Housekeeping Laundry & Linens Laundry Tips & Checklists Laundry Symbols and What They Mean Take better care of your clothing and textiles by understanding these graphics for washing, bleaching, drying, ironing, and dry cleaning. By Kristina McGuirk Published on January 30, 2024 Close Photo: Getty Images / Aslan Alphan Proper laundering helps appropriately clean and efficiently dry clothing. It also increases its longevity, helping garments retain their size and shape. Not only do you need to understand and select the best settings on your washer and dryer, but you should also follow the care symbols found on everything from clothing to bedding and bath towels. Although some tags and packaging offer written care instructions, laundry symbols are standardized to provide universal imagery for how to care for items. The graphics represent five types of laundry care, and the symbols will always be presented in the same order: washing, bleaching, drying, ironing, and dry cleaning. Each of the five types has a base symbol and variations to indicate specific care details. Here’s a quick guide to deciphering laundry care symbols. BHG Design Washing Laundry Symbols The basis of the washing symbols looks like a wash basin or tub of water. Washing symbols offer directions for machine washing as well as hand washing. Basin with a hand above: Hand wash only; do not clean in the washing machine. Basin with dots inside: The maximum water temperature you should use to wash items. The most common variations are described here, though you may find even more dots for higher temperatures.Basin with one dot: Cold waterBasin with two dots: Warm waterBasin with three dots: Hot waterBasin with numbers inside: Also indicates a maximum water temperature for washing. However, instead of dots, it’s represented in a Celsius temperature. Basin with 30: Cold waterBasin with 40: Warm waterBasin with 50: Hot waterA basin with lines under it: Indicates the cycle you should choose on your washing machine. Basin with one line underneath: Permanent press cycleBasin with two lines underneath: Gentle/delicate cycle Basin with an X: Do not wash You may also find a laundry symbol that looks like a twist of rope, a piece of candy, or even a bowtie—this is the ring symbol, referring to ringing out an item. If you see the ring symbol with an X over it, that item should not be rung out when washing. BHG Design Bleaching Laundry Symbols A triangle is the basis for symbols related to bleaching guidance. An empty triangle: Use any bleachA triangle with two diagonal lines inside: Use non-chlorine bleach onlyA triangle with an X over it: Do not bleach Drying Laundry Symbols A square is the foundation for drying symbols. A square and circle indicate directions related to tumble drying with a machine, and the circle will vary to indicate heat settings for the dryer. A square with other elements inside—not a circle—gives direction for non-machine drying. BHG Design Dryer Symbols Square with a filled-in circle inside: Tumble dry with no heatSquare with an empty circle inside: Normal setting or tumble dry with any heatSquare with circle and one line underneath: Permanent press settingSquare with a circle and two lines underneath: Delicate/gentle settingSquare with a circle and one dot inside: Low heatSquare with a circle and two dots inside: Medium heat Square with a circle and three dots inside: High heat Square and circle with an X over it: Do not tumble dry BHG Design Symbols for Non-Machine Drying Square with a curved line connecting the top two corners: Line dry or hang drySquare with two small diagonal lines in the top left corner: Line dry in the shade Square with three short vertical lines inside: Drip drySquare with a dash inside: Dry flat BHG Design Ironing Laundry Symbols Look for an iron symbol for ironing guidance, including the use of steam. Variations in the symbols largely refer to maximum temperatures settings. Iron with one dot inside: Iron with low heat, 110 CelsiusIron with two dots inside: Iron with medium heat, 150 CelsiusIron with three dots inside: Iron with high heat, 200 CelsiusIron with an X over it: Do not ironIron with dots underneath: OK to steam Iron with dots underneath and an X over it: Do not use steam BHG Design Dry-Cleaning Laundry Symbols A circle symbol represents dry cleaning guidance. Some variations, like letters inside the circle or dashes outside the circle, are intended for professional dry cleaners only. Here are the two you need to know: Empty circle: Dry-clean onlyCircle with an X over it: Do not dry-clean Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit