Shipping & Tracking

Tracking integration lets you add tracking numbers to WooCommerce orders and automatically notify customers when their order ships — complete with a clickable link to follow their package in real time.

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Why This Matters

“Where’s my order?” is probably the most common support question for any online store. Every one of those emails costs you time — time you could spend growing your business, improving your products, or frankly having a cup of tea.

Tracking integration turns that reactive support headache into a proactive customer experience. The moment you add a tracking number, the customer can be notified automatically, with a link to track their package. No guessing, no waiting, no support tickets.

Think of it like giving your customers a window seat on a plane. They can see exactly where they are in the journey, so they don’t need to keep asking the pilot.

Without this set up:

• You’ll spend hours answering “where’s my order?” emails
• Customers feel left in the dark after they pay
• Your support inbox fills up with questions you could have prevented
• You look less professional than competitors who send tracking automatically

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Before You Start

• Tracksies HQ plugin activated on your WordPress site
• WooCommerce installed and configured with at least one order to work with
• A shipping carrier account (Australia Post, DHL, FedEx, etc.) — you’ll need tracking numbers from them
• The Tracking feature enabled in Tracksies > Settings > Features (look for the woo.tracking toggle on the WooCommerce module tile)

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Enabling Tracking

Before you can add tracking numbers to orders, the feature needs to be turned on.

1. In your WordPress admin, go to Tracksies > Settings in the left sidebar
2. Click the Features tab at the top of the page
3. Find the WooCommerce module tile
4. Look for the Tracking toggle (woo.tracking) and make sure it’s switched on — this is the main switch that enables the entire tracking system
5. You’ll see two child features underneath:

– Auto-Shipped Status (woo.tracking_auto_shipped) — when this is on, adding a tracking number to an order automatically moves it to “Shipped” status. This is enabled by default, and it’s a real time-saver because it means you don’t have to manually change the order status after adding tracking
– Packed By (woo.packed_by) — this records which staff member packed each order, which is handy for quality control and accountability. More on this in the Packed By Tracking section below

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Adding Tracking to an Order

This is the core workflow: tracking number in, email out, customer happy.

1. Go to WooCommerce > Orders in the left sidebar of your WordPress admin, then click on the order you want to update
2. Scroll down to the Shipping & Tracking section on the order edit page — this is where all your tracking information lives
3. Select the carrier from the dropdown (e.g., Australia Post, DHL, FedEx, UPS, USPS, and more). The system uses carrier presets to automatically build the correct tracking URL for your customer, so picking the right carrier here matters
4. Enter the tracking number you received from your carrier into the tracking number field
5. Click Add Tracking to save the tracking details to the order — the tracking number, carrier name, and a generated tracking URL are all stored in the order’s metadata
6. If you have Auto-Shipped Status enabled (the default), the order status automatically changes to Shipped as soon as you add the tracking number. This saves you a step — you don’t need to manually update the order status
7. If Auto-Shipped is turned off, you’ll need to manually update the order status to Shipped from the status dropdown and click Update in the top right corner

Once the order is marked as Shipped, what happens next depends on your email trigger settings (covered in Controlling When Emails Send below).

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Managing Your Carrier List

Tracksies ships with 19 common carriers pre-configured across Australia, New Zealand, UK, US, Canada, and international (DHL, FedEx, UPS, USPS, and more). Most stores only use two or three, so we let you clean up the picker on the order page — no point showing an Australian store a Canada Post option they’ll never pick.

You can also add your own carrier if the one you use isn’t built in.

Where to Manage Carriers

1. Go to Tracksies HQ > Settings in the left sidebar
2. Click the Shipping tab
3. You’ll see each carrier grouped by country, with a Show checkbox on the left of each row

Hiding Carriers You Don’t Use

Untick the Show checkbox next to any carrier to remove it from the tracking picker on orders. The change is live the moment you click it — no Save button to press.

• Default carriers can be hidden but not deleted. If you change your mind, tick the box again and they reappear.
• Historical orders keep their tracking links. If you shipped with Canada Post last year and then hide Canada Post today, the tracking link on that old order still works. We only filter the picker, not the lookup.
• Hidden carriers are dimmed in the settings list so you can see what’s been turned off, and you can easily turn them back on.

