Ask Right to Get the Right Price
RFQ and quote comparison — the real first step in sourcing

Hello, this is GreenFrog Seoul.

"I asked three factories about the same product and the prices differed by more than double. Which one is right?"
"I picked the cheapest, then found out the MOQ was three times higher and packaging was billed separately."
"I had the quote in hand, but when I went to order a month later they said 'that price no longer applies.'"

The first wall you hit when you start sourcing is the quote. Once you've settled on a product and found a few factories, you naturally ask "how much?" — and the quality of what comes back depends entirely on how you ask that question. Ask loosely and you get a loose quote; build your business plan on that loose number and the whole thing wobbles at the ordering stage. The request for quotation, usually called an RFQ, is precisely why it's the real first step in sourcing.

A quote isn't something the factory decides and hands you — it's the answer that comes back in proportion to how you asked. Ask vaguely about quantity, spec, packaging, and delivery, and the factory fills the gaps in its own favor. The moment those assumptions diverge from reality, the price you first received means nothing.

Today we'll work through the process of requesting and comparing quotes in practical terms. What belongs in an RFQ, how to read the MOQ, lead time, and payment terms hidden behind a unit price, what framework you need to line up several factories' quotes on the same yardstick, and which landmines sellers step on at the quote stage. Ask the first question well, and half of the back-and-forth and misunderstanding that follows is closed off in advance.

1. Why the RFQ Is the First Step in Sourcing

Many sellers treat a quote as merely "asking the price." But an RFQ does more than that. A single request document becomes the reference point that confirms seller and factory are picturing the same product the same way. Nail down in writing how many units, what material and color, how far the packaging goes, and by when you need it, and you sharply reduce the room for a later "nobody told me that" dispute.

Conversely, if you skip the RFQ and just fire off "how much is this?" in chat, the factory fills in the missing pieces itself — usually in whatever way suits it. Quantity becomes a lot that's easy for it to run, packaging becomes the simplest bulk option, delivery gets a comfortable buffer. The unit price that comes out may look cheap, but it isn't the condition you wanted. Requesting a quote properly isn't just asking politely; it's removing the seeds of misunderstanding before they sprout.

2. What Every Quote Must Contain

A proper quote fills in at least the items below. A quote with only a lone unit price isn't a quote — it's closer to bait. Conditions get bolted on one by one afterward, and your real burden can shift as much as you like.

The detail worth noting in this table is that the unit price sits at the very top as a single line. The other six lines surround that one line and decide your actual spend. If those cells are blank when a quote arrives, that's a sign there's still something left to ask.

3. How to Write a Good RFQ

The quality of the quote you get back can't exceed the quality of the question you send. The key is to pack in the information the factory needs the first time, so it has nothing to ask back. Organized around the items sellers most often leave out, it looks like this.

First, pin the product down without room for misreading. A photo or link alone isn't enough; add the specs that drive the price — material, size, color, function. Next comes quantity. Since the unit price steps up and down with volume, rather than asking about one number, ask "for 500 / 1,000 / 3,000 units each" so the price curve becomes visible at a glance. Add the packaging you want, the delivery you need, and the destination (port or warehouse), and the factory has no room to assume conditions on its own. Finally, note by when you'd like a reply, and response speed gets managed too.

4. Why You Can't Compare Quotes on Unit Price Alone

Once you've gathered three or four quotes, your eye goes to the lowest unit price. But what actually leaves your account isn't the unit price — it's every cost summed up until the goods reach your warehouse. Look at this total, commonly called the landed cost, and the truly cheap option becomes clear.

Say Factory A has the lowest unit price but a high MOQ, separate packaging, and deposit-heavy payment terms — then the money that gets tied up and the upfront burden can actually be larger. Conversely, if a factory's unit price is a touch higher but comes with a low MOQ, packaging included, and a large balance portion, that side is far more favorable for a seller starting small. The unit price is only the starting point of comparison, not the conclusion.

5. Reading the Hidden Conditions in a Quote

The conditions written small next to the price, or not spoken at all, make the biggest difference later. When a quote arrives, get into the habit of checking these four things before the numbers.

First is the MOQ. An attractive unit price is often premised on a quantity you actually can't handle. Second is lead time: whether "20 days" is on working days, or includes a holiday like Chinese New Year, can push the real arrival date out by weeks. Third is payment terms — the higher the deposit ratio, the sooner and longer your money is locked up. Fourth is quote validity. In periods when raw materials and FX move, a quote from a few weeks ago won't hold, and you'll hear "that price no longer applies" right before you order.

