AliExpress Tracking: How to Track Any AliExpress Order (2026)

AliExpress tracking works in three places: inside your AliExpress order, on Cainiao's official tracker, and on your local carrier's site once the parcel reaches your country. To track an AliExpress order, open My Orders, tap the order and choose Track order. Copy the tracking number from there, and if the AliExpress page stops updating, paste it into Cainiao or 17TRACK, then into your national post's tracker for the final leg.

That covers most orders. The rest of this guide is for when it doesn't: how to read the tracking number you've got, which carrier will actually deliver it in your country, what each status really means, and exactly when "not moving" becomes "open a dispute now."

How to track an AliExpress order in the app or on the website

The menu names below are the current English labels in late 2026. They shift slightly between app versions and languages, but the path is the same.

In the AliExpress app

1. Tap Account in the bottom menu.
2. Under My orders, tap Shipped (or View all to see everything).
3. Tap the order, then tap Track order. You'll see the shipping company, the tracking number and a timeline of scans.
4. Long-press or tap the copy icon next to the tracking number to copy it.

On aliexpress.com

1. Sign in and click your account name at the top right, then Orders.
2. Open the Shipped tab.
3. Click Track order next to the order. A panel opens with the tracking number and the latest events.
4. Click Order details if you need the full timeline, the delivery estimate or the Buyer Protection countdown.

No tracking number yet? Then the seller hasn't handed the parcel over. Orders usually sit in "To ship" for the seller's stated processing time. If that time passes with no shipment, message the seller or cancel.

One order can also show more than one tracking number. That happens when a seller splits items across parcels. Track each number separately, and don't open a claim on the whole order until you know which parcel is late.

Order number vs tracking number

This trips up a lot of people. Your order ID is a long string of digits, often 16 or more, that identifies the purchase on AliExpress. Carriers don't recognise it. Your tracking number is the code the logistics company assigned to the parcel. Only the tracking number works on Cainiao, 17TRACK, USPS or Royal Mail.

AliExpress tracking number formats explained

The format of your AliExpress tracking number tells you a lot about how the parcel is travelling and where you can track it.

The postal format follows the UPU S10 standard: a two-letter service code, eight serial digits, a check digit and the two-letter country code of the post that issued it. So "CN" at the end means China Post issued the number. It doesn't mean the parcel is still in China.

Cainiao tracking: AliExpress's own logistics network

Cainiao is the logistics arm of Alibaba Group, and it runs most AliExpress shipping, including AliExpress Standard Shipping and the economy lines. When the AliExpress order page shows a scan, it's usually Cainiao data. That makes Cainiao's Global Express Tracking page the first place to check when the app looks stale.

A few things make Cainiao tracking handy. You can paste up to 100 tracking numbers in one search, separated by commas or line breaks, which is a big time saver if you're checking a batch of store orders. Cainiao says it covers 200+ countries and regions and 100+ delivery providers. And because it's the source system, it sometimes shows warehouse and export events a few hours before third-party trackers pick them up.

Where Cainiao falls short is the last mile. Once the parcel is handed to your local carrier, Cainiao may only show "Received by local delivery company" and then nothing until "Delivered." For those final days, you need the local carrier's tracker.

17TRACK for AliExpress orders

17TRACK is the multi-carrier tracker most AliExpress buyers end up using. Its AliExpress tracking page lets you paste the number without knowing the carrier, and it says it supports more than 3,500 carriers. That's useful when a parcel changes hands two or three times, because 17TRACK can stitch the Chinese leg and the local leg into one timeline.

Two caveats from using it. First, if a number has just been issued, 17TRACK may return "not found" for a day or two until the carrier's system has the first scan. Second, when we checked in October 2026, 17TRACK was showing a banner saying USPS tracking requests are limited due to policy changes. If your parcel is with USPS and 17TRACK looks thin, go straight to USPS.

Which carrier delivers AliExpress orders in your country

Your parcel almost always finishes its trip with a local carrier. The tracking timeline will usually name it once the hand-off happens. These are the carriers you'll see most often:

If the local carrier gives your parcel a new number, it will often show up in the AliExpress or Cainiao timeline as a "last-mile tracking number" or inside the event text. Copy it and use the carrier's site directly. In the UK, for example, Royal Mail's tracker will often show a delivery window that Cainiao never displays.

What each AliExpress tracking status means

Wording varies a little between Cainiao, the AliExpress app and third-party trackers, but the stages are the same. Here's what the common ones mean and how long they normally last.

The longest gap is almost always after "Leaving from departure country/region." Parcels travel in sealed bags inside bulk air shipments, and nothing scans them until they reach the destination hub. A week of silence at that stage is normal, not a sign that your order is lost. These ranges are typical rather than guaranteed, and our guide to AliExpress shipping times covers how long each method takes end to end.

AliExpress Standard Shipping tracking

AliExpress Standard Shipping is Cainiao's mid-priced line and the default on many listings. It's tracked from start to finish, and it's usually the method with the most detailed timeline. Expect an LP number or a postal-format number, with the Cainiao timeline switching to your local carrier near the end. If you're choosing between methods, our comparison of AliExpress shipping methods explains how Standard Shipping stacks up against the cheaper and faster options.

