🍳 Nice Class 21: Household & Kitchen
The EUIPO register holds 162,020 trademarks in Class 21, the class for household and kitchen utensils, containers and glassware (as of July 2026). (as of July 2026).
162,020
Marks in the EU register
107,882
Registered with the EUIPO
+22 %
Growth 2020–2024
56 %
Word mark share
Class 21 is the household class: it covers utensils for home and kitchen, containers, glassware, plus brushes, combs and cleaning tools. The EUIPO register holds 162,020 trademarks in Class 21, of which 107,882 are registered (as of July 2026, EUIPO register data). Growth is strong: new registrations rose from 9,348 in 2020 to 11,396 in 2024, a 22 percent increase, with another 11,144 added in 2025. The top filers read like a drugstore shelf: Procter & Gamble leads with 313 trademarks, followed by Henkel (269), Disney (185), dm (161) and Colgate-Palmolive (151). The consumer goods giants aren't protecting their cleaning and care products here, but the tools that go with them, from toothbrushes to mopping systems. For founders building their own kitchen or household brand, that means the class is densely populated, and a thorough search before filing pays off twice over. On the upside, 56 percent of the trademarks are word marks, so names tend to be protectable here.
What belongs in Class 21?
Class 21 covers the non-electric basics of home and kitchen: pots, pans and kitchen utensils, tableware, containers and storage jars, drinking bottles, glassware and porcelain, plus brushes, combs, sponges and cleaning tools. Key distinctions: electric kitchen machines and blenders belong in Class 7, electric cooking and heating appliances such as kettles in Class 11, knives and cutlery in Class 8, and the cleaning products themselves in Class 3. Class 21 protects the tool, not the detergent and not the motor.
Typical examples: Tableware, cookware, glassware, cleaning utensils
New EUIPO registrations per year in Class 21
Most active applicants in Class 21
| # | Applicant | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Procter & Gamble Company | 313 |
| 2 | Henkel Ag & Co Kgaa | 269 |
| 3 | Disney Enterprises Inc | 185 |
| 4 | Dm-Drogerie Markt Gmbh + Co Kg | 161 |
| 5 | Colgate-Palmolive Company | 151 |
| 6 | Blanco Gmbh + Co Kg | 150 |
| 7 | Lidl Stiftung & Co Kg | 150 |
| 8 | Haleon Uk Ip Limited | 148 |
| 9 | Bsh Hausgeräte Gmbh | 139 |
| 10 | Warner Bros Entertainment Inc | 139 |
Word mark or figurative mark?
Often combined with
Plan Class 21 as part of its usual bundle: in practice it is most often combined with Class 20 (furniture and home accessories), Class 16 (paper goods, such as paper kitchen and party items) and Class 35 (retail and online shops). Before filing, walk through your entire product range and sort each item into the right class, especially along the borders with Classes 3, 7, 8 and 11. Go for a word mark if your name is protectable, as 56 percent of the trademarks in this class do. And search thoroughly: Procter & Gamble, Henkel and Colgate-Palmolive are among the most active consumer goods filers in Europe, and they are all here.
Common mistakes with Class 21
The classic mistake in this class: mixing up the product and the tool. Dish soap belongs in Class 3, the dish brush in Class 21; toothpaste in Class 3, the toothbrush in Class 21. Anyone building a cleaning brand therefore often needs both classes. Second mistake: filing electric appliances in Class 21. The blender falls under Class 7 and the kettle under Class 11, so a kitchen brand with an electric range protected only in 21 has no coverage for exactly those products. Third, distribution gets forgotten: running your own online shop or D2C channel is a retail service under Class 35, which is often missing from the initial filing.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What belongs in Nice Class 21?
Class 21 covers non-electric household and kitchen utensils: pots, pans, tableware, storage jars, drinking bottles, glassware and porcelain, plus brushes, combs and cleaning tools. It does not include cleaning products (Class 3), electric kitchen machines (Class 7), cutlery (Class 8) or electric cooking appliances (Class 11).
Why do Procter & Gamble and Henkel file so many trademarks in Class 21?
According to EUIPO register data (as of July 2026), Procter & Gamble leads the class with 313 trademarks, ahead of Henkel (269), Disney (185), dm (161) and Colgate-Palmolive (151). The consumer goods groups protect the tools around their products here, such as toothbrushes, mopping systems and dispensers, rather than the cleaning and care products themselves.
Do electric kitchen appliances belong in Class 21?
No. Class 21 covers non-electric equipment. Electric kitchen machines and blenders fall under Class 7, while electric cooking and heating appliances such as kettles fall under Class 11. A kitchen brand with both electric and non-electric products therefore usually needs several goods classes.
Which classes are typically combined with Class 21?
Most often Class 20 for furniture and home accessories, Class 16 for paper goods, and Class 35 for retail and online shops. A home and living brand with its own D2C shop covers the typical gaps with 21, 20 and 35.
Sources
EUIPO – European Union Intellectual Property Office: register data on EU trade marks and international registrations with EU protection, as of July 2026.
WIPO – Nice Classification: class definitions and headings (11th edition).
Methodology: own analysis by markencheck.ai; counted per filing entity, name variants merged.
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