Last mile tracking

The "last mile" is the final part of a parcel's trip: from a sorting center in your country to your door, mailbox, locker or pickup point. "Last mile" is a stage of delivery, not a company.

An order from abroad often changes hands. A shipping company carries it out of the origin country, it clears customs, and a local carrier delivers it. The local carrier often gives the parcel its own number. That is the last-mile tracking number.

1. Track the number you already have. Enter it above. When the shipping company shares the local number, Parcels shows it in the timeline and keeps tracking with it.
2. Check the order page. Marketplaces such as AliExpress, Temu and eBay often show the local carrier and its number in the order's shipping details once the parcel reaches your country.
3. Look at the number itself. A 13-character postal number like LX123456789CN usually stays the same all the way and also works with your national post once the parcel arrives.
4. Ask the seller. The seller booked the shipment and can see every number for it.

Some parcels never get a separate number: the shipping company's number is the only one, and it keeps working until delivery.

It depends on the seller and the shipping service, and it is often not the national post. Common last-mile carriers for online orders:

• United States: USPS and private delivery companies such as OnTrac, UniUni, SpeedX and GoFo Express. Walmart.com orders marked LMD_SAMEDAY travel in Walmart's own delivery network.
• United Kingdom: Royal Mail, Evri and DPD.
• Canada: Canada Post, Intelcom, UniUni and TForce Final Mile.
• Australia: Australia Post and couriers such as iMile.

No USPS, Royal Mail, Canada Post or Australia Post number? Then a private company probably delivers your parcel. That is normal. Enter the number you have above, and the private company's updates show up in the same timeline.

The number usually starts working only when the local carrier has the parcel in its hands. Until then its website may say "not found", "invalid" or show no events.

• The parcel may still be on a flight, at customs or on a truck to the local sorting center.
• Check that you are on the right carrier's website. The number may belong to a private courier, not the national post.
• Give it a few business days after the parcel arrives in your country, then check again.

More reasons and fixes: why is my parcel not tracking.

The local label is often created before the parcel physically reaches the local carrier. "Label Created, not yet in system" (USPS) or a hand-over status means the local carrier knows the parcel is coming, not that it has it.

• Customs clearance and the trip to the local sorting center can take days or weeks, especially in peak seasons.
• The first local scan usually appears when the parcel is received at a post office or sorting center.
• Use the marketplace's delivery date to decide when to ask for help, not the carrier's label date.

If the parcel is held at customs, see my package is stuck in customs.

Two or more numbers on one parcel is normal: each company that handles it may add its own. It is not a sign of a scam on its own.

Keep the number shown in your order. Marketplaces use that number for buyer protection, refunds and disputes.

Only the local carrier knows how and where the parcel was delivered: a photo, a safe place, a locker or a neighbor. Get the last-mile number, check the local carrier's delivery details, and search around your address. Then contact the seller or marketplace before its deadline.

Step-by-step help: package delivered but not received.

For eBay seller protection, the tracking you upload to the order matters, not which leg it covers. eBay's seller protection page asks for tracking from one of its integrated carriers that shows delivery, uploaded before the estimated delivery date. eBay Australia also requires at least one in-transit scan.

If you ship from abroad, upload the number eBay recognizes and that ends with a delivery scan. For PayPal Seller Protection, check PayPal's current terms for the proof of delivery it accepts.

No. LM Parcel is a Chinese shipping company whose numbers often start with LM. Its parcels still get a last-mile number when a local carrier, usually USPS in the United States, delivers them.