Temu review: shop like a billionaire – but with a catch

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What is Temu?

Temu, pronounced tey moo, is an online shopping platform much like Amazon or Ebay.

It allows you to buy directly from manufacturers or retailers based in China, which is one of the reasons why it’s so cheap.

While most users shop via its app, you can also make purchases using its website*.

How does Temu work?

Like most shopping platforms, you’ll need to register for an account to shop on Temu.

For new users, it has generous sign up discounts or free gifts, especially if you’ve been referred by an existing customer (more below).

However, you’ll need to make your first purchase within a relatively short time frame to take advantage of these – some offers expire within a few hours, for example – so it’s worth making a list of the products you want to buy before you sign up.

You can do this by browsing Temu on incognito mode and looking up the product code of the items you want (see above).

After you sign up and log in, you can then add these to your basket by searching for them using the search bar bar.

You can even search in different languages because Temu is now available in close to 70 countries.

Once you’re done, just go to the checkout to pay.

Temu will accept both credit and debit cards, though you might want to use a credit card for better financial protection.

The products you buy are generally aggregated in China before being packaged and shipped to you so you’ll get one or two big bundles rather than one from each retailer.

Since 2024, Temu has also expanded to retailers that ship from local warehouses, which means delivery might be quicker.

Temu referral code and discount offers

As mentioned earlier, some of the coupons expire quickly so make sure you have a list of what you want to buy before you sign up – getting to the £15 threshold for free delivery is surprisingly difficult.

Why is Temu so cheap?

There are a few reasons why Temu is so cheap.

Firstly, the cost of manufacturing in China is comparatively low, which is why so many international companies choose to have their products made there.

So straight away the prices will be lower.

You’re also buying directly from the manufacturer, wholesaler or retailer in China, which means no middleman in the UK to pay.

You’ll find similar or even identical products on Amazon for example for significantly more.

There’s also the exchange rate factor.

One pound is the equivalent of nine or 10 Chinese yuan, so what would be considered a reasonable price within China would seem cheap in the UK.

And finally, there’s no import duty to pay in the UK if your shop is under £135, whereas a retailer importing from China would have to pay this extra tax.

But as Temu continues its global expansion, and more retailers join the app, prices are starting to creep up.

This is especially true in the case of furniture, a category that was recently added to Temu and is often being shipped from regional warehouses.

Is Temu legit? And is it safe to use?

Tacky adverts plus surreal prices mean Temu feels like a scam. After all, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

But despite outward appearances, and what many websites say, Temu is legit. That is, you will get what you purchased.

There are however some things to bear in mind when you shop with Temu, such as the occasional poor quality and long delivery time (more below).

Some people have also raised concerns about privacy and issues with malware.

It’s worth bearing in mind that both the Apple App Store and Google Play have stringent checks on the apps they list, so it should be considered safe to use and malware-free as long as it’s downloadable.

You can also check what permissions the app has on your phone, and change these as needed.

Temu does however collect an enormous amount of data on your browsing habits while in the app, which helps it to recommend products to you. 

Again, you can decline some of this data collection in the app.

My Temu experience

I came to Temu via word of mouth.

Like everyone else, I had been bombarded by Temu ads for weeks and disregarded the site as a scam. But after hearing good things from other shoppers, I decided to give it a go.

In the beginning it was a clunky, time consuming shopping experience.

The number of retailers was overwhelming, and there were constant annoying pop ups offering additional discounts or promotions.

However, the app has improved over time.

Shopping with Temu in December 2023

In December 2023, I made my first purchase with Temu.

I bought 16 items in total, which came to £29.26.

All of these were small household items ranging from ear plugs to storage containers, as you can see from the screenshots above.

I would normally have bought these on Amazon or Ebay, but Temu offered the same items at a huge discount; some items were less than 10% of what I would have paid elsewhere.

There was a long wait for delivery – about 10 days for me – but all of the items arrived within the time frame Temu specified, despite the fact that I was shopping during the Christmas/New Year period.

They were also as described, but three were of poor quality. It was small things, like lids not closing properly on boxes or attachments falling off.

It wasn’t entirely unusable, but it certainly wasn’t the standard I expected it to be.

