USPS tracking help
Delivered, but the package is missing
USPS records a delivery date, time, and location, but the scan does not prove that the intended recipient personally received or can locate the package.
The short answer
What you need to know now
Do I need to do anything?
Check the recorded location and nearby safe places first. If the package is still missing after more than one postal business day, USPS provides a service request for eligible items.Where is the package now?
USPS records delivery to the location in its tracking event; personal receipt by the intended recipient is not established.What update should I wait for?
The tracking delivery location, parcel-locker key, signature, household member, or building-management record may identify where the package was left.When should I check again?
If the package is still missing after more than one postal business day, start a USPS service request.Service request: a formal request asking the carrier to investigate or help with this package.
Postal business day: a working day counted by the postal service; weekends and public holidays may not count.
Exact words from the carrier
How the carrier writes this status
Delivered
Parcels may show a translated message. We call wording official only when it matches the cited carrier source.
Useful later updates
What may change the answer
USPS publishes a location checklist and a service-request path when the package remains missing more than one postal business day after the delivered scan.
Actions supported by the source
What you can do now
-
Check the garage, porch, mailbox, parcel locker, weather-protected and out-of-view areas, other exterior doors, household members, and building management.
-
Check again later in the day because USPS says packages may arrive separately from regular mail.
-
If it remains missing more than one postal business day after the scan, submit the USPS service request for an eligible item.
Limits of the status
What this status does not tell us
- The scan alone does not identify who physically collected the package after delivery.
- It does not establish a refund right, claim outcome, theft, or carrier liability.
In short: Delivered is carrier-recorded delivery evidence, but it does not settle personal receipt, fault, theft, seller responsibility, compensation, or a marketplace dispute.
This page explains the carrier's published tracking wording. It is not a delivery guarantee and does not establish liability, compensation, or a required action unless the cited carrier source says so.
Evidence
Official carrier sources
Each phrase is tied to a carrier-owned source. A missing or materially changed source blocks the affected explanation.
Need the current shipment record?
Track the package separately
This guide explains a status phrase. The tracking page shows the actual timeline supplied for your shipment.