How to Read Washing Symbols: What These Icons on Clothing Labels Mean

Those little tags sewn into every piece of clothing can be itchy or downright annoying. But before you cut them out and toss them away for good, it’s important to realize just how useful that tag can be to the longevity of your clothing. If you look closely at your tags, you’ll notice a series of little symbols, like circles and squares — or circles inside squares. No, those icons aren’t bullshit. They’re a cheat code for how to properly care for and wash your clothes so they stay looking newer for longer.

These symbols can cause shrinkage, discoloration, and pilling, so it’s important to decipher exactly what they mean. Here’s what the most common care symbols on your clothes’ care labels mean. (And for more laundry tips, explore You should avoid these popular laundry products and most energy efficient way to do your laundry (to save money.)

Icon for sink

The laundry tub icon is a diagram of a tub of water, which means your garment can be washed in the washing machine. While that seems simple enough, there are several variations of this icon, as shown in the illustration above.

Let’s take a closer look at all those extra markings:

• If a tub is crossed out, your garment is not machine washable and must be dry cleaned or hand washed.
  
• If a tub has a number on it, that number is the maximum water temperature (in Celsius) to machine wash the item. A 30 label means a water temperature of 86 degrees Fahrenheit, 40 means 104 degrees Fahrenheit, and so on (to convert from Celsius to Fahrenheit, multiply by 1.8 and add 32 — or ask Google).
• Dots in the basin indicate the temperature. One dot means cold water, two dots mean warm water and three dots mean hot water.
• Lines under the sink indicate which wash program to use. No lines under the sink mean the item should be washed on the normal program, one line under the sink means it should be washed on the permanent press program and two lines means the item should be washed on the gentle program.
• If you put your hand in the sink, it means you should wash the garment by hand.

Dryer icons

If you see a circle in a square on your care label, this icon represents drying instructions. If the dryer icon is crossed out, do not machine dry and instead choose line or air dry. This is important to know to prevent shrinkage or heat damage.

The dots in the center of the dryer icon indicate which temperature setting to use when machine drying. One dot means you can tumble dry on normal heat. Two dots means you can tumble dry on high heat, and an empty circle means you can tumble dry on any temperature setting.

Iron icons

The iron symbol (as pictured above) simply means that you can iron the garment, while a crossed out iron icon means that you cannot. But as with the laundry basket icons, there are variations:

• The dots in the icon indicate which heat setting you should use: one dot in the iron icon means you should use a low heat setting, two dots mean you should use a medium heat setting, and three dots indicate a high heat setting (usually suitable for cotton or linen fabrics).
• Lines indicate whether the garment can be steamed. Crossed out lines under the iron mean the garment cannot be steamed.

Pale icons

Here’s an important tip: just because it’s white doesn’t mean it can be bleached. Certain materials like spandex, wool, silk, mohair, or leather will be ruined by bleach, regardless of the color of the item. However, most white linen and cotton garments are bleach-friendly.

The triangular icons on the care label indicate whether or not you can bleach. An open triangle means it is safe to use bleach, but a crossed-out triangle means you should never use bleach. If there is a triangular icon with lines through it (like the middle icon above), then you can use specific non-chlorine bleach, but only this type, otherwise the garment may be destroyed.

Dry cleaning pictograms

You can’t just throw any garment in the washing machine and be done with it. Some items, especially professional clothing or garments made from luxury fabrics, need to be dry cleaned. Dry cleaning instructions are indicated by circular icons.

If you see a circle (as above), your garment should be cleaned by a professional dry cleaner. However, a crossed-out circle icon means that the garment can be easily damaged by solvents used in dry cleaning processes. In this case, follow the machine or hand wash instructions.

A circle with a letter inside tells the dry cleaner what type of cleaning process to use. While you may never need to know these for your own cleaning, it can be helpful to know them.

• A capital “A” means the cleaner can use any cleaning agent on the garment.
• A capital “P” means the cleaner may use any solvent except those specifically listed.
• A capital “F” means the cleaner uses petroleum-based solvents and cannot dry clean with standard solvents.
  
• A capital “W” indicates that the garment should be wet cleaned.

For better or worse, washing is part of our weekly, if not daily, routine. So it’s important to do it right. We’ve got more washing tips for you, including These nine laundry tips will solve common problems and the best way to machine wash your sheets.

More cleaning tips and tricks