Care Tag Lab

Free stain and care-tag lookup. No sign-up.

Know the first move before the stain sets.

Look up any of 149 stains or read your care tag. Plain words, a source on every fix, what never to do.

What did you spill?

Not sure what it is? We'll help you name it. Identify the stain
Holding a tag you can't read? Decode the symbols

See kits

A mom crouches at a mudroom bench inspecting a muddy knee stain on a plain purple jersey, cleats beside her.

A real fix from the library

This is what you get. Free, every time.

The first move, the steps, and the guides it comes from. Same shape for all 149 stains.

Browse all 149 stains

Grass on the kneesCombination family: two passes, check between

Do this first

Gently work in enzyme detergent or a laundry bar

Then

  1. Leave 15 minutes
  2. Dab with rubbing alcohol if green remains (test denim first)
  3. Wash warm

Sources: American Cleaning Institute, Stain Removal Chart, Tide, How to remove stains, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Stain removal guide

Open the full fix

Which moment are you in?

Pick yours. Each path starts with the first move, then the kit for it.

A mom holds a muddy purple jersey under a cold tap in a laundry-room sink, rubbing the knee with her thumb.

Grass on the pants. Game in the morning.

Start cold, brush the dirt, and keep it out of the dryer.

Game day fixes
A tired mom with a baby on her shoulder holds a spit-up-marked muslin cloth at a nursery changing station.

Blowout, spit-up, purée.

Cold water first. One fix for each mess, in words you can read one-handed.

Baby messes
A woman watches with a relaxed smile as her partner runs the washer himself, a framed page on the wall above.

Everyone runs a load. You get the questions.

One page by the washer, so whoever runs the next load knows what to do.

The whole-house set
A mom leans on the dryer smiling while her teenager, seen from behind, loads the washer on her own.

Your teen has never sorted a load.

One card on the cabinet door. They can read it alone, and you can stop nagging.

Teen laundry
A woman in a work blouse dabs a coffee spot on her cuff with a damp cloth while checking her phone.

Five minutes before drop-off.

Look it up on your phone. Get the first move. Go.

Look it up

How it works

  1. Name it

    Pick the stain, or tell us what the tag shows.

  2. Get the first move

    A few short steps, what to skip, and the source.

  3. Hang it up

    Print a kit for the wall, the fridge or the sports bag.

What's behind every fix

Sources include university extension services, the American Cleaning Institute and maker guides.

See how we check
  • 149stains in the library
  • Every fixlists where it comes from
  • 11things to never do, and why
  • 31old laundry tricks, rated works, partly or myth

Two rules before anything else

No dryer until it's gone

Dryer heat sets nearly every kind of stain, often for good.

Never mix cleaners

Bleach with ammonia or vinegar makes toxic gas. Use one product, rinse, then the next.

Club soda: partly. White wine on red wine: myth.

We rated 31 handed-down laundry tricks. 15 work, 11 work partly, 5 are myths.

See Grandma's tricks, rated
  • Works
  • Partly
  • Myth

Print it. Hang it. Stop explaining.

Kits for your moment, made to print at home. Letter and A4.

The Whole-House Laundry Room Set cover on a laundry-room wall, decoder page hung beside the washer

The Whole-House Laundry Room Set

One laundry system the whole house follows.

$14

See all kits

Get the First Five Minutes Fridge Card, free

12 moves, in order, for any stain. Print it and stick it on the fridge.

Download the free card (PDF)

No email needed. US Letter. Print at 100%.

The First Five Minutes fridge card held to a fridge door by a magnet

Stain on it right now?

Find my fix