If PayPal is an important checkout option in your Shopify or WooCommerce store, your shipping data decides how quickly you get paid and how protected you are in disputes. The right carrier selection and clean tracking uploads are the difference between 21-day holds and funds arriving about 24 hours after delivery. This guide distills PayPal’s rules on accepted carriers, tracking URL standards, and international coverage, plus how to automate the entire process.
The short answer: PayPal recognizes hundreds of carriers worldwide
PayPal maintains an official, continuously updated list of supported carriers that its systems can verify for delivery events. The definitive list lives in the developer documentation under Add Tracking API Carriers. According to the PayPal carriers reference, merchants can choose a global version or a country-specific subsidiary for major networks like USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, Royal Mail, Canada Post, Australia Post, PostNord, Correos, SF Express, YunExpress, Yanwen, and 4PX. If your carrier is not listed, the same page explains you can set the carrier field to OTHER and provide the name in carriernameother.
PayPal also confirms in its Help Center that the supported list is dynamic and visible inside each payment. As noted in PayPal’s “get my money sooner” article, you can view the accepted carriers by opening the Add Tracking dialog and checking the Shipped by dropdown.
Global vs. country-specific entries
Some carriers appear multiple times in PayPal’s directory. The carriers reference instructs merchants to select the version available for their country first, and only use the global entry if a local variant is not present. That nuance matters for cross-border shipments. For example, you will find DHL entries for multiple regions alongside a global DHL option. Picking the closest match helps PayPal validate delivery reliably.
Why accepted carriers matter for holds, reserves, and chargebacks
When PayPal places a temporary hold on a payment, adding tracking from an approved carrier is the fastest path to release. As outlined in PayPal’s guidance on releasing payments on hold, using an approved carrier allows PayPal to release eligible funds approximately 24 hours after the courier confirms delivery. The same page reiterates that printing labels via PayPal will also trigger automated tracking and earlier release when the carrier confirms delivery.
PayPal’s Business Resource Center further explains why shipping data matters for risk and reserves. The overview of funds availability and reserves describes rolling reserves and suggests best practices to reduce the chance of a reserve, including shipping promptly and uploading tracking from supported carriers. Keeping complaint rates below 1 percent and giving buyers valid tracking are called out as proactive steps that improve your standing.
Tracking also underpins your evidence in disputes. The Disputes Integration Guide lists proof of delivery with a tracking number as accepted evidence for “item not received” and other reasons. If your tracking is verifiable with a recognized carrier, you are in a better position to win cases and prevent chargebacks.
Tracking URL and data standards PayPal expects
Uploading tracking is not only about the number. PayPal’s Add Tracking API defines specific fields and formats that its systems accept. The Tracking API reference states:
- The tracking_number supports ASCII characters and must not be a URL, phone number, or email. Provide a valid carrier value when a tracking number is present.
- The carrier must be chosen from the supported carriers list. If your carrier is missing, use OTHER and set carriernameother.
- The tracking_url is an optional field for a direct tracking link and must be a valid URI up to 250 characters.
- You should set a shipping status once when adding tracking. The Shipping Statuses page allows SHIPPED, DELIVERED, ON_HOLD, or CANCELLED. SHIPPED is the recommended status for new uploads.
These data standards are not only for API users. Even if you add tracking through the PayPal interface or a connector, the same validation rules and carrier directory sit behind the scenes. PayPal will even suggest or correct a carrier where possible, and it keeps a recomendedshippingcarrier in API responses to help you align future uploads.
Cross-border coverage: from postal networks to popular CN logistics
Cross-border merchants will find robust coverage across national posts and dedicated international consolidators. The carriers reference includes China Post, EMS, SF Express, YunExpress, Yanwen, 4PX, and many regional last-mile partners, alongside global integrators like DHL, UPS, and FedEx. The same page organizes carriers by country so you can confirm support in key lanes like the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, the EU, and Southeast Asia.
For best results when shipping internationally:
- Choose the most specific carrier entry for the origin or operating country. If a local subsidiary exists, select that instead of the global entry.
- Prefer services that provide door-to-door scan events and delivery confirmation. These signals are what trigger faster fund release as highlighted in PayPal’s hold release guidance.
- Keep tracking URLs stable and short. The API’s tracking_url field is limited to 250 characters and must be a valid URI.
Automate it: get PayPal updated the moment you ship
Manually adding tracking to PayPal does not scale, and gaps create preventable risk. If you sell on Shopify or WooCommerce, a purpose-built connector can keep PayPal in sync without CSVs or copy-paste.
SyncPal automatically captures tracking from your store and fulfillment events and pushes updates to PayPal instantly. The platform emphasizes a one-time setup that takes about a minute, unlimited order syncing on every plan, and continuous automation with 24 by 7 support. See how it works, review features, and check straightforward pricing. Security is core to the design, with a military-grade encryption approach and clear data practices in the privacy policy and terms of service.
Merchants implement SyncPal to reduce rolling reserves and chargebacks through verified tracking in PayPal, speed up access to funds by surfacing delivery events faster, and reclaim hours otherwise spent on manual uploads. For a real-world outcome, read the dropshipper story that cut PayPal disputes by 42 percent after enabling real-time sync in this case study. For practical context on why this works, the blog explains PayPal funds in reserve and the benefits of syncing tracking. If you are new to Shopify, you can start with a Shopify free trial and connect SyncPal from day one.
If you prefer to build your own integration, PayPal’s Tracking API and Orders v2 workflow document the exact fields and shipping statuses to send. For most small to mid-sized teams, an automated app is faster, safer, and more reliable.
When you combine an accepted carrier, clean tracking fields, and instant sync into PayPal, you strengthen Seller Protection evidence, cut needless disputes, and get eligible funds released sooner.
