What to Do If You Lost Your USPS Tracking Number

Most USPS items have a tracking number that allows senders and recipients to track them. Losing a tracking number can be frustrating, especially when trying to locate an important package or confirm delivery. While a lost tracking number can sometimes be recovered, it is not always possible. What should you do if you lose your USPS tracking number?

In order to determine if your tracking number can be recovered, it is important to understand how the United States Postal Service (USPS) assigns and stores tracking numbers. Most USPS items have a tracking number, except for postcards, First-Class Mail letters and flats, periodicals, and some USPS Marketing Mail items. You can have a tracking number assigned to First-Class Mail letters or flats by purchasing tracking as an extra service.

You can find your tracking number in one of the following places:

• Your shipping receipt
• Your sales receipt if you purchased additional insurance at a post office
• Your email confirmation if you shipped from USPS.com
• Your online label record if you purchased postage online through USPS Click-N-Ship or third-party services
• Below the barcode on the shipping label

If you are the recipient, you can request your tracking number from the sender. Alternatively, if you are already a subscriber, you can use Informed Delivery to look up your inbound packages. If you are not a subscriber, you can sign up for the service. However, you won’t be able to see items mailed before you signed up on your dashboard.

What should you do if you misplace or forget your tracking number? You might first think to ask at the post office where you mailed the package or contact the Customer Care Center. Sadly, neither of these options will work. Neither post office employees nor customer care agents can recover lost tracking numbers.

The only ways to find your USPS tracking number are to recover your mailing/sales receipt or confirmation email or to look up your label record if you purchased postage online. Another option is to contact the recipient to see if they are an Informed Delivery subscriber. If so, they should be able to see the tracking number on their dashboard. If you are the recipient and are not an Informed Delivery subscriber, ask the sender to provide you with the tracking number.

In short, it’s easier to prevent losing your USPS tracking number than it is to deal with the situation if it happens. We suggest taking a picture of the shipping label and mailing/sales receipt so you have a copy of the tracking number on your phone. It’s also a good idea to text or email the tracking number to the recipient so that you both have it in case one of you forgets or misplaces it.

You can also sign up for tracking updates and receive automatic text or email notifications about your package. Although you need a tracking number to sign up, you will still receive notifications if you lose it afterwards. You can also sign up for Informed Delivery, a free service that automatically provides status updates for your inbound and outbound packages.