Most AliExpress parcels bound for the United States arrive on a Cainiao number and are delivered by USPS. The handoff typically happens at a coastal gateway — Los Angeles, Chicago, New York or New Jersey — and it is the point at which tracking most often appears to stall.
The route, in order
| Stage | Who has it | Typical days |
|---|---|---|
| Pickup and Chinese sorting | Cainiao or seller's carrier | 2 to 7 |
| Export and flight | Airline | 3 to 14 |
| US arrival and CBP | Customs and Border Protection | 1 to 7 |
| Induction into USPS | USPS gateway facility | 1 to 3 |
| Final delivery | USPS | 2 to 5 |
Choice orders compress the first two stages considerably and typically land in 5 to 10 days door to door. Standard Shipping runs 15 to 25 days.
Why tracking breaks at the handoff
When USPS takes custody, the parcel is inducted under a USPS number beginning with 9, usually 20 to 22 digits. The Cainiao number does not stop working, but it often stops updating in the AliExpress app, because the app is showing you the Cainiao view rather than the USPS view.
This is precisely the gap our tracking tool closes: paste the original LP number and it follows the parcel across the handoff, showing the USPS scans as soon as they appear and surfacing the local number when the carrier publishes it.
USPS statuses you will see after the handoff
| USPS status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Shipping label created, USPS awaiting item | USPS knows about it but does not have it yet |
| Accepted at USPS regional facility | Physically inducted. The final leg starts here. |
| In transit to next facility | Moving domestically. Can be quiet for 2 to 3 days. |
| Arrived at post office | At your local office. Usually next-day delivery. |
| Out for delivery | On a route today |
| Delivered, in/at mailbox | Left without signature |
Duty and de minimis
US import rules on low-value parcels have changed materially in recent years, and any specific threshold printed here would risk being out of date by the time you read it. Check the current position with US Customs and Border Protection before assuming a parcel is duty free. What is consistent: where charges apply, the carrier usually adds a handling fee on top, and that fee is often larger than the duty itself.
Delivered but not received
USPS records GPS coordinates on delivery scans and will share them on request, which is the strongest evidence available when a parcel is marked delivered but never arrived. Get that first, then open an AliExpress dispute — our guide on winning a dispute covers what else to attach.