IT Glossary
What is an AWB (air waybill)?
An AWB (air waybill) is the transport document issued for each parcel — in everyday use, the unique number with which sender, courier and customer follow a delivery.
The number that lands in a customer's inbox after the message saying the order has shipped has an official name: the AWB, short for air waybill. Originally a document from air freight, the term was adopted wholesale by courier companies in Romania for the paperwork accompanying any parcel — who sends it, who receives it, what it contains, what it weighs, and the part the customer actually cares about, the unique tracking number. For an online shop the AWB is far more than a label stuck on a box, because issuing it is the step that joins the sale to the logistics. Done by hand, order by order, in each courier's own web interface, it consumes real minutes and produces address errors. Generated automatically from the shop platform through the courier's API, it takes a second, sends the tracking link to the customer with no human involvement, and removes an entire category of repetitive work from somebody's day.
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Why it matters for your business
Dispatch in seconds rather than minutes
An AWB generated straight from the order removes manual copying of addresses into the courier portal — across dozens of orders a day the saving is measured in hours.
Fewer parcels lost in transit
Data taken directly from the order means no typing mistakes in addresses or phone numbers, the leading cause of failed deliveries and returns to sender.
Informed customers, fewer phone calls
The tracking number sent automatically lets the customer follow their own parcel, which sharply reduces where-is-my-order calls and messages.
Frequently asked questions
How does the customer track a parcel using the AWB number?
They enter the number on the courier's tracking page, or follow the link received by email or text, and see each stage: collected, in transit, out for delivery, delivered. Shops integrated with the courier API can show the same status directly inside the customer's account on the site.
Can AWBs be generated automatically for several couriers?
Yes. Fan Courier, Cargus, Sameday, GLS and DPD all offer issuing APIs, and a shop platform can integrate with several at once. The system can even pick the courier automatically by your own rule: cheapest on the route, the one with a locker near the customer, or whichever the customer chose at checkout.
What happens if the AWB carries incorrect data?
The courier cannot deliver and the parcel returns, with the return leg usually billed to the sender, on top of the customer lost in the meantime. That is precisely why automation matters: the data flows from the order form straight into the AWB, with address and phone validation happening on the site before dispatch.
Let’s talk about your project
Message us on WhatsApp or send an email — you talk directly to a developer.
office@northdan.com · +40 752 070 247