Free HS Code Lookup Tool

Manually searching through the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) can take hours and lead to errors. Our free digital lookup tool simplifies this by:

• Reducing human error. The database walks the hierarchy of sections, chapters and headings for you instead of leaving you to guess at it.
• Saving time. A result takes seconds rather than an afternoon in the tariff schedule.
• Keeping you current. Classification changes are reflected in the data, which lowers the risk of a fine or a seized shipment.

Understanding HS Code Structure

Every HS code follows the same global framework. The first six digits are standardized worldwide under the World Customs Organization’s Harmonized System, and individual countries add further digits for their own tariff and statistical needs.

• Digits 1–2 — Chapter: the broad product category (e.g., 09 = coffee, tea & spices).
• Digits 3–4 — Heading: the product group within that chapter (e.g., 0901 = coffee).
• Digits 5–6 — Subheading: the specific product (e.g., 0901.21 = roasted coffee, not decaffeinated).
• Digits 7–10 — National tariff (HTS): the United States extends the six-digit code to a 10-digit HTS number for precise duty assessment.

HS Code Examples by Product

Here are common products and their HS codes, showing how everyday goods map to the Harmonized System:

Product	HS Code	Category
Roasted coffee	0901.21	Food & beverage
Cotton T-shirts	6109.10	Apparel
Laptop computers	8471.30	Electronics
Lithium-ion batteries	8507.60	Electronics
Olive oil (extra virgin)	1509.20	Food & beverage
Leather footwear	6403.99	Footwear
Wooden furniture	9403.60	Furniture
Plastic toys	9503.00	Toys
Packaged medicaments	3004.90	Healthcare

Codes shown are common subheadings for illustration. Always confirm the exact code for your product, as small differences in material or use can change the classification.

How Your HS Code Affects Duties & Tariffs

The HS code you assign directly determines the duty rate, taxes, and trade rules applied to your shipment. An incorrect code can mean overpaying duties, unexpected charges, or customs delays and penalties. Once you have your code, check the applicable rate with our Global Tariff Lookup tool, and our team can support accurate classification through our Customs Compliance services.

HS vs HTS vs Schedule B: Which Code Do You Need?

Three code systems get called “the HS code”, and they are not the same thing. Which one you need depends on whether goods are moving in or out of the country.

The International Trade Administration explains it simply: the Harmonized System sets the first six digits, and those six are the same everywhere in the world. Countries then add their own digits on the end.

Code	Digits	Used for	Who runs it
HS code	6	The global base. Recognised in every member country.	World Customs Organization
HTS code	10	US imports. Sets the duty rate you pay.	US International Trade Commission
Schedule B	10	US exports. Used for filing and trade statistics.	US Census Bureau

A useful detail from the same source: a product’s full 10-digit Schedule B number and its 10-digit HTS number may differ, but the first six digits will always match. Get the six right and the rest is a country-level decision.

Outside the US the pattern repeats. The European Union adds two digits to make an eight-digit Combined Nomenclature code, then two more for TARIC. The tool above returns the international six, which is the part that travels.

How to Classify a Product in Six Steps

Classification is a process, not a guess. Work through it in order and the answer is usually defensible.

1. Describe what the thing actually is

Write down the material, the function and the form. “Cotton” is not enough. “Men’s knitted T-shirt, 100% cotton, short sleeve” is.

2. Search the description, not the brand

Customs classifies goods, not marketing names. Search the tool above for what the item is made of and what it does.

3. Find the chapter, then narrow down

Codes work top down. The first two digits give the chapter, the next two the heading, the last two the subheading. Each step should feel like a narrower version of the step before.

4. Read the notes for that chapter

Section and chapter notes decide borderline cases, and they override what a heading looks like it says. This is where most disputed classifications are settled.

5. Add the country digits

Take the six-digit result and extend it to the 10 digits your destination requires. For US imports that is the HTS; for US exports it is Schedule B.

6. Confirm before you file

Check the final code against the official schedule or with your customs broker. Our customs compliance team can review classifications before they go on a filing.

Five Classification Mistakes That Cost Money

Most classification problems are not exotic. They are the same handful of errors, repeated.

• Copying a supplier’s code without checking. Your supplier classified the goods for their export country. The first six digits should hold, but the remaining digits are yours to get right, and the liability is yours too.
• Classifying by what a product is called. A “smart mug” is a mug with electronics, and the electronics may decide the chapter. Function beats name.
• Using one code for a whole catalogue. Small material or construction differences move goods between headings. Same shirt in cotton and in polyester are two different codes.
• Ignoring sets and kits. Goods packaged for retail sale as a set are often classified by the item that gives the set its essential character, not item by item.
• Leaving a code alone for years. The schedule changes underneath you, and a code that was right in 2017 may not exist now.

Any one of these can mean overpaid duty, a delayed clearance, or a penalty. All five are cheaper to prevent than to unwind.

When HS Codes Change

The Harmonized System is revised on a cycle, not continuously. The World Customs Organization’s current version is the HS 2022 edition, the seventh, and the WCO has already published the HS 2028 edition as the next one.

Revisions add codes for goods that did not exist before and retire codes nobody uses any more. Countries then fold the changes into their own schedules, and they do not all do it on the same day.

The practical effect for an importer is small but real: re-check your codes when a new edition lands, especially on anything technical or environmental, where most of the churn happens.

Reading a Code, Digit by Digit

Take 6109.10, the code for a cotton T-shirt used in the table above, and read it from the left. Each pair of digits narrows the last one.

Digits	What it is	In this example
61	Chapter	Articles of apparel, knitted or crocheted
6109	Heading	T-shirts, singlets and other vests
6109.10	Subheading	Of cotton
+ 2 to 4 more	Country digits	Added by the destination country

Notice what decided the code: the garment type set the heading, and the material set the subheading. Change the cotton to polyester and the first four digits hold while the last two move.

That is the pattern to expect across the schedule. Broad category first, then form, then material or use. If your search result feels too broad, you are usually one level short.

What This Tool Does, and What It Does Not

Clear expectations save rework, so here is the honest scope.

It does: return the international six-digit HS classification from a plain-language product description, in seconds, with no account. That is the part of the code that is the same in every country, and it is the part most people are missing.

It does not: give you a duty rate, file anything, or hand you a legally binding classification. It also will not add the country digits for you.

For the duty rate, use our free Global Tariff Lookup. For a binding ruling, the customs authority in the destination country is the only body that can issue one. For anything in between, that is what a customs broker or our compliance team is for.

Treat the result as a strong starting point that still needs confirming. That is how classification works even when a licensed broker does it.