
1. Complicated Registration Process
While dropshipping on Walmart is completely free and easy once you’ve got everything set up, the actual setup or the registration process can be a bit complicated.
The registration process is quite long, and you cannot immediately start dropshipping once you’ve registered. Instead, you need to wait for Walmart to approve your registration.
This can lead to setbacks, with the approval taking anywhere between a few days to two weeks. After registration and approval, the onboarding process can take another few weeks to complete. So, if you plan on making profits immediately, you need to adjust your expectations.
2. Restrictions of Product Pricing
One of the main reasons why Walmart is such a popular retail giant is that it offers its customers incredibly low prices. Most products are sold at discounted prices or for the lowest price on the market.
When it comes to dropshipping via Walmart, every dropshipper has to set their product prices per the company’s very strict pricing rules.
Without following the pricing rules, selling on the platform is impossible. Because of this, many dropshippers end up setting product prices lower than they would have liked.
As a result, they are faced with lower profit margins than if they were to choose a different dropshipping partner.
What is A Walmart Drop Ship Vendor (DSV)?
One of the ways to dropship via the Walmart marketplace is by becoming a Walmart dropship vendor (DSV). This means that you would be a dropshipping supplier/manufacturer and hold an inventory of products that you would then ship to customers when they make purchases through Walmart’s marketplace.
What is a Drop Ship Vendor (DSV)?
A dropship vendor (DSV) is a vendor or supplier/manufacturer that supplies products for dropshippers. It is essentially the dropshipping supplier you would partner with to start a dropshipping store yourself. A DSV for Walmart can supply products to dropshippers that sell via the Walmart marketplace.
The Pros and Cons of Joining the DSV Program
If you were to become a DSV by joining the Walmart DSV program, you could supply products to Walmart dropshippers through the official Walmart site. However, there are some pros and cons to becoming a DSV that you should consider first.
Pros of Joining the DSV Program
- Vendors can ship customer products to the Walmart store instead of customers’ direct addresses if that is more convenient.
- A vendor’s products are sold with the label “sold by Walmart,” which gives customers more confidence in buying those products and can help increase sales.
- Walmart covers the cost of shipping for vendor’s products
- DSVs have a higher likelihood of getting the Walmart Buy Box as compared to the same product listed on the Walmart marketplace. (We will discuss what the Walmart Buy Box is further into the article)
Cons of Joining the DSV Program
- It takes a long time to get approved for the DSV program, and even after approval, vendors have to adhere to strict rules and regulations to remain part of the program.
- If customers return products that are damaged or need to be replaced, the vendors have to take on that cost.
- There is the added cost of warehousing since Walmart does not hold the products vendors sell in its distribution centers.
- Walmart gets the final say on how a vendor’s products are listed, the shipping processes, and so on.
How to Become a Drop Ship Vendor
Walmart has a very thorough application and approval process for its DSV program. If you want to become a vendor, you first need to take a look at the DSV program requirements and see that you meet them all.
After you’re sure of that, you should gather all the necessary information. This includes things like your tax info, banking info, insurance, product info, and so on.
Next, you can head to Walmart’s website and create an account. You must go through a checklist here and fill in all the relevant information required. After that is done, you simply wait for your application to be approved.
The approval process can take an undisclosed amount of time, and you simply have to wait for an approval email. You can find more information regarding the DSV program on the Supplier Help Page.
The Difference between a Drop Ship Vendor and Warehouse Supplier
Becoming a Walmart warehouse supplier is different than joining the DSV program.
A warehouse supplier does not ship products directly to customers. Instead, a Walmart supplier holds products for Walmart and ships them to Walmart’s fulfillment centers. From there, once a purchase is made, Walmart ships the products to the customers.
On the other hand, a dropship vendor can ship products directly to customers once an order has been placed. And this shipping cost is covered by Walmart.
What is Walmart Dropshipping Automation?
Automated dropshipping is dropshipping with the help of technology to automate certain tasks. One such task is forwarding customer orders from your dropshipping store directly to your dropshipping supplier.
Similarly, Walmart offers dropshipping automation. With Walmart automation, the entire dropshipping process is automated, all the way from the setup of your business to the selection process for products to sell.
