La Poste tracking
How to track my La Poste package?
Ordertracker provides a simple solution to track your La Poste packages. To begin, you'll need a La Poste tracking number provided by the sender or the retailer.
Enter your tracking number in the above field and hit "enter." Our tracker will then fetch the latest tracking details for your package.
You'll see a timeline showing your package's journey, including its current location, transit history, and expected delivery date. This keeps you informed about your La Poste package in real time.
Where can I find my La Poste tracking number?
Finding your La Poste tracking number is usually simple. When you buy an item online or send a package, the tracking number is typically given by the online store or sender. If you're the recipient, the sender often provides it via email, text, or on the order confirmation page.
For online purchases, log in to your store account to find the tracking number in your order history or tracking section. You can also find it in shipping notifications sent to your email or phone.
Once you have the tracking number, you can easily use Ordertracker to monitor your package's progress. This tool shows your package's journey and estimated delivery date.
Why isn't my La Poste package moving in the package tracking history?
Dealing with a La Poste package that appears stuck in tracking can be frustrating. Yet, there are steps to tackle this. If you've been using Ordertracker and see no progress, start by being patient. Delays, like customs or logistical issues, can arise.
If the delay remains, contact La Poste or the sender for specifics. They can offer insight or investigate. Keep your tracking number ready for a smoother process. Sometimes, misrouting or address errors cause delays. Confirm the details provided to you by the sender. Remember, La Poste customer service or the sender can help resolve shipping delays.
When I track my La Poste package, why does it show as "returned"?
If you're tracking your La Poste package and it's marked as "returned", this usually means that the package has been sent back to the sender or the shipment origin location for a specific reason. There are a few common explanations for why a La Poste package might be labeled as "returned":
An unclear or inaccurate address from sender or recipient might lead La Poste to be unable to deliver, resulting in a return.
If multiple delivery attempts fail, La Poste may return the package instead of holding it indefinitely.
If the recipient doesn't collect the package within a timeframe from a post office or delivery center, La Poste might return it.
International packages can be return due to customs problems like missing or incorrect documents.
If your La Poste package is "returned" in tracking, contact the sender or La Poste customer service. This clarifies the return reason and lets you explore solutions like resending or refunding. Please note that return procedures can vary based on La Poste policies and circumstances.
Why does the La Poste parcel tracking timeline indicate that my order cannot be found?
When your La Poste parcel tracking lacks information, it may indicate a "cannot be found" message. This happens for a few reasons:
Ensure your tracking number is accurate. Even a small mistake can prevent the system from recognizing your package.
Sometimes, tracking details might be slower to update in La Poste system. Wait and check again later for potential updates.
If the package was recently sent, it might not be processed by La Poste yet. Tracking should appear shortly.
About La Poste
La Poste is the national postal service provider of France. It offers a wide range of postal, courier, and financial services to individuals and businesses. La Poste has a long history dating back to 1576 and has since expanded its services to include banking, insurance, and parcel delivery. With its extensive network of post offices and mail centers, La Poste plays a crucial role in connecting people and businesses across France. The company is committed to providing reliable and efficient postal services while embracing digital transformation to meet the evolving needs of its customers.
How to contact La Poste?
If you are experiencing issues with the delivery process managed by La Poste, please do not hesitate to contact their customer support.
National postal service and logistics in France for several centuries
La Poste is the national postal service of France, organized into a diversified industrial group called Groupe La Poste. A historical mail operator founded on several centuries of history, La Poste is today a major player in the distribution of mail, parcels, and logistics services throughout the French territory. The group employs hundreds of thousands of people and is structured around several specialized business branches, while ensuring a universal postal service mission to the population.
Historical evolution of the postal service
The origins of La Poste date back to the monarchical era: in the 15th century under Louis XI, official couriers were tasked with delivering the kingdom's messages. La Poste as an official institution was created in 1576 under the reign of Henri III, to organize and centralize the distribution of mail in France. Over the following centuries, the postal network gradually expanded with the evolution of communication needs. The famous postal emblem, in yellow and blue colors, appeared during this period and remains associated with La Poste today.
