Appliances Certification

If you have ever worked in a restaurant, you have probably heard of NSF, as we have been ensuring safe design and cleaning of appliances and tools used in commercial kitchens for over 70 years. In response to consumer concerns about product quality and safety, we created a home products certification program based on, but separate from, our commercial food equipment program. It includes testing of residential kitchen items and other home products.

Through an independent research survey, we discovered that:

• 53 percent of safety-minded consumers indicated that they are concerned about the quality and safety of kitchen appliances.
• 58 percent indicated concern about the safety of cookware materials and their coatings.

This testing and certification program helps give consumers peace of mind as our experts test the quality, durability and cleanability of many home products.

Types of Products Covered

The program covers kitchen products such as food storage containers, cookware and bakeware as well as small appliances like coffee makers, slow cookers and blenders. The program also includes kitchen gadgets and utensils, flatware and cutlery, personal beverage containers, corded home textiles (heated blankets, pads and mattress pads), fans, space heaters and many other products.

How Products Become Certified

We conduct extensive product assessments to verify the durability, design and safety of everyday products used by consumers against established criteria for each specific product type. The certification process includes a packaging label review, verification that use and care instructions explain proper assembly, usage and cleaning of the product, and testing to substantiate any performance and marketing claims. Finally, to ensure ongoing compliance of certified products, we also conduct an annual audit of the manufacturing facility to make sure the manufacturing process produces compliant products over time.

Products certified under this program can show the NSF Certified for Home Use mark on the product or the packaging and are included in NSF’s online listings database so you can easily find certified products.