Labels explained
Organic labels and certifications
A seal is a promise made by someone other than the brand. Each page here says who makes that promise, what they check, what they do not check, and where you can look a product up yourself.
Food, farm products, some personal careUSDA OrganicThe federal organic seal: what the 95 percent rule means, the four label tiers and what the seal leaves out.
TextilesGOTSThe organic standard for textiles: fiber content, processing rules, yearly audits and how to check a number.
LatexGOLSThe organic standard for natural rubber latex foam: the 95 percent rule, yearly audits and what the label skips.
Textiles (tested for harmful substances)OEKO-TEX Standard 100A lab test for harmful substances in finished textiles. Useful, but it is not an organic certification.
Household and personal productsMADE SAFEAn ingredient screening seal: products are checked against a banned list of more than 15,000 substances.
Personal care, cleaning, baby productsEWG VerifiedEWG's own mark for products that avoid its ingredients of concern and disclose everything, fragrance included.
Chemical emissions from furniture and mattressesGREENGUARD GoldA chamber test for chemical emissions into indoor air. It measures what a product gives off, not what it is made of.
Wood and paperFSCA forest and supply-chain label for wood and paper. It says where the wood came from, not what it was finished with.
Food and supplementsNon-GMO Project VerifiedThe butterfly seal means a product met the Non-GMO Project Standard. It is not an organic or GMO free claim.
Food and fiberRegenerative Organic CertifiedUSDA Organic first, then added rules for soil health, animal welfare and fair treatment of farmers and workers.- Food, wine, body careWhole-farm certification that starts from organic rules and adds biodiversity and on-farm fertility requirements.Demeter Biodynamic
CosmeticsCOSMOS OrganicA private cosmetics standard: 95% of plant ingredients organic and at least 20% of the whole product.
Personal care with organic ingredientsNSF/ANSI 305The American standard for personal care that "contains organic ingredients": at least 70% organic content by weight.
Food made or sold in the European UnionEU OrganicThe green leaf logo: at least 95% organic ingredients, certified under EU law, with a control body code beside it.
Garden and farm inputsOMRI ListedOMRI Listed means a garden input is allowed for use in organic growing. It does not mean the product is organic.
Cleaning productsEPA Safer ChoiceAn EPA label for cleaners whose every ingredient passed a hazard review. It is not about organic content.
Other marks you will see on our product cards
These are not organic certifications. We show them when a product carries them because they answer a different question: how workers were paid, whether animals were used in testing, or whether a lab checked the contents.
- Fair Trade Certified
- Leaping Bunny
- Certified B Corporation
- Clean Label Project
- Organic Content Standard
- NSF Certified
- USP Verified
- Certified Humane
- ECOCERT
- Soil Association Organic
- BPI Certified Compostable
- Rainforest Alliance Certified
- Smithsonian Bird Friendly
- Glyphosate Residue Free
- Certified Gluten-Free
- Certified Pasture-Raised
- Cradle to Cradle Certified
- UL Formaldehyde Free