You can find your HS code by describing your product and searching the Harmonized System — a free lookup tool does it in seconds. Here's the exact 4-step process, plus how to extend your code to country-specific digits.
Describe your product or upload a photo, and our AI suggests the most likely 6-digit HS code with confidence, alternatives, and reasoning.
Try the HS Code FinderThe Harmonized System (HS) is the international standard for classifying traded goods, and it's the backbone of every customs declaration worldwide. Every product gets a code built from 97 chapters — from live animals to works of art — each broken into 4-digit headings and 6-digit subheadings. Those first six digits are identical in every country that uses the system.
Your destination country then appends 2-4 more digits to the base, creating a national tariff code that maps to its own duty rates and rules. The US extends to 8-10 digit HTS codes, while the UK and EU go to 8-10 digits. In practice, the 6-digit part tells customs what your product is; the extra digits tell them how it's treated in that specific market.
For a deeper dive into the numbering system, read what an HS code is and how HS codes work in detail.
Write down what the product is made of (materials), what it does (function), and how it's used. Customs ignores brand names and marketing — the code follows the physical characteristics of the goods.
Search a lookup tool (or the official tariff database) with that description. A good tool, like RateTell's free HS code lookup, reads your description and returns the most likely heading and subheading.
Read the official wording under the suggested heading and confirm it matches your product — including the section and chapter notes, which define exactly what belongs in each category. This is the step most people skip, and it's where mistakes happen.
Extend the 6-digit base with the destination country's tariff schedule to get the code customs actually requires: 8-10 digits for the US HTS (duty lines are 8 digits, statistical suffixes make 10), and 8-10 for the UK and EU commodity codes. Use the full code on invoices and shipping labels to get the right duty rate the first time.
Not sure where your product falls? Run it through the free HS Code Finder and double-check the official wording before you ship.
Self-classification works for the vast majority of consumer products — but some goods need an expert eye. Electronics containing batteries, chemicals, food and beverages, cosmetics, and any product subject to licensing (firearms, pharmaceuticals, plant or animal products) all carry higher classification risk.
If your product is regulated, complex, or worth enough that a penalty would hurt, have a licensed customs broker review the code. When the stakes are high, you can also request a binding ruling from customs — a written answer that guarantees your classification in advance.
Classifying a whole catalog by hand? HS classification software automates the lookups while keeping a human review step before anything ships.
Use the free HS Code Finder — no sign-up required.
Learn more: HS Code Classification · What Is an HS Code? · Duties & Taxes