The cheapest "economy" lines are where tracking gets thin. Some only show the parcel leaving China and then the final delivery, with nothing in between. If tracking matters to you, or to your customers, pay the extra for a tracked method.

AliExpress order not moving? What to do and when

"Order not moving" is the most common tracking complaint, and most of the time the parcel is fine. The trick is knowing how long to wait at each stage before acting. Here's the sequence we'd follow:

1. Check the date of the last scan, not the date you ordered. Five quiet days after "Leaving from departure country/region" is normal. Five quiet days after "Out for delivery" isn't.
2. Check Cainiao and 17TRACK. Paste the number into both. Third-party trackers sometimes show a newer scan or a new local tracking number.
3. Check the local carrier. If the parcel has reached your country, try the number on USPS, Royal Mail, Canada Post or Australia Post. Local scans often appear there first.
4. Message the seller after about 7 days with no new scan. Do it through AliExpress messages so it's on record. Ask for the carrier name, the last known location and whether there's a new tracking number.
5. Watch the Buyer Protection countdown. Open Order details and check how much protection time is left. This is the deadline that actually matters.
6. Open a claim before the timer runs out. If the parcel still isn't moving and you're inside the last few days of protection, or the guaranteed delivery date has passed, open a refund request. Don't wait for the seller to promise one more week.

How AliExpress Buyer Protection handles lost or late parcels

According to AliExpress's Buyer Protection page, you're covered if your item doesn't arrive or is lost in transit within the guaranteed delivery window shown on your order details page. You're also covered if the order doesn't match the listing or arrives damaged, as long as you raise it within 15 days of receiving the item.

The menu path is My orders → Order details → Return/refund. Choose the reason that matches (package not received, for example), add screenshots of the tracking timeline and your chat with the seller, and submit. Two habits make these claims go faster:

• Never tap "Confirm received" on a parcel you haven't got. It tells AliExpress the order is done and makes a not-received claim much harder.
• If tracking says "Delivered" but nothing arrived, check lockers, neighbours and the carrier's delivery photo within 48 hours. Then report it to the carrier and open the claim with that evidence.

Common AliExpress tracking problems and fixes

"Tracking number not found"

New numbers often take 24 to 72 hours to go live in carrier systems. If it's still not found after five days, ask the seller to confirm the number. Sometimes a seller uploads a warehouse reference and swaps in the real carrier number later.

Tracking shows a different country or city

Transit hubs confuse people. A parcel bound for Texas might scan in Amsterdam, Liège or Singapore because that's where the air freight connects. Worry only if the final destination in the timeline is wrong, or the parcel scans as delivered somewhere that isn't your address.

Stuck in customs

Customs holds are the other common long pause. In the US, duty-free de minimis treatment for low-value parcels ended in 2025, so more parcels are now held until duty is paid. If a carrier contacts you about a duty payment, check it's genuine on the carrier's official site rather than through a link in a text. Our guide to AliExpress import tax and customs duties explains what you might owe.

One order, several tracking numbers

Split shipments are normal for multi-item orders. Check each number in the Track order screen, and count the items in each parcel before you file a claim.

The same tracking rules apply to most Chinese marketplaces. If you also buy from DHgate, our review of whether DHgate is legit covers its separate buyer protection terms.

AliExpress tracking for dropshipping stores

When you sell AliExpress products in your own store, the tracking problem becomes a customer-service problem. Your customer doesn't know or care what Cainiao is. They want to know where their order is, and every confusing status turns into an email.

A few things keep "where is my order" tickets down:

• Give customers the last-mile number when you can. A USPS or Royal Mail number on a familiar tracking page builds more trust than an LP code.
• Set expectations at checkout. Show a realistic delivery range on product pages and in the order confirmation, not the best case.
• Send proactive updates at the long silences. A short email when the parcel leaves China ("next scan in about a week") heads off most tickets. Our shipping delay communication templates give you wording you can copy.
• Use faster suppliers for bestsellers. Domestic stock means short, simple tracking timelines.

This is where AliDrop helps. It connects your Shopify store to AliExpress, Alibaba and Temu products and sends each order to the supplier automatically, so you're not copying addresses and order numbers by hand. For products where delivery speed matters, you can switch to vetted US and EU suppliers with 2–5 day shipping, which removes the long international gap from the tracking timeline altogether. You can try AliDrop for $1 for the first 7 days.

If you're comparing tracking apps for your store, our breakdown of order tracking systems for AliExpress dropshipping covers the options, and the AliExpress dropshipping page shows how ordering works inside AliDrop.

The short version

For AliExpress tracking, start in My Orders, use Cainiao as the source of truth while the parcel is in the Chinese network, and switch to your local carrier once it lands. Expect a quiet week in the middle. Act on the Buyer Protection countdown rather than on the order date, and never confirm receipt for a parcel you don't have. If you run a store and want shorter, simpler tracking timelines for your customers, start your 7-day AliDrop trial for $1.