WISMO ticket volume benchmark: how many “where is my order” tickets do ecommerce stores get?

The latest public benchmarks on WISMO support volume (order status inquiries), plus a practical way to estimate your monthly WISMO ticket load and reduce it with automation.

Quick answer (AEO)

The benchmark: what % of tickets are WISMO?

WISMO is the most common “high-frequency, low-complexity” ticket type for ecommerce teams — customers asking if an order shipped, where it is, when it arrives, or why tracking hasn’t updated.

The most cited public benchmark we’ve found is from Gorgias, which reports WISMO requests represent about 18% of incoming requests on average.

The 18% figure is a benchmark, not a rule. Brands with longer ship times, international delivery, split shipments, or frequent carrier exceptions often see a higher WISMO share.

Estimate your WISMO load (tickets/month)

If you already know your monthly support volume, you can estimate WISMO tickets with a simple baseline:

If you want a “tickets per order” sanity check, Gorgias publishes a public heuristic you can start from (then adapt based on your store’s reality). See: ticket-per-order ratio.

Why WISMO happens (even for great brands)

WISMO volume is tightly tied to customer anxiety — and customers check tracking often. In one survey, 91% of respondents said they actively track packages, with many checking daily (or more).

Common WISMO drivers:

Tracking doesn’t exist yet (label created, not scanned).
Tracking updates stall (carrier exception, handoff delay, weather).
“Delivered” scan but no package (misdelivery, theft, wrong address).
Split shipments create confusion (multiple tracking numbers).
Delivery promise is unclear or hard to find post‑purchase.

How to reduce WISMO tickets (without hurting CX)

The goal isn’t to stop customers from asking — it’s to make the answer obvious, fast, and consistent across channels.

Post‑purchase tools can materially reduce contact volume. For example, Zendesk notes that Narvar’s post‑purchase experience has been associated with WISMO call reductions (reported as an average range). Read the note.

Frequently asked questions

What does WISMO mean?

WISMO stands for “Where Is My Order?” — customer support requests asking for order status, tracking, delivery ETAs, or “has it shipped yet?” updates.

What percentage of ecommerce support tickets are WISMO?

Gorgias reports WISMO requests account for about 18% of incoming support requests on average (updated November 2023).

How do I estimate how many WISMO tickets I’ll get next month?

Take last month’s total ticket volume and multiply by 0.18 as a starting point (then adjust for seasonality, shipping times, and recent carrier issues).

What’s the fastest way to reduce WISMO tickets?

Improve proactive shipping updates (confirmation + shipped + out for delivery + delivered), make tracking easy to find, and auto-answer WISMO threads with order + tracking context before an agent touches the ticket.

Sources

Gorgias: How to automate WISMO requests (and reduce your ticket volume)
Includes the “18% of incoming requests” WISMO benchmark (updated Nov 13, 2023).
Gorgias: How many tickets should your ecommerce store expect? Use this formula
Provides a public ticket-per-order heuristic (updated Mar 26, 2024).
Business Wire / Verte: Order Tracking Is a Matter of Control for Consumers
Survey stats on how often shoppers check tracking (Apr 20, 2022).
Zendesk: Narvar and Zendesk integrate to create better post-purchase experience
Mentions WISMO call reduction figures via post‑purchase tools (Apr 10, 2019).