6. Putting Multiple Quotes on the Same Yardstick

The real reason quote comparison is hard is that every factory answers in a different format on a different basis. One on FOB, one on EXW, one packaging-included, one separate. Lay those side by side as-is and you're comparing apples and oranges. So you need a step where you re-enter the quotes you received into your own format.

The method is simple. Make one comparison table and fill it in by converting every factory's terms to the same basis. Unify the trade term (say, everything on FOB), take upfront costs like packaging and sample fees and divide them by quantity to fold into the unit price, and organize payment terms and delivery in the same columns. Only then does it become visible which factory is most favorable under your conditions.

7. Landmines Sellers Often Step On at the Quote Stage

Accidents at the quote stage also repeat from a few set mistakes. Gathered up, the traps Korean sellers most often hit look like this.

• Asks price but not conditions — just "how much?" with no MOQ, packaging, or delivery
• Locks onto the lowest unit price — misses packaging, initial stock, and cash strain in the total
• Asks quantity as one number — misses the tiered price curve and loses negotiating room
• Takes delivery at face value — sets a sales schedule without checking working days/holidays
• Misses validity — goes to order weeks later and the price has changed
• Compares raw formats — lines up quotes on different bases and gets confused

A common thread appears. Most start from "asking the price before deciding the conditions." A quote isn't a casual greeting you toss out and receive — it's the document that frames the whole order. Three habits — asking with conditions built in, comparing on the total, and ranking on the same yardstick — clear away most of these landmines.

8. GreenFrog Seoul's RFQ & Quote-Comparison Support

The principles lay out cleanly, but in practice, rendering the spec clearly in Chinese, asking several factories on the same terms, and converting the returning quotes into one table for comparison each takes a lot of hands. Sellers especially wear out at chasing down quotes missing conditions and confirming hidden MOQ and delivery. GreenFrog Seoul first organizes the seller's product and target quantity into a clear RFQ, gathers quotes from several factories on the same basis, compares them on the total, and helps you pick the factory that's actually favorable rather than the apparent lowest price.

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What changes when we work together

• Sharp questions — an RFQ with conditions built in cuts the back-and-forth
• The real lowest price — pick the factory on the total, not the unit price
• Same-yardstick comparison — judge at a glance with a unified table
• A schedule that holds — confirm delivery and validity up front to protect the plan

9. RFQ & Quote-Comparison Checklist

Items to check step by step, from requesting the quote to picking the factory.

Request stage

• Pinned the product spec (material, size, color, function) without ambiguity
• Asked quantity as a tier (e.g., 500/1,000/3,000), not one number
• Specified packaging and trade term (EXW/FOB, etc.)
• Backed out the required arrival date and gave a delivery target

Receipt / verification stage

• The quote states MOQ, lead time, payment terms, and validity in full
• Confirmed whether packaging/sample/mold fees are separate from the unit price
• Asked back whether delivery is on working days and if holidays overlap

Comparison / decision stage

• Converted every quote to the same trade term
• Folded upfront costs into the unit price by dividing over quantity
• Ranked on the total (landed cost), not the unit price

Wrapping Up — A Quote Is Something You "Ask," Not Something You "Receive"

Compressing today into one line each:

• Why the RFQ: a quote returns in proportion to how you ask — ask with conditions built in
• Must-have items: not a single unit-price line, but MOQ, delivery, payment, packaging, and validity
• The comparison trap: look at the total (landed cost), not the lowest unit price
• Hidden conditions: MOQ, lead time, payment, and validity make the real difference
• Same yardstick: it only becomes visible on your comparison table, not the received format

The quote is the first thing you do in sourcing, which makes it just as easy to breeze past. But a number you got by asking vaguely here becomes the foundation of every plan that follows, and if that foundation is flimsy, ordering, receiving, and selling all wobble in a chain. Ask the first question clearly, line up the answers on the same yardstick, and compare on the total, and your order decision gets far more solid. Before you send the next "how much is this?", pause a moment and ask yourself: am I asking with conditions built in, or just tossing out a price? That one check sharply reduces later accidents with stock, cash, and schedule. GreenFrog Seoul handles everything from building a clear RFQ to comparing several factories' quotes on the total, helping Korean sellers pick genuinely favorable terms rather than the apparent lowest price. If you're stuck on how to ask for a quote, or how to compare the ones you've received, reach out any time.