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Laundry symbols are those small icons found on the tags of your clothes. While they may look confusing at first, they are actually helpful instructions designed to show you how to properly care for each garment.
Understanding them can save you from common laundry mistakes like shrinking, fading, or ruining your favourite outfit.
Laundry care symbols generally fall into five main categories: washing, drying, ironing, bleaching, and professional cleaning. Let’s look at each group and what they mean using easy-to-understand examples.
Washing symbols
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Washing instructions are shown with a bucket of water symbol. If you see a bucket with a number inside, such as 30 or 40, it means that’s the maximum temperature (in degrees Celsius) the item should be washed at.
For example, if the symbol shows a bucket with ‘30’, wash it in cold or lukewarm water.
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If there’s a hand inside the bucket, it means hand wash only, usually for delicate items like wool or silk. If the bucket has a cross through it, do not wash the item at home. It might need dry cleaning.
Some washing symbols also have lines under the bucket. One line means a gentle cycle. Two lines mean an extra delicate cycle, such as the one used for silk blouses or lace underwear.
Drying symbols
Drying symbols use a square as the base. A square with a circle inside shows that the item can be tumble dried. If the circle has one dot inside, use low heat.
Two dots mean medium heat, and three dots indicate high heat. For example, a cotton T-shirt might have two dots, while a synthetic blouse might have only one.
If the circle has a big 'X' over it, do not tumble dry. You’ll need to air dry the item. A square with a curved line at the top means hang to dry, while a square with a straight horizontal line means lay the item flat to dry, this is good for jumpers so they don’t stretch.
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Ironing symbols
Ironing instructions are shown with a symbol that looks like an old-fashioned iron. The dots inside tell you what heat level to use.
One dot means low heat, good for synthetic fabrics like nylon or polyester. Two dots mean medium heat, suitable for most blends. Three dots mean high heat, which works for cotton or linen.
If there’s a cross over the iron symbol, do not iron the item at all. You may also see steam lines under the iron. If they are crossed out, it means you should not steam the item, even if you are allowed to iron it.
Bleaching symbols
The triangle symbol tells you whether or not to use bleach. A plain triangle means you can use any type of bleach, including chlorine bleach.
A triangle with two diagonal lines inside means only non-chlorine bleach should be used, which is safer for colours.
If the triangle has a cross through it, do not bleach the item at all. This helps you avoid fading or discolouring your clothes.
Professional cleaning symbols
These are shown using circles. A plain circle means the item can be dry cleaned. If the circle has a letter inside (such as ‘P’ or ‘F’), it tells the dry cleaner which solvent to use.
A circle with a “W” means it should be wet-cleaned professionally. If the circle has a cross over it, do not dry clean.
Even if you don’t use dry cleaning often, it’s useful to know when your clothing needs extra care from a professional.
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Quick tips to remember
If you don’t want to memorise every symbol, here are a few simple tips:
More dots mean more heat.
More lines mean more care is needed.
A cross through any symbol means “do not do this.”
A triangle relates to bleach.
A circle relates to dry cleaning.
A square relates to drying.
You can also print a cheat sheet and stick it near your washing machine or save one on your phone for quick reference.