Proof of shipment
Wins arguments about whether the sender met a deadline, honored a service commitment, or held stock ready to ship on the promised day. It says nothing about arrival at the other end.
Dispute evidence
Proof of shipment, and what it will and will not do
Proof of shipment is a record the parcel entered the carrier network on a stated day. It is not proof of delivery. The free version is the origin scan on the tracking page, the paid postal version is a stamped Certificate of Mailing on PS Form 3817 at $2.45, and both defend a different argument than the arrival record does. Fees from USPS Notice 123, effective 2026-07-12 and cited on our proof of delivery guide.
Two records namedFees datedWhat each argument needs
Two artefacts, one date
The counter stamp and the acceptance scan both prove the shipment; the delivery record is a different piece of paper.
Four documents that all get called proof of shipment
| Record | What it shows | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| The label receipt or purchase order | You bought a label for the shipment; nothing about acceptance | Included with the label |
| Carrier origin scan on the tracking page | The parcel was in the carrier's hands at a place and time | Included with the label |
| USPS Certificate of Mailing, PS Form 3817 | A postal counter stamp with a date, kept by the sender | $2.45 retail |
| Certified Mail or a carrier signature product | Overkill for a shipment record — these are delivery products | Higher fees on the delivery side |
The label receipt on its own defends nothing; a bought label sitting on a printer does not prove a parcel was shipped. The origin scan is the free version of the answer everyone actually wants; a Certificate of Mailing is the paid version, useful when there is a deadline to hit on the sender's calendar, such as a tax filing or a contract cure period.
Shipment against delivery, and which one the argument needs
People buy proof of shipment when they need proof of delivery, and lose disputes because the wrong artefact does not upgrade itself on demand. The two prove different things.
Proof of delivery
Wins arguments about whether the recipient received the parcel. Buy Signature Confirmation, an adult signature, or a return receipt, and store the artefact with the order. Our proof of delivery guide priced every option on 2026-07-28.
Both, on the same shipment
High-value orders benefit from both. The mailing certificate closes the sender's calendar and the signature closes the recipient's. Together they defend against a customer claiming the box never arrived and a court asking when the item left the shipper's control.
Pulling proof of shipment from each carrier
Every carrier records the origin scan; the wording on the tracking page differs a little. USPS labels the event Acceptance or USPS in Possession of Item; UPS labels it Origin Scan; FedEx labels it Picked Up. Save the tracking export the day the box goes; scan histories move to a compressed archive over time and pulling the detail after a support queue is thinner than pulling it live.
For the postal certificate, the sender fills PS Form 3817 with the destination address and pays the retail fee at a Post Office counter; the clerk applies a round-dater stamp to the form. The form is the record; USPS keeps no copy. Bulk senders use PS Form 3606 for lists of parcels on one certificate at the same $2.45 per line.
Where a Certificate of Mailing actually earns its fee
Legal deadlines
Tax filings, court paperwork, cure periods on contracts. The certificate answers the question “was it posted by the date” and answers only that. Nothing about the certificate says the recipient took delivery.
Regulated returns
Warranty returns, defective merchandise returns, RMA windows. A dated certificate on the outbound leg lands a paper trail no marketplace can dismiss on the timing.
Sending without tracking
Rare and shrinking, since Ground Advantage and every carrier ground service now include tracking. The one place it still matters is a bulk metered stack of letter mail that is not eligible for a tracking scan.
Where these rules come from
- USPS, Certificate of Mailing FAQ, description of PS Form 3817.
- USPS Notice 123, price list effective 2026-07-12, cited on our proof of delivery guide read 2026-07-28.
- UPS, FedEx and USPS tracking pages for the labelled origin scan wording.
Fees and product names on the delivery side change with each USPS price list. Treat the figures above as what USPS published on the effective date shown, and check the current version before ordering.
Proof-of-shipment questions
What is proof of shipment?
A record that the parcel entered the carrier network on a stated day. The acceptance scan on the tracking page is the free version, a stamped Certificate of Mailing on PS Form 3817 is the paid postal version, and the carrier label receipt sits on top of both for dispute purposes.
Is proof of shipment the same as proof of delivery?
No. Proof of shipment shows the parcel was handed over; proof of delivery shows it arrived. Different disputes need different documents, and the first will not win a case the second was needed for.
How much does a USPS Certificate of Mailing cost?
$2.45 for the retail PS Form 3817, per USPS Notice 123 effective 2026-07-12 and cited on our proof of delivery guide. It buys nothing about the shipment's arrival — only the date it was posted.
Does a UPS or FedEx label count as proof of shipment?
The label alone does not; the origin scan does. Once the tracking history shows an origin scan the shipment is on the record. Save the tracking export the day the box goes and file it with the order.
What proof do marketplaces accept for a shipping-related dispute?
Marketplaces typically want the tracking number and a scan event by a stated cut-off, both of which the acceptance scan supplies. For a chargeback, the higher standard is proof of delivery with a signature; the mailing certificate almost never enters into it.