Identify Your Carrier

Enter your tracking number to identify which carrier is handling your package

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Major Courier Tracking Number Formats

Every shipping carrier uses unique tracking number formats to identify and track packages through their network. Learning these patterns helps you quickly identify which courier is handling your shipment and ensures you enter tracking numbers correctly.

United States Carriers

📮 UPS (United Parcel Service)

1Z999AA10123456784

Format: 18 characters starting with "1Z"

Pattern: 1Z + [6 alphanumeric shipper number] + [2 service code] + [8 package number] + [1 check digit]

Examples:

  • 1Z12345E0205271688
  • 1Z12345E1305277940
  • 1Z12345E6605272234

Additional Formats:

  • UPS Mail Innovations: 22-34 alphanumeric characters (9261290100129790891234)
  • UPS Freight: Starts with "H" + 9 digits (H123456789)
  • UPS SurePost: Similar to standard but may transfer to USPS

→ Complete UPS Tracking Guide

✈️ FedEx

123456789012

FedEx Express: 12 digits or 15 digits

Pattern: All numeric, no letters

Examples:

  • 123456789012 (12 digits)
  • 9622001900012345678 (18 digits starting with 96)

FedEx Ground: 15 digits, usually starts with 96, 02, 03, 04, or other prefixes

Examples:

  • 9611020987654312345
  • 0201234567891234567

FedEx SmartPost: 22 digits (may transition to USPS)

Example: 9261299998765432100123

→ Complete FedEx Tracking Guide

🇺🇸 USPS (United States Postal Service)

9400111899560438600329

Priority Mail: 22 digits starting with 9400, 9205, or 9407

Examples:

  • 9400111899560438600329
  • 9205590164917312751089

Priority Mail Express: 13 characters starting with EA, EC, CP, or RA

Examples:

  • EA123456789US
  • EC999999999US
  • CP123456789US

Certified Mail: 20 digits starting with 9407

Example: 94071234567890123456

Registered Mail: 13 characters starting with RA, RB, RC

Example: RA123456789US

International: 13 characters ending with US

Patterns:

  • LP123456789US (Letter Post)
  • LK123456789US (Packet)
  • CJ123456789US (ePacket to China)

→ Complete USPS Tracking Guide

🛒 Amazon Logistics

TBA123456789000

Format: Starts with "TBA" followed by 12 digits

Pattern: TBA + [12 numeric digits]

Examples:

  • TBA123456789000
  • TBA987654321999

Note: Amazon also uses UPS, USPS, and other carriers which have their own tracking number formats.

→ Complete Amazon Logistics Guide

🚚 OnTrac

C12345678901234

Format: 15 characters starting with "C" or "D"

Pattern: Letter + 14 digits

Examples:

  • C12345678901234
  • D98765432109876

→ Complete OnTrac Tracking Guide

International Carriers

📦 DHL

1234567890

DHL Express: 10 digits (most common)

Examples:

  • 1234567890
  • 9876543210

DHL eCommerce: 13-22 characters starting with GM, LX, RX, or other prefixes

Examples:

  • GM123456789012345 (15-19 digits)
  • LX123456789US

DHL Global Mail: 13 characters ending with country code

Example: GM123456789US

→ Complete DHL Tracking Guide

🇨🇳 China Post / ePacket

LP123456789CN

Format: 13 characters ending with "CN" (China)

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + CN

Common Prefixes:

  • LP: Letter Post (standard mail)
  • LM: Airmail Letter
  • CP: Parcel
  • CJ: ePacket (faster tracked service)
  • LZ: Registered Small Packet
  • RB: Registered Parcel
  • RF: Registered Small Packet

Examples:

  • LP123456789CN
  • CJ987654321CN
  • RB456789123CN

→ Complete China Post Tracking Guide

🌍 Royal Mail (UK)

RG123456789GB

Format: 13 characters ending with "GB" (Great Britain)

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + GB

Common Prefixes:

  • RG: Registered
  • RM: Registered Mail
  • JJ: International Tracked & Signed
  • LA: Tracked 48
  • LE: Special Delivery

