The Canton Fair on a first visit

What is the Canton Fair, and why would a first-time buyer go?

It is a general trade fair co-hosted by China's Ministry of Commerce and the People's Government of Guangdong Province, organised by the China Foreign Trade Centre, and held in Guangzhou each spring and autumn since 1957. For a buyer, the appeal is density: rather than travelling between individual factories, you can see many suppliers in one category in one building, compare them side by side and handle physical samples, which is hard to do through remote research alone.

What exhibits in each phase of the 140th session?

The phase you attend decides which suppliers you can meet. The organiser lists these sectors for the 140th session:

The organiser schedules intervals between the phases, on 20–22 and 28–30 October. Sector lists can change from one session to the next, so confirm your category against the official site before you book travel.

The phases line up with some of Guangdong's documented city specialisms: lighting exhibits in Phase 1, furniture in Phase 2, and cases and bags in Phase 3. Sourcing in Guangdong: which city makes what covers where those industries are concentrated. If your products fall into two phases, plan them as two separate blocks of the trip.

Source checked: Canton Fair official site, 140th session dates and phases; the organiser's introduction to the 140th session as published by the Consulate-General of China in Cebu and the Ministry of Commerce (both 14 July 2026), for the sectors in each phase, the intervals and registration. Checked 24 September 2026.

How do you register as an overseas buyer?

Online, through the fair's Buyer Service System, before you travel:

1. Pre-register. The Buyer page on the official site links to pre-registration, which is open year-round and needs an account on the Buyer Service System.
2. Apply for an invitation if you need one. The invitation application sits on the same Buyer page and uses the same account.
3. Collect your buyer badge. The organiser states that new overseas buyers can complete pre-registration online and apply for a badge free of charge at registration offices, including Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, Guangzhou South Railway Station, Pazhou Ferry Terminal, designated hotels in Guangzhou and the Canton Fair Hong Kong Representative Office.
4. Read the attendance guide. The fair publishes a 2026 Attendance Guide for Overseas Buyers in English and nine other languages; read it before you travel.

Whether you need a visa depends on your passport. Check the requirement for yours with PassportBase's visa checker, then confirm it with the Chinese embassy or consulate for your country before you book.

What should you bring, and what is the venue like?

The fair is held at the Canton Fair Complex, whose official address is No. 382 Yuejiang Zhong Road, Guangzhou. The organiser gives the 140th session a total exhibition area of 1.55 million square metres, so expect a lot of walking between halls and wear comfortable shoes. The official site's buyer section includes a floor map, shuttle information and an interpretation service.

Bring:

• your passport and registration details, with digital copies kept separately;
• your sourcing brief, in a form you can hand over or show on a device;
• reference samples or photos of what you want made;
• more business cards than you expect to need;
• a consistent way to record what each supplier tells you.

How should you plan a first day at the fair?

Pick one hall or sub-category and work through it deliberately. Before you arrive, use the official site or app, where buyers can filter products by industry and product category, to identify the handful of booths that matter most, and visit those first. Exhibitors are handling a steady stream of visitors, so a useful conversation depends on prepared, specific questions rather than "tell me about your company".

What questions are worth asking every exhibitor?

Use the same short set at every relevant booth, so you can compare them as you would any set of supplier quotes:

• Do you manufacture this yourself, or represent a factory? (The factory-versus-trader question from how to check a Chinese supplier before you pay applies at a booth just as it does online.)
• What is your minimum order quantity for this product?
• Can I see or handle a sample of this specific item, not a similar one?
• Do you already export to my market, and do you know its labelling or certification expectations?

Write the answers down at the booth. A day of similar conversations blurs quickly otherwise.

How do you follow up with exhibitors after the fair?

Promptly and specifically. Sort your cards and notes the same evening, while you can still match each card to a conversation. Send a short message that refers to something concrete, such as the product discussed or a sample requested, and treat it as the start of the process in how to write a sourcing brief. A fair conversation is an introduction, not a completed negotiation.

How does a fair visit fit with factory visits?

It works best when you plan the two together. Use fair days to see a range of suppliers in your category and draw up a shortlist, then use the rest of the trip, including the days between phases, for a smaller number of factory visits: fair exhibitors whose factory you want to see, or suppliers from your own research who are based nearby. The organiser also runs "Trade Bridge" sourcing trips that take buyers to industrial bases. See planning a sourcing trip to Guangdong for how to structure the wider trip.

What can the fair not do for you?

It cannot verify an exhibitor. A booth is not evidence that a company is who it claims to be, so the checks in how to check a Chinese supplier before you pay apply to a supplier met at the fair exactly as they would to one found online. Nor does a curated booth show you production in progress the way a factory visit can. Use the fair to narrow a shortlist, not in place of due diligence on it.

Are there other Guangdong trade fairs worth knowing about?

Yes. Category-specific fairs can cover a product in more depth than a Canton Fair phase. For furniture, for example, the China International Furniture Fair (CIFF) holds its Guangzhou edition each March at the Canton Fair Complex and PWTC Expo. If your product has a dedicated fair, take its dates from that fair's own site.