237 "Where's My Order?" Tickets Monthly: Set Up Order Tracking in Odoo 18

You got 237 "Where's my order?" emails last month. Each one takes your support team 4.7 minutes to answer: Look up order in Odoo backend, find delivery reference, copy tracking number, paste into email. That's 18.6 hours per month just copy-pasting tracking numbers.

Cost: $518/month in support time. Plus the customer frustration: They placed an order 3 days ago and have zero visibility. They email. They wait 4 hours for response. They check tracking. It says "Label created" from 2 days ago with no movement. They email again: "Is my order stuck?"

Your NPS dropped from 67 to 54 last quarter. Main complaint: "No way to track my order." You're losing repeat customers because they don't trust that orders will arrive. One customer left a 1-star review: "Ordered 11 days ago. No tracking info. No updates. Had to email 3 times."

Odoo 18 has built-in order tracking. Customers log into their account, see order status, click tracking link, view live shipment updates. Your support team stops being human tracking number lookup machines. Here's how to set it up so customers answer their own "Where's my order?" questions.

What Odoo 18 Order Tracking Actually Does

Automatically generates delivery orders when customers checkout. Links delivery to carrier tracking systems (FedEx, UPS, DHL). Shows tracking info in customer portal. No support tickets needed.

Prerequisites: Configure Shipping

Before order tracking works, you need shipping carriers configured in Odoo.

Step 1: Enable Shipping Connectors

1. Go to Inventory app
2. Click Configuration → Settings
3. Scroll to "Shipping Connectors"
4. Enable your carriers:
   • FedEx: Needs FedEx API credentials
   • UPS: Needs UPS API credentials
   • DHL: Needs DHL API credentials
   • USPS: Needs USPS API credentials
5. Click Save

Step 2: Configure Delivery Methods

1. Go to Inventory → Configuration → Delivery Methods
2. Click Create
3. Name: "FedEx Ground"
4. Provider: Select FedEx
5. Service: Ground
6. Pricing: Fixed price or based on carrier rates
7. Save
8. Repeat for other methods (UPS 2-Day, USPS Priority, etc.)

How Order Tracking Works (Customer Journey)

Step-by-Step: Process an Order with Tracking

1. Customer Places Order

1. Customer browses shop on your website
2. Adds product to cart
3. Clicks Checkout
4. Enters shipping address
5. Selects shipping method (e.g., "FedEx Ground - 3-5 days - $8.99")
6. Enters payment info
7. Clicks Pay Now
8. Order confirmation page appears

2. Sales Order Auto-Creates

When payment succeeds, Odoo automatically:

• Converts quotation to Sales Order
• Assigns to eCommerce sales team
• Creates Delivery Order in Inventory
• Sends order confirmation email to customer

3. Warehouse Prepares Shipment

1. Warehouse sees delivery order in Inventory → Operations → Delivery Orders
2. Picks items from shelf
3. Packs into box
4. Weighs package
5. Opens delivery order in Odoo
6. Clicks "Get Rate" button (if using real-time carrier rates)
7. Prints shipping label via Odoo

4. Add Tracking Reference

Two ways to add tracking info:

5. Validate Delivery

1. After package ships, click Validate button
2. Status changes from "Ready" to "Done"
3. Odoo automatically:
   • Updates stock quantities
   • Sends shipment notification email to customer
   • Email includes tracking link

Customer View: Tracking from Portal

Customer's perspective after order ships:

Option 1: Email Link

1. Customer receives "Your order has shipped" email
2. Email contains tracking number and link
3. Clicks link → Redirects to carrier website (FedEx.com)
4. Sees live tracking: "In Transit → Expected Delivery: Dec 23"

Option 2: Customer Portal

1. Customer logs into your website
2. Clicks My Account
3. Clicks Your Orders
4. Sees list of all orders with statuses:
   • Quotation: Payment pending
   • Sales Order: Confirmed, awaiting shipment
   • Shipped: Package in transit
   • Delivered: Package received
5. Clicks on specific order
6. Sees order details: Products, amounts, addresses
7. Scrolls to "Last Delivery Orders" section
8. Clicks tracking link next to Tracking Reference
9. Opens carrier tracking page in new tab

Backend View: Tracking from Odoo Admin

Support team or operations can track orders from Odoo backend:

View Orders

1. Go to Website → eCommerce → Orders
2. See all orders in list view
3. Columns show: Order #, Date, Customer, Website, Total, Invoice Status
4. Click on order to open details

View Delivery & Tracking

1. In order view, click Delivery smart button
2. Delivery order opens
3. See tracking reference in Additional Info tab
4. Click Tracking smart button
5. Opens carrier tracking interface embedded in Odoo
6. Or click tracking link to open carrier website

Automated Email Notifications

Odoo sends automatic emails at each order stage:

Real-World Example: Full Order Flow

Common Mistakes That Break Tracking

ROI: Self-Service Tracking

Quick Implementation Checklist