Examples:

  • RG123456789GB
  • JJ987654321GB

→ Complete Royal Mail Tracking Guide

🇨🇦 Canada Post

CA123456789

Domestic: 16 digits

Example: 1234567890123456

International: 13 characters ending with "CA"

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + CA

Examples:

  • RA123456789CA
  • LK987654321CA

→ Complete Canada Post Tracking Guide

🇦🇺 Australia Post

AB123456789AU

Domestic: 13 digits

Example: 1234567890123

International: 13 characters ending with "AU"

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + AU

Examples:

  • RB123456789AU
  • CP987654321AU

Asian E-commerce Carriers

🚚 Yanwen

YT1234567890123456

Format: Starts with "YT" followed by 16 digits

Pattern: YT + [16 numeric digits]

Examples:

  • YT1234567890123456
  • YT9876543210987654

Note: Common for AliExpress and other Chinese marketplace shipments

📦 4PX Express

RF123456789SG

Format: 13 characters with country code at end

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + [2-letter country code]

Examples:

  • RF123456789SG
  • LP987654321CN

Alternative: Some 4PX numbers start with "4PX" + 12 digits

✈️ Yun Express

YT1234567890123456

Format: Similar to Yanwen, starts with "YT"

Alternative formats: Various alphanumeric combinations

Examples:

  • YT1234567890123456
  • UY123456789012

🇮🇳 India Post / Speed Post

EE123456789IN

Format: 13 characters, two letters then nine digits then "IN"

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 numeric digits] + IN

Examples:

  • EE123456789IN
  • CP987654321IN

What the first two letters mean: EE and EU are domestic Speed Post, EM and EA are international EMS, RX and RA are Registered Post, CP is Express Parcel, PP is a passport consignment.

Note: IN is the country code for India, so a parcel sent to India from elsewhere ends in the sender country's code instead. This follows the same UPU S10 standard as Royal Mail, China Post and Australia Post, which is why the shape looks familiar.

European Carriers

🇩🇪 Deutsche Post / DHL Germany

JJD123456789012345

Format: Varies by service

DHL Paket: 12-14 digits or JJD prefix + numbers

Examples:

  • 123456789012
  • JJD12345678901234

🇫🇷 La Poste / Colissimo (France)

6A12345678

Domestic: 14 alphanumeric characters

Example: 6A12345678

International: 13 characters ending with "FR"

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + FR

Example: RB123456789FR

→ Complete La Poste Tracking Guide

🇳🇱 PostNL (Netherlands)

3SABCD1234567

Format: 13 characters starting with "3S"

Pattern: 3S + [letters and numbers]

Example: 3SABCD1234567

Alternative: RB123456789NL (international format)

Regional & Express Carriers

📦 LaserShip

LX12345678

Format: Starts with "LX" or "LS" followed by 8-10 digits

Examples:

  • LX12345678
  • LS1234567890

🚚 GLS (General Logistics Systems)

1234567890123

Format: 11-13 digits

Examples:

  • 12345678901
  • 1234567890123

📮 DPD

12345678901234

Format: 14 digits

Example: 12345678901234

Alternative: Varies by country (UK uses different format)

Universal Postal Union (UPU) Format

Most international postal services follow the Universal Postal Union standard format for international tracking:

📮 UPU Standard Format

Pattern: [2 letters] + [9 digits] + [2-letter country code]

Total length: 13 characters

Example: RB123456789US

First 2 Letters indicate service type:

  • R: Registered items
  • C: Parcels
  • E: Express Mail Service (EMS)
  • L: Letter-post
  • V: Insured parcels/letters

Last 2 Letters are ISO country codes:

  • US = United States
  • CN = China
  • GB = United Kingdom
  • CA = Canada
  • AU = Australia
  • DE = Germany
  • FR = France
  • JP = Japan

Common Tracking Number Patterns

⚠️ Important Tips for Entering Tracking Numbers

  • No spaces: Enter tracking numbers without spaces
  • Case doesn't usually matter: Most systems accept uppercase or lowercase
  • Avoid common mistakes:
    • Confusing O (letter) with 0 (zero)
    • Confusing I (letter i) with 1 (one)
    • Including dashes or special characters
  • 24-48 hour activation: Tracking numbers need time to activate in the system

Sample and Test Tracking Numbers

If you have searched a tracking number and found nothing but developer documentation, you have probably found a sample. These are numbers the carriers publish so software engineers can build and test tracking integrations without a real shipment. They look completely genuine, they pass every format check, and no parcel has ever moved under them.

