Cainiao tracking status

Cainiao says delivered but no package: what to do

The short answer

Take action

Cainiao shows delivered when a carrier reports it, but the package may be nearby, in a wrong mailbox or still on its way. Check around first. If nothing turns up by the end of the next day, treat it as missing.

When to act: If nothing has turned up by the end of the next day after the 'Delivered' date, file a complaint and we send it to Cainiao.

Also shown as: “Delivered” · “Package delivered” · “Package delivered. It has been signed in person (recipient)” · “Item was delivered successfully to the addressee”

What to do now

Read the line for where and when it says the package was left, and look for any delivery photo.
Look in every mailbox, around each door, in the lobby and mailroom, and ask neighbors and anyone at home that day.
Check the address on your order, including your unit number.
On AliExpress, do not confirm receipt until you hold the package, because its help page says that can end your protection time.
Save the tracking history, any delivery photo and any camera recording from that time.
Still not sorted? File your complaint here. We write it with you and send it to Cainiao, so you do not have to chase it yourself.

Start my complaint

Says delivered, but it is not here with another courier

Tracking says delivered but nothing arrived: who is responsible? →

What is going on

Cainiao says that under most circumstances this status means the carrier delivered the package, and that if the addressee did not receive it, the sender or carrier should clarify. The line comes from the local carrier, so look at where and when it says the package was left. A line can also claim more than happened: one customer saw 'It has been signed in person (recipient)' with nobody in the house having signed.

The line can be early or wrong. In one tracking history a customer shared, Cainiao showed 'delivered' in late December and the package arrived on 13 January, and the customer guessed the line marked a hand-over to DHL. Others in that thread report the same gap. One customer reports a delivery photo showing a mailbox that was not theirs, and another reports items left in front of a door. AliExpress's own help page for this case says the carrier is still distributing the package.

Why it happens

Left with a neighbor, or in a lobby, mailroom or other spot nearby
Placed in the wrong mailbox or at the wrong door
A hand-over to another carrier may have been reported as delivered
An old or incomplete address on the order
Taken after it was left

What usually happens next

Often nothing else appears, because 'Delivered' is the last line. A package still on its way can turn up days or weeks later, as in the history above. On AliExpress orders, a help page says confirming receipt can end your protection time, and customers report orders confirmed automatically after this line, so watch the order page.

Other Cainiao statuses

Out for deliveryKeep an eye on it
Delivery failedTake action
Import customs clearance delayKeep an eye on it
Waiting for Pick UpTake action
ReturnTake action
Tracking not updatingKeep an eye on it

All Cainiao statuses →

Who is responsible for a late or missing package from Cainiao?

If you bought online from a business, the seller or marketplace is usually the one to sort it out. The seller chose Cainiao and is its customer, so a late or missing order is in most cases for the seller to put right, with a replacement or a refund. Cainiao's own FAQ also points to the seller when no tracking has appeared 12 days after shipment. On AliExpress, the platform's own rules decide refunds: its Buyer Protection covers an item that did not arrive or was lost in transit, within the guaranteed delivery window on your order page. For a UK order, the Consumer Rights Act, section 29, keeps goods from a business at the seller's risk until you have them, unless you hired a carrier the seller did not offer.

If you sent it yourself, Cainiao is unlikely to be your direct carrier, as it describes its cross-border services as primarily for merchants, brands and e-commerce platforms. If you booked through a shipping platform, your contract is likely to be with that platform, under the terms you accepted. We found no public Cainiao terms for private senders, and no standard cover amount.

Questions about “Delivered but not received”

Cainiao says delivered but I have no package. What now?

Check around your home, ask neighbors, read the line for a place and look for a delivery photo. If nothing turns up by the end of the next day, file a complaint and we send it to Cainiao.

Who is responsible if Cainiao says delivered but it never came?

In most cases the seller or marketplace, since Cainiao works for them. On AliExpress its own rules decide the refund, and its Buyer Protection covers an item that did not arrive within the guaranteed delivery window on your order page.

Is Cainiao tracking real?

Yes. Cainiao is a logistics company in the Alibaba Group, and its page shows what carriers report. A line can still be late or wrong, as Cainiao says a carrier may miss an entry.

Can a Cainiao package arrive after it says delivered?

It can. In one tracking history a customer shared, the package arrived about three weeks after 'delivered' appeared.

Based on

Cainiao Help Center: Logistics Status Explanation
Cainiao Help Center: FAQ (no tracking 12 days after shipment, returns, wordings for waiting for pickup)
Cainiao: About Cainiao
AliExpress Help Center: I haven't received my parcel but it shows Delivered
AliExpress: Buyer Protection (item that did not arrive within the guaranteed delivery window)
AliExpress Help Center: How to open dispute? (older page, confirming receipt)
Mikrocontroller.net forum: a Cainiao tracking history a customer shared
Trustpilot: customer reviews of Cainiao (customers' own accounts)
Reddit r/Aliexpress: 'Package delivered. It has been signed in person (recipient)'
Reddit r/Aliexpress: an order confirmed automatically after a delivered line
Cainiao: Cross-border Express Delivery (service times, written for merchants)
legislation.gov.uk: Consumer Rights Act, section 29 (goods stay at the seller's risk until they reach you)