In the modern era, La Poste adapts to societal transformations and technological advances. The end of the 20th century saw the introduction of automation in mail sorting and the rise of new processing technologies. In 1991, La Poste changed its status and became a public limited company, allowing it to diversify its activities beyond traditional mail. Entering the 21st century, La Poste transformed into a multi-activity group encompassing parcel logistics, financial services, and digital, while continuing to fulfill its historical postal mission.
Main distribution activities
The core activity of La Poste in mainland France is grouped within the Services-Mail-Parcels branch. This division includes the collection, sorting, transport, and distribution of mail (letters, printed matter) and parcels throughout the territory. It ensures the universal postal service, meaning the distribution of mail from Monday to Saturday and the daily collection of public mailboxes. Mail services notably include priority letters, registered mail, press, and addressed advertising, while the parcel activity includes standard and express packages for individuals and businesses.
Over time, the Services-Mail-Parcels branch has seen the quantity of traditional mail decrease with the rise of digital, but at the same time, the volume of parcels has significantly increased driven by online commerce. La Poste has adapted its organization to handle these growing parcel flows by modernizing its sorting centers and optimizing its routing circuits. The distribution of mail and parcels is ensured by a network of postal workers and delivery personnel covering both dense urban areas and remote rural areas, thus maintaining a close connection throughout the territory.
Standard delivery service
Colissimo is La Poste's standard parcel delivery service, widely used by individuals and e-commerce players for sending packages in France and internationally. Colissimo offers fast shipments with online tracking and proof of delivery. Colissimo parcels are generally delivered directly to the recipient's home or to a pickup point in case of absence, with the possibility of rescheduling or returning to a post office if necessary. This service is designed for medium-sized and medium-weight parcels, and it offers various insurance and registration options to secure valuable shipments.
In France, Colissimo is one of the logistical pillars of e-commerce by delivering a large number of online orders daily. La Poste has developed solutions around Colissimo tailored to e-merchants, such as the integration of online postage tools, facilitated customer returns, and a network of pickup points (post offices, local partners, and automatic lockers) allowing recipients to collect their parcels according to their constraints.
Express and urgent delivery
Chronopost is La Poste's subsidiary specializing in express delivery of parcels and documents. This premium service ensures express deliveries in mainland France and offers reduced times for international shipments. Chronopost caters to both businesses and individuals with urgent or time-sensitive shipments. The subsidiary has its own dedicated express sorting facilities and relies on air and road networks to guarantee fast delivery.
Chronopost services include real-time tracking, delivery by appointment or in a guaranteed time slot for certain offers, as well as handling customs formalities for sending parcels abroad. In France, Chronopost parcels are often delivered by a separate circuit from standard mail, allowing for greater responsiveness. Chronopost thus contributes to La Poste's competitiveness in the express courier segment in response to the growing demand for immediacy in commercial exchanges.
International parcel network
Geopost (formerly DPDgroup) is La Poste's international parcel transport division. Through Geopost, La Poste is present in parcel delivery markets worldwide. The subsidiary operates under recognized brands such as DPD (notably in Europe), Chronopost (in France and internationally), SEUR (in Spain), and other local partners. Geopost covers more than 230 countries and territories, forming one of the main parcel distribution networks in Europe and the world.
This branch ensures cross-border parcel logistics, whether it involves transporting e-commerce shipments from one country to another or offering intercontinental express solutions. Geopost represents a significant part of the activity of the La Poste group. It benefits from synergies between subsidiaries to pool infrastructures, share tracking technologies, and optimize international transport routes. Thanks to Geopost, La Poste can offer its customers delivery services beyond French borders while maintaining consistent tracking and quality standards.
Banking and financial services
La Banque Postale is the banking subsidiary of Groupe La Poste. Created in 2006 from the financial services initially offered in post offices, La Banque Postale is now a full-fledged retail bank. It offers a complete range of financial products: current accounts, savings, loans to individuals and businesses, life insurance, insurance services, and payment solutions. Present in most post offices, it allows La Poste to play an important role in banking inclusion and access to basic financial services for all, including in less urbanized areas.
