Max I. Walker Celebrates 108th Birthday of the Company
March 17, 2025
How to read laundry symbols is a question we see asked a lot. The tags on your clothes have all kinds of cryptic marks on them, and it's confusing! What do they mean?
No worries. We'll break it all down for you, and make these super easy to understand.
Laundry Symbols Explained
Laundry symbols simply tell you the best or safest way to clean your clothes, to ensure they don't get damaged and look better for longer. In our opinion, dry cleaning is the best way to ensure most clothing continues to look new after many wears, but you can still do laundry at home and keep your clothes looking good, if you understand and follow the clothing care tags.
The basic categories the symbols fall under are how to wash, how to dry, how to remove wrinkles/iron, what kind of bleach you can or cannot use, and if the garment can be professionally dry cleaned. The care label on your piece of clothing may have one, a few, or several laundry symbols telling you how to clean it.
Select a specific symbol to learn what it means.
Laundry Symbols for the Washing Machine
Laundry Symbols for the Dryer
Laundry Symbols: Washing Instructions
These symbols tell you how to wash an item to ensure the fabric isn’t damaged and that it doesn’t shrink. There may be more than one symbol — make sure to follow all of them. If an item has the “do not wash” symbol then it should also have additional symbols about how to clean.
This symbol says that it's ok to wash this item in the washing machine, but only wash it in cold water. Warm or hot water could damage the fabric.
This symbol says that it's ok to wash this item in the washing machine, and you can wash it in either cold or warm water, but not hot which could damage the fabric.
This symbol says that it's ok to wash this item in the washing machine, and you can wash it in any temperature of water, including hot water.
This symbol says that it's ok to wash this item in the washing machine, and that you can use the "normal" cycle. It is not necessary to use the more gentle "permanent press" or "delicate" cycles, but you could wash it on one of those cycles too. This symbol does not give any instructions on the water temperature.
This symbol says that it's ok to wash this item in the washing machine, and that you should use the "permanent press" cycle. You could also wash this item on the gentler "delicate" cycle, but do not wash it on the "normal" cycle. This symbol does not give any instructions on the water temperature.
This symbol says that you should only wash this item on the "delicate" cycle. The "permanent press" and "normal" cycles are too harsh for this item — don't use those. This symbol does not give any instructions on the water temperature.
This symbol says that you should not wash this item in water. Fabrics like silk, wool, leather and others are damaged either by the water itself or by the friction the agitation a washing machine causes. If you cannot wash an item, the care label should also have instructions on how you can clean it, most likely by dry cleaning instead.
This symbol says that you should not wash this item in the washing machine. Some fabrics are so delicate that the friction the agitation a washing machine causes will damage them, but water itself will not harm the fabric. And example would be some lingerie items or delicate knits. To hand wash, use a small tub or bucket filled with cool water and a laundry soap specifically designed for delicate fabrics.
Laundry Symbols: Drying Instructions
These symbols tell you how to dry an item to ensure the fabric isn’t damaged and that it doesn’t shrink. There may be more than one symbol — make sure to follow all of them. If an item has the “do not tumble dry” symbol then it should also have additional symbols about how to dry.
This symbol says that it's ok to dry this item in the dryer, but only dry it on the low heat setting. Medium or high heat could damage it.
This symbol says that it's ok to dry this item in the dryer, and you can dry it on the medium heat setting. You can also dry on low. Do not dry on high – that could damage it.
This symbol says that it's ok to dry this item in the dryer, and you can dry it on the high heat setting. You can also dry on medium or low, which will take longer but can be better for some fabrics.
This symbol says that it's ok to dry this item in the dryer, and you can dry it on any heat setting.
This symbol says you should use the “Permanent Press” cycle on your dryer. Garments that want to be dried on permanent press can stay wrinkly if you use a low heat setting, but the high heat setting could damage them, so the permanent press cycle, which is medium heat, is best for these.
This symbol says you should only use the “Delicate” cycle on your dryer. Garments that want to be dried on delicate can be easily damaged using medium and especially high heat, so the delicate cycle, which is low heat, is best for these.
This symbol says that you should not dry this item in the dryer. Some fabrics cannot handle any heat and/or the friction from tumble drying can damage the fabric. If you cannot put an item in the dryer, the care label should also have instructions on how you can dry it, like to lay flat or hang to dry for instance.
This symbol says that you should not use any heat if you dry this item in the dryer. Some fabrics cannot handle any heat during drying. You could choose to just lay this item flat or hang it up to dry instead, and one of those options would be the safest way to get it dry.