Shopping with Temu in January 2024

Shortly after that first purchase, Temu offered me some more discount coupons.

So in January 2024, I went on another spree.

This time I bought 17 items, which came to a total of £31.61.

Of these I returned just two items because they were of poor quality.

Shopping with Temu in June 2024

In June 2024, I spotted that Temu had made some big changes to the app and added many more product categories so I decided to try it again.

This time I got 10 items for £18.33, a mix of household, beauty and craft bits.

As it wasn’t the holiday period, my parcel arrived very quickly – about a week this time.

Again, there were a couple of poor quality items – I ended up returning three things – but the deals I scored made it all worth it.

For example, I got a set of four tweezers* for just 65p.

I had returned a similar set from LookFantastic* a week earlier because they were of poor quality. That set cost me £7.99 and took much longer to get a refund.

One change I saw this time round was that Temu had improved its user experience.

It was much easier to navigate the app in 2024 compared to 2023, and I was able to find what I needed relatively quickly.

However, prices were starting to creep up. I had a couple of items saved in my basket and about half of these were higher than when I added them.

Shopping with Temu in July 2024

In July 2024, I decided to test a category I wouldn’t normally: clothes.

I always find it hard to find stuff that fits property, and usually need to return stuff.

Temu lets users rate whether an item is true to size so it was quite easy to decide whether I needed something larger or smaller than usual.

I got nine items this time for £15.17 and I would say this was my best haul yet.

From this shop, I returned just one item because the item didn’t quite match the description and therefore wasn’t suitable for my needs. even though it was a great fit.

Shopping with Temu in August 2024

So normally Temu only offers freebies to new users but while checking delivery times for a previous order, I spotted a coupon in my inbox.

The offer was that I could choose any two freebies from a list, and to qualify for them I’d have to buy £40 worth of stuff from that same list.

I noticed two things.

First is that many of the items on this list were more expensive than what’s on Temu generally.

The second is that most of these didn’t have reviews.

As it turned out, there was actually stuff I needed on that list, and with the freebies it worked out about the same as if I shopped from Temu normally.

I decided to take up the offer just to see what happens.

Well, it was kind of a disaster.

I got 12 items for £41.14, which was my most expensive shop yet.

I ended up returning half of the items because either it wasn’t a good fit, was defective, or wasn’t as described – including one of the freebies I got.

To its credit, Temu refunded me quickly after I returned the items.

For the freebie, it even gave me the equivalent value as a Temu credit so I could use it on future purchases.

And where the items were more expensive than normal, I was able to claim back the difference as a Temu credit under the price adjustment policy.

Temu’s price adjustment policy

Something that’s little known – because it wasn’t well advertised until recently – is Temu’s price adjustment policy.

Temu says it will “provide the price difference in the currency that the order was paid in if the list price of the item purchased was reduced within 30 days of purchase in the same country or region”.

You can request this refund through the “Your Orders” section of the app; look out for the price adjustment button, it’s in the same place as the refund button.

If the item is on clearance, part of a promotion or no longer available then it’s not eligible for the price adjustment refund.

I’ve tried this and it works. The refund is saved in my Temu account as credit though, so I have to spend it on the app.

How to get a refund from Temu

Of course I wasn’t happy with the low quality items I received.

When I first shopped on Temu, I was actually writing a negative review for one of these when it suggested via a pop up that I could also request a refund.

I hadn’t thought about it because the items were so cheap that I was just going to cut my losses.

To get a refund, I had to submit a form with photos of the defects, which took a few minutes to do.

However, Temu got back to me almost straight away with details of the next steps.

On lower value returns, it simply offered a refund and told me to keep the items.

For more expensive returns, I had to send back the items using a prepaid label; the refund was issued soon after.

I’ve never had an issue with getting refunds from Temu, and I’ve had to return a lot of stuff.

But I also use my credit card for extra financial protection.

Temu’s returns policy

Temu has a Purchase Protection Program*, which covers things like damaged goods, lost items and orders that don’t match their description.

Basically you should be able to get your money back relatively easily if things go wrong.

For returns, you have 90 days to decide whether you want to return an item.