La Banque Postale relies on the vast postal network to provide its services, thus offering a unique proximity to customers. Its model emphasizes values of trust and public service inherited from La Poste. In terms of online banking and mobile applications, La Banque Postale has also developed digital tools so that customers can manage their accounts and transactions remotely, reflecting the banking sector's evolution towards more dematerialization.
Digital solutions and document management
Docaposte (formerly called Docapost) is La Poste's subsidiary specializing in digital services, document management, and digital identity. This entity supports companies and administrations in their digital transformation by offering dematerialization, electronic archiving, data management, and digital trust solutions. For example, Docaposte is involved in providing probative value archiving services, electronic signatures, electronic voting, as well as managing secure digital identities for various online services.
By integrating Docaposte into its portfolio, La Poste has extended its scope beyond physical mail to meet modern digital exchange needs. This subsidiary relies on La Poste's expertise in confidentiality and reliable communication processing to guarantee customers (businesses, communities, or individuals) reliable digital services. Docaposte illustrates the group's desire to diversify its activities and remain relevant in the digital age while relying on the trust the public historically places in La Poste.
Postal and logistics infrastructure
La Poste has a very dense territorial network in France. There are several thousand post offices spread across cities, neighborhoods, and villages, complemented by municipal postal agencies and relay points at partner merchants. This physical network ensures a local postal presence, allowing users to send and collect mail or parcels, access La Banque Postale services, or perform other public services (such as certain delegated administrative procedures).
In parallel with contact points, La Poste operates modernized logistics centers to handle mail and parcel flows. The country is covered by industrial mail platforms (sorting centers) and regional parcel sorting centers. Every day, mail and packages deposited in mailboxes or at counters are collected and then routed to these centers where they are sorted largely automatically. High-speed sorting machines, equipped with optical readers for addresses and barcodes for parcels, direct each shipment to its destination.
The typical logistics circuit of a letter or parcel generally includes several steps: local collection, sorting at a departure center, transport between sorting centers (by truck, train, or plane depending on the distance), arrival at an arrival center near the destination, then final distribution by a postal worker or delivery person. For international shipments, La Poste relies on exchanges with foreign postal operators through multilateral agreements (such as the Universal Postal Union) or through its subsidiary Geopost for parcels. Shipments pass through specialized export/import platforms where customs clearance and routing to the destination or origin country are carried out.
Modernization and digital tools
In response to market and usage changes, La Poste has been modernizing its tools and services for several years. Digital integration is first manifested by the systematic online tracking of parcel and registered letter shipments: each Colissimo or Chronopost parcel is associated with a unique tracking number (usually composed of 13 alphanumeric characters, starting with two letters followed by numbers and ending with FR for France). Thanks to this number, the sender and recipient can know in real-time the different stages crossed by the shipment in the postal network.
La Poste has also developed mobile applications and web services to facilitate customer procedures. It is possible to frank a parcel or letter online, schedule a re-delivery in case of absence, locate the nearest pickup point, or complete customs formalities via the internet. Postal workers are equipped with portable devices to track deliveries (scanning barcodes upon delivery) and even offer certain services at home (such as La Banque Postale financial services or social link services).
On the technological front, La Poste invests in advanced automation and explores new logistical solutions. Experiments are taking place in areas such as drone delivery in isolated areas, the use of electric vehicles for urban distribution to reduce the carbon footprint, or the optimization of routes by intelligent algorithms. All these initiatives illustrate La Poste's desire to innovate while ensuring the reliability of its infrastructure, to offer a service adapted to the needs of modern e-commerce and connected citizens.
Key partner of online commerce
As the main parcel delivery operator to individuals in France, La Poste occupies a central place in the national e-commerce ecosystem. The majority of French merchant sites offer delivery by Colissimo or Chronopost, making La Poste an essential logistical partner for online sales. Thanks to its extensive distribution network and sorting capabilities, La Poste delivers hundreds of thousands of parcels from online orders daily, even during peak activity periods (such as the holiday season or promotional operations).
