What do the wash label symbols mean?

01What do the washing symbols on clothes mean?

Every item of clothing sold in the UK carries a care label with washing symbols that tell you how to launder it safely. The symbols are standardised internationally under ISO 3758, so once you know the five basic shapes, you can read any label on any UK garment.

The five basic shapes map to five care operations. Everything else is a modifier added to those shapes: numbers for temperatures, dots for heat levels, bars for gentler treatment, and crosses for prohibitions. Once you can read the shape, the modifier tells you the detail.

Washtub = Washing
The number inside shows the maximum temperature in degrees Celsius. Bars underneath show gentler agitation. A hand inside means hand wash only.

Triangle = Bleaching
A plain triangle allows any bleach. Two diagonal lines inside restrict you to non-chlorine bleach only. A cross through means no bleach of any kind.

Square = Drying
A circle inside the square means tumble dry allowed, with dots for heat level. Horizontal or vertical lines inside give natural drying instructions.

Iron shape = Ironing
Dots inside show the maximum temperature. One dot is cool, two is warm, three is hot. A cross through means do not iron at all.

Circle = Professional care
A letter inside tells the dry cleaner which solvent to use. A W inside means professional wet cleaning. A cross through means do not dry clean.

02What do the washing temperature symbols mean?

The washtub is the symbol that governs the actual wash cycle. Everything about how to wash the garment - temperature, agitation, hand-wash requirement - is contained in or around this symbol.

Symbol	Name	What it means	Practical advice
	Wash at 30 degrees	Maximum wash temperature 30 degrees Celsius	Delicates, bright colours, modern energy-saving washes. Most modern UK washing machines wash effectively at 30 degrees with the right detergent.
	Wash at 40 degrees	Maximum wash temperature 40 degrees Celsius	Standard wash temperature for most everyday UK laundry, including coloured cottons, mixed fabrics and synthetics.
	Wash at 50 degrees	Maximum wash temperature 50 degrees Celsius	Less common. Occasionally seen on synthetic workwear and some technical fabrics.
	Wash at 60 degrees	Maximum wash temperature 60 degrees Celsius	Whites, bedding, towels, heavily soiled items, hygienic washes. 60 degrees kills most household bacteria.
	Wash at 70 degrees	Maximum wash temperature 70 degrees Celsius	Uncommon on domestic labels. Most UK machines do not offer a 70 degree programme. Use the next lower setting available.
	Wash at 95 degrees	Maximum wash temperature 95 degrees Celsius	Heavily soiled whites, nappies, items requiring sanitisation. Very few modern garments require this.
	Gentle wash (one bar)	Reduced mechanical action and reduced spin speed	Use the delicates or synthetics cycle on your machine. Reduce the spin to 800 rpm or below.
	Very gentle wash (two bars)	Significantly reduced mechanical action and spin	Use the wool or hand-wash cycle. Reduce the spin to 600 rpm or below. Many premium machines have a dedicated silk or very delicates programme.
	Hand wash only	Hand wash in water no hotter than 40 degrees	Some UK washing machines have a Hand Wash cycle that satisfies this symbol. Check your manual. If in doubt, wash by hand in a basin with gentle detergent.
	Do not wash	Do not use water-based cleaning at all	Professional dry cleaning only. See the professional care symbols section for the specific solvent required.

What do the lines under a wash symbol mean?

The horizontal bars underneath a washtub symbol are one of the most misread features on UK care labels. They do not mean anything about the water, the detergent or the temperature. They are a mechanical-action instruction.

A single bar tells the washing machine to use a reduced mechanical action cycle, which usually means the delicates or synthetics programme on a modern UK machine. Two bars means use the wool, hand-wash or very delicates programme. The spin speed should also be reduced in both cases.

If your machine does not have a cycle name that matches, choose any programme that reduces the drum rotation speed and the spin speed compared to the standard cottons cycle. On many modern UK machines this is labelled Synthetics, Mixed Fabrics, Easy Care or Delicates.

03What do the bleaching symbols mean?

The triangle symbol governs bleaching. It is one of the simpler families on UK care labels, with only three states: any bleach allowed, non-chlorine bleach only, or no bleach at all.

