Three factories quote you for the "same" wooden cabinet. One comes back a third cheaper than the others — and turns out to exclude packing, shipping documentation, and the finish you approved on the sample. The quotes looked comparable. They were not. Comparing supplier quotations from India is not arithmetic; it is detective work. Here is how to line quotes up so you are comparing deliveries, not numbers.
1. Make every quote describe the same product
A quotation is only as good as the description it is built on. If three suppliers are quoting from three different mental pictures — different wood, different finish, different hardware — the prices tell you nothing. Send every supplier the same written specification before you ask for a price, and require them to quote against it by name and version.
When a quote arrives with vague lines like "wooden cabinet, as discussed", push it back. Ask for the specification reference, the dimensions, materials, finishes and packing unit in writing. Our guide to writing clear product specifications shows exactly what that reference document should contain — it is the single biggest factor in getting comparable quotes.
2. Normalise the Incoterms basis before you compare
The most common reason quotes look different is that they are not priced on the same basis. One factory quotes ex-works — you arrange everything from the factory gate. Another quotes FOB — they deliver to the port and load the vessel. A third quotes CIF — freight and insurance to your port are included. Line these up side by side without adjusting and the cheapest-looking quote wins by default, wrongly.
Convert every quote to the same trade term before comparing. Ask each supplier to quote on both ex-works and FOB at minimum, so the freight-handling portion is visible rather than buried. Our Incoterms explainer walks through what each term makes the factory responsible for, and where your responsibility starts.
3. Ask what is NOT in the price
Quotations are defined by their exclusions as much as their inclusions. The lines suppliers leave out are where surprises hide: export packing versus domestic packing, carton marking with your codes, fumigation of wooden packing material, pre-shipment inspection access, documentation for customs, and any testing or lab reports the product needs.
Send every supplier the same checklist of inclusions and ask for a yes or no against each one — packed for sea export, marked per your instructions, fumigation certificate where needed, inspection rights reserved. A quote that answers every line is worth more than a cheaper quote that leaves half the checklist blank. The gap between the two is your real price difference.
4. Compare the payment terms as part of the cost
Two quotes for the same amount are not equal if one wants the bulk of the money upfront and the other accepts payment against shipping documents. Payment terms carry cost and risk: money paid months before shipment is money that earns nothing and is hard to recover if the order goes wrong, while payment against documents keeps leverage with the buyer until the goods are on the water.
When you compare quotes, compare the whole payment structure — how much is due with the order, how much before shipment, what triggers each release, and in which currency payment will actually be made. Our comparison of payment terms shows how LC, TT and other structures shift risk between buyer and supplier, so you can weigh a cheaper price against a harder payment schedule honestly.
5. Check the sample policy and its price
Samples are a hidden fork in the road. One supplier bills samples separately and deducts the amount from a confirmed order; another sends them free but builds the cost into the unit price; a third asks full price and keeps it. None of these is wrong — but they are not the same, and they affect what the quoted unit price really means.
Clarify before ordering: sample cost, how many revision rounds are included, who pays the courier, and whether the sample amount is adjusted against the bulk order. Our guide to requesting and evaluating samples covers how to run the sample round so the bulk order matches what you approved — because a quote is only meaningful against a sample both sides accepted.
6. Put packing on the same footing
Packing is routinely the biggest hidden difference between quotes. Export-worthy packing for a long sea voyage — reinforced cartons, inner protection for fragile items, palletisation, moisture protection — costs more than the domestic packing a local buyer would accept, and some factories quote the cheaper version unless you specify.
Require each supplier to quote the packing you specified: carton type, inner packing, pallet or loose loading, and your carton marks. If one quote assumes domestic packing and another assumes export packing, you are comparing different products. Our packing and crating standards guide details what export packing for fragile Indian goods actually involves, so you can see which quote includes it.
7. Add up the true landed cost, not just the factory price
The factory price is one line in the real calculation. To compare quotes fairly, build each one up to the same finish line: factory price on the same Incoterms basis, plus freight, insurance, port handling, customs duty and inland delivery to your warehouse. The "cheapest" factory quote can easily become the most expensive landed cost once a higher freight basis or weaker packing is accounted for.
Do this build-up in a simple table — one row per supplier, one column per cost element, identical columns for all. Gaps and "not included" cells tell you where to ask follow-up questions. Our guide to the real cost of sourcing from India walks through the cost layers buyers most often miss, which makes a good checklist for your columns.
Done this way, quote comparison stops being a race to the lowest number and becomes what it should be: a check of which supplier understood your product, priced the full delivery honestly, and left the fewest surprises for later. The supplier who answers every line of your checklist completely is usually the supplier who will run your order the same way.
Frequently asked questions
Should I just pick the cheapest quotation?
Almost never on the number alone. In our experience the cheapest quote is usually the one that excluded the most — export packing, marking, documentation, inspection access. Normalise every quote to the same specification, Incoterms basis and inclusion checklist first; only then does the lowest number mean anything.
How many quotations should I compare?
Three or four serious ones. Fewer and you have no benchmark; more and the comparison becomes noise, because chasing ten suppliers means none of them gets your full attention. Pick the three or four whose samples, communication and references were strongest, and run the full line-by-line comparison on those.
Can I share one supplier's quote with another to get a lower price?
We advise against it. Suppliers recognise shared quotes immediately, and it teaches them that your numbers are negotiable theatre rather than serious business — the suppliers you most want to work with will simply walk away. Negotiate line by line instead: ask why their packing line costs more, or whether a different payment schedule changes the price. You get the same savings without burning the relationship.
What if quotes arrive in different currencies?
Convert them all to your home currency using one stated exchange rate and date, purely for comparison — and note that rate on your comparison sheet. Then agree the actual payment currency in writing with the winning supplier, because the currency of payment decides who carries the exchange-rate movement between order and payment.
Published by QualityLink Global Sourcing Team
Operating directly out of Jodhpur and Jaipur, Rajasthan. Our team provides hands-on supplier verification, factory audits, moisture testing, quality control, and container loading supervision across North India.
Need On-the-Ground Sourcing or QC Support in India?
If you have a prospective supplier in Rajasthan or North India, an active production run, or upcoming container loading, we can step onto the factory floor to verify specs and eliminate export risks.