How to Use QuickBooks Shipping Manager History to Track, Reprint, and Void Labels

QuickBooks Desktop users who process shipments through the integrated Shipping Manager sometimes lose track of parcels after labels are printed — or need to void a label that was printed by mistake. The Shipping History screen, built into the shipping workflow, is the central place to review past shipments, reprint labels, track packages, and cancel labels that should not be used.

What Shipping History Shows

By default, the Shipping History list displays only the parcels shipped that day. Users can change the date range to view shipments from other periods. One detail worth noting: the list is organized by individual parcels rather than by complete shipment orders, so a single order with multiple packages will appear as multiple line items.

Core Functions at the Top of the Screen

Four large buttons at the top of the Shipping History screen handle the most common actions:

• Reprint Label — Generates another copy of a shipping label. Users should be careful here: each label should be used only once. Accidentally printing a duplicate and applying it to a second package can cause delivery and tracking problems.
• Track a Shipment — Pulls up current tracking information for the selected parcel with a single click.
• Email — Sends shipment details to a recipient. The system defaults to the email address attached to the shipment, but users can change it. This function requires desktop email software such as Outlook or Mozilla Thunderbird.
• Void (Delete) — Removes a shipment from the system. This is the option to use when a label was printed but the parcel will not actually be sent, or when a printing problem caused the label to fail and the shipment was re-run. Voiding is only available for a few days after the shipment was originally processed. Users should physically discard any printed label after voiding the shipment.

Searching and Filtering Past Shipments

The search bar in Shipping History is global — typing part of a company name, contact name, tracking number, or shipment reference and pressing Enter searches the entire shipping history database regardless of the date range currently selected. This makes it possible to locate an old shipment quickly without first narrowing the date window.

For more targeted lookups, every column header has a small arrow that opens a dropdown menu. Selecting a value from that menu filters the list to show only matching entries — for example, selecting a specific service from the Service column limits the view to shipments sent through that carrier service.

The Custom Filter option goes a step further. Clicking the arrow on a column and choosing Custom lets users search for a specific value within that field. A common scenario: locating a shipment tied to a particular purchase order number. If the PO number was entered in the Reference field when the shipment was created, users can filter the Reference column for that number and pull up the matching parcel directly.

Customizing the View

Right-clicking a parcel in the list opens a menu with additional options. Two of the most useful are Copy — which copies shipping information to the clipboard for pasting into another application — and Customize Columns, which lets users add fields like the Ship To address, company name, and other shipment details to the visible list. Adding a column is as simple as double-clicking it in the customization panel. Removing one is equally straightforward: drag the column header off the list and back onto the customization panel.

All columns support sorting. Clicking any column header sorts the list by that field, which can be helpful when reviewing shipments alphabetically by company or chronologically by date.

Locked Shipments

Occasionally a shipment in the list will display a lock icon. This indicates that Shipping Manager cannot delete or void that shipment. The carrier may have already closed it, or the voiding window may have expired. If a user is billed for a shipment that shows a lock and believes the charge is incorrect, the next step is to contact the carrier directly — QuickBooks itself cannot override a carrier-closed transaction.

Printing a Shipment List

For record-keeping, the Report button prints a list of all shipments within the currently selected date range. This can serve as a physical backup or a reference document for reconciling shipping charges against carrier invoices.

For broader help with QuickBooks Desktop workflows and troubleshooting, our general QuickBooks knowledge base covers common issues across versions and modules.