US vs international symbols
Care symbols are close across the world, but not identical. If a chart you found doesn’t match your tag, this is usually why.
Wash temperature, side by side
Same meaning, different mark: the US uses dots, the rest of the world uses degrees.
The differences that matter
Wash temperature: dots vs degrees
This is the big one. US (ASTM) labels show wash temperature as dots inside the tub — 1 dot is cold, and each dot steps up. International (ISO) labels print the temperature in degrees Celsius instead (30, 40, 50…).
Tumble-dry heat levels
International labels use only two dryer-heat dots (low and normal). US labels add a third dot (high) and a solid/filled dot meaning no-heat air drying — neither of which appears on ISO labels.
Symbols with words
US care labels may use words instead of, or alongside, symbols (the FTC allows either). International labels are almost always symbols only.
Ironing and bleaching are the same
Good news: the iron-temperature dots (1/2/3 = low/medium/high) and the bleach triangle (empty = any, two lines = non-chlorine, crossed = none) mean the same thing in both standards.