If you've ever picked up a rain jacket, a pair of stain-resistant pants, or a pack of wrinkle-free uniform shirts and wondered what's making them work the way they do — there's a real chance the answer is PFAS: a class of synthetic chemicals that have quietly become some of the most common — and most controversial — ingredients in modern clothing.
This guide walks through what PFAS in clothing actually means, where these "forever chemicals" tend to hide, how to spot them on a label, and what safer alternatives look like. It's written for shoppers, not chemists — calm, practical, and aimed at helping you make informed choices without going down a fear-based rabbit hole.
What Are PFAS, and Why Are They Used in Clothing?
PFAS stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — a class of human-made chemicals built around a carbon-fluorine bond that happens to be one of the strongest chemical bonds in nature. That bond is exactly what makes them useful in consumer products, and exactly what makes them a problem in the environment.
In clothing and textiles, PFAS are used to deliver three properties that are otherwise hard to achieve: water repellency, oil and grease repellency, and stain resistance. According to the European Environment Agency, both non-polymeric and polymeric forms of PFAS are used in textile products to provide water repellence, oil repellence, stain resistance, durability, and thermal stability. That covers a huge slice of the modern apparel market — outdoor gear, activewear, performance uniforms, kids' clothes, school uniforms, and any garment marketed as "easy-care."
They've been used in textiles since at least the 1960s, when fluorinated repellents first scaled commercially. The original chemistries — long-chain compounds like PFOA and PFOS — have been phased out in the United States, but the replacements are also fluorinated, and a growing body of research suggests many of them carry similar concerns.
The nickname "forever chemicals" isn't marketing. It's a description of what these compounds do in the world: they don't meaningfully break down. The Environmental Working Group notes that PFAS are persistent in the environment and do not break down, and research has linked exposure to a range of health concerns including immune system effects, hormonal disruption, fertility issues, thyroid effects, and certain cancers.
For a shopper, the takeaway isn't that one shirt will hurt you. It's that PFAS are extremely common in clothing categories most people don't think twice about — and because they don't degrade, exposure adds up across the home, the laundry, the water supply, and the environment over time.
Where PFAS Appear in Clothing
The single most useful pattern to know about PFAS in apparel is this: the more a garment is marketed for repellency or performance, the more likely it is to contain PFAS.
A NEWMOA factsheet on PFAS in clothing and textiles puts numbers on this. One study of school uniforms found that every water-resistant and stain-proof uniform tested was positive for PFAS, and a separate study of children's clothing found 79% of items tested contained PFAS — and 100% of items labeled as water- or stain-resistant did. That's not a few outliers. That's the category.
A few categories worth flagging in particular:
- Outdoor and rain gear. Anything sold as waterproof or water-resistant — rain jackets, ski shells, hiking pants, rain pants — has historically used PFAS in either the DWR (durable water repellent) coating, the membrane (think Gore-Tex / ePTFE), or both.
- Activewear and athleisure. Leggings, technical t-shirts, sports bras, and shorts with moisture-wicking or sweat-resistant marketing often have PFAS-based finishes.
- Workwear and uniforms. Stain-resistant khakis, chef coats, hotel uniforms, and similar items are heavily treated.
- School uniforms and children's clothing. This is the category that often surprises parents the most. Items marketed as "stain-proof" or "wipeable" frequently contain PFAS.
- Soft furnishings adjacent to clothing. Bedding, sheets, mattress protectors, shower curtains, upholstered furniture, and rugs are often treated with the same chemistries — worth knowing if you're also rethinking the home.
EWG warns that stain- or water-repellent fabrics deserve extra caution because of how broadly PFAS treatments are applied across the textile industry. The category overlap with everyday clothing is much wider than most shoppers realize.
How to Spot PFAS on Labels and Product Descriptions
Here's where it gets tricky: PFAS are almost never listed by name on a clothing tag. The Federal Trade Commission's Textile Fiber Products Identification Act requires fiber content and care instructions, but it doesn't require disclosure of chemical finishes. So most of the time, you're reading between the lines.
The good news: the marketing language is usually a strong tell. NEWMOA's plain rule of thumb is that items labeled waterproof, water-resistant, stain-proof, or stain-resistant are likely to contain PFAS. Watch for these phrases on hangtags, product pages, and care labels:
A few extra cues worth knowing:
- "DWR finish" stands for durable water repellent. Historically, virtually all DWR coatings were PFAS-based. Newer "C0" or "fluorine-free" DWR finishes exist and are explicitly PFAS-free.
- "Teflon" and "Scotchgard" are brand-name finishes that have historically been fluorinated. Reformulated versions exist, but if the product page doesn't specify, assume PFAS until proven otherwise.