Some of the tasks that Walmart handles for you in dropshipping automation include:
- Product selection for your store
- Automatically listing high-selling products for you
- Handling customer support
- Taking care of product returns
- Product marketing
While it may seem as though Walmart has complete control of your dropshipping business, that is not the case. Instead, you will always have complete access to your Walmart seller account and can check on your sales and performance at any time.
How to Dropship on Walmart – A Step-by-Step Guide
To start dropshipping on Walmart, you need to go through a thorough application process. After the application is completed, the company will go through your application and review it completely before accepting it. In this review, the company pays close attention to the quality and standards of your dropshipping store and the products you want to sell.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how you can start dropshipping at Walmart.
Step 1: Create a Walmart Marketplace Account
The first step to start dropshipping on Walmart is to create a Walmart marketplace account. To do this, you have to visit the Walmart website and click on “Join Marketplace” on the top right-hand corner of the screen. This will take you to the Walmart Seller Center, where you can create an account.
Walmart takes some time to process your application and gives you access to the marketplace platform. So, it would help if you had all of your business information ready to go. You will need information such as:
- Your business name and address
- Business contact information
- Vusiness tax ID
- Verification information for your business
- Credit card information
Step 2: Complete the Onboarding Process
The onboarding process begins once your application has been approved. Walmart will then send you an email with a registration link. You will be directed to the official onboarding site when clicking the link.
Onboarding consists of setting up your account complete with all of your business’s information, such as your business address and the relevant bank account information. You will also need to fill out tax forms, shipping forms, and payment forms and sign Walmart’s retail agreement. Finally, you will need to upload a product inventory and set up all of the products you want to sell.
The onboarding process gets completed when all of the above is done, and you have also set up your Walmart Partner Profile. This profile is essentially everything potential customers will see about your dropshipping business. This includes a business name, logo, description, and other details you want to make available to customers.
Step 3: Find Dropshipping Suppliers to Partner With
Once the onboarding process has been completed, you’re essentially ready to go. However, you need products to sell before you can actually dropshipping. So, it is time to find a dropshipping partner if you don’t already have one. There are plenty of options when it comes to finding a dropshipping supplier. You can directly work with different suppliers or partner up with third-party dropshipping companies.
When choosing your supplier, you should consider various factors:
- The size of their product catalog
- Product pricing
- The product quality
- Shipping time and menthods
We will discuss 5 of the best dropshipping suppliers for Walmart dropshipping later on in the article.
Step 4: List Your Dropshipping Products on Walmart Marketplace
Finally, once your Walmart Seller Profile is ready to go and you have a dropshipping supplier to supply your products, you can start listing the products on the Walmart platform. You can do this in a few different ways, such as via open API, using the bulk upload option, or through a supplier's platform with a Walmart Marketplace integration.
There is no limit to how many or how few products you want to list. Once they are all listed, you can individually set their prices, shipping policies, refund policies, and so on.
Step 5: Fulfill Your Orders
When customers start placing orders for your products, you can finally reach the final step and become a Walmart dropshipper by fulfilling your orders. By fulfilling orders quickly, you can gain rewards such as more visibility of your products in customer searches and higher chances of appearing in Buy Box.
5 Best Suppliers for Walmart Dropshipping
As we have mentioned previously, you need to find dropshipping suppliers to partner with before you can start Walmart dropshipping. To help you narrow down a few options, we have put together a list of the 5 best dropshippong suppliers.
1. EPROLO
EPROLO is a forever free dropshipping platform that offers a lot of benefits, making it one of the top dropshipping suppliers to consider. Whether looking for product sourcing, inventory management, order fulfillment, or brand development, EPROLO offers it all!
With EPROLO, you can dropship products from different trusted suppliers and benefit from EPROLO’s large product catalog. EPROLO also offers quality control services, which can help you meet Walmart’s product quality requirements and become a trusted Walmart Marketplace seller.
2. Wholesale Central
Wholesale Central is one of the top B2B directories in the US and helps link Walmart dropshippers with suppliers, manufacturers, and distributors all over the US.
The company has a huge product catalog with over 600,000 products to choose from. Registration for the platform is free, and once you register, you can get information about different suppliers.
