How to Track Dropshipping Orders

When you start your dropshipping business, one of the first things customers will ask is, “Where’s my order?”
And if you can’t answer quickly, you risk losing their trust and future sales.

Tracking orders is a small but critical part of running a successful store. It not only helps you keep customers informed but also ensures your suppliers are fulfilling orders correctly and on time.

In this post, I’ll explain how to track dropshipping orders, what tools make it easy, and how to automate the process so you can focus on growing your business instead of chasing shipping updates.

Why Order Tracking Matters in Dropshipping

Unlike traditional retail, you don’t ship products yourself in dropshipping. Your supplier handles fulfillment and delivery. But to your customers, you are the store owner. You’re the one they’ll contact for updates, delays, or missing packages.

Without proper order tracking, you’ll spend more time answering emails and refunding orders than making sales. On the other hand, when tracking is clear and automatic, you’ll build trust, improve the customer experience, and reduce support requests.

Here are the main benefits of good order tracking:

How to Track Dropshipping Orders Step-by-Step

1. Confirm Your Supplier’s Tracking Process

Before working with any supplier, ask how they handle tracking. Reliable, authorized suppliers will automatically provide tracking numbers as soon as an order ships.

Make sure they:

• Use trusted carriers like USPS, UPS, or FedEx (for U.S. suppliers)
• Send tracking numbers within 24–48 hours of shipment
• Offer delivery confirmation for every order

Avoid suppliers who can’t provide this. Lack of tracking is a red flag that often leads to refunds, chargebacks, and angry customers.

2. Sync Tracking Information Automatically

If you’re using Shopify, this part is easy. Most suppliers will automatically send tracking details that sync directly to your customer’s order page.

You can also use apps that make this process seamless, such as:

• Tracktor Order Tracking for Shopify – lets customers check order status on your website
• 17TRACK – supports multiple carriers and sends automatic updates
• AfterShip – one of the most popular tools for global tracking and branded tracking pages

These apps integrate with Shopify and most email platforms, so your customers automatically get tracking updates without you doing anything manually.

3. Send Order Tracking Emails

Once your supplier provides a tracking number, make sure your customers get it immediately.

You can use Shopify’s built-in notification system or an app like Klaviyo to send tracking emails that include:

This keeps customers informed at every stage and prevents unnecessary support messages.

4. Create a “Track Your Order” Page

A professional store always includes a “Track Your Order” page in the website menu.

This page allows customers to enter their order number and email to see real-time updates without needing to contact you.

If you use Tracktor or AfterShip, these tools generate the page automatically and even let you customize it with your store branding and colors.

This is one of those small touches that makes your store look like a major retailer instead of a small operation.

5. Monitor Supplier Performance

Tracking isn’t only for customers—it’s for you too.

By reviewing order delivery times, you can identify which suppliers consistently deliver fast and which ones cause problems.

If you notice repeated delays or missing packages, it might be time to switch suppliers or negotiate better shipping options.

Keep a simple spreadsheet that records:

Over time, this data will help you work only with the most reliable partners.

How to Automate the Tracking Process

Automation is key to scaling your dropshipping business. Here’s how to make order tracking almost hands-free:

With these automations in place, you’ll save hours every week while giving your customers the instant updates they expect.

What to Do When Tracking Updates Are Delayed

Sometimes, tracking numbers take 24–48 hours to update after shipment. If a customer contacts you during that window:

1. Acknowledge the message quickly. Let them know the order has shipped and tracking will update soon.
2. Contact your supplier to confirm the order is moving.
3. Follow up with the customer once the tracking link is active.

Transparency goes a long way. Most customers don’t mind waiting a bit longer as long as they know what’s happening.

Final Thoughts

Tracking orders might not sound exciting, but it’s one of the most important systems to get right in dropshipping.

To recap:

Once your tracking system runs smoothly, your business becomes more scalable, your customers happier, and your brand more trustworthy.

If you want to learn how to build a high-ticket dropshipping store with automated systems that work for you, join my free training at DropShipLifestyle.com/webinar.