Do not tumble dry
The item is not suitable for tumble drying.
Easily confused with
How to read it
A crossed-out tumble-drying symbol means the item is not to be dried in a tumble dryer. The same square with a cross but no circle inside means something wider in the Canadian guide: do not dry at all, used together with the do-not-wash symbol.
Also searched as: crossed out circle in square, no tumble dry.
Where a garment's own label or its manufacturer says otherwise, that takes precedence.
How well people know it
The drying symbols are among the least understood. In a survey of 6,000 people in six European countries, carried out by IPSOS for GINETEX in December 2016, 45% of people did not know what the drying symbol means.
Read next
- Next in Laundry symbolsLine dryThe item is meant to be dried hanging, on a line or a hanger.
- The same shape in African flagsFlag of BurundiA white diagonal cross divides the flag into red triangles at top and bottom and green ones at the sides, with a white disc in the centre holding three red six-pointed stars. The Presidency of Burundi says the red recalls the sacrifices made to defend the nation and win independence, the green hope and prosperity, the white peace and unity, and that the three stars traditionally stand for the national motto, “Unity, Work, Progress”.
More laundry symbols
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with circles, crosses or squares and rectangles.
Sources
- Textiles — Care labelling code using symbols, ISO 3758, ISO, Abstract (ISO 3758:2023)
- Standard Guide for Care Symbols for Care Instructions on Textile Products, ASTM D5489, ASTM International, section 4.6 (ASTM D5489-25)
- Textile Care Symbols, GINETEX, the International Association for Textile Care Labelling, p. 7
- Guide to Apparel and Textile Care Symbols, CAN/CGSB-86.1-2003, Office of Consumer Affairs, Government of Canada, p. 4
- A barometer for textile care labelling in Europe, IPSOS study for GINETEX, December 2016, GINETEX, the International Association for Textile Care Labelling
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 24, 2026. How we research
Added .