Washing symbols explained – what your laundry labels really mean

While most of us understand the basic laundry symbols on the labels of our clothes (otherwise we’d be spending a fortune replacing misshapen jumpers and shrunken shirts after every wash), there are some that hold a little more mystery.

You probably already know how to find out whether a garment can be tumble dried or machine washed, but do you know what the triangle symbol means or which symbol tells you that you must dry your clothing on a flat surface?

And these washing symbols are just as important to understand if you want to keep your clothes looking great for as long as possible.

Specialist cleaning expert Heidi Phillips says: “I would personally recommend always sticking to and following the clothing manufacturers' washing labels. These labels are provided to ensure your garment is cleaned properly, without it shrinking or becoming damaged in any way.” 

What do washing symbols mean?

For those who haven’t memorised them all (that’s most of us then), here’s our handy guide to navigating even the most mystifying garment label. 

Washing symbols

These symbols are likely the most familiar and are pretty straightforward – the bucket means you can machine wash the garment.

• The number inside tells you the temperature it is safe to wash at – alternatively this could be indicated with a system of one, two or three dots (one meaning cold or 30℃, two meaning warm or 40℃ and three meaning hot or 50℃). 
• The purpose of the lines underneath the bucket are a little less intuitive but easily learnt – one line indicates to wash on a synthetics cycle, while two suggests a gentle cycle for more delicate materials such as wool.
• The icon of the hand inside the bucket means unfortunately the garment will take a little extra effort when it’s time to clean it as it must be handwashed.

Some washing machines do have a handwash cycle, which is a more gentle setting made to take care of items that may not survive a regular wash, so it’s worth checking if yours does.

Phillips says: "Unfortunately, a lot of clothing these days is made from cheap fabric with poor seams and stitching (think 'fast fashion' and the trend for cheap, easily replaceable clothing).

"It is advisable to wash these items on as cool a temperature as possible to help prevent shrinking, stretching and broken stitching. Maybe consider washing on 20℃ rather than 30℃?"

Drying symbols

The square symbol indicates the drying instructions, telling you whether an item can be tumble dried, or how it should be positioned if left to air dry. 

Tumble drying symbols 

As is sometimes the case with washing instructions, the tumble dry icon can use a system of dots to let you know the temperature to use on your machine, with one meaning low heat, two for medium and three meaning high.

One line underneath is for synthetics and two indicates a gentle drying cycle is needed.

Air drying symbols 

For air drying, three vertical lines indicate you should drip dry and a single horizontal line means to dry flat.

A curved line represents a washing line, meaning you should hang it on the line outside to dry (weather permitting!). 

Bleaching symbols

The triangle symbol is one of the lesser-known on this list, but is surprisingly simple. With only three variations to be aware of, this symbol refers to the bleaching instructions for the item. 

If the tag has a blank triangle, feel free to use any laundry bleach you have available. If the triangle has two diagonal lines, you can still use bleach but you will need to use a non-chlorinated type. 

Ironing symbols

The dots on the iron symbols relate to how hot the iron should be - one dot meaning low, two dots medium and three dots high.

Dry cleaning symbols

A circle on the washing label indicates that an item is dry clean only, while a circle with a cross of course means you should not dry clean the garment.

There is also usually a letter inside the circle to indicate to the dry cleaner which type of solvent to use, though you won’t need to understand these as the professional will be familiar with this information.

The garment might also have a diagonal line on the corner of the circle to indicate to the dry cleaner if they should use a short cycle, reduced moisture, low heat, or no steam finishing.

Don’t forget to check the washing machine symbols  

Katy Roberts, washing machine expert at AO.com, says: “Each washing machine will have a wheel of symbols which list each different program. These programs are basically designed to handle clothes of each different fabric type.

“What temperature to use is another tricky choice for many. Yet to simplify this, try to wash your clothes at 30℃ when you can as this is kinder to your delicate fabrics and it can save you money compared to a hotter wash. You can also choose to run a lower spin speed if you’re looking to be gentler to your clothes.  

“Before you load your washing machine, try to separate your clothes into piles based on light and dark colours to prevent colours from bleeding onto each other.”

Phillips agrees, saying: "Don't assume that because garments are similar colours that they can be washed together.

"Some items can withstand a faster, hotter wash. Some items will damage others.

"For example, washing a black denim jacket with metal buttons together with a delicate silk vest top could result in the vest top getting ripped by the buttons or shrinking if the temperature is too high, or the jacket not being cleaned properly if you wash them on a short, cool wash to cater for the washing needs of the silk."