Why 1Z999AA10123456784 appears everywhere

This is the number UPS uses in its own developer documentation, and it has spread from there into tutorials, code samples, test suites and screenshots across the entire web. It is the single most searched tracking number in the world, and every search returns the same thing: nothing.

The giveaway is the middle. A UPS number is 18 characters: 1Z, then a six-character shipper account ID, then a two-digit service code, then an eight-digit package number ending in a check digit. In this sample the shipper ID is 999AA, which is not an assigned account, and the package portion runs 0123456. Real shipper IDs look like random letter and number pairs. Sequential digits are the tell.

🔍 How to tell a sample from a real number

1Z 999AA1 01 2345678 4

The same number, spaced out: prefix, shipper account, service code, package number, check digit. The account reads 999AA1 and the package runs 2345678. Neither pattern occurs in a number a carrier actually issued.

  • Sequential runs. A number containing 123456 or 1234567890 in order is almost certainly an example. Carriers assign numbers from counters, not in visible sequence.
  • Repeated characters in the account portion. 999, 000 or AAA where an account code belongs.
  • It appears in search results with quotation marks around it. If a search for your exact number returns forum posts and code repositories rather than a carrier page, other people have the same number, which no real consignment ever does.
  • It resolves on no carrier site at all. A real number that is simply too new returns "not found" on its own carrier and nothing anywhere else. A sample returns nothing everywhere, permanently.

What it means if a seller gave you one

This happens more often than it should, and it has one of three causes. The seller pasted an example from a template instead of the real number. Their shipping software generated a placeholder because the label failed to create. Or no label was ever bought and the number is a stalling tactic.

None of these resolve on their own. If the number you were sent matches a documented sample, the parcel has not shipped, and waiting will not change that. Go back to the seller and ask for the label image or a screenshot of their carrier account rather than another number. On marketplace orders, a sample tracking number supplied as proof of dispatch is grounds for a claim, because no dispatch took place.

💡 Test numbers are not the same as unrecognised numbers

A brand new tracking number often returns nothing for 24 to 48 hours because the carrier has the label on file but has not scanned the parcel. That is normal and resolves itself at the first scan. A sample number never resolves, no matter how long you wait. The difference is whether the format is one of the published examples above.

Quick Reference Chart

Carrier Format Example
UPS 1Z + 16 chars 1Z999AA10123456784
FedEx Express 12 digits 123456789012
USPS Priority 22 digits (9400) 9400111899560438600329
DHL Express 10 digits 1234567890
Amazon TBA + 12 digits TBA123456789000
China Post 13 chars (ends CN) LP123456789CN
Yanwen YT + 16 digits YT1234567890123456
Royal Mail 13 chars (ends GB) RG123456789GB
India Post 13 chars (ends IN) EE123456789IN

📮 UPS

Format 1Z + 16 chars
Example 1Z999AA10123456784

✈️ FedEx Express

Format 12 digits
Example 123456789012

🇺🇸 USPS Priority

Format 22 digits (9400)
Example 9400111899560438600329

📦 DHL Express

Format 10 digits
Example 1234567890

🛒 Amazon

Format TBA + 12 digits
Example TBA123456789000

🇨🇳 China Post

Format 13 chars (ends CN)
Example LP123456789CN

🚚 Yanwen

Format YT + 16 digits
Example YT1234567890123456

🌍 Royal Mail

Format 13 chars (ends GB)
Example RG123456789GB

🇮🇳 India Post

Format 13 chars (ends IN)
Example EE123456789IN

Still Can't Identify Your Carrier?

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🔍 Automatic Carrier Detection

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