For US importers and shippers
Harmonized System code lookup that finds the harmonized code for any product
A Harmonized System code is the 6-digit number customs uses to decide what your product is and what duty it pays. Describe the product on the right in plain English and get its HS code, the full 10-digit US HTS line, the rule that decided it and the 2026 duty.
Reasoning on every result · Bulk CSV lookup from $199 a month · A recommendation for your review, not a CBP ruling
Customs declaration · AI classifier
FORM TW-01
The short answer
The Harmonized System code, also called the HS code or harmonized code, is a 6-digit product number set by the World Customs Organization and used by more than 200 countries. The US extends it to a 10-digit HTS code for imports and a 10-digit Schedule B number for exports. To find yours, describe what the product is made of, what it does and how it is built, then match that to the chapter and heading notes. TariffWise does that lookup from a plain description and shows its reasoning, from $59 a month.
Anatomy of a code: a cotton t-shirt
6109.10.00
- 61
- Chapter: knitted or crocheted apparel. Woven apparel lives one chapter over, in 62, and that single distinction moves duty rates.
- 6109
- Heading: t-shirts, singlets and similar garments.
- 6109.10
- Subheading: of cotton. A polyester version drops to 6109.90 instead.
- .00+
- National digits: each country appends its own, like the 10-digit US line in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule.
Who maintains it, and why it matters to you
The World Customs Organization maintains the Harmonized System and over 200 countries and territories classify trade with it. Your duty rate, your import tax treatment, trade statistics, licensing requirements and many origin rules all hang off this number. Misclassify and you either overpay duty on every entry or underpay and meet penalties and holds later; both failure modes are quiet until they are expensive. The schedule itself has 97 chapters grouped into 21 sections, running from live animals in Chapter 01 to works of art and antiques in Chapter 97, and every national tariff, the US one included, is built on top of those same six digits.
How to find your Harmonized System code
The classical route: read the section and chapter notes, apply the General Rules of Interpretation in order, and check the near-miss headings. It works, and for contested cases a broker or a binding ruling is still the right call. The practical route for routine SKUs: describe the product, with its material, function and construction, and let an engine that has read the schedule propose the code and show its reasoning. That is what the classifier at the top of this page does on any product you type, with the runner-up codes and the estimated duty attached. For a US entry the six digits are not enough, so the result always goes down to the 10-digit line in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule.
The three details that decide most classifications
Material (cotton vs polyester, steel vs plastic), function (storage battery vs charger), and construction (knitted vs woven, single-wall vs vacuum-insulated). Most classification arguments, and most duty differences, trace back to one of these three. Describe them clearly and the right heading usually falls out; omit them and any lookup, human or AI, is guessing.
Whether you need a Harmonized System code list or a lookup
People search for a harmonized code list expecting a table they can scan for their product. The list exists, but it is organized by what goods are, in 21 sections and 97 chapters, not by the words on your product page. A "phone case" is not a line in it. Depending on the material it is plastic, leather or textile, and each sits in a different chapter. Here is what each route actually gives you.
| Route | You start from | You get | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| TariffWise lookup | A plain description of the product | One HS code and its 10-digit US line, the rule that decided it, two runner-up codes, the 2026 duty | $59, $199 or $499 a month |
| WCO HS nomenclature | The chapter you think the product is in | The 6-digit international structure and legal notes | Nomenclature is sold by the WCO; national versions are published free |
| USITC HTS search | A keyword or a code you already suspect | Every US line containing that word, with duty rates | No charge |
| Carrier HS tools (FedEx, UPS, DHL) | A product name at checkout | A suggested code for the shipping label, no reasoning kept | Bundled with shipping |
| Licensed customs broker | Specs, photos and a phone call | A code chosen by a licensed professional | About $50 to $200 per product review |
Carrier tools are worth a word. They exist to get a label printed, so they suggest a code quickly and keep nothing that explains it. That is fine for a one-off sample. It is not fine for a SKU you will import every month, because the importer of record answers for the code under 19 USC 1484, and a suggestion with no reasoning is hard to defend if CBP asks. If you are weighing a lookup tool against sending everything to a broker, customs broker vs classification software puts both on the same page.