- "Performance fabric" is vague but often correlates — it's industry shorthand for a treated synthetic.
- Fiber content alone won't tell you. A "100% organic cotton" garment can still be treated with PFAS as a topical finish. Conversely, an untreated polyester shirt has no PFAS even though it has other concerns (microplastic shedding).
The Water Drop Test
If you already own a garment and want a rough at-home check, the Ecology Center recommends a simple water drop test. PFAS treatments cause the fabric to strongly repel water — a droplet dropped onto a PFAS-treated fabric will bead up, roll around, and typically leave no residue, while a droplet dropped onto an untreated fabric will soak in.
One important caveat: a positive water drop result doesn't definitively prove PFAS. Wool is naturally water-repellent, and newer non-PFAS treatments (like C0 DWR or wax-based finishes) can also cause beading. But for an unlabeled cotton or polyester garment, strong beading is a reasonable warning sign.
How to Avoid PFAS When Shopping
The honest answer is that complete avoidance is hard — PFAS are present in too many product categories for any single rule to cover everything. But you can dramatically reduce exposure with a handful of habits:
1. Reframe what you actually need. Most of us don't truly need stain-resistant pants for an office job, or fully waterproof leggings for a yoga class. When the performance claim isn't load-bearing, skip it.
2. Skip products marketed as stain- or water-resistant when possible. The Ecology Center is direct on this: the simplest way to avoid PFAS in clothing is to avoid products marketed as stain- or water-resistant. This single filter removes a huge slice of your exposure.
3. Prioritize untreated natural fibers. Cotton, linen, hemp, wool, and silk are inherently absorbent and almost never need chemical treatments to function. NEWMOA recommends untreated natural fibers like cotton, linen, wool, hemp, and silk as alternatives when possible.
4. Look for explicit "PFAS-free" labeling. This includes the phrases PFAS-free, PFC-free, fluorocarbon-free, and C0 DWR. A brand that says nothing about its chemistry isn't necessarily using PFAS — but a brand that explicitly markets PFAS-free has typically done the work to verify it.
5. Prioritize next-to-skin items first. If you're not going to overhaul everything at once, start with the layers in closest contact with your body for the longest periods of time: underwear, base layers, leggings, sports bras, kids' pajamas, and bedding. Then work outward.
6. Use certifications as a shortcut. Look for GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard), which prohibits PFAS in certified products; OEKO-TEX Standard 100, which tests for harmful substances including specific PFAS compounds; bluesign, which evaluates chemical inputs across the supply chain; and MADE SAFE, which screens against an explicit list of harmful chemicals including PFAS.
7. Be skeptical of marketing claims without backup. "Eco" and "natural" mean nothing legally. "PFAS-free" backed by a certification means something. The difference matters.
Safer Fabric and Finish Alternatives
Avoiding PFAS doesn't mean giving up on water-resistant or durable clothing — it means choosing fabrics and chemistries that achieve those properties differently. There are two paths: untreated natural fibers, and PFAS-free finishes when treatment is genuinely needed.
Untreated Natural Fibers
For most everyday wear, untreated natural fibers do the job without any chemical finish at all. Each has different strengths:
The general rule: for everyday wear, untreated natural fibers cover most needs without any added chemistry. Where they fall short is in technical performance — sustained rain, high-output activity in wet weather, gear meant for demanding outdoor conditions. That's where PFAS-free finishes come in.
PFAS-Free Finishes and Chemistries
When water resistance is actually needed, there are now multiple PFAS-free alternatives on the market. bluesign explains that there is a wide range of waterborne products available, including polyurethane-based, polyacrylate-based, wax-based, and silicone-based repellents, and they're applied using the same equipment as conventional PFAS treatments.
Categories to look for:
- Polyurethane and polyacrylate-based DWRs (often marketed as "C0" finishes). Effective for moderate water repellency. Don't bioaccumulate.
- Wax-based coatings. Beeswax, soy wax, and waxed cotton are time-tested alternatives. Patagonia, Filson, and a number of heritage brands use waxed cotton for outerwear.
- Silicone-based repellents. Effective and PFAS-free, though performance can vary.
- Plant-derived and chitosan-based treatments. Newer chemistries derived from plant polymers and (interestingly) crustacean shells offer water and stain resistance with biodegradability.
- Engineered fabric construction. Some of the most promising alternatives skip chemical treatment entirely. Tightly woven natural fibers (densely spun wool, ventile cotton) can achieve water resistance through structure alone.
The honest caveat from the industry — and from bluesign — is that performance varies by chemistry, application method, and fabric construction. For severe wet conditions (mountaineering, severe rain protection), PFAS-free alternatives are catching up but aren't always at parity. For everyday use, they're more than enough.
Let Wove check for PFAS concerns.