La Poste's territorial network (with its offices, Pickup relay points, and automatic lockers) is an asset for offering e-commerce customers flexible delivery solutions. The recipient can choose to have it delivered to their home, workplace, post office, or local store, depending on what suits them best. La Poste has also implemented specific offers for e-merchants, such as Colissimo rates and packaging adapted to shipping volumes, as well as IT interfaces (APIs) to easily integrate logistics management into online sales platforms.
In return, the growth of e-commerce pushes La Poste to innovate and strengthen its capabilities. The group regularly invests in new logistics platforms, increases the capacity of its parcel sorting centers, and recruits seasonal staff during periods of high demand. La Poste also collaborates with major e-commerce players to anticipate changes, for example by developing fast delivery services, precise delivery tracking, or facilitating merchandise returns. This pivotal role between online sellers and consumers positions La Poste as an essential vector of e-commerce in France.
Shipment tracking steps
| Status | Description |
|---|---|
| Awaiting pickup by La Poste | The shipment is registered in our system but has not yet been physically picked up by the postal network |
| The shipment has been handed over to the sender's post office | Your parcel has been dropped off by the sender and accepted by an originating post office for shipment |
| The shipment has been dispatched | Your parcel has left the originating site and has been routed to its first transit logistics platform |
| The shipment has been sorted at its departure platform | Your parcel has been sorted at its point of origin and prepared for dispatch to the next center |
| The parcel is in transit | Your parcel is in transit through the network, en route to the next sorting center or its final destination |
| The shipment has arrived at the local distribution site, preparation in progress for delivery | Your parcel has arrived at the distribution center serving the recipient's address, and it is pending departure on a delivery tour for final delivery |
| The parcel is out for delivery | Your parcel is currently on the delivery person's tour and will be delivered to the recipient within the next few hours |
| Delivery scheduled for an agreed date | The delivery of your parcel has been scheduled for a specific agreed date (for example, at the request of the recipient or sender) |
| Delivery delayed | An unforeseen event has delayed the delivery of your parcel. It will be delivered as soon as possible or on the new scheduled date |
| The parcel has been delivered | Your parcel has been delivered to the intended recipient |
| The parcel has been delivered to reception | The parcel has been dropped off at the recipient's reception or front desk (for example, with a concierge or receptionist) |
| The parcel is available at a pickup point | Your parcel has been delivered to a post office or parcel relay, and it is awaiting pickup by the recipient |
| The parcel has been delivered to the recipient at the pickup point | The recipient has collected their parcel at the pickup point where it was made available |
| Unsuccessful delivery attempt (notice left) | The delivery person attempted delivery but could not hand over the parcel to the recipient (usually due to absence). A notice was left, inviting the recipient to reschedule delivery or pick up the parcel at a pickup point |
| Incorrect delivery address (awaiting correction) | The address provided for delivery contains an error or is incomplete. We are searching for the correct information to route your parcel |
| Incorrect delivery address (return to sender planned) | The parcel could not be delivered due to an incorrect or untraceable address, and it will be returned to the original sender |
| Return to sender in progress | Your parcel is being returned to the sender because delivery to the recipient was unsuccessful |
| Parcel returned to sender | The parcel has returned to the sender and has been handed over (return delivery completed) |
| Routing issue, resolution in progress | An incident has been detected on your parcel's route (routing error, delay, etc.) and our services are working to resolve it to minimize the impact on delivery |
| Parcel not loaded (transport full) | Your parcel could not be loaded onto the intended transport (truck, plane...) because it was full. The shipment will be automatically rescheduled on the next available transport |
| Parcel undeliverable (definitive failure) | A major issue prevents your parcel from being delivered to the recipient. It cannot be delivered and is returned to the sender or put on hold for instructions. It is advised to contact customer service or the sender for more details |