How to add tracking to an Etsy order by hand

Before you start

• The tracking number from a label you already bought
• The carrier name as your label shows it
• Seller access to Shop Manager or the Etsy app

On the web

1. Open the order

   In Shop Manager, select Orders & Shipping, then select the order in the New tab.

   You should see the order with a Complete order button on it.

2. Open the completion panel

   Select Complete order.

   You should see the Ship date field, with the carrier and tracking fields under it.

3. Pick the carrier first

   In the completion panel, select your carrier from the Shipping carrier list.

   You should see the Tracking information field beside it.

4. Type or paste the number

   In Tracking information, enter the number exactly as the label prints it, with no spaces at either end.

5. Save it to the order

   Select Complete order.

   You should see the order in the Completed tab with the number listed under it.

In the Etsy app

1. Open the order

   In the app, select Orders, then select the order.

   You should see the order detail with Complete order at the bottom.

2. Open the completion panel

   Select Complete order.

   You should see the same ship date, carrier and tracking fields the web uses.

3. Pick the carrier first

   Select the carrier from the dropdown.

   You should see the tracking field beside the carrier.

4. Type or paste the number

   Enter the tracking number, then read it back against the label.

5. Save it to the order

   Select Complete order.

   You should see the order move out of your open orders.

If it goes wrong

"The tracking number is already in use for this order."

The number is attached to that order once. Reload the Completed tab before trying again, because the first attempt often saved and only the confirmation was lost.

You cannot find a tracking field

The carrier and tracking fields live inside the Complete order panel, not on the order row. Open Complete order first, and they are there under the ship date.

There is no documented free-text carrier

Etsy publishes the fields but not the contents of the carrier list, and no "Other" entry is documented. If your carrier is a regional one, check the list in your own shop before you buy the label.

What happens next

The number becomes editable for 3 days and then freezes. Etsy also treats the entry as the shipping event: "Adding tracking information is required to complete an order for US sellers" (help.etsy.com, checked 13 September 2026), and the Star Seller measure is "95% of orders ship on time, with valid tracking or a shipping label purchased on Etsy (when required)".