Have you recently checked your tracking number from Fedex, and see an update that says ‘Departed Fedex location’ or ‘Departed Fedex hub?’
This commonly shows up, but the exact meaning of it isn’t exactly obvious.
In this article, I’ll be covering what these messages mean, what you should do if tracking gets stuck on this message, as well as answer other common questions about Fedex tracking updates.
Let’s get to it!
What Does It Mean If Tracking Shows ‘Departed Fedex Location?’
If Fedex tracking shows an update stating ‘departed Fedex location’, this simply means that it is en route to the next Fedex hub throughout their network.
Contrary to popular belief, Fedex doesn’t deliver straight from the place it’s originally dropped off at, to your local Fedex location in your city.
Instead, packages get sent to various distribution and sorting centers throughout the country or the world, in order to ensure that packages are better organized and are being delivered optimally.
In fact, there are over 600 Fedex locations just in the United States and Canada alone. Some of these locations include:
- Metuchen, New Jersey
- Orlando, Florida
- Paul, Minnesota
- Seattle, Washington
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Louisville, Kentucky
- Portland, Oregon
- Phoenix, Arizona
- Champaign, Illinois
- Chicago, Illinois
- Los Angeles, California
- Denver, Colorado
- Tracy, California
- Salt Lake City, Utah
- Atlanta, Georgia
- Ocala, Florida
- Syracuse, New York
- San Diego, California
- Houston, Texas
Similarly to USPS, this is why your package may actually end up going farther away at some points during transit – it is simply being moved to a location where it can be sorted and bundled with other packages going to the same area.
This allows Fedex to deliver packages faster, and with less waste.
So, after your package has left one of these various Fedex facilities, tracking will update to show ‘Departed Fedex location’ or ‘Departed Fedex hub.’
It will continue doing this until it finally arrives to your local Fedex location, and updates to ‘Out for delivery.’
To take a peek inside one of Fedex’s largest sorting hubs, watch this!
Tracking Is Stuck On ‘Departed Fedex Location’. Should You Be Concerned?
It can be alarming when Fedex is showing that the most recent update has it departing a Fedex location. This is especially true if it’s been stuck there for several days now, or is at a Fedex location that is close to you – meaning it should have seen movement by now.
But is this actually something that you should be concerned about?
Not really. It is completely normal for tracking to show that your shipment has departed a Fedex hub for several days before it finally updates again.
This is particularly true for ground shipments, that may have to travel very long distances before making an additional stop at any additional Fedex locations.
Keep in mind that Fedex may also prioritize certain shipping classes, to ensure those packages end up arriving ahead of time.
Some Fedex employees have even claimed that Fedex will hold back packages that look to be arriving ahead of schedule, to make up time for ones that ended up experiencing delays.
So, if you end up seeing a lot of updates early on but they end up slowing down, this is likely why.
Ultimately, the most important thing on the tracking page to pay attention to is the expected delivery date. This date is calculated based on everything Fedex knows about your shipment, along with the prediction algorithm that has been trained on over 6 million packages a day.
Since Fedex has a lot more data than we have access to, it makes sense to trust their delivery date prediction.
The Fedex Hub Is Close To Me, But Tracking Hasn’t Updated. Why?
As mentioned earlier, tracking becoming stuck is particularly frustrating when the package is already close to you.
If your Fedex location is only an hour away, but it’s been stuck on ‘Departed Fedex location’ for hours or even days, it can lead you to wonder what’s wrong.
There are a few potential issues that may be causing the problem.
As mentioned earlier, it’s possible that they are deliberately holding the package back to deliver other packages first. While this can prevent packages from arriving early, it does help them ensure the overwhelming majority of their deliveries are on time.
It’s also possible that a scan was missed, and your package is actually already at another Fedex location even closer to you.
Finally, it’s possible that the sorting center in which your package most recently arrived isn’t responsible for deliveries.
This would require them to send it to another Fedex location – potentially even one farther away from you, to actually handle the delivery out to customers.
If your package is already considered late, it is worth contacting Fedex for assistance or insight. You can reach Fedex customer service at 1-800-463-3339.
When Will Tracking Update Again?
If the most recent message is that your package has left a Fedex location, when can you expect tracking to update again?
Unfortunately, there is no clear timeline – it can take anywhere from under an hour, to several days depending on where the package is going.
You will receive an update to your tracking whenever your package reaches the next Fedex location. This is commonly referred to as an arrival scan, and it shows where the package is currently at.
If the package needs to be transferred again, you should receive another ‘Departed Fedex location’ message on your tracking page shortly after that.
Otherwise, your package will be updated to ‘Out for delivery’, which means it should arrive soon!
Conclusion
Is your Fedex tracking number is showing that your shipment has recently departed a Fedex location or a Fedex hub, don’t worry.
It is simply en route to the next Fedex center on its journey, and tracking should update before long. It is normal for tracking to be stuck on this message for several days, so it isn’t anything to be concerned about.
For the most accurate estimate on when your package is likely to arrive, check the expected delivery date towards the top of the tracking page.
I hope that you’ve found this article to be helpful, and that it’s answered all of your questions. If you have any other questions about Fedex, please ask them using the comment form below.
Wishing you the best,
– James McAllister