QC glossary: GL, RL, in hand, W2C and more
Last updated: 2026-10-23
With shopping agents, QC means the warehouse photos of your item; GL (green light) means approving it and RL (red light) means rejecting it to ask for an exchange or return. Every common term is listed below with a short definition.
- QC
- Quality check: real photos your agent takes of your item at its warehouse.
- QC photos are taken when your order reaches the agent’s warehouse in China, so you can check the size, colour and any defects before paying for international shipping.
- → GL→ RL
- GL
- Green light: you approve the item after reviewing the QC photos.
- Giving a GL means accepting the item so it can go in your parcel. In online communities people ask “GL or RL?” when they share their QC photos.
- → RL→ QC
- RL
- Red light: you reject the item and ask for an exchange or a return.
- An RL means asking your agent to return or exchange the item with the seller. It’s only easy while the item is still in China.
- → GL→ Return / exchange
- Shopping agent
- A company that buys from Chinese stores on your behalf and ships the items to you.
- Examples include Kakobuy, CNFans, ACBuy, Mulebuy, Hoobuy, Superbuy, AllChinaBuy and Sugargoo.
- Warehouse
- The agent’s facility in China where your items are received, photographed and stored.
- Agents usually offer free storage for a set period; after that, they may charge storage fees.
- In hand (IH)
- Photos of the item once you’ve received it at home, not at the warehouse.
- In-hand photos show the item in normal light and being worn; they complement QC photos.
- Haul
- The set of items you ship together in one parcel.
- It also refers to a post where someone shows off everything they received.
- W2C
- “Where to cop”: asking where to buy an item.
- Used in communities when someone wants the link to an item they saw in a photo.
- Rehearsal (test packing)
- A service that packs your parcel and gives you the real weight and size before you pay for shipping.
- Useful for picking a shipping line with real numbers. The name and price depend on the agent.
- Domestic shipping
- Shipping from the seller to the agent’s warehouse inside China.
- You pay it when you order; it’s free if the listing says 包邮.
- Return / exchange
- Sending the item back to the seller from the warehouse for a refund or a replacement.
- You usually pay the domestic return shipping. Custom-made items may not be returnable.
- → RL
- Flat measurements
- Measurements of a garment laid flat on a table, from edge to edge.
- The flat chest width is half the full chest measurement (胸围) shown on many Chinese size charts.