Zalando order tracking: carriers, parcels and delays

Which carrier delivers my Zalando order?

It depends on the shop and on who ships the item. Zalando's help pages name the carrier for the UK, not for Ireland:

Each shop delivers only within its own country, so you can't have a zalando.ie order sent to the UK, or the other way round. Zalando's list of the countries where it sells has no US, Canada or Australia.

Then there's who ships it. Look for "Sold by" on the product page, or on the order in your account:

• Sold by Zalando: Zalando ships it.
• Sold by Partner, shipped by Zalando: a brand's item that Zalando ships. It can travel in the same parcel as your Zalando items.
• Sold and shipped by Partner: the partner sends it directly, in a separate parcel with its own shipping email and tracking link. Only standard delivery is available for these items.

In the UK, a DPD parcel you've been told is ready waits at the parcel shop for 7 days, then goes back to the sender. DPD tells you by email or SMS. Once it's on its way, you can also send it to a neighbour or a pick-up point from the DPD tracking link.

1. Zalando or a PartnerEach warehouse sends its own parcel and shipping email
2. CarrierThe tracking link goes live once it has the parcel
3. Pick-up pointUK only: a DPD parcel shop keeps it 7 days
4. YouDelivered, or left with a neighbour

Where is my Zalando tracking number?

In two places:

• The shipping confirmation email. Zalando sends it as soon as the parcel leaves the warehouse. It holds "your delivery tracking number and the direct link to the carrier's tracking page".
• Your account. Log in and open My Orders to see the live status of each order.

The order confirmation email you get first has your Order Number and the estimated delivery date. That's Zalando's reference, not a tracking number, and no carrier will find your parcel with it.

The link can take up to 24 hours to become active. Zalando puts it simply: "the tracking link will not be live until your package has been received by the carrier." Where to find a number in other shops' emails and accounts: find your tracking number.

A DPD UK number is usually 14 digits, often starting with 1550, like the made-up 15501234567890. Not sure what you have? Type it here:

Why did my Zalando order come in several parcels?

Zalando splits an order for a few reasons:

• Some items are ready first. "We might already ship some items before the others are ready to be shipped."
• Different warehouses or partners. Items sold and shipped by a partner always arrive in a separate package from the items Zalando ships.
• Different delivery options. On zalando.co.uk, items with long distance delivery come in a different parcel from standard delivery items.

Zalando says at checkout when your items will ship separately. "For each shipment, you will receive a separate shipment confirmation email with a tracking link." So two parcels mean two numbers: follow each one on its own.

It also works the other way. To deliver faster and greener, Zalando sometimes bundles different orders into one parcel. The delivery confirmation email, or your account, shows whether your orders were bundled. Then one tracking number covers more than one order.

How long does Zalando delivery take, and why isn't tracking moving?

Zalando doesn't publish a fixed number of days for standard delivery. It gives you a "delivery promise" at checkout and in the order confirmation email. For partner items you see an estimated date there too, and the exact date once the carrier schedules it.

Zalando.ie's terms add that a long-distance delivery fee of €3.90 may apply, depending on where your item ships from: you're told before you order. If you paid a delivery fee on a small order and return all of it, Zalando refunds the fee.

Tracking that sits still usually has a plain reason:

• No link yet. It stays inactive until the carrier has the parcel, and can take up to 24 hours.
• No daily scans. "The tracking link does not update daily." Days without news are normal while the parcel travels.
• Too long. If the tracking hasn't updated within 5–6 business days, Zalando asks you to contact its customer service.

When a carrier's tracking goes quiet in general, see why tracking stops updating.

Delivered but not received, or lost: what to do

Zalando's own advice is short: check whether a neighbour took it in, and if the parcel hasn't reached you within one week of shipping, contact customer service. In order:

1. 1Check the trackingOpen the link in the shipping email and read the last scan. In the UK, it may be waiting at a DPD parcel shop.
2. 2Look around and askAsk your neighbours first: Zalando suggests the parcel may have been left with one.
3. 3Contact ZalandoIf it hasn't arrived within a week of shipping, or the tracking hasn't moved for 5–6 business days, contact Zalando's customer service.
4. 4Zalando investigatesZalando or the partner booked the carrier, so the claim is theirs to make. DPD UK says "only the contract holder can register a claim".
5. 5Refund or new itemA parcel that couldn't be delivered is treated as returned: Zalando refunds you, which can take up to 14 days after it's back, and doesn't reship it automatically. Order again if you still want it.

Who is responsible for a parcel that never came, and what to keep as evidence, is in delivered but not received and lost parcels. A parcel bouncing back is returned to sender.

Returning a Zalando order

A return has its own tracking number, separate from the one your order came with. Items a partner sent you directly go back to that partner, with the return label in the parcel; if your Zalando and partner items came in one parcel, you can send them back together. Where to find the return number and when the refund comes: return tracking.

Can I track a Zalando parcel in Peek?

Yes, with the carrier's number. Copy it from the shipping email or from My Orders and paste it into Peek. Peek works out most carriers from the number alone. A shape several carriers share, such as 14 digits, may need you to press "Change" and pick the carrier the email names.

Each parcel has its own number, so add each one: a partner's parcel won't show up under Zalando's. The Order Number from your order confirmation isn't a tracking number, and Peek can't track it.

Peek shows what the carrier publishes. A refund, a return being checked or a question to customer service stays in your Zalando account.