Adding a Custom Carrier

If you use a courier that isn’t in the 19 defaults (a local depot, a boutique freight service, a white-label shipper), you can add your own:

1. On the Shipping settings tab, click + Add Custom Carrier
2. In the modal that opens, fill in:

– Carrier Name — what your customers will see (e.g., “Fastway Auckland”)
– Tracking URL Pattern — the tracking URL with {tracking} as a placeholder where the number goes. For example: https://fastway.co.nz/track?consignment={tracking}
– Country — which region group your carrier appears in

1. Click Save Carrier

The custom carrier appears in the picker immediately, in the country group you chose.

How the URL pattern works: when you add a tracking number to an order using your custom carrier, the system replaces {tracking} with the actual tracking number. So https://fastway.co.nz/track?consignment={tracking} becomes https://fastway.co.nz/track?consignment=ABC123456 on the live link.

Editing and deleting:

• Edit any carrier (default or custom) with the Edit button. Useful if a carrier changes their tracking URL — you can override the built-in pattern.
• Delete only works on custom carriers. Defaults can be hidden but never deleted (so a future update from us doesn’t wipe your custom changes).

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Shipping Method Awareness

Tracksies HQ automatically detects the shipping method each customer chose at checkout and uses that information throughout the fulfilment process.

What You Get

• Shipping method badges — Every order in the packing queue (Packsie) shows a coloured badge with the shipping method name. Standard methods get a blue badge; local pickup orders get an orange badge with a store icon. Your packers can see at a glance how each order needs to ship.

• Pickup auto-detection — When a packer finishes packing a local pickup order and clicks “Ship,” the system detects it’s a pickup order and shows a prompt instead of the tracking form: “This order is local pickup — mark as Ready for Pickup?” The prompt includes the pickup location address. The packer can mark it as ready (which sends a pickup notification email to the customer) or choose “Ship Instead” if the customer changed their mind.

• Smart untracked email fallback — Not every shipping method comes with tracking. When you mark an order as shipped and there’s no tracking number, the shipped email automatically adapts. Instead of a blank space where tracking info should be, the customer sees a friendly message like “Your order has been shipped, but your selected shipping method does not include tracking. Please allow 3-5 business days for delivery.”

The delivery estimate part (3-5 business days) is configurable — see the next section. If you don’t configure one, the email just says “Please allow time for delivery.” instead.

Shipping notes from the packing dashboard still come through. If a packer adds a “Goes in shipped email” note via the Packsie dashboard (for example, “Please leave in the side gate, not the front porch”), that note is appended to the tracking section whether or not a tracking number was added. So even untracked orders can carry a useful message to the customer when they ship. See Customer Notes for more on the note types.

Setting a Delivery Estimate for Untracked Orders

You can customise the timeframe shown in untracked shipping emails:

1. Go to Tracksies > Designer in the left sidebar
2. Click the Emails tab
3. Find the Untracked delivery estimate field in the Email Content section
4. Enter your preferred timeframe (e.g., 3-5 business days or 7-10 working days)
5. Click Save Changes

If you leave this field empty, the email uses a generic message: “Please allow time for delivery.” Setting a specific estimate gives customers a clearer expectation and reduces “where’s my order?” inquiries.

How Pickup Orders Work

When a customer selects local pickup at checkout, the flow changes:

1. Order appears in the packing queue with an orange pickup badge and a store icon
2. Packer claims and packs the order as normal
3. When the packer clicks to complete the order, a prompt appears asking whether to mark it as Ready for Pickup
4. If they confirm, the order status changes to Ready for Pickup and the customer receives a pickup notification email with the collection location and a note to bring ID or order confirmation
5. If the packer chooses Ship Instead (edge case — maybe the customer changed plans), the normal tracking form appears

The pickup location is pulled from your WooCommerce shipping zone settings. If no specific location is configured, it falls back to your store address.

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Split Shipments (Multiple Tracking Numbers)

Sometimes an order can’t go in one box. Maybe one item is backordered, or you’re shipping a surfboard and a pair of sunglasses — those aren’t going in the same package.

