Quick answer
Buyers are notified that their items are on their way based on the ship date you set when purchasing a shipping label and completing your orders.
Make sure that the ship date matches the date you plan to hand off the order to the shipping carrier.
There are two ways to add tracking to an order:
- Purchase shipping labels on Etsy. If you use shipping labels purchased on Etsy, tracking is automatically included.
- If you complete an order without purchasing a shipping label, tracking information can be added manually.
When you add tracking to your order or use shipping labels purchased on Etsy, you help provide your buyer an excellent customer service experience by keeping them updated about the status of their shipment. Adding tracking information is required to complete an order for US sellers.
Consider the following best practices in this article to help you become a Star Seller.
How do I add tracking and complete an order on Etsy.com?
- On Etsy.com, go to Shop Manager and then Orders & Shipping.
- In the Open orders tab, you'll see a list of your sales that you haven't completed yet.
- Select the Complete order icon on the right side of the order you're interested in. Then, complete the order.
- Choose a Ship date. You can choose to set a Ship date up to two days in the future. We will not send a Shipping Notification to your buyer until the package’s Ship date. Ship dates are based on Eastern Time.
- Add a personal Note to Buyer. You can save up to 10 versions of your Note to Buyer. To save a note, select the message bubble in the Note to Buyer field.
- Select a Shipping carrier and add Tracking information if you're purchasing a shipping label off of Etsy.
- Select Preview buyer notification to view the shipping notification that will be sent to your buyer. If you’d like, check Send me a copy of this email.
- Select Complete order.
- On the Etsy Seller app, go to your Orders tab.
- Select the order you're looking to complete from your list.
- Review the order information and select Complete order.
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Put in your order’s tracking number. If your order doesn't have tracking, such as if it’s a digital item or an item for local pickup, select This order doesn’t have tracking and choose your reason from the list of options.
- Choose your Shipping carrier from the dropdown menu.
- Select a date from the Ship date dropdown. You can choose to set a Ship date up to two days in the future. Buyer's won't won't receive a shipping notification until the package’s Ship date, which are based on Eastern Time.
- Select Add note to buyer to include a personalized message and choose Save. Select the pencil icon if you need to edit your message.
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Select the checkmark if you would like to have a copy of this notification emailed to you.
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Select Complete order.
When is a tracking number required?
Tracking will not be required in the following instances:
- Digital items, including custom digital items
- Customized order additions linked to another order
- Orders not being shipped (local pickup/delivery)
- Oversized and heavy items
If you need to indicate an exception other than what is listed, you’ll see an option to indicate This order doesn't have tracking below the tracking number field. You can then add a quick explanation for why you can’t add tracking for an order.
Adding tracking to your physical orders is one of the criteria for the Star Seller badge. Completing an order without adding tracking will not count as a tracked order towards Star Seller eligibility.
For an order to qualify for Etsy Purchase Protection, it must include valid tracking. If something goes wrong with an order that doesn’t qualify for Etsy Purchase Protection, this may count against your Case Rate, which may impact your search visibility, or your ability to sell on Etsy.
How do I accurately complete my orders?
When you complete an order, either when you purchase a shipping label from Etsy or are completing it manually, you must set a ship date for when you expect to hand the item over to the shipping carrier. An email is automatically sent to the buyer letting them know their order is in transit on the ship date you set.
If you set a ship date for an order before the package is actually en route, it creates an inaccurate expectation of when the buyer will receive it. This can also cause your order to arrive later than its estimated delivery date, which can impact things like your on-time delivery rate for Star Seller, or the order’s eligibility for Etsy Purchase Protection.
How do I edit the tracking number on an order?
Once you complete an order and add tracking information manually, you have three days to make changes to the tracking number or shipping carrier.
- On Etsy.com, go to Shop Manager, then Orders & Shipping.
- Select Completed.
- Choose the order with the tracking information you want to change and scroll down to the package you want to edit.
- Select Edit tracking next to the original tracking number.
- Make any changes to the tracking number or shipping carrier.
- Select Save.
If you need to change the number after three days, you can contact your buyer through Etsy Messages with the correct tracking number, and add the tracking number to your private notes on the order for your records. Keeping your buyer updated will help avoid any potential confusion or disputes.
How do I add tracking information after completing an order?
After you complete an order, you can add tracking information at a later date.
To add a tracking number to a completed order:
- On Etsy.com, go to Shop Manager, then Orders & Shipping.
- Select Completed.
- Select the ... icon next to the order you want to add tracking information to.
- Select Add a package.
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From here you can:
- Choose a Ship date. You can choose to set a Ship date up to two days in the future. We will not send a Shipping Notification to your buyer until the package’s Ship date. Ship dates are based on Eastern Time.
- Add a personal Note to Buyer.
- Add a tracking number, if one was provided by your shipping carrier. If you already added a tracking number to the order previously, this new tracking number will appear on the order in addition to the previous number(s) you have entered.
If you have orders that you shipped, but that are still in the Sold tab or the In progress tab of your orders page, you may need to select Complete order.
To complete an order, find the order on your Sold tab. Select the timer icon on the order, then choose Complete order (if you don’t have custom progress steps, you won't need to choose Complete order after selecting the timer icon).
You can then:
- Choose a Ship date. We won’t send a Shipping Notification to your buyer until the package’s Ship date.
- Add a personal Note to Buyer.
- Add a tracking number, if one was provided by your shipping carrier.
If one of your orders is showing as “payment processing” or "Not Paid" on your Order & Shipping page or if you received an email from Etsy saying that your order is still processing, it means that Etsy is reviewing the transaction.
This review may take up to 72 hours, although it may occasionally take longer. This review process is in place to protect you and other sellers and buyers on Etsy from possible fraud.
The buyer has also received an email letting them know that their order is being reviewed by Etsy.
We know it’s important to have your order completed as soon as possible. Our team is working diligently to review your transaction.
Once the order has fully processed, both you and the buyer will receive an email confirmation. Please don’t take any further action regarding your order until you receive the confirmation email.
I want to cancel an order, but I don’t see the option toYou can’t cancel an order while it’s processing. After the order is processed, you can cancel the order from your Orders & Shipping page.