Harmonized codes for shipping and where the number goes
Commercial invoice
One harmonized code per line item, next to the description, quantity, unit value and country of origin. Carriers and brokers read it from here.
US import entry
The full 10-digit HTS number on CBP Form 7501, where it sets the duty rate and flags any Section 232, 301 or partner agency requirement.
US export filing
The 10-digit Schedule B number (or the HTS number) in the Electronic Export Information, required for most shipments over $2,500 per Schedule B line.
The 2026 change that matters here is de minimis. With the $800 exemption suspended, a direct-to-consumer parcel into the US now needs an entry and a code, so a brand that used to classify only its container shipments now needs a code for every SKU it sells. That is a catalog job, not a lookup-per-shipment job, and it is the reason most of our customers run their product list as a CSV once and keep the result. The export side is covered in HS code vs Schedule B.
What a Harmonized System code lookup costs for a whole catalog
One code is a lookup. Three hundred codes is a project, and the price of each route changes a lot with volume. Broker figures are typical US bands for a per-product review; TariffWise figures are the published plans.
| Catalog | Broker review at $50 to $200 each | TariffWise |
|---|---|---|
| 40 new products this quarter | $2,000 to $8,000 | Starter, $59 for the month (100 lookups) |
| 400 SKUs for a Shopify or Amazon store | $20,000 to $80,000 | Growth, $199 for the month, as one CSV run |
| 5,000 lines from an ERP export | Rarely quoted per line at this size | Business, $499 for the month, or the HS code API |
The sensible split for most importers: run the whole catalog through a lookup tool, keep the reasoning on file, and send only the handful of genuinely contested products to a broker or to CBP for a binding ruling. Plans and seat counts are on the classification pricing page, and teams writing codes straight into their own systems use the HS code API. If you are choosing between vendors, the best HS code classification software roundup compares them on price and output.
Harmonized System code questions
How do I find my Harmonized System code?
Describe the product by material, function and construction, find the chapter and heading that name it, then apply the General Rules of Interpretation down to the 6-digit subheading. For a US entry you then extend it to the 10-digit HTS line. In the lookup on this page you type the description in plain English and get the code, the reasoning and the duty back.
Is the harmonized code the same as the HS code?
Yes. Harmonized code, HS code, Harmonized System code and harmonized tariff code all refer to the same 6-digit international number maintained by the World Customs Organization. The US adds four digits to make the 10-digit HTS code used on import entries, and exporters use the 10-digit Schedule B number built on the same six digits.
Is there a list of all harmonized system codes?
Yes. The WCO publishes the Harmonized System nomenclature, and the US publishes the full Harmonized Tariff Schedule at hts.usitc.gov with every 10-digit line and duty rate. A list is only useful once you know roughly where your product belongs, which is why most importers use a lookup that starts from the product description instead.
Where do I put the harmonized code when shipping?
On the commercial invoice, one code per line item, next to the description, quantity, value and country of origin. FedEx, UPS and DHL all have a harmonized code field in their shipping tools. Since the US suspended de minimis in 2026, low-value parcels into the US need a code too, so every SKU you ship needs one on file.
How much does a harmonized system code lookup cost?
Searching the schedule yourself costs time rather than money. A customs broker typically charges $50 to $200 to review a product. TariffWise costs $59 a month for 100 lookups with reasoning and duty, or $199 a month for 1,000 with bulk CSV runs, which works out to about 20 cents a product.
Who is responsible if my harmonized code is wrong?
The importer of record. Under 19 USC 1484 the importer must use reasonable care to classify its goods, whether a broker, a carrier, software or an employee chose the number. A wrong code can mean overpaid duty, a penalty under 19 USC 1592 or a held shipment, so keep the reasoning behind every code you file.
Find your code now, keep the rationale for later.