Looking for qualified manufacturers in Mexico? This guide explains what kind of products you can import from Mexico, including clothing, furniture, bags, jewelry, electronics, and more. In addition, the guide also explains why it can be challenging to find contract manufacturers making goods for other brands in Mexico, and what you can expect in terms of product costs, MOQ requirements, import taxes, and transportation.
Supplier Overview
How can I find manufacturers in Mexico?
Finding manufacturers in Mexico is challenging. The main obstacle is that the number of manufacturers in a given industry is more limited than most US and Canadian buyers expect. If you are used to sourcing on Alibaba and having hundreds of supplier options, then you will likely be disappointed by your options in Mexico.
Mexican manufacturing is different, in the sense that many of the export manufacturers are brand owned. This makes sense, given that the United States is next door. Why operate as a low-margin contract manufacturer when you can own your own brand and distribution channels in the US?
We see this both with US companies that operate their own factories in Mexico and Mexican-owned factories – maquiladoras – that have sales offices in the US. These companies are primarily interested in selling their own branded products – not making products for other brands.
This translates into fewer options for third-party buyers looking for manufacturers in Mexico. This is not to say that manufacturing in Mexico is impossible, but it is not as easy as many US and Canadian importers might expect.
If you are serious about manufacturing in Mexico, you may also want to consider setting up your own production facility. There are many service providers that specialize in helping US and Canadian businesses with everything from incorporation to recruitment of factory workers. Some also operate industrial parks that provide access to manufacturing and warehousing facilities. Setting up your own operation in Mexico is more costly upfront, but makes it possible to manufacture and assemble essentially any product – using both domestically and foreign sources components and materials.
What kind of products are manufactured in Mexico?
Clothing
Furniture
Metal fabrication
Clothing
Mexico is generally not considered a world-leading textiles exporter, but you can still find a fairly wide range of clothing manufacturers in the country. Our supplier database covers both general garment manufacturers and those specialized in sportswear, swimwear, babywear, workwear, and denim.
Examples
- IDEAS JOSBRIS
- CS TECH CONTRACT MANUFACTURING
- Grupo Denim
- Coprotex
- Vertical Knits, S.A. de C.V.
Furniture
Our supplier database currently covers Mexican manufacturers producing various types of furniture. This includes wooden furniture, upholstered furniture, office furniture, hospitality furniture, kitchen furniture, and bathroom furniture.
Examples
- Industrial Mueblera San Agustín
- MESTIERE S. de R.L. de C.V
- Meximuebles
- AG Furniture Manufacturer
Metal fabrication
Mexico has a large automotive industry, and that has helped develop a fairly sophisticated metal fabrication manufacturing base. You can find metal fabrication companies for welding, laser cutting, sheet bending, stamping, and more.
Examples
- Manufacturas Metálicas Titán
- Intecmetal Industria Técnica Metalúrgica
- Aurin de México S.A. de C.V.
Other products
Our supplier directory covers hundreds of suppliers located in Mexico. Below are some examples of product categories.
- Textile bags
- Leather bags
- Leather accessories
- Eco-friendly leather substitutes
- Silver Jewelry
- Gold jewelry
- Windows
- Doors
- Prefab houses
- Cosmetics
- Plastic injection molding
- Electronics manufacturing services (EMS)
Product costs
We currently don’t have enough price data to say to what extent manufacturing in Mexico is more costly compared to China. However, most small to medium-sized buyers primarily consider Mexican factories for the sake of proximity, not for cost reduction. Proximity means reduced lead times, and that is as good as any reason.
Payment terms
Our impression is that most Mexican export manufacturers don’t allow new buyers to buy on credit, which makes sense. Instead, the standard payment terms tend to be the following:
- 30% deposit and 70% balance
- 50% deposit and 50% balance
Most Mexican manufacturers accept wire transfers.
MOQ requirements
The MOQ requirements in Mexico tend to be on par with what you can expect in most manufacturing countries. For example, clothing manufacturers tend to set the MOQ at around 500 pcs per style. As is always the case, the MOQ requirements differ depending on the industry.
Quality Inspections
Returning defective or incorrect items to manufacturers is always a headache, including when you are importing from Mexico. As such, product quality must be checked before the goods are shipped. There are several companies in Mexico offering on-site quality inspections for essentially all types of products.
Most companies charge between USD 300 to 500 per inspection and day spent on-site in the factory.
Examples
- AMREPMexico
- TROPPUS
- Mexico Footwear Agency
- Specialized Inspection Services
- Control Union Mexico
- SCI Control & Inspeccion
- Mars Quality
- OCA Global
Import duties
The US–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) ensures that most manufactured products imported from Mexico to the US or Canada are not subject to import duties. Notice that a country of origin certificate may be required to prove that the imported goods are manufactured in Mexico.
| Destination | Status | Note |
| Mexico to USA | USMCA | No tariffs (0% import duty) apply to most products. You can search tariffs using the FTA Tariff Tool. |
| Mexico to Canada | USMCA | See above |
| Mexico to EU | Tariffs apply | You can lookup duty rates based on the commodity code using TARIC. |
| Mexico to UK | Tariffs apply | You can lookup duty rates based on the commodity code on www.gov.uk/trade-tariff. |
Shipping from Mexico
| Destination | Air | Ocean | Rail | Truck |
| Mexico to USA | Yes | Yes | Yes
from US border |
Yes |
| Mexico to Canada | Yes | Yes | Yes
from US border |
Yes |
| Mexico to EU | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Mexico to UK | Yes | Yes | No | No |