Your first return is free, regardless of the reason, and is with Evri, Yodel or Royal Mail.

If you need to return something else later on you may have to pay for that separately.

Temu gives you 14 days in which to ship your items once you initiate a return, and refunds are made within a few days of the item being received on their end.

The verdict on Temu

Temu hasn’t had great reviews on Trustpilot but for me it’s been a pretty painless experience. 

Some of the products I received were low quality, but getting my money back was quicker and more straightforward than some retailers based in the UK.

I’ve already shopped from Temu a few times and I would certainly consider buying from the app again.

Temu is also incredibly good at offering you suggested products – things that you didn’t even know you need – so don’t be surprised if you walk away with more than you bargained for.

Finding cheap deals on Temu

Temu is already pretty cheap, but recent updates mean you can now sort the items by price, which makes it easier than ever to find great deals.

The cheapest items are always ones where there are multiple retailers offering identical products, like storage boxes.

Look out for ones featured in flash sales too, as the prices can often be discounted by 50% or more.

Also check the coupons section and your offers for any special discounts.

For items where there are only a handful of retailers, the prices are actually comparable to what you might pay on Amazon or Ebay so you might want to shop there instead for the faster shipping time.

Read more: How to get the best Amazon deals

Temu’s delivery costs and times

Temu offers free UK delivery on all orders over £15 – this was previously £10. Within the UK, it uses Evri, Relay or Royal Mail to make the deliveries.

However, as the items are generally shipped from China, there’s a slightly longer delivery time.

Temu’s standard delivery time is six to eight business days after the order has been processed, which is almost two weeks when you factor in the weekends.

It might be even longer during public holidays in China, or if it takes a while for your order to be processed.

Once your order goes through, you’re given a delivery window – if your order doesn’t arrive on time, you’ll receive a £4 Temu credit as compensation.

Temu credit basically just sits in your account and is automatically applied to new purchases.

More recently, Temu has also started allowing some providers to ship from local warehouses.

For these, free delivery is offered when your purchase is over £35 but can vary from provider to provider.

Where is Temu based?

The answer to this question is tricky.

Temu was actually launched in the US first, in September 2022. On its app, it says it was founded in Boston, Massachusetts.

After that, it launched in Australia and New Zealand in March 2023.

Its UK launch came in April 2023, where it’s registered as Whaleco UK Limited.

This coincided with its debut in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands.

Since then, it’s spread to South America and the Middle East, and is now available in close to 70 countries around the world.

Meanwhile, Temu’s parent company is Dublin-based PDD Holdings, which also owns sister e-commerce brand Pinduoduo.

Its founder Colin Huang, now China’s richest man, is based in China.

So too, it seems, are most of its staff members, including the director of its UK arm according to information listed on Companies House.

What countries does Temu ship to?

Temu is now available in close to 70 countries.

Here’s the full list:

1. Armenia
2. Australia
3. Austria
4. Azerbajian
5. Algeria
6. Andorra
7. Bahrain
8. Belgium
9. Brazil
10. Bulgaria
11. Colombia
12. Croatia
13. Cyprus
14. Czech Republic
15. Canada
16. Chile
17. Denmark
18. Dominican Republic
19. Estonia
20. Finland
21. France
22. Georgia
23. Germany
24. Greece
25. Hungary
26. Iceland
27. Ireland
28. Israel
29. Italy
30. Japan
31. Jordan
32. Kazakhstan
33. Kuwait
34. Lithuania
35. Luxembourg
36. Latvia
37. Malaysia
38. Malta
39. Mauritius
40. Mexico
41. Moldova
42. Morocco
43. Norway
44. Netherlands
45. New Zealand
46. Oman
47. Peru
48. Philippines
49. Poland
50. Portugal
51. Qatar
52. Romania
53. Republic of Korea
54. Sweden
55. Switzerland
56. Saudi Arabia
57. Serbia
58. Slovakia
59. Slovenia
60. South Africa
61. Spain
62. Thailand
63. Türkiye
64. Ukraine
65. United Arab Emirates
66. United Kingdom
67. United States
68. Uruguay

This Temu review was first published in April 2024. It was updated in August 2024 to reflect some big changes on the app.

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