Symbol	Name	What it means	Practical advice
	Any bleach allowed	Chlorine and oxygen bleaches both permitted	Safe to use household chlorine bleach or any oxygen-based (colour-safe) bleach. Follow the bleach manufacturer’s dilution instructions.
	Non-chlorine bleach only	Oxygen bleach allowed, chlorine bleach prohibited	Use a colour-safe or oxygen-based bleach. Chlorine bleach will damage the fabric or cause fading.
	Do not bleach	No bleach of any kind	Bleaching will damage the fabric or compromise the colour. Use bleach-free detergents and avoid bleach-containing stain removers.

04What do the drying symbols mean?

The square symbol governs drying. It is the richest and most varied of the five symbol families, because it covers both tumble drying and natural drying methods. A circle inside the square means tumble drying is allowed. Horizontal, vertical or corner lines inside the square give natural drying instructions.

Tumble drying symbols

Symbol	Name	What it means	Practical advice
	Tumble dry allowed, any heat	Tumble drying permitted at any temperature	Use whatever cycle suits the fabric and load. Cottons on high heat, mixed fabrics on medium.
	Tumble dry low heat (one dot)	Tumble drying permitted at low heat only (up to 60 degrees)	Use the delicates, synthetics or low-heat setting on your tumble dryer. Avoid the cottons or high-heat cycle.
	Tumble dry medium heat (two dots)	Tumble drying permitted at medium heat (up to 70 degrees)	Use the mixed fabrics or medium-heat setting. Suits most everyday UK laundry.
	Do not tumble dry	Tumble drying not permitted	Air dry only. See the natural drying symbols below for the specific method required.

Natural drying symbols

Symbol	Name	What it means	Practical advice
	Line dry	Hang on a line or airer to dry	Outside line or indoor airer. Avoid direct sunlight for bright colours.
	Drip dry	Hang to dry without wringing or spinning	Do not spin or wring. Hang while still dripping wet. Common for delicates and hand-washed items.
	Dry flat	Lay flat to dry, not hung	Lay on a flat drying rack or clean towel. Essential for woollens and knitwear that would stretch on a line.
	Line dry in shade	Hang to dry away from direct sunlight	Diagonal lines in the top-left corner mean dry out of direct sunlight. Protects colours from fading.
	Dry flat in shade	Lay flat to dry away from direct sunlight	Combines the flat-dry and shade-dry instructions. For delicate dark colours and knitwear.

See our related content on how to dry clothes without a tumble dryer for the practical options available to UK households, including heated airers and dehumidifiers: drying clothes without a tumble dryer.

05What do the ironing symbols mean?

The iron shape governs ironing. The number of dots inside the iron tells you the maximum safe temperature. A plain iron with no dots allows any temperature. A cross through means no ironing at all.

Symbol	Name	What it means	Practical advice
	Any temperature	Iron at any temperature	Safe at any heat setting. Use a steam setting if the fabric benefits from it.
	Low temperature (one dot)	Maximum 110 degrees Celsius	Low or Cool setting on most UK irons. For acrylic, nylon, acetate and other synthetics.
	Medium temperature (two dots)	Maximum 150 degrees Celsius	Medium or Wool setting. For polyester, wool, silk and blends.
	High temperature (three dots)	Maximum 200 degrees Celsius	High or Cotton setting. For cotton, linen and viscose. Steam setting typically safe.
	No steam	Ironing allowed, but no steam	Switch off the steam function on your iron. The water can mark heat-sensitive fabrics.
	Do not iron	Do not iron at all	The fabric will melt, scorch or lose its finish. Hang garments to reduce creases instead.

06What do the dry cleaning and professional care symbols mean?

The circle symbol governs professional care, which includes both dry cleaning (solvent-based) and professional wet cleaning (water-based, done at a cleaner rather than at home). The letter inside the circle tells the professional cleaner which solvent or process to use. For UK consumers, the practical takeaway is simply whether dry cleaning is required at all, and whether domestic washing is also permitted.

