Canton Fair 2026 Dates & Phases: Which One Should You Attend?
Three phases. Three completely different product worlds. Book the wrong week and your suppliers simply aren't on the floor.
The 140th Canton Fair runs October 15 – November 4, 2026, in three phases at the Canton Fair Complex, Pazhou, Guangzhou. Each phase shows a completely different set of products. Use the Phase Finder below to confirm your dates in under 30 seconds.
Why the Phases Matter More Than Anything Else
The Canton Fair doesn't run as one continuous exhibition. It runs as three back-to-back trade shows in the same venue, each covering a distinct cluster of product industries. Every exhibitor participates in exactly one phase — the one that matches their product category. Nothing carries over between phases.
The practical consequence: if you arrive during Phase 2 looking for clothing suppliers, the garment halls won't exist. They're a Phase 3 fixture. The space will be full of furniture and home-goods companies instead. This mistake costs buyers a full transatlantic flight and five days they can't get back.
The Canton Fair's organisers designed it this way intentionally — concentrating an industry for five days creates better deals and better conversations than spreading a thin cross-section across three weeks. Your job as a buyer is simply to know which cluster your products fall into, then match your travel dates to the correct phase.
The 2026 Schedule at a Glance
The autumn session of the fair (the 140th, and also the 70th anniversary of the Canton Fair) runs across three non-overlapping phases with three-day changeover gaps between each. Both the spring and autumn schedules are shown below.
The technology and industrial phase. If your products need a power source, a motor, or a circuit board — or if you're sourcing parts that go into other products — this is your phase.
→ Attended by: technology importers, industrial distributors, EV buyers, electrical wholesalers, construction procurement, Amazon sellers in electronics.
The home and interiors phase. If it goes inside a room, on a wall, or in a garden — this is where you find the factory behind it. Also the phase for corporate gifts and promotional merchandise.
→ Attended by: furniture retailers, interior importers, B2B gifting buyers, construction suppliers, Amazon home-goods sellers, hospitality procurement teams.
The largest buyer-volume phase. Fashion, food, fast-moving consumer goods, and everyday products. The October timing is perfect for placing Q4 delivery orders and booking spring season inventory.
→ Attended by: fashion importers, Amazon apparel sellers, food distributors, pharmacy chains, toy buyers, sporting goods retailers, private-label brands.
Phase Finder — What Are You Sourcing?
Tap your product category and see your phase and dates instantly.
Don't Let the Changeover Gaps Catch You Off Guard
Between each phase, the Canton Fair closes for three days while one set of exhibitors dismantles and the next set moves in. These are not holidays or optional break days — buyers cannot enter the complex during changeover.
The gaps are:
- October 20–22 (between Phase 1 and Phase 2)
- October 28–30 (between Phase 2 and Phase 3)
If you are staying in Guangzhou across a changeover, use those three days productively. The Pearl River Delta manufacturing belt — Foshan for furniture and ceramics, Dongguan for electronics and hardware, Zhongshan for lighting, Shenzhen for tech and accessories — is all within one to two hours by road. Post-fair factory visits during the changeover gap are one of the highest-leverage uses of your trip.
What If Your Products Span Two Phases?
It happens more often than buyers expect. A brand that sells furniture and decorative pillows might assume they both belong to Phase 2 — but if those pillows are classified as home textiles, they're Phase 2, and if they're classified under apparel textiles, they may have Phase 3 representation too. A food importer who also sources promotional gifts might need Phase 2 and Phase 3.
The honest answer for buyers spanning phases: plan a 10-to-12-day trip, attend the relevant phases, and use the changeover for factory visits. Your buyer badge is valid for all three phases within a session. The additional travel days add cost, but they often pay off in a single supplier relationship you wouldn't have found otherwise.
If you're not sure whether your category falls into one phase or two, tell us what you source and we'll map it against the official ExhibitCategories list and confirm your phase before you book.
For everything else you need before you fly — registration, invitation letter, visa, hotels near Pazhou, transport routes, and payment — read the complete Canton Fair 2026 buyer guide
Frequently Asked Questions
Confirmed your phase? Let us plan the rest.
Tell us what you're sourcing and your phase dates. We'll plan your route, arrange hotels, and quote within one business day — from a team already on the ground in Guangzhou.