Why Should I Use ISO Symbols?

Sometimes shopping for the right safety signs and labels can be confusing, considering different standards and compliances that you may need to meet within your industry.

When looking at ISO symbols, you may wonder if these internationally recognized symbols are OSHA compliant and can be used in your workplace to alert staff or others associated with your products or services of potential hazards.

Starting with ISO symbols and moving towards OSHA standards, let’s look at the benefits of using ISO symbols:

ISO symbols are used internationally, across brands and boarders, to build user confidence in the safety and quality of products and services.

ANSI, the American equivalent to ISO, has determined that the use of ISO symbols and surround shapes are permitted, but not required in the design of safety signs and labels.

OSHA, the only organization that enforces safety compliance rulings in the United States, often incorporates ANSI standards into their standards. This is the case regarding the use of symbols on signs and labels.

Given this information, ISO symbols, permitted by ANSI – whose safety sign design standard was adopted by OSHA – help to bring increased safety awareness to the workplace. ISO symbols benefit workers by calling attention to hazards across all language barriers and reading comprehension levels.

ISO symbols are used in almost every industry, and are seen every day in common signs like no smoking signs, high voltage signs, and more.

What is ISO?

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in an organization similar to ANSI, which oversees, creates, and promotes internationally accepted standards. Learn more here.

What is ANSI?

ANSI stands for the American National Standards Institute, and it is responsible for promoting standards that are understood clearly across multiple industries. These standards help unify different ways of communicating information. Learn more here.

What is OSHA?

OSHA is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration – a public health agency that is part of the Department of Labor. OSHA sets and enforces workplace safety regulations. Learn more here.


SafetySign.com does not recommend or specify the use of a specific safety sign because it does not have knowledge of the hazard(s) our customers are identifying. It is the customer’s sole responsibility to identify the hazard(s) that may be present and select one or more signs (stock or custom) that accurately identify their specific hazard(s) and complies with any applicable federal, state or local laws or regulations, any worksite specific rules or regulations and/or any applicable safety standards (including, without limitation, ANSI and/or OSHA standards). SafetySign.com disclaims any and all liability (excluding liability for our Product Warranty contained in our Terms and Conditions) for any sign selected by a customer and shall not be responsible for any personal injury or property damage resulting from the use of signs purchased from it or for the independent interpretation made of any applicable federal, state or local laws or regulations, any worksite specific rules or regulations, and/or any applicable safety standards (including, without limitation, ANSI and/or OSHA standards). Customer shall indemnify and hold SafetySign.com and its corporate parent and its officers, directors and affiliates harmless from and against any and all claims, loss or expense (including attorneys’ fees) arising from or related to the purchase and use by customer or any third party of any sign purchased by customer from SafetySign.com.
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