You can add multiple tracking numbers to a single order, one for each package:

1. Follow the steps above to add your first tracking number
2. In the Shipping & Tracking section, you’ll see your first tracking entry listed
3. Add another tracking number by selecting a carrier and entering the next tracking number, then click Add Tracking again
4. Each tracking entry appears as a separate line item on the order — customers can track each package independently

How notifications work with split shipments:

• When you add a tracking number for a partial shipment, the customer receives a Partially Shipped email. This email includes the tracking details for the package that went out, so they know part of their order is on the way
• When all packages have shipped and the order status moves to Shipped, the customer gets the full Order Shipped email with tracking for every parcel

It’s like getting multiple deliveries from an online order — each one has its own tracking link, and you can follow them all independently.

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Where Customers See Their Tracking Info

Your customers can find their tracking details in two places:

• In the shipping confirmation email — the email they receive when you mark the order as Shipped (or Partially Shipped for split shipments). This includes the carrier name, tracking number, and a clickable link that goes straight to the carrier’s tracking page
• In their My Account > Orders page — when they click into an order on your site, the tracking number and a clickable tracking link are displayed right there on the order detail page. This means customers can check their tracking status any time without needing to dig through old emails

No hunting through inboxes, no calling your support line. It’s all self-service.

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Controlling When Emails Send

You have full control over when the Order Shipped email gets sent. Head to Tracksies > Settings > Emails to configure these options.

There are three trigger modes to choose from (email_shipped_trigger):

• When tracking is added (tracking_added) — the shipped email sends the moment you add a tracking number to an order. This is the most automated option and works well if you always add tracking at the point of dispatch. If you also have Auto-Shipped Status enabled, everything happens in one step: add tracking, order moves to Shipped, email sends
• On status change to Shipped (status_shipped) — the email sends when the order status changes to Shipped, regardless of whether tracking has been added yet. This gives you more control if you want to update the status and tracking at different times
• Manual only (manual) — the email never sends automatically. You trigger it yourself from the order screen when you’re ready. This is useful if you want to batch-process orders or add a personal note before sending

Additional email settings you’ll want to know about:

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Customising the Shipped Email

The shipped notification email includes a {tracking_info} placeholder that renders as a formatted block containing the carrier name, tracking number, and a clickable tracking link. This placeholder works in both the Order Shipped and Partially Shipped email templates.

To customise the email content, go to Tracksies > Settings > Emails and find the Order Shipped template. You can edit the template text, add your own messaging, and rearrange the placeholders however you like. The important thing is that the tracking info gets to the customer without you lifting a finger each time.

See Email Templates for the full guide on customising email content, branding, and placeholders.

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Packed By Tracking

If you have a team packing orders, the Packed By feature (woo.packed_by) lets you record which staff member packed each order. This is great for quality control — if a customer reports a packing error, you can trace it back to the person who packed it.

To enable it:

1. Go to Tracksies > Settings > Features in the left sidebar
2. Find the WooCommerce module tile and look for the Packed By toggle
3. Switch it on

Once enabled:

• A Packed By field appears on the order edit screen where the packer’s name is recorded
• The packer name shows in the order details in your admin
• You can optionally include the packer’s name in customer emails using the email_show_packed_by setting in Tracksies > Settings > Emails

The “Packed with care by” message:

When email_show_packed_by is enabled, your shipped email includes a personal touch — something like “Packed with care by Sarah.” You can customise this text with the email_packed_by_text setting. The default is Packed with care by {name}, where {name} is replaced with the staff member’s name. Change it to whatever feels natural for your brand.

This little detail makes a bigger difference than you’d expect. It humanises the experience and tells the customer that a real person carefully put their order together.

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Common Questions

What carriers are supported?
19 carriers are built in, covering Australia (Australia Post, Sendle, StarTrack, Toll, TNT, Aramex/Fastway, Couriers Please, Hunter Express), New Zealand (NZ Post, NZ Couriers), UK (Royal Mail, Parcelforce), US (USPS), Canada (Canada Post, Purolator), and international (DHL, DHL eCommerce, FedEx, UPS). Each one has its tracking URL format pre-set so your customer gets a link that goes straight to the right page.