3. SaleHoo
Like Wholesale Central, SaleHoo is another supplier directory for Walmart dropshipping. The platform has over 8,000 suppliers registered on it and more than 2.5 million products as part of its catalog.
If you are looking to find reliable and vetted suppliers, then SaleHoo is a great place to start. You can start using the platform with the 7-day free trial, but you must pay a subscription fee after the trial ends.
4. Megagoods
If you’re looking for a dropshipping supplier that specializes in electronics and has warehouses based in the US, then Megagoods is a great choice.
Based out of California, Megagoods has a catalog of over 2,000 high-quality electronics. You can use Megagoods during a free 30-day trial and benefit from the platform’s free shipping on some select items. The month-long free trial can help you decide if you are interested in the products or the suppliers that work with the company.
5. Doba
Doba is another one of the best dropshipping suppliers you can work with. The platform is particularly great for dropshippers based out of Georgia. Doba can give you access to a large product catalog with different product categories, as well as different suppliers to work with. You can start using the platform with a 30-day free trial.
Best Products Categories to Dropship on Walmart
If you are considering signing up for Walmart dropshipping and getting in touch with dropshipping suppliers, you should also consider what kind of products you want to sell. To help you find best business ideas, we have compiled a list of the 5 best product categories to dropship on Walmart in 2024.
1.Kitchen Products
The global market for kitchen products is huge right now and is expected to continue to grow. By the year 2030, it is estimated to be worth USD 59.81 billion. This means the demand for these products is expected to keep rising, allowing you to sell more and make higher profits.
2. Pet Supplies
Walmart sells a huge volume of pet products every single day. Dropshipping pet supplies at Walmart can earn you high profits. Products like toys, grooming accessories, and pet garments are particularly popular. In fact, the popularity of pet supplies is continuously growing, as we can see that the global market for pet care is estimated to be worth USD 269,497.5 million by 2030.
3. Fitness Accessories
Fitness accessories like small weights, yoga mats, athletic wear, smartwatches, and other exercise accessories are sold in high volumes at Walmart. The demand for these products is expected to continue to rise, as the global market for fitness accessories is forecasted to be worth USD 12.0 billion by 2031.
4. Baby Products
Baby products are extremely popular at Walmart and sell out very quickly. According to market research, it is estimated that the global market for baby care products will reach USD 352.65 billion by the year 2030.
5. Cleaning Supplies
Cleaning supplies are also very popular at Walmart and sell in high volumes. You can sell cleaning supplies like mops, sponges, cleaning brushes, and more. The demand for these products is expected to continue to rise, as the global market for cleaning supplies is forecasted to be worth USD 334.16 billion by 2029.
Requirements You Must Meet for Dropshipping on Walmart
There are many different requirements that need to be met before you can become a seller on Walmart Marketplace and start selling via Walmart dropshipping. All of these requirements are laid out clearly in Walmart’s seller policies.
The seller policies are divided into two main categories: the seller agreement policies and the additional rules and guidelines. All of these policies are clearly available on Walmart’s Seller Help. If you don’t follow all of these policies, rules, and guidelines, you can be removed from the Marketplace program, and your Walmart dropshipping can be terminated.
Among the seller agreement policies are policies such as the marketplace returns policy, the seller performance standards, the shipping methods and timing policy, the referral fee schedule for contract categories, and so on.
As for the additional rules and guidelines, these include things like pricing rules, packaging rules, seller liability insurance, and more.
Walmart Dropshipping: Best Practices to Win the Competition
Walmart has millions of daily customers, but the competition for these customers is extremely high. If you start to drop ship at Walmart, you will need to compete with other dropshippers to make sales. Here are a few of the best practices that can help you win the competition and make a high volume of sales.
1. Win the Buy Box
Walmart allows different sellers to sell the exact same products. This means that sometimes, different sellers sell a product under the same listing. So, when it comes to customers adding that product to their cart, one out of the multiple sellers would make the sale.
In other words, one of the sellers will win the Buy Box. The winner of the Buy Box is the seller whose product is the default product for the “Add to Cart” button. In order to win the Buy Box, you have to:
- Price your products competitively
- Ensure that the products are always in stock
- Try and offer free or very cheap shipping, have positive reviews on your products
- deliver the products on time every time.
