Have you ever looked at USPS tracking codes and noticed the first several digits look the same?
That’s actually by design! Turns out that the United States Postal Service (USPS) doesn’t (fully) randomly generate tracking numbers. There’s a very logical reason for this
What’s going on with the first 4 digits?
The first four or five digits comprise the service level. The various services for USPS each have unique codes. Below is a list of example tracking numbers
USPS Tracking: 9400 1000 0000 0000 0000 00
Priority Mail: 9205 5000 0000 0000 0000 00
Certified Mail: 9407 3000 0000 0000 0000 00
Registered Mail: 9208 8000 0000 0000 0000 00
Signature Confirmation: 9202 1000 0000 0000 0000 00
How does package tracking work?
As packages make their way to the destination, the barcodes are scanned and thus updated in the USPS database. All labels created through I’d Ship That are trackable and you can easily monitor your package’s progress throughout its journey in realtime!
What about letters and cards?
Although letters and cards are assigned tracking numbers, they are not always able to be scanned properly so tracking these types of mail can be hit or miss. For example, a letter that has a tracking status of “in transit” may in fact have already been delivered.