Laundry Symbols: Do Not Machine Dry Instructions
These symbols mean you cannot put an item into your clothes dryer or apply any heat to get it dry. They tell you how to dry the item instead of using the dryer. One way is laying flay to dry, which means on any flay surface, but put down a towel down first and then lay the garment on top of that. Another way is hanging to dry, and purchasing a clothes drying rack or putting up an old-fashioned clothesline in your backyard are great ways to do this.
This symbol says that you should only lay this item flat to dry. Some fabrics, like sweaters and other knits, are heavy when wet and if you hang them up the weight of the wet fabric pulling down can stretch out the garment and ruin it. When you lay something flat to dry, smooth it out as much as you can so it doesn’t have wrinkles in it when it’s dry.
This symbol says that you should hang this item up to dry, like on a clothes hanger or across a dry rack. The item could also be dried on an outdoor clothesline, weather permitting. You could also lay it flat to dry. Just don’t put it in the dryer.
This symbol says that you should hang this item up to dry, but that it should still be very wet when you do. Do not squeeze the water out of the item if you hand-washed it, or use the spin cycle if you washed it in the washing machine. This is because squeezing, wringing or spinning it can create unwanted wrinkles in the fabric that may get stuck that way when it dries.
Laundry Symbols: Bleach Instructions
These symbols tell you what bleach is safe for the item. The two bleach types you can buy are chlorine bleach (like Clorox) and non-chlorine bleach (like Oxi-Clean). Bleach is really useful to boost your regular soap, if you have tough stains that detergent alone won't remove. If you have an item with stains but the care label says you cannot use any bleach, bring it to the dry cleaner to take advantage of our expert stain-removing services.
What's the difference between non-chlorine and regular bleach?
Chlorine (regular) bleach can discolor fabric, so it is generally only safe for whites. Non-chlorine bleach uses a different active ingredient, usually hydrogen peroxide, and so is generally safer for colors.
Chlorine bleach kills germs and bacteria, and gets rid of odors. Non-chlorine bleach, not so much.
This symbol says that you can use any bleach or bleach-alternative that you like and it won’t damage or discolor the fabric.
This symbol says that you can only use non-chlorine bleach. If you use chlorine bleach on this item, it could damage or discolor the fabric.
This symbol says that you cannot use any type of bleach. Bleach will damage or discolor the fabric. If this item has stains on it, bring it to a dry cleaner.
Laundry Symbols: Dry Clean Instructions
These symbols tell you if the item can be dry cleaned or not.
This symbol says that it's ok to dry clean this item. Items that can be dry cleaned generally look like new for much longer, so if you’ve invested in your clothing you should also invest in making it last with professional cleaning services only.
This symbol says the item cannot be dry cleaned. Some component or fabric on this garment could be damaged by dry cleaning fluid or the professional presses we use to remove wrinkles.
Laundry Symbols: Ironing Instructions
These symbols tell you how to iron an item to ensure the fabric isn’t damaged. Irons have the option to turn the steam on or off, which is separate from the heat setting.
This symbol says you should only use the low heat setting on your iron for this item. Some irons list fabric types, instead of temperature descriptions – low heat fabrics can include acetate, acrylic, silk and nylon. These delicate fabrics can burn or melt if your iron is too hot.
This symbol says you can use the medium heat setting on your iron for this item. Some irons list fabric types, instead of temperature descriptions – medium heat fabrics can include rayon, polyester, and cotton blends (where the fabric is not 100% cotton). You could use a lower temperature setting, but do not use a higher one.
This symbol says you can use the high heat setting on your iron for this item. Some irons list fabric types, instead of temperature descriptions – high heat fabrics can include wool, 100% cotton, and linen. You could use a lower temperature setting, but it likely will not remove all the wrinkles if you do.
This symbol says you cannot use the steam setting on your iron for this item. It is separate from the temperature instructions. Some fabrics, like silk, are damaged by water and steam.
This symbol says you cannot iron this item. Using an iron at any temperature can damage or burn the fabric. If you have a do not iron garment that has wrinkles, bring it to a dry cleaner for their expert opinion on how to proceed.
If you’re ever in doubt or nervous to clean an item yourself, bring it to any Max I. Walker location — we are garment care experts who have been providing laundry and dry cleaning services since 1917. We can launder or dry clean almost any piece of clothing you own!
--
Author's note: This article is for informational purposes, and is not an endorsement of any of the linked companies, websites, vendors or products. The suggested products are shown as examples only. We encourage you to do thorough research before making any online purchases.
Photo Credit:
Ron Lach | Pexels
How to read laundry symbols is a question we see asked a lot. The tags on your clothes have all kinds of cryptic marks on them, and it’s confusing! What do they mean?
No worries. We’ll break it all down for you, and make these super easy to understand.
