Faster: scan the label instead
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Care labels use five categories of symbols, always in the same order: washing, bleaching, drying, ironing, and professional care. Pick the symbol you're staring at, or read the complete guide for the full system in one sitting.
Water temperature and how much agitation the garment can take.
Wash this garment in cold water — 30°C / 85°F at the warmest — on any normal machine cycle.
Wash in warm water — up to 40°C / 105°F — on a normal cycle. This is the default setting for most everyday clothing.
Wash in hot water — 50–60°C / 120–140°F — on a normal cycle. Reserved for hardy fabrics that need serious cleaning.
Too delicate for a washing machine. Wash gently by hand in cool water (around 30°C / 85°F or below) and don't wring it out.
Water itself will damage this garment. Don't machine wash, don't hand wash — it needs professional cleaning.
Use the permanent press (sometimes “easy care”) cycle: reduced agitation, a cool-down rinse, and a slower spin than normal.
Use the delicate/gentle cycle: minimal agitation, a short slow spin, and ideally a mesh bag for anything that can snag.
Don't twist or wring this garment to squeeze water out. Press water out gently instead.
Whether bleach is safe, and which kind.
Any bleach is safe on this garment when needed — including regular chlorine bleach and oxygen bleach.
Only non-chlorine (oxygen-based, “color-safe”) bleach is allowed. Regular chlorine bleach will damage the fabric or the dye.
No bleach of any kind — chlorine or oxygen. The fiber or dye can't tolerate bleach chemistry at all.
Tumble drying heat levels and natural drying methods.
The dryer is safe at a normal heat setting. Dots inside the circle set the heat level — more dots, more heat.
Tumble dry at a medium heat setting — the standard “permanent press” dryer temperature on most machines.
The tumbling action is safe, but heat isn't. Use the air-only / air-fluff cycle.
No dryer, at any temperature — not even air-only. Dry it naturally instead.
Hang the garment to dry — on a line, rod, or hanger — instead of machine drying.
Lay the garment flat on a surface to dry. Hanging it wet would stretch it out of shape.
Hang the garment up dripping wet — no wringing, no spin cycle — and let the water fall out of it.
Dry the garment away from direct sunlight. UV will fade the dye or degrade the fiber.
Maximum iron temperature, and whether steam is safe.
Iron at low temperature only — up to about 110°C / 230°F. This is the synthetics setting.
Iron at medium temperature — up to about 150°C / 300°F. The setting for wool, silk, and most blends.
Iron at high temperature — up to about 200°C / 390°F. Cotton and linen territory.
No ironing at any temperature. Direct heat and pressure will damage the fabric, its coating, or its texture.
Ironing is allowed (at the dot temperature shown), but without steam. Water droplets or steam will mark the fabric.
Dry cleaning and wet cleaning instructions, mostly for your cleaner.
Professional dry cleaning is safe. The letter inside is an instruction for the cleaner's solvent choice, not for you.
Dry cleaning solvents will damage this garment. Clean it by the method the rest of the label allows — usually water washing.
Professional wet cleaning is approved: a controlled, water-based process with specialized machines and finishing — gentler chemistry than dry cleaning solvents.
CareLabl reads the whole tag in one photo — every symbol decoded, plus fabric composition, in about three seconds. International and US labels both work. Try Pro free for 3 days, no credit card needed.