2. Keep a Check on Your Performance Standards
Another way to win more competition on Walmart dropshipping is by closely checking your product’s performance. Walmart has its own set of performance metrics to measure a seller’s success and ensure that the high standards for sellers are being met.
Some of the performance targets you should aim to meet as a Walmart seller include the following:
- A 90-day ODR (Order Defect Rate) of less than 2%
- An On-time Shipment Rate higher than 99%
- A Valid Tracking Rate higher than 99%
To check your performance, you can go to Walmart’s seller center and check under analytics. Here you will find the performance center and your performance metrics.
3. Optimize Your Product Listings
And finally, to make high sales, you should try and optimize the way you list your products. Product listings are how the products you sell are visible to potential customers. A fully optimized listing gives a customer more confidence in your products. To do this, you should
- Use good-quality images and invest in proper product photography
- Write detailed product descriptions that outline all of the main product features
- Set your product prices competitively
- offer exceptional customer service to gain good reviews.
Is Dropshipping on Walmart Profitable?
Dropshipping at Walmart can be hugely profitable for some dropshippers.
This is because there are no upfront costs associated with Walmart dropshipping, and Walmart also handles shipping costs in some cases. Additionally, Walmart has millions of daily customers that you can sell your products to. Not only can you sell directly on Walmart, but you can also draw Walmart customers to your own dropshipping store.
So, if you’re thinking of dropshipping to make high profits, you should definitely consider Walmart dropshipping.
How to Dropship from Walmart to Amazon?
It is not possible to directly dropship Walmart products onto Amazon, even if you have a proper Amazon dropshipping store set up. This is because selling Walmart products on other marketplaces is against Walmart’s policy, and doing so can get your Walmart dropshipping account terminated. It is also against Amazon’s dropshipping policy to purchase products from another retailer and ship them to Amazon customers.
What you can do instead is buy Walmart products and hold them as your own private inventory. Afterward, you can sell the products on your Amazon store. This is known as the Retail Arbitrage method and is not considered dropshipping.
How to Dropship from Walmart to eBay?
Similarly to how you cannot dropship Walmart products to Amazon, you cannot dropship them to eBay either. This goes against both Walmart’s dropshipping policy as well as eBay’s dropshipping policy. You could go for the Retail Arbitrage method to sell Walmart products on eBay, but this would not be considered dropshipping as it involves having to store the products yourself in a personal inventory.
Get Started with Dropshipping on Walmart
Dropshipping on Walmart can be a lot of hard work, to begin with. This is because Walmart has very strict policies on dropshipping and thoroughly vets its sellers. Although the application process is lengthy and it can take very long for your application to be approved, you can have a very successful dropshipping business once you have the approval.
Dropshipping on Walmart means you can get started with no upfront costs and millions of potential daily customers. This means high potential profits. So, if you’re interested in dropshipping, you should definitely consider dropshipping on Walmart.
Walmart Dropshipping: FAQs
1. Does Walmart allow dropshipping?
Walmart does allow dropshipping. There are three ways to dropship with Walmart. You can either become a warehouse supplier, a Walmart Drop Ship Vendor (DSV), or a Walmart Marketplace seller.
2. Is dropshipping on Walmart worth it?
Dropshipping on Walmart is well worth it because of the high volume of potential customers you can sell your products to. This can highly increase your opportunities for sales and large profits.
3. How to start a drop shipping business at Walmart?
To start a dropshipping business on Walmart, you can visit Walmart website and create an account. Then, you have to finish the onboarding process and find suppliers to work with. After that, you can start listing products and fulfilling orders.
4. Can I be both a DSV and a Walmart warehouse supplier?
You can sell products on both platforms if you meet the requirements for both the Walmart DSV program and the warehouse supplier program. There is one restriction, however. You cannot sell the same products on both platforms. Your product listings for both platforms need to be exclusive.
5. How to find a reliable supplier for Walmart dropshipping?
There are many different platforms for finding reliable dropshipping suppliers. Some of these platforms include EPROLO, Wholesale Central, and Doba. These platforms can connect you with thousands of vetted suppliers.
6. What makes a good Walmart dropshipping product?
A good Walmart dropshipping product is a high-quality product priced competitively and has free shipping or a very low shipping fee.