You can manage the list at Tracksies HQ > Settings > Shipping — hide ones you don’t use, or add your own custom carrier with its tracking URL pattern. See Managing Your Carrier List above.

Can I ship an order without a tracking number?
Yes. You can mark any order as Shipped without entering tracking info, and the Order Shipped email will still send — with a friendly “your shipping method does not include tracking” message instead of a tracking link. If you want to set a delivery estimate for these (e.g., “3-5 business days”), configure it at Tracksies > Designer > Emails under Untracked delivery estimate. See Setting a Delivery Estimate for Untracked Orders above.

Can I add tracking after the order is already shipped?
Yes. Update the tracking field on the order at any time. The customer can see the updated tracking info in their My Account > Orders page on your site. If you need to resend the shipped email, you can do that from the order screen as well.

What happens if I add tracking but the email trigger is set to “manual”?
The tracking number is saved to the order and visible to the customer in their My Account > Orders page, but no email is sent until you trigger it manually. The tracking info is always stored regardless of your email settings — the trigger only controls when the notification goes out.

Does it integrate with my shipping plugin?
Tracksies works alongside your existing shipping setup — it doesn’t replace it. Your shipping plugin handles rates and methods at checkout; Tracksies handles the tracking number and customer notification after the order is packed. They’re two different jobs that complement each other.

What does Auto-Shipped Status actually do?
When enabled, adding a tracking number to an order automatically changes the order status to “Shipped.” This means you don’t have to do it in two steps (add tracking, then change status). If your email trigger is set to tracking_added, the whole chain happens at once: add tracking, status changes to Shipped, shipped email sends. One action triggers everything.

Can I use the Packed By feature without the tracking feature?
No — the Packed By toggle is a child feature of the tracking system. You need woo.tracking enabled for woo.packed_by to be available. This is because packed-by information is part of the order fulfilment workflow that tracking enables.

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Troubleshooting

Customer didn’t receive the tracking email
First, check that the Order Shipped email is enabled in Tracksies > Settings > Emails. If the toggle is off, the email won’t send regardless of what you do on the order.

Next, check your email trigger setting. If it’s set to manual, the email won’t send automatically — you need to trigger it yourself from the order screen.

Also confirm your SMTP plugin is configured and working — WordPress isn’t great at sending emails on its own. It’s a bit like posting a letter without a stamp. See the Email Templates troubleshooting section for SMTP guidance.

Tracking link goes to a “not found” page or shows no results
Double-check two things: that the tracking number is entered correctly (no extra spaces, no missing digits), and that you selected the right carrier from the dropdown. A DHL tracking number entered under Australia Post will lead to a dead end — the carrier’s tracking URL format won’t recognise it. The system builds the tracking URL based on the carrier you select, so the carrier and the tracking number need to match.

No tracking field showing on the order page
Make sure the woo.tracking feature is enabled. Go to Tracksies > Settings > Features and check that the Tracking toggle is switched on under the WooCommerce module tile. If the feature is enabled and you still don’t see the tracking section, confirm the Tracksies HQ plugin itself is activated — go to Plugins in your WordPress admin and check that Tracksies HQ shows as “Active.”

If it’s active and the feature is enabled but you still don’t see the tracking fields, check that the order is a standard WooCommerce order. Some custom order types from third-party plugins may not display the tracking section.

Order status didn’t change to Shipped when I added tracking
Check whether Auto-Shipped Status (woo.tracking_auto_shipped) is enabled. Go to Tracksies > Settings > Features and look for the toggle under the Tracking feature on the WooCommerce module tile. If it’s turned off, you’ll need to manually change the order status to Shipped after adding tracking.

The “Packed with care by” text isn’t showing in emails
Two things need to be true: the woo.packed_by feature must be enabled in Tracksies > Settings > Features, and the email_show_packed_by setting must be turned on in Tracksies > Settings > Emails. If both are on and the text still doesn’t appear, make sure a packer name has actually been recorded on the order — the placeholder won’t render if there’s no name to show.

Need more help? Check our FAQ & Troubleshooting guide or contact support.