Symbol	Name	What it means	Practical advice
	Dry clean	Professional dry cleaning permitted	Take to a dry cleaner. Any solvent process is acceptable. May be combined with a washing symbol permitting home washing as an alternative.
	Dry clean (P)	Perchloroethylene (PCE) or other petroleum-based solvent	Standard high-street dry cleaning in the UK. Tell the cleaner the garment is P-coded if not visible.
	Dry clean (F)	Petroleum solvents only	Specialist process. Fewer UK cleaners offer F-coded cleaning. Ask before booking.
	Professional wet cleaning (W)	Professional wet (water-based) cleaning permitted	A gentler professional water-based alternative to dry cleaning. Not the same as home washing.
	Do not dry clean	Dry cleaning not permitted	Solvents will damage the garment. Follow the home washing symbol instead.

07Written instructions on care labels

Alongside the symbols, many UK care labels include written instructions in English. These are supplementary to the symbols, not instead of them. Common phrases and what they mean in practice are covered below.

08What if the care label is missing, faded or in a foreign language?

Missing or damaged care labels are a common UK household problem, particularly on older items, secondhand clothes and items bought on holiday. Our engineers offer the following practical guidance when the label cannot be read.

1. Identify the fabric by feel and appearance. Cotton, linen, wool, silk and synthetics each have distinctive characteristics. If uncertain, a composition label (often separate from the care label) may still be readable.
2. Treat it as the most delicate reasonable option. Wash at 30 degrees on a delicates or synthetics cycle. Air dry. Iron on a low setting if ironing is needed. If the garment survives this, you can gradually increase the temperature on subsequent washes.
3. Test a small area first with any bleach or stain remover. Apply to a hidden seam or hem and wait 10 minutes. If the colour runs or the fabric changes, do not use the product on the whole garment.
4. For high-value or irreplaceable items, consult a dry cleaner. A professional can identify the fabric and recommend the correct process. Most UK dry cleaners will give free advice on any item brought in.
5. Foreign language labels usually still carry the ISO symbols. The symbols are international. If the garment is labelled in French, German, Italian or any other language, the shapes and numbers are identical. Translate the written instructions with any translation app.

09Matching symbols to your washing machine cycles

UK washing machines label their cycles with a wide variety of names: Cottons, Mixed Fabrics, Synthetics, Delicates, Easy Care, Hand Wash, Wool, Quick Wash, Eco 40-60, and many others. Translating a care label symbol to a specific cycle on your machine is one of the most common consumer confusions.

The practical approach is to match the temperature first, then the mechanical action. The table below shows the usual mapping on modern UK washing machines. Your specific machine may use different cycle names, so consult your manual if unsure.

See our related guides on why does my washing machine smell and how to clean a washing machine for the wider maintenance routine that helps every wash cycle perform properly.

10The new UK and EU symbol standard: what changed?

The symbols currently used on UK care labels follow the international ISO 3758 standard, most recently updated in 2012 and adopted across the EU and UK. The main changes from older UK symbols that you may still see on older garments are as follows.

Numbers replaced words for temperature

Older UK labels used descriptors like “Cool”, “Warm”, “Hot” inside the washtub. Modern labels use the maximum degrees in Celsius: 30, 40, 60, 95. The symbol itself is otherwise identical.

Bars underneath now indicate mechanical action, not temperature

Older UK care labels sometimes used bars underneath the washtub to indicate reduced temperature. Under modern ISO 3758, the bars mean reduced mechanical action only. Temperature is shown by the number inside the tub.

Professional wet cleaning (W) added

The W-coded circle for professional wet cleaning was added as a new symbol in the 2012 revision. Older labels only showed dry cleaning (solvent) symbols.

The US symbol system is similar but not identical

Garments imported from the US use the ASTM D5489 standard, which is close to ISO 3758 but has some notable differences. The washtub is the same but US labels sometimes use a different bleach triangle variation. Interpret US symbols with slight caution.

11Our engineer’s practical advice on reading wash labels

After years of diagnosing laundry problems in UK homes, our engineers consistently see the same misreadings and shortcuts. The practical guidance below avoids most of them.

12Frequently asked questions