The Wove Score grades clothing A–F based on fiber content, microplastic risk, and PFAS concerns — so you can shop with confidence.
Download the app →Regulation Is Catching Up
If you've felt like awareness of PFAS in clothing has accelerated in the last year or two, it's not your imagination. The regulatory landscape is shifting fast — and the direction of travel is clear.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's PFAS in Apparel Law, codified at Section 37-0121 of the Environmental Conservation Law, prohibits the sale of apparel containing PFAS as intentionally added chemicals beginning January 1, 2025. The law covers a sweeping range of items including undergarments, shirts, pants, dresses, leisurewear, formal wear, onesies, and bibs. Outdoor apparel for severe wet conditions follows by 2028.
California's AB 1817 takes a similar approach — restricting PFAS in textile articles starting January 1, 2025, with tightening thresholds for total organic fluorine. Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Washington, and others are layering on their own restrictions.
Even where you live isn't covered by a state ban, the practical effect on national brands is significant: many large retailers — REI is one prominent example — have publicly committed to phasing out PFAS rather than maintain split product lines for different states. The category is moving, not because every shopper has demanded it, but because regulators and a critical mass of brands have decided it's not worth defending.
The takeaway for shoppers: you're not asking for something fringe. You're asking for something the industry itself has started conceding is the right direction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is PFAS in clothing?
PFAS — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — are a class of more than 14,000 human-made chemicals used in textiles to provide water, oil, and stain repellency. They're often called "forever chemicals" because the carbon-fluorine bond at their core makes them extremely persistent in the environment and the human body. In clothing, they typically appear as a surface coating (DWR finish), as an additive within synthetic fibers, or as part of a waterproof membrane like Gore-Tex.
How can I tell if my clothing has PFAS?
The most reliable signal is marketing language: items labeled waterproof, water-resistant, stain-resistant, stain-proof, easy-care, wrinkle-free, or DWR-finished are likely to contain PFAS. Chemical finishes aren't required to be disclosed on labels in the US, so you're often reading between the lines. As a quick at-home test, the Ecology Center recommends placing a water droplet on the fabric — strong beading suggests a repellent finish, while absorption suggests untreated fabric.
Are PFAS in clothing harmful?
Research has linked PFAS exposure to immune system effects, hormone disruption, fertility issues, thyroid problems, and certain cancers. The risk from any single garment is low, but PFAS bioaccumulate — meaning exposure from clothing, water, food packaging, cosmetics, and other sources adds up over time. They also don't break down in the environment, so wearing and washing PFAS-treated clothing contributes to broader contamination of water and soil.
What clothing is most likely to contain PFAS?
The categories with the highest likelihood are: rain jackets and waterproof outerwear, ski and snow gear, activewear with moisture-wicking claims, stain-resistant pants and uniforms, school uniforms, and children's clothing marketed as wipeable or mess-proof. One study cited by NEWMOA found 100% of water- or stain-resistant children's clothing items tested contained PFAS.
How do I find PFAS-free clothing?
Look for explicit labels — PFAS-free, PFC-free, fluorocarbon-free, or C0 DWR finish. Use certifications as shortcuts: GOTS prohibits PFAS in certified organic cotton, OEKO-TEX Standard 100 tests for specific PFAS compounds, bluesign evaluates supply-chain chemistry, and MADE SAFE screens against PFAS by name. Prioritizing untreated natural fibers (cotton, linen, hemp, wool, silk) for everyday wear is the simplest path.
Is a DWR finish always PFAS?
Historically, almost all DWR (durable water repellent) finishes were PFAS-based. That's changing. "C0" DWR or "fluorine-free DWR" finishes are explicitly PFAS-free, typically using polyurethane, polyacrylate, wax, or silicone chemistries. If a brand advertises a DWR finish without specifying C0 or fluorine-free, assume it's PFAS until confirmed otherwise.
Does washing remove PFAS from clothing?
Washing reduces but does not eliminate PFAS — and there's a real downside: each wash releases PFAS into wastewater. As NEWMOA notes, when PFAS-containing textiles are washed, some of the PFAS exits in the wash water, which is then discharged into the sewer or septic system. Wastewater treatment plants generally cannot remove PFAS, so it eventually enters surface water and drinking water. The most effective intervention is at the point of purchase, not the point of laundry.
What fabrics don't use PFAS?
Untreated natural fibers — cotton, linen, hemp, wool, silk — are the safest categories. Organic versions (GOTS-certified organic cotton in particular) explicitly prohibit PFAS in processing. Synthetic fibers like polyester and nylon don't inherently contain PFAS, but they're far more likely to be surface-treated with PFAS-based DWR or stain finishes, so the synthetic vs. natural distinction often correlates with the PFAS distinction in practice.