AliExpress on Android: what Google Play reviewers complain about
We classified the 300 newest English-language Google Play reviews of AliExpress - Shopping App (by Alibaba Mobile) in the US store, dated 14 October 2026 to 23 October 2026. Average rating in this sample: 2.56★. Its all-time Google Play rating is 4.3★ from 16.3M ratings. 146 reviews (49%) contained a complaint; the biggest theme was pricing / subscription (55% of complaining reviews).
Star ratings in this sample
| Stars | Reviews | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 5★ | 93 | 31% |
| 4★ | 16 | 5% |
| 3★ | 14 | 5% |
| 2★ | 20 | 7% |
| 1★ | 157 | 52% |
Complaint themes
| Theme | Reviews | Share of complaints | Avg severity (0–3) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing / subscription | 81 | 55% | 2.3 |
| Bugs | 51 | 35% | 2.3 |
| Feature requests | 33 | 23% | 2.0 |
| Performance | 18 | 12% | 2.3 |
| UX / design | 16 | 11% | 2.2 |
| Ads | 12 | 8% | 2.1 |
| Crashes / freezes | 4 | 3% | 2.7 |
A review can count in several themes, so shares add up to more than 100%.
Top issues, ranked by reviews × severity
- Answer support requests: 58 complaining reviews, avg severity 2.4/3. What to do: Add an in-app contact option and reply to these Google Play reviews; Google Play lets developers respond publicly.
“terrible customer service that enables scammers and will not reimburse return shipping costs despite providing all documentation. buyer beware- if a product you receive is dangerous and contaminated they will say that they will reimburse return costs and then…” (1★, v8.106.1, 2026-10-16) - Improve content quality: 29 complaining reviews, avg severity 2.0/3. What to do: Review the content areas users name; add a "report a problem" button on content.
“My first time ordering from here was horrible. when I received my products, they were the wrong size. The wrong items. I won't be ordering from here anymore. why would I give you a star if all my products were wrong?” (1★, v8.177.6, 2026-10-17) - Justify or adjust the price: 18 complaining reviews, avg severity 2.2/3. What to do: Test a cheaper tier, annual discount or one-time purchase; show what paid users get.
“Estimated import charges are way too high You geniually cannot add more than 3 cheap items without the price skyrocketing to 20 euros or 30 cause of the estimated import charges I suggest to not buy anything on here unless you want to buy 1 singular thing It i…” (1★, v8.177.6, 2026-10-15) - Make trials and renewals transparent: 11 complaining reviews, avg severity 2.4/3. What to do: Show the renewal date and price before the trial ends; link to cancellation. Surprise charges drive 1-star reviews and refunds.
“In Australia, a 10% GST tax is applied per item when buying overseas (not an issue). However, AliExpress is charging more than 10%, all at different amounts of 1-3%, unless there's another tax being charged (and it's not being shown). On one item it's not much…” (2★, v8.177.6, 2026-10-20) - Simplify navigation: 11 complaining reviews, avg severity 2.4/3. What to do: Run a quick usability test on the screens users mention; remove extra taps and pop-ups.
“Terrible app, terrible system, terrible sellers. It's amazing how many inflated reviews of this pump it even to a 4.3 when it should be in the gutter. It's impossible to find the messaging system, and when the app finally gets there, it's from a seller saying…” (1★, v8.177.6, 2026-10-21)
Google Play vs App Store
| Google Play (Android) | App Store (iOS) | |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews in sample | 300 | 300 |
| Dates | 2026-10-14 – 2026-10-23 | 2026-10-16 – 2026-10-22 |
| Avg stars in sample | 2.56★ | 4.69★ |
| Reviews with a complaint | 49% | 6% |
| Biggest complaint theme | Pricing / subscription | Pricing / subscription |
Both samples use the same AI classifier. The iOS sample comes from Apple's public review feed across several storefronts and can cover a longer period, so compare themes rather than exact percentages.
AliExpress App Store complaints (iOS)
Rating by app version
| Version | Reviews | Avg stars | Share with a complaint |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8.179.3 | 7 | 1.9 | 71% |
| 8.178.2 | 16 | 2.7 | 50% |
| 8.177.6 | 177 | 2.7 | 48% |
| 8.175.4 | 5 | 1.8 | 40% |
| 8.173.3 | 5 | 3.0 | 60% |
Versions with fewer than 5 reviews in the sample are left out.
The same report for your Android app
Up to 600 recent Google Play reviews in up to 10 languages, classified into 7 themes and 18 specific issues, with severity, version trend, real quotes and 10 ranked fixes. PDF by email within 24–48 h.
Google Play report €19 €9 iOS + Android bundle €29 €15 Free check
Launch prices until 30 Nov 2026 or the first 20 orders (then €19 / €29 bundle).
Method and limits
Reviews were collected once from the public Google Play listing (newest first, US store, English) with the open-source google-play-scraper library, then each review was classified by an AI model into 7 themes and 18 specific issues with a severity of 0–3; individual labels can be wrong, so check the quotes. Big apps get hundreds of reviews a day, so this is a snapshot of a few days, not the app's full history. Generated 24 October 2026. Not affiliated with Alibaba Mobile or Google.
More Google Play complaint reports
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FAQ
What do Android users complain about most in AliExpress?
In the 300 newest US Google Play reviews (2026-10-14 to 2026-10-23), the most common complaint theme was pricing / subscription (55% of complaining reviews), and the top specific issue was “answer support requests” (58 reviews).
How many AliExpress Google Play reviews are negative?
146 of 300 recent reviews (49%) contained a complaint. Average rating in this sample: 2.56★.
Do iPhone or Android users complain more about AliExpress?
In our samples, 49% of recent Google Play reviews and 6% of recent App Store reviews contained a complaint. The samples cover different periods, so the gap